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Nikon Monarch 7 8x30 new with some unpainted internals. Normal? (pics) (1 Viewer)

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averian

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I'm quite new to binoculars so I'm hoping the far more knowledgeable folks here might chime in on if the new Nikon Monarch 7 8x30 bins I just purchased are totally normal or if I should seek out a replacement (serial number 281XX).

I love the bright/wide/sharp view out, but I do notice some flare. Researching a bit on the forum brought up a number of past threads on potentially unpainted parts with this model that could lead to greater flare than intended. However I have no idea what is normal inside a binocular in terms of painting parts black...are all these parts supposed to be black?

I notice three areas that appear to be unpainted. Looking down the objectives, the first is a white looking circle a few mm wide after some baffles. Further down, the second area shows a bare metal looking ring before the prism. Furthest down almost at the very end of the bins is an unpainted metal plate that appears to form the pupil (it almost looks black in the pics, but it is shiny metal, in my other bins that area is definitely painted black).

I tried to point out the unpainted areas with rudimentary white arrows. I'd love any input you all have since I don't have another copy to compare against and I ultimately have no idea what the internals are actually supposed to look like. Is this copy normal and fine?
 

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Hi - and welcome to the forum. :)
Your Monarch 7s look completely normal to me - at least, they're identical in interior treatment to those I've handled and the pair that I own.

Like you, I enjoy the wide and remarkably clear view through these, but they can be a bit troublesome against the light - like when viewing against a strong, low sun in winter. I've often thought that with a bit better interior blacking, (including lens edges), the M7s would offer a superb view, but it'd probably increase the price a fair bit.

I think that if you sent back for a replacement pair, the ones you'd get back would be identical in this regard, and there's always the risk with variation between samples of binoculars at this price level, that the pair you got back might not be as sharp.
 
That is exactly how the insides and exit pupil of my Monarch 7 8X30 looks. The insides are better than some and not as good as others. I'd say the insides are slightly better than the average $300 32mm binocular. I'd also say the exit pupil characteristics are about average for a $300 32mm binocular. Binoculars that I have that show a good bit of improvement in both areas are the d/c Vortex Viper HD and the Conquest HD 32mm binoculars and in that order.
 

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The interior views looks like mine too. It does show some veiling glare when looking in the general direction of the sun as Mando notes but this is something that will likely happen with most binoculars in this price range.

Bob
 
averian said:
I'm quite new to binoculars so I'm hoping the far more knowledgeable folks here might chime in on if the new Nikon Monarch 7 8x30 bins I just purchased are totally normal or if I should seek out a replacement (serial number 281XX).

I love the bright/wide/sharp view out, but I do notice some flare. Researching a bit on the forum brought up a number of past threads on potentially unpainted parts with this model that could lead to greater flare than intended. However I have no idea what is normal inside a binocular in terms of painting parts black...are all these parts supposed to be black?

I notice three areas that appear to be unpainted. Looking down the objectives, the first is a white looking circle a few mm wide after some baffles. Further down, the second area shows a bare metal looking ring before the prism. Furthest down almost at the very end of the bins is an unpainted metal plate that appears to form the pupil (it almost looks black in the pics, but it is shiny metal, in my other bins that area is definitely painted black).

I tried to point out the unpainted areas with rudimentary white arrows. I'd love any input you all have since I don't have another copy to compare against and I ultimately have no idea what the internals are actually supposed to look like. Is this copy normal and fine?
Click to expand...

Unpainted reflections seen from the front are nearly always harmless. It's the internal reflections seen through the eyepiece near the edge of the exit pupil that cause glare problems, particularly in small exit pupil binoculars

It's well established that the Nikon 8x30 M7 has a bright unbaffled ring of non image forming light just outside the exit pupil. Your photo shows it as well as the image from Allbino's review below. That one little ring is the source of the whole problem. The other reflections are too far from the exit pupil to matter. I would describe the M7 as offering well below average resistance to veiling glare, although I'm not sure there is an "average". Correctly baffled binoculars don't have a problem at all, but among poorly baffled binoculars some are worse than others.
 

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henry link said:
I would describe the M7 as offering well below average resistance to veiling glare, although I'm not sure there is an "average". Correctly baffled binoculars don't have a problem at ll, but among poorly baffled binoculars some are worse than others.
Click to expand...

Hi,

nicely put... unfortunately correctly baffled modern 8x30 pairs are rather rare ;-)

Joachim
 
Brilliant, thank you all for the very informative replies. Glad to hear my copy seems normal. It sounds like some compromises had to be made to hit this size/wide view/cost/etc.

I'm quite impressed with the little Nikon's all things considered. They're wildly easier to use than my previous pair of binoculars which were 10x25 dual hinge compacts. I suspect I'll still need to work on getting my eye placement just right in more demanding lighting conditions, but I think I can live with that.
 
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