Hi everyone! New to the forum. I’ve been interested in picking up some new binoculars in the 8x42 range (my first real pair) and have some questions. I recently picked up some Nikon pro staff 3’s to see how I would like them. They were okay but nothing special but not horrible either. I ended up sending them back and ordering the vortex diamondbacks and thought they were a bit better and sharper but had a lot of pin cushioning and rather blurry edges. Build quality was very nice though. Still not happy with the performance I was after I too sent them back and ordered the Nikon Monarch 7s. They are very nice and I loved the way they feel in my hands. They feel like great quality even though they are produced in China. I did notice the ocular lens would fog up sometimes when held up to my eyes. I didn’t have this occur with the others I’ve tried. I also happened to notice when the rear lens fogged up it had some weird spots on the ocular lens. I tried cleaning the lens with some lens cleaner but it made no difference. For the price I decided to send the back thinking maybe it was a defect in the coating. It might be normal for all I know lol but don’t want to chance it if it was a problem. I should have taken a pic but unfortunately I didn’t before sending them back.
I guess my questions are should I order another pair of the Nikon’s or try something else? I have a budget of about $500 But can stretch it to about $700 if need be. I really don’t want to go beyond that price point if I can help it.
I’ve been doing a lot of reading and happen to come across the Tract Toric‘s. The few reviews I found on them seem really positive. I was wondering if they really are worth the $200 over the Nikons? The little smaller of fov on the Toric doesn’t really bother me to much but I don’t want to go below that fov as I did the enjoy the wider fov of the Monarch’s. What really matters to me is the optics. I want a pin sharp and clear view with little edge distortion and hopefully not much pin cushioning. The view from the Nikon was really good but I felt like it could be better for the money. I felt like I had a hard time getting them in perfect focus and would have to play with the focus wheel a lot to get them in the sweet spot. Other than Fiddling with the focus I really did like them. Enough so that I would probably try another pair. I thought about the vortex vipers but they really don’t interest me to much and the reviews seem up and down depending on what you read.
If you have used both I love to know your thoughts on which one you liked better. Any help or input would be great appreciated.
Thanks,
Mark
I guess my questions are should I order another pair of the Nikon’s or try something else? I have a budget of about $500 But can stretch it to about $700 if need be. I really don’t want to go beyond that price point if I can help it.
I’ve been doing a lot of reading and happen to come across the Tract Toric‘s. The few reviews I found on them seem really positive. I was wondering if they really are worth the $200 over the Nikons? The little smaller of fov on the Toric doesn’t really bother me to much but I don’t want to go below that fov as I did the enjoy the wider fov of the Monarch’s. What really matters to me is the optics. I want a pin sharp and clear view with little edge distortion and hopefully not much pin cushioning. The view from the Nikon was really good but I felt like it could be better for the money. I felt like I had a hard time getting them in perfect focus and would have to play with the focus wheel a lot to get them in the sweet spot. Other than Fiddling with the focus I really did like them. Enough so that I would probably try another pair. I thought about the vortex vipers but they really don’t interest me to much and the reviews seem up and down depending on what you read.
If you have used both I love to know your thoughts on which one you liked better. Any help or input would be great appreciated.
Thanks,
Mark