Rain and specs? (1 Viewer)

Hello all,

I preferably do my birding in nice weather, but showers or drizzle cannot always be avoided of course. I wear specs and my FL 7x42 is waterproof and I make use of the rainguard.

No problems with the bino's here, but to keep a clear vision I have to put on some sort of cap to keep the rain off my specs. Unfortunately the position of the focus wheel is such that I can't reach it under the brim of a cap so I have to shove it up my forehead when I'm using the bins.
Especially on windy days I loose a cap easily this way.

Are there any solutions for this problem? How do al you other spec-people do this?

I remember an Optolyth Royal 7x42 having two focus wheels, one usual and another one on the objective side of the central hinge; I believe they still do make these, 8x56 en 9x63, for hunters with hats.

Should we perhaps want new models of Zeiss, Leica, Swaro etc. with double focus wheels, or could we cope with the problem?
Any thoughts, any tips please?

Greetings,

Ronald Sinoo

My guess is that you just need a hat with a more flexible brim. I wear a hat 100% of the time while birding to help shade the oculars (in lieu of the eyecups working the way they otherwise would if I didn't wear glasses), but I never have trouble focusing any of my binos. I've always been partial to the "boonie hat" -- the ones made for the military only cost about $12, they are reasonably waterproof if treated right, they have a strap for when it's windy, they fold/roll up to pack away, and they last for years.
--AP

Alexis Powell said:

My guess is that you just need a hat with a more flexible brim. I wear a hat 100% of the time while birding to help shade the oculars (in lieu of the eyecups working the way they otherwise would if I didn't wear glasses), but I never have trouble focusing any of my binos. I've always been partial to the "boonie hat" -- the ones made for the military only cost about $12, they are reasonably waterproof if treated right, they have a strap for when it's windy, they fold/roll up to pack away, and they last for years.
--AP

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Alexis,

That sounds good; I'll go and check out the local dump store.
The only double focus wheel bins I have come across are not waterproof, besides I would not go out without my FL's.
Thanks!

Ronald

Alexis Powell said:

I've always been partial to the "boonie hat" -- the ones made for the military only cost about $12, they are reasonably waterproof if treated right, they have a strap for when it's windy, they fold/roll up to pack away, and they last for years.
--AP

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Sounds interesting. But could you be more specific for the uninitiated, please? I have no idea what this hat looks like and where I could get it from abroad. Thanks.

Swissboy said:

Sounds interesting. But could you be more specific for the uninitiated, please? I have no idea what this hat looks like and where I could get it from abroad. Thanks.

Click to expand...

If you type boonie hat into google, you will find it with images. It's nothing special, just a regular cap with a brim all around.
--AP

Alexis Powell said:

My guess is that you just need a hat with a more flexible brim.

Click to expand...

I wear this hat in the winter. In the summer I wear either a baseball cap (not so handy because of the stiff brim), a hat called the Sandon, made by Toggi, which is just an upmarket version of the boonie, or a cheap Panama (not handy in any way).

Michael.

Check out www.noggintops.com. Good selections there!
Bob

Hi Ronald,

the old idea of Optolyth with 2 focus wheels which I think they still use with their most recent Vianova series is a good example of how good ergonomics work. Give more possibilities of using things for the people or let the people decide how they use a function!
A 7x42 has excellent DOF, so once focussed at infinity your bino should useable from about 20 m to infinity without any need of refocussing. Another possibility is to use the bino the other way round which enables the use of the thumbs for focussing.
Some binos like the pocket series of Swarovski and Nikon and also the 8x30 Swaro SLC have the focus wheel at the objective´s side. With the EL series of Swarovski the focus wheel should also at reach for the thumbs from the side beneath.

Steve

hinnark said:

Hi Ronald,

the old idea of Optolyth with 2 focus wheels which I think they still use with their most recent Vianova series is a good example of how good ergonomics work. Give more possibilities of using things for the people or let the people decide how they use a function!
A 7x42 has excellent DOF, so once focussed at infinity your bino should useable from about 20 m to infinity without any need of refocussing. Another possibility is to use the bino the other way round which enables the use of the thumbs for focussing.
Some binos like the pocket series of Swarovski and Nikon and also the 8x30 Swaro SLC have the focus wheel at the objective´s side. With the EL series of Swarovski the focus wheel should also at reach for the thumbs from the side beneath.

Steve

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Yes, good ergonomics work, I agree with you. Many years ago, I liked the Optolyth 7x42 for their ergonomics, but I didn't like the optics, so I returned them.
I've seen the Vianova on the Optolyth website, but I think it has only 1 focuswheel somewhere halfway the central hinge, but maybe I missed some of the newer models. I will check it out.
DOF on the FL's 7x42 is fine, but it's just that my eyes want even more comfort nowadays...
O, I liked your suggestion of putting the bins upside down; I actually had a pair in the past which I used in this way, but for another reason: the focus wheel was so stiff I had to press the bins against the brim of my cap to turn the focus wheel with BOTH thumbs. I hate stiff focus wheels on bins since, I don't buy them no matter how excellent the optics are.

I have tried the Swaro 8x20 before I chose the FL's, but they were too small to be comfortable; the Nikon 10x25 I have thought of, they may be just big enough to use under the brim of a cap; I could even imagine that pressing them firmly against the brim of a cap with the focus wheel peeping out I might get a steadier view, but for now it's just theory. I will try them though in the future, since they get such good reviews all the time.

The Swaro SLC 8x30 I tried and owned shortly in the past, but I returned them because I found the optics not comfortable to my eyes. Hm, the EL's...I don't know: I tried the EL's 8.5x42 last year, but suffered major blackouts so lost my interest.

It seems I have to find a decent cap that can make my FL's work and at the same time keeps the rain from my glasses. For now, I use a black cap with a shortish brim like sailors wear, it's OK but not ideal. But I AM enjoying my FL's, there's no mistake about that!

Greetings, Ronald

Alexis Powell said:

If you type boonie hat into google, you will find it with images. It's nothing special, just a regular cap with a brim all around.
--AP

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Thank you AP, I should have thought of that! It turns out that is the type of hat I am using, though usually one of the narrow brim type.

ceasar said:

Check out www.noggintops.com. Good selections there!
Bob

Click to expand...

Thanks, that would be the fancier type, I guess. I prefer a hat that I can stuff into my pocket if I don't need it. So it has to be more of a softish cloth type.

I wrote earlier that the boonie hat was nothing special, but actually it is different from some similarly styled caps (especially many that are more expensive) in a key way with respect to binocular use under the brim. Although the brim of the boonie hat is reasonably stiff, its connection to the rest of the cap is quite flexible, so it readily bends/folds upwards and out of the way.
--AP