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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

That of which shall not be spoken...... (1 Viewer)

C

CliveP

Well-known member
Or shall it.

Yes you all guessed it didn't you?

Or did you?

The MONOCULAR of course 8-P

Sorry about all that. I blame it on this wine and the Australians whatever they did to it B :)


I never owned a monocular but am thinking to maybe get one that I might be able to have in a pocket when out and about when I don't have even small bins along like my 8x20 RSPB HD or the Hawke 10x25 endurance that are still, still, still...... still.... still..... (you get the picture) yet to arrive.

So what are these strange monocular things and since I have never come across any mention of them here I'm assuming not a lot of fans about but then again there may be some gems of info available.

I'm currently wide open to suggestions although I am looking at a specific model which is very compact and I've been doing a bit of one eye testing with my various compact bins which wasn't so nice but this compact monocular I'm looking at does focus very close and have a pretty wide wide fov and yet I am still wondering would it really be any use. I think it's a good brand from Japan.

So there it is. I'm currently bidding on auction so don't want to give to many clues just yet but are there any suggestions of what might be good in the way of a small pocket monocular if you please?

Thank God 2015 is nearly over, I mean Happyville New Year !
 
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I tried 'em, Clive, for the reasons you suggest. Had an Opticron DBA Oasis and a Leica Monovid. They didn't work for me. Pocket compacts are better. Two eyes, two hands, steadier. Maljunolo is right. Save your money.
 
Maljunulo said:
Hard to hold steady, and you give up a lot of signal processing in the brain by using only one eye.
Click to expand...

Yes from my one eye bin experimenting it seems as though two eyes somehow increases the magnification or something also. I think I definitely prefer bins.

If I win this on auction it will be an introduction for me. I almost hope I don't or don't like it or don't find it useful in case it starts another optics buying spree.

I always find with auctions that good things aren't normally for sale which always made me wonder about the steady stream of "alpha" bins for sale even though I sold all of mine. Probably same reason as with myself though and that was sudden income reduction or SIR to the overlords.
 
6x 1000m monocular range finder...Hardest optic to stabilize I ever tried using! :eek!:

My go-to very small pocket bi-nocular is the Nikon 8x25 Trailblazer...light, waterproof, sharp, all with descent eye comfort!
 
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Hi,

I prefer a light 8x20 or 10x25 to always have in my backpack - half a pound is not really an issue. Currently it's my Conquest 10x25 which I enjoyed when visiting family and having a walk on the lakeshore with lots of ducks and geese.

Happy new year,

Joachim
 
Monoculars are wonderful, compact and yet capable. It is just that there is a price to pay for those features.
The 6-8x20 format is imho the right size for a monocular. Any bigger sacrifices the size advantage that is the key benefit.
My personal preference would be for a Zeiss 6x20, compact, robust and with decent FoV. The higher power 8X20s from Leica and Zeiss are less comfortable to use, but still small enough to carry anywhere.
Zeiss has a soft zipper case, much more portable than the huge hard leather case Leica provides which also carries the close up lens.
In the real world, monoculars and cases don't go together, as the case just adds bulk.
Do note that there are numerous worthless 8x21 monoculars on the market, wretched optics not even suitable for the golfers to whom they are peddled.
Your bare eyes will serve you better than those.
 
CliveP said:
Or shall it.

Yes you all guessed it didn't you?

Or did you?

The MONOCULAR of course 8-P

Sorry about all that. I blame it on this wine and the Australians whatever they did to it B :)


I never owned a monocular but am thinking to maybe get one that I might be able to have in a pocket when out and about when I don't have even small bins along like my 8x20 RSPB HD or the Hawke 10x25 endurance that are still, still, still...... still.... still..... (you get the picture) yet to arrive.

So what are these strange monocular things and since I have never come across any mention of them here I'm assuming not a lot of fans about but then again there may be some gems of info available.

I'm currently wide open to suggestions although I am looking at a specific model which is very compact and I've been doing a bit of one eye testing with my various compact bins which wasn't so nice but this compact monocular I'm looking at does focus very close and have a pretty wide wide fov and yet I am still wondering would it really be any use. I think it's a good brand from Japan.

So there it is. I'm currently bidding on auction so don't want to give to many clues just yet but are there any suggestions of what might be good in the way of a small pocket monocular if you please?

Thank God 2015 is nearly over, I mean Happyville New Year !
Click to expand...
Get the Docter 8x21 monocular. I have one and love it. The big advantage is it folds to a compact size and it is easier to hold steady and it is a porro-prism design and made in Germany NOT CHINA!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf8pJQwTuOI
http://www.browe-inc.com/products/DOCTER-8x21-Monocular.html
 
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CliveP said:
Or shall it.

Yes you all guessed it didn't you?

Or did you?

The MONOCULAR of course 8-P

Sorry about all that. I blame it on this wine and the Australians whatever they did to it B :)


I never owned a monocular but am thinking to maybe get one that I might be able to have in a pocket when out and about when I don't have even small bins along like my 8x20 RSPB HD or the Hawke 10x25 endurance that are still, still, still...... still.... still..... (you get the picture) yet to arrive.

So what are these strange monocular things and since I have never come across any mention of them here I'm assuming not a lot of fans about but then again there may be some gems of info available.

I'm currently wide open to suggestions although I am looking at a specific model which is very compact and I've been doing a bit of one eye testing with my various compact bins which wasn't so nice but this compact monocular I'm looking at does focus very close and have a pretty wide wide fov and yet I am still wondering would it really be any use. I think it's a good brand from Japan.

So there it is. I'm currently bidding on auction so don't want to give to many clues just yet but are there any suggestions of what might be good in the way of a small pocket monocular if you please?

Thank God 2015 is nearly over, I mean Happyville New Year !
Click to expand...

Eye, for one, am for monoculars and will eat anyone who is not! Arghhhhhh.....

A Happy Valley New Year! Well, not that happy, I was disinvited to a New Year's party, because the hostess changed her mind about holding it at her townhouse for fear of drinks, snacks and vomitus ruining her newly cleaned carpet. So it looks like it's just me, Ryan Seacrest, Taylor Swift, and a six-pack of Dos Equis ringing in the New Year. B :)
 

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We have Jennifer Lawrence in a very short skirt and tipsy on whisky. Also Mark Wahlberg, but Jennifer is prettier.

And fireworks next door.

No parties for me, that's how I like it.

Happy New Year
 
etudiant said:
Monoculars are wonderful, compact and yet capable. It is just that there is a price to pay for those features.
The 6-8x20 format is imho the right size for a monocular. Any bigger sacrifices the size advantage that is the key benefit.
My personal preference would be for a Zeiss 6x20, compact, robust and with decent FoV. The higher power 8X20s from Leica and Zeiss are less comfortable to use, but still small enough to carry anywhere.
Zeiss has a soft zipper case, much more portable than the huge hard leather case Leica provides which also carries the close up lens.
In the real world, monoculars and cases don't go together, as the case just adds bulk.
Do note that there are numerous worthless 8x21 monoculars on the market, wretched optics not even suitable for the golfers to whom they are peddled.
Your bare eyes will serve you better than those.
Click to expand...

Thanks, this is kind of along the lines I was thinking and reflects pretty much what I'm bidding on. I will reveal my choice later when I see how things go.

Was also thinking it may be useful to take along with this 10x25 I'm waiting on or just to have in a pocket when out with my 8x32/43 for some macro use.

There are a lot on offer so I assume a lot of people do have them. Seem popular with hikers for trail spotting and there seems to be a whole market for folks with sight problems. I definitely carry bins if I know I'm going nature viewing but lately I have been caught out with nothing with me and I don't want to carry even an 8x20 with me always so perhaps a good little monocular would fill that gap.

I was looking at the Minox but rare and perhaps not the best bargain available shall we say;)
 
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brocknroller said:
Eye, for one, am for monoculars and will eat anyone who is not! Arghhhhhh.....

A Happy Valley New Year! Well, not that happy, I was disinvited to a New Year's party, because the hostess changed her mind about holding it at her townhouse for fear of drinks, snacks and vomitus ruining her newly cleaned carpet. So it looks like it's just me, Ryan Seacrest, Taylor Swift, and a six-pack of Dos Equis ringing in the New Year. B :)
Click to expand...

Get a load of this Brock8-P

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0074crk/the-mighty-boosh-series-1-1-killeroo

Best nature documentary there is 3:)
 
This is a binocular forum which makes all of this monocular talk completely off topic and should be moved to the pit of ruffled feathered Rats. :smoke:

Having said that, a while back I took to some IF Chinese military type bins with a large handheld grinder with a view to making a pair of monoculars. The result was slightly frankenstinian...but it did work. I despise viewing through one eyeball but the kids thought it was going to be fun to have miniature little telescope things to play spy games with...I can say the novelty lasted about ten seconds.

I hope you didn't pay too much during your inebriated bidding B :):-O

Rathaus
 
Since a monocular is half a binocular this thread is only 50% off topic so compared with some threads and contributions it is sufficiently on topic to be tolerated especially during this season of goodwill to all.

If you have a hankering for extreme close-up observing then the Zeiss 6x18 is a cracker. It focuses down to 12" / 30cm so is brilliant for such eccentric pursuits as laying down and gazing into rock pools by the sea or shallow margins of pools, lakes and rivers. At closest focus the magnification is about 9x rather than the nominal 6x. The FOV of 120m is pretty good too but I very rarely use it for that type of observing which is definitely better using binoculars. There we are back on the bins wagon.

Lee
 
I must make that a New Year's resolution - to use a genuinely waterproof monocular with the objective held below the waterline in a tidal rockpool.

Opticron 5x30 perhaps? Although the minimum focus is 4m.

Best wishes,
 
Sobered up and lost the auction. Some-one else liked it more or had more spare cash to wave.

So it was a new Specwell 6x16 and I was intrigued by the 10deg fov. It went for £42 inc post and I think they normally cost £100 plus so some-one got a bargain but I stopped bidding as I wasn't completely sure of it's appeal to me.

Maybe I'll buy something similar used cheap to see first or else go for the Doctor 8x21 on Amazon. Definitely impressive all the review verdicts and it certainly is pocketable but no 10deg fov, down to 6.5.

Also tried one side of my Kowa SV 8x32 and that seemed as though it would make a good monocular but large.

A fortune for a Zeiss is unfortunately off the menu.

Specwell also do a 7x25 with 10deg (AFOV ~ 70?) a bit larger but that seems pretty appealing.

So, back to square one. Still got a bottle of Italian stuff (forgot the jargon).

Actually I'm just back from cycling around in the rain for about 4 hours to see how high the floods are, thanks Frank, storm Frank that is. It took so long because so many roads are flooded and I had to take detours. Not much interesting bird wise but luckily I live on high ground because it's still raining and due to keep raining for days and the water is already the highest I have ever seen here. Maybe it would normally have been snow and lay on the ground for a while. Global Warming? Warmest winter I ever recall.
 
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Not sure if the Specwell fields are as wide as stated, unless someone has measured them perhaps.

What about a Beechers Mirage?

You should possibly be bidding on a small boat.

P.S.
I have used a Helios Pocket Spy 8x21 folding monocular for years and it works well although I don't need glasses.
Cost £15 new.
 
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Yes maybe somebody better get an Ark started3:)

The wind was howling and the rain a battering down and next door in the local football stadium they were running around in shorts trying to spot the ball.

At night (after 4.30pm currently) with the floodlights it looks like something out of close encounters.

Speaking of specs, can this be true?

http://shopping.rspb.org.uk/rspb-8-x-20-hd-monocular.html

8x20 with 8.4deg so ~ 64 AFOV and it's waterproof. That's a big view?

Must have another go with my 8x20 HD bins with one eye closed but it's only 6.8 degs or so though it definitely has very good glass.

I'm in no rush as I still haven't even received the last bin I bought the 10x25 Hawke Endurance to see how that will fit into things. Maybe I'll even go off the monocular idea if it's any good or just stick with the 8x20 bin.

Actually quite interested to see how the Hawke Endurance 10x25 compares to the RSPB 8x20 which I already know is a great distance viewer. I'd say it should be close optically and I'm wondering about the size difference also but then it's 95m v 119m fov so for general viewing I expect the RSPB to be more pleasing plus it's about twice the price so theoretically it should be better in some way?
 
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