I have yet to figure out what I want in a bin. I was looking for something compact, but then I looked at some Victory 8x40 B T P's today. They seemed real nice. Close out price of $750. I like the idea of buying locally where I can see and touch what I buy.
A few questions.
Is the price fair? (Only thing I have found in the forums is a closeout price of $500 from 2005)
How do these compare to Pentax 8x42 DCF WP's? Without a side by side comparision, the Zeiss seemed sharper and just balanced in my hands better. I will check it out again tomorrow with both bins, but I am interested in others opinions.
The salesman told me that Zeiss are more sensitive to cold fluctuations. for example, air conditioned house to hot summer day will give barrel distortions with resultant poor view. (I have never read that and take it as garbage!) Comments?
The Swarovski 8x30's had a bit of increased edge sharpness? Not worth the $450 price increase. They also did not seem lighter and were dimmer as expected. The 10x42 EL's were nicer, but no way can I buy those (Same for Zeiss FL's, for several reasons the most important being the added cost of surgery to remove the binos when my wife finds out the price). The Zeiss 10x30 Conquest were nice, and I think that the 8x30 (not available) would be a great size, but for only a price difference of $50 less than the Victories (at the store) or $100 (on the web), that just does not seem right.
Thanks for your opinions.
Mike
A few questions.
Is the price fair? (Only thing I have found in the forums is a closeout price of $500 from 2005)
How do these compare to Pentax 8x42 DCF WP's? Without a side by side comparision, the Zeiss seemed sharper and just balanced in my hands better. I will check it out again tomorrow with both bins, but I am interested in others opinions.
The salesman told me that Zeiss are more sensitive to cold fluctuations. for example, air conditioned house to hot summer day will give barrel distortions with resultant poor view. (I have never read that and take it as garbage!) Comments?
The Swarovski 8x30's had a bit of increased edge sharpness? Not worth the $450 price increase. They also did not seem lighter and were dimmer as expected. The 10x42 EL's were nicer, but no way can I buy those (Same for Zeiss FL's, for several reasons the most important being the added cost of surgery to remove the binos when my wife finds out the price). The Zeiss 10x30 Conquest were nice, and I think that the 8x30 (not available) would be a great size, but for only a price difference of $50 less than the Victories (at the store) or $100 (on the web), that just does not seem right.
Thanks for your opinions.
Mike