lvn600 said:
well I guess when someone asks for you opinion you don't beat around the bush.
How could i?
At 6.00 AM, every morning, i am at designated points in the grasslands of New Mexico, and i do 5 minute point counts. Think scanning on a 360 degree, looking at distant sparrows, and for half of those 360 the sun is right in your face. Sand dunes against the sun make things more interesting.
With my 12 year old 9.5 Celestron, old fashioned porro and non-waterproof, i can see the stripes on the head of a white-crowned sparrow perched on a grassblade 140 meters away, in the shadow of a sand dune and right against the sun. With premium roofs, Swarovski and Zeiss both 10x42/10x40, the lower half of the image is just white haze and blurr, while the upper half of the image shows only the dark outline of the sand dune. My Nikon EII 10x35 is lighter, sharper, brighter, and gives a more pleasant view than two separate pairs of Leica Trinovid 10x42 that i compared side by side. How do you call that?
Yeah, right, premium roofs last longer, and are waterproof to 5 meters. I couldn't care less, i don't use binoculars for scuba diving, and in many months in the tropics none of my porros fogged. Also, i take care of my binos, and don't use them for road building, so durability is not an issue for me. But yes, roofs are generally more durable. To what avail, if you don't see everything at all times?
All this is just another of those "i will get an SUV because they are safer".
Next week i will get the chance to take a new Zeiss FL 10x42 to work for the whole week. I will let you know.
On the other hand, $100-800 roofs are a waste of money.