Promaster Infinity Elite?--Vortex Diamondback? (1 Viewer)

My neighbor needs a decent pair of binos for hunting, but doesn't have much of a budget. I might talk him into spending $200, or even help him out a little(I'm just thankful I'm not the one with a wife and three kids at home:king.
I happened on to some info for the Promasters while searching on the Bushnell Infinity that reminded me he needed some budget bins.
A search here turned up a couple of threads with few, but positive, comments.

Saw some comments about newer Promaster models having been better than earlier ones. Apparently there was an Infinity line that is being replaced by an Infinity Elite model. Maybe that is the difference.
Here is a page that features this brand:
http://www.webnotable.com/agptu/Catalog/index.asp?action=ViewCategory&CategoryID=81
The specs are pretty impressive. Wide angle FOVs, good close focus, decent eye relief, lightweight, nitrogen sealed, shockproof, waterproof, fogproof, phase corrected, and FMC plus some other kind of coating that's supposed to repel rain or dust.

Hopefully someone here has one of these, and can give some specifics.
Do the twistup eyecups have detents, or are they an all or nothing kind of thing?
Can you give impressions of how they compare to some of the popular binos like the Nikon Monarch? If you can compare to something like the Browning 8x32 or Pentax DCF SP, that would be great.
How well do they handle glare/low angle sunlight?
The FOV specs 7.5*/8x42, 8.1*/8x32, and 6.3*/10x42 really jumped out at me.

Just realized as I finished typing this, that these are similar to the Vortex Diamondbacks which are about the same price, and have even wider FOVs. Comments on those are welcome as well, particularly any about how these two compare.
Thanks.

edit: btw, same questions for the Diamondbacks as for the Promasters

Here is one of the best low priced binoculars made. It has everything you are looking for. There is also a 6 x 30 version for low light and brushy conditions. It's made by a company that specializes in hunting optics.

http://www.eagleoptics.com/index.asp?pid=4852

Bob

Thanks. I recommended that he give the Yosemite a look, but did so reluctantly.
I've seen all the rave reviews, but they are cheaply constructed, the ergos were horrible for me, and the one I looked at was a lemon that wouldn't focus at any distance. I am going to give them a second chance, since I'd like to get a friend's daughters a couple of the red ones before football season.
Anyway, I hope he'll be willing to pay for something a little better made, since they could potentially be treated roughly, and would be a bit of a long term investment.
Pains me to say it, since I find the Nikon Monarch rather underwhelming, but I'm really just hoping to find something equivalent to the Monarch, but for less $$.
The Yosemite may indeed be all he is willing to pay for, though.

At that price, quality control problems will likely crop up more often than in more expensive binoculars. Eagle has an outstanding return policy, in that event. My 6 x 30's are excellent and really tough. My brother is abusing them now, and they are still working fine!
Bob

I have two pair of the Yosemite 6x30. First pair purchased about 1 yr. ago. 2nd pair purchased this month. No QC issues with either.

Checked out two "natural" colored Yosemites today at Academy Sports. 6x30 and 8x30, side by side. They felt a lot better in hand than I remembered. Not sure why I got a negative impression of the ergonomics before.
I had hoped to compare the differences in magnification, AFOV and FOV but couldn't because they were both so far out of alignment that the images wouldn't merge. That's 3 out of 3 that I've tried.
I wouldn't pay shipping on a free one, so I hope that if I see the word Yosemite again in this thread, it's about how well an Infinity Elite, Diamondback, or similar roof prism did or didn't work at Yosemite National Park.

Also took the opportunity to give the Monarch another look. 10x42 as opposed to the 8x42s I've looked at before. Contrast sucked, and they managed to look dim inside an overly lit store, though the image was reasonably sharp, and stayed that way almost to the edge. Still wouldn't pay anywhere close to retail for them.


Promaster, Diamondback feedback...anyone?

OwenM said:

Promaster, Diamondback feedback...anyone?

Click to expand...

Have you considered doing a keyword search in the binoculars subforum? I just did that for "diamondback" and found this thread with an extensive user review: http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=83603&highlight=diamondback

Hope this helps,
Jim

Thank you for the link, Jim.
I've read about the Diamondbacks, and the Stokes Talon, but there wasn't much about the Promasters, which were the motivation for starting this thread.
I really just want to come up with a list of decent binoculars that my friend could check out. He has several months to decide on something.
Worst comes to worst, I'll send my old Steiners in for a refurb, and give them to him. My best friend borrowed them for a season, and ended up buying a different model(Predators), but said they were fine.