8x32 NL Pures vs SF 8x32 (1 Viewer)

[Bentley03]

Purely for sh1ts and giggles ... since you don't need glasses now, have a look through an old 10x50 porro, like a Zeiss Jena, if you can find one in good condition. If you don't need glasses a short eye relief binocular with a wide field of view, like many of those, might really suit you. The glass/plastic of your glasses is rarely, I think, as good as the glass in your optics: when I've tried looking through my old porros with glasses (just to see what they were like) I have always noted the image seemed darker. There are some pretty good older binoculars out there, and if you don't Upon need glasses the world is your oyster with those. You're welcome to try mine if you happen to be in Central London.

I shall certainly join you for some binocular testing (and with luck some Peregrine watching) in Central London at some point.

So, the opportunity to test and (hopefully) enjoy a whole world of binoculars I previously considered off limits dawned on me as soon as I realised my eyesight was now, overall, better without glasses than with. A FedEx parcel arrived from Japan last Thursday and I'm now head over heels in love with contents, my (bargain!) new Nikon 8x30 and 10x35 EII's (the 10x35's in particular). Then, on Monday, I spent the morning at Ace Optics in Bath and trawled through the used range of porros in the cabinet there, along with some interesting used roof prism bins too (including a front focus wheeled Bausch and Lomb 7x36 phase coated Elite I was rather taken with).

I'm also fascinated by the differences I'm finding in my existing binoculars when using them without glasses, compared to with. This isn't the right thread to go into all of that though.

Yes, I'm thoroughly enjoying the opportunities my shiny new eye is presenting me with, and I most certainly intend to explore the world of old (and new) porros for sh1ts and giggles, now that I can!

 

[Bentley03]

I compared these two recently. Ended up buying the NL 8x32s because the Zeiss didn't quite have enough eye relief for my glasses. Deal breaker!

Having seen marked rolling ball in the EL 8x32s, I was expecting to see RB in the NLs but didn't.
I did see RB in the Zeiss though which I also wasn't expecting.

Is that usually the case for others? I don't recalling reading about RB in the Zeiss anywhere. Perhaps my eyes are weird? 😄

With glasses, eye relief in the 8x32 SF's is very marginal for me, which I've never quite understood, because I can use an 8x32 Ultravid with equal (or even slightly more) comfort. Without glasses, I can really enjoy the SF's, although I do enjoy my 10x32 EL's a little more, as I find them far less finicky regarding eye placement, despite the smaller exit pupil. Fortunately, I'm not a rolling ball sufferer, so really can't comment on your potential eye weirdness!

 

[Boogieshrew]

Bentley03
in that case I shall have to ask my optometrist about potential eye weirdness 😂