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

Best marine binoculars? (1 Viewer)

V

VS007

Member
France
Hello all!
Trying to find the best binoculars for a sailing yacht.
Already own Steiner 7x50 commander and I don’t like it at all
I bought EL 10x42 it’s good but FOW sometimes is not enough and 10x is too much on the waves.
What do you recommend and why it is no alpha marine binoculars?
Thank you!
 
The yacht world has developed a fixation with IF 7x50 porros, most chandlers don't sell anything but.

Provided they are waterproof a pair of 7x42 roofs will do the maritime job just as well and be much more versatile when not at sea.
 
If you can, get your hands on a Zeiss 7x50 B/GA T.
For me, the best marine binocular ever.
And I think there is a reason why the boating world generally likes 7x50s: the right kind of magnification paired with a large exit pupil, which helps on the boat, esp. when the sea is not smooth (my own experience, ymmv).

By the way: ADMINISTRATORS, can you move this thread to „Others“?

Canip
 
Canip said:
If you can, get your hands on a Zeiss 7x50 B/GA T.
For me, the best marine binocular ever.
And I think there is a reason why the boating world generally likes 7x50s: the right kind of magnification paired with a large exit pupil, which helps on the boat, esp. when the sea is not smooth (my own experience, ymmv).

By the way: ADMINISTRATORS, can you move this thread to „Others“?

Canip
Click to expand...
Is it still in production?
 
Canon 10x42L IS.

I have seen various Canon IS binoculars used by navies.

Also Fujinon 14x40 stabilized.

Also a Komz 6x24 with 12.2 degree field.

Regards,
B.
 
I have always used a 7x50 on boats as they greatly improve my night vision out on the water. If I was buying one today it would be the Nikon OceanPro with the global compass (handier than holding a separate hockey puck style compass while checking a heading). The internal dashes in the display help with estimating distances.

I would be more inclined to buy two binos like these rather than depend on a single bino out at sea. I have never needed more image magnification than a 7x binocular provided, night or day.
 
Fifteen or so years ago I bought a pair of Canon 10x30’s for the occasional impromptu pelagic birding while sailing. Living on the boat it was inevitable they would be pressed into service as a marine bin and their usability for that purpose was a real eye opener. Locating distant day markers in sloppy conditions suddenly got way easier.
They seemed fine in the salty environment for the ten years they were on the boat. That is they were fine until the battery door and an eyecup went walkabout.
I was generally extra careful with them but they still got wet a fair few times.

The current primary marine bins on the boat are a pair of Maven 6x30’s.
I needed a new pair of back up birding bins so purchased the Maven’s and was delighted to find that they too were a great choice as the primary marine bin on the boat. The 30mm objective has not been a hindrance to its usefulness as a navigation instrument even in twilight conditions and the 6 power steadies things nicely.

I much prefer its light weight when compared to any of the traditional marine porro offerings. In bouncy seaways I can actually use them one handed while still hanging on for dear life.
One thing I do like about a lot of the 7x50 marine bins is the option of an inbuilt compass. In my current use case the process is, I locate the mark with the bins, put them down and bring the hand bearing compass up to my eye to take the bearing. Not too difficult but a compass supplied bin does it in one go.
Still, if I had the spare cash and was shopping around for a marine bin I would probably go with one of the more modern IS stabilized binoculars, especially as many of them now have decent waterproof ratings.
 
We have done a fair bit of sailing in the Baltic with my brothers' sailboat, much of it in offshore and coastal racing contexts. He has a Fujinon FMTR-CSX 7x50 on the boat, but I always take with my Canon 10x42 L IS (the one Binastro recommended), and this is what gets used exclusively when it is with us. Although the Canon's stabilisation is not designed for large movements, it still makes a huge difference in what you can see, and crew members who have only used normal non-IS binoculars are regularly stunned when they try it.

But if and when the Canon is too expensive/big, I would recommend any high-quality waterproof 7-8x30-42mm roof prism binocular, perhaps something like the Zeiss FL 8x30 (not really that much less expensive). Convenience, small size and easy handling are more important than absolute optical quality on the boat. Superb optics are lost because of the movement. Glare resistance is more important than on land.

Bryan's recommendation of the Maven 6x30 is a good one.

- Kimmo
 
As an experiment I tried using my SF 8x42’s as a marine bin and for one afternoon alternated between them and the Maven’s. Needless to say though I naturally prefer the view from the Sf’s the little Maven’s were considerably better suited as a marine binocular.

For overnight passagemaking and given only an either/or choice I’d take a night vision instrument over a marine bin any day.
I’ve spent too many night watches keeping my fingers crossed about invisible pitch dark floating hazards and would have been grateful for something, anything with night vision abilities.
I’m planning on adding a night vision kit for our next offshore passage.



My dream unicorn marine binoculars would be a reasonably light weight, wide FOV 6 or 7 x 30 format with IS, compass and range finding functions along with night or thermal vision capabilities in a on/off digital overlay. Turn off the night vision stuff and the binoculars reverts to a traditional fine optical instrument.
Keep in mind I did say it was a dream so am safe from all laws of physics, engineering limitations, marketing requirements or criticisms that might intrude into that happy, fuzzy and decidedly pink universe ;)
 
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Zeiss 7x50, made exclusively for the Kriegsmarine U-boat service. The binocular is completely sealed.
The focus is set by screw at the base of each eyepiece which could be adjusted using a screwdriver.
Focus was set at 250 meters, giving a clear view from there to infinity.
These binoculars were claimed to waterproof to 150 meters. There are desiccant cartridges at the base of the prism housings to absorb any moisture.
Field of View: 7.3 deg = 128 m/1,000 m; Exit Pupil: 7.14 mm. Ocular diameter: 23mm.

Possibly the best marine binoculars ever made.
 
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