Biggest WOW binoculars you have ever looked through? (1 Viewer)

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There have been plenty of bins around offering 95% of Alpha performance for some time, I`m certain there`s a very good reason you`v sold the Swaro`s in favour of the Toric, but I`d bet my Swaro`s............... optical performance is`nt it.

I have never until the Toric's found a mid tier binocular that satisfied me. Yes, the optics were good on some like the Zen Ray Prime but there was always SOMETHING wrong with them or they would have some QA issue. Is that hard to understand.

 

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Dennis, I can't believe you're not jumping on a pair of these. http://www.eurooptic.com/zeiss-victory-10x42-sf-binoculars-price-to-be-determined.aspx


That is unbelievable how much they are discounting the Zeiss 10x42 SF. That is why I would never pay retail for alpha binoculars. That is tempting because the Zeiss 10x42 SF are my third favorite 10x's. The Swarovski 10x50 SV are first and the Canon 10x42 IS-L are second and I have those so I don't really need another 10x.But the Zeiss 10x42 SF is definitely a WOW binocular.

 

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You're just noticing this now ? People have been saying this for years and, when they did, you would tell them to just get 'the Swarovski Swarovision, the best birding binocular and be done with it'...or 'get an alpha and be done with it...blah blah blah...' What a flip flop - a total reversal of your previous arguments. You would make a great politician

Everyone else noticed certain mid-priced bins are close to Alpha level optics long ago and you said it yourself when you first tried the Conquest HD. I remember reading your impressions. You've also said it about other models too like Alpen Rainier, Leupold GR, as just a couple of examples.

There was NEVER a mid-tier binocular that satisfied me until the Trac Toric. I have tried MANY including Frank's recommended binoculars. This is the FIRST one that caused me to sell the Swarovski.

 

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Don't act so high and mighty. I've seen many many posts of you going back and forth with Denny.

I like the "Denny"! My wife calls me that.

 

[Gilmore Girl]

I like the "Denny"! My wife calls me that.

awww that's nice. Glad you found something you like for a good price. The gray color I have to admit is nice departure from a sea of black bins out there.

 

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Interesting complete change of perspective you are going through.

Lee has a mixture of top tier , mid and low tier.

I also have been buying mid - low tier bins for years and have a couple right now along with my Leica.

You're just catching up with the rest of us. Welcome to our club

You know, you can enjoy both top tier and also appreciate the mid-tier stuff too. It doesn't have to be either/or.

Yes, Lee has different tier binoculars but what I am saying is that you are going to start seeing some new mid-tiered binoculars that will make you wonder if need the top tiered binoculars in the future. In my opinion that has not happened until now. That is my point. A new era is upon us with this direct marketing of binoculars and eliminating the middleman to save cost.

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

Dennis, post 226,
It seems to me that you forget a few things when judging the quality of higher priced binoculars versus lower priced ones. First of all there is the variation in quality between binoculars coming form the same badge. I did a control test once and we could clearly see quite a bit of quality variation between cheaper series and the more expensive ones (alphas if you like). Furthermore you only look at the handling properties and the optical properties, that is in itself allright, but looking inside the binoculars and judging the quality of the interior construction is something different. If you ask an independent repair person to show the differences you may be surprised. Also the service level in the long term is quite important for users who use their binoculars for many years.
Gijs van Ginkel

 

[ceasar]

Yes, Lee has different tier binoculars but what I am saying is that you are going to start seeing some new mid-tiered binoculars that will make you wonder if need the top tiered binoculars in the future. In my opinion that has not happened until now. That is my point. A new era is upon us with this direct marketing of binoculars and eliminating the middleman to save cost.

If the direct marketers are not making the binoculars that they sell then they are in effect working as middlemen for the binocular manufacturing company that makes them.

Binocular companies like Swarovski and Nikon, who also use middlemen to sell their products, do engage in the direct marketing of the binoculars they make. There are probably others that do it too.

 

[jgraider]

Gijs, you're quite right about sample variation. I have used/tested at least 8 different Zeiss 85T FL spotting scopes in the past 10 years out in the wide open country of West Texas. Sample variation is particularly bad amongst this model, so it's not just the mid-tier stuff that suffers from it.

Service is of particular importance as well, which is why I seldom see any Leica glass come into my camps anymore either. No alpha except Swaro has service the equal of Leupold or Vortex here in the USA.

 

[jgraider]

If the direct marketers are not making the binoculars that they sell then they are in effect working as middlemen for the binocular manufacturing company that makes them.

Binocular companies like Swarovski and Nikon, who also use middlemen to sell their products, do engage in the direct marketing of the binoculars they make. There are probably others that do it too.

They may do so, but they will not undercut the selling price of their products sold by their retailers, the true middleman. The Tract Toric would be a $1200 glass at Cabelas.

 

[Torview]

I have never until the Toric's found a mid tier binocular that satisfied me. Yes, the optics were good on some like the Zen Ray Prime but there was always SOMETHING wrong with them or they would have some QA issue. Is that hard to understand.

Whats hard to understand is why you were looking for a mid tier to replace two of the best, I`v not read the answer to that here yet.

 

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Whats hard to understand is why you were looking for a mid tier to replace two of the best, I`v not read the answer to that here yet.

I wasn't LOOKING for a mid-tier binocular to replace my Swarovski 8x32 SV. I just I thought I would try the Trac Toric 8x42 based on gjraider's excellent review and I was totally shocked when I received the Trac. After using it for awhile I decided I liked it overall more than my Swarovski 8x32 SV so I sold the SV. Read the latest Outdoor Life binocular review October 2016 and you will see the Trac is within a hair's breath of the Leica Ultravid HD Plus 8x32 which cost about four times as much. The Trac even beat the Maven's which cost almost twice as much. The Trac is the best bargain on the market today.

 

[Rathaus]

I haven't looked through them, but they're certainly hideous to look at....like a plastic toy from a kid's spy kit.
Aweful name too...sounds like a disease of the large intestine.

Still, I'll be keen to take a peek through them.

 

[Pileatus]

Dennis goose's the economy and all he gets is flak from the sidelines.

 

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Here is the Outdoor Life Binocular Review October 2016 ranking of the different binoculars they tested.

 

[ceasar]

They may do so, but they will not undercut the selling price of their products sold by their retailers, the true middleman. The Tract Toric would be a $1200 glass at Cabelas.

How do you come to the conclusion that Cabela's as a middleman would have to sell the Toric for about 40% to 50% more than Tract does? After all, Tract is in the same position of a middleman for Kamakura, the manufacturer of the Toric, as Cabelas would be.

In other words what is to keep Cabelas from going to Kamakura and asking them to build an equivalent binocular for them which they can sell under the Cabelas name at the same price as Tract is selling theirs?

 

[Troubador]

Dennis goose's the economy and all he gets is flak from the sidelines.

LOL

He is getting flak for contradicting everything he has said for the past umpteen years and he is getting it because it has happened before. A new love comes along and its, just, like, totally amazingly so blisteringly better than, well, anything.

Lee

 

[Troubador]

How do you come to the conclusion that Cabela's as a middleman would have to sell the Toric for about 40% to 50% more than Tract does? After all, Tract is in the same position of a middleman for Kamakura, the manufacturer of the Toric, as Cabelas would be.

In other words what is to keep Cabelas from going to Kamakura and asking them to build an equivalent binocular for them which they can sell under the Cabelas name at the same price as Tract is selling theirs?

You are right Bob. If Cabelas placed an order for around 500 units they would get their own style of rubber armour and logo, and they could sell at a decent level. However it is more likely that Trac have ordered more like 5,000 plus units to get the optical system to the specs they wanted and undoubtedly this would get a lower price from Kamakura than an order for 500. However I don't think this destroys your argument and who's to say that Cabelas might not go the whole hog and order 5,000 in which case they could shadow Trac's prices.

Lee

 

[Pileatus]

LOL

He is getting flak for contradicting everything he has said for the past umpteen years and he is getting it because it has happened before. A new love comes along and its, just, like, totally amazingly so blisteringly better than, well, anything.

Lee

He changed his mind and people go apoplectic. Now that is interesting human behavior.

 

[Pileatus]

How do you come to the conclusion that Cabela's as a middleman would have to sell the Toric for about 40% to 50% more than Tract does? After all, Tract is in the same position of a middleman for Kamakura, the manufacturer of the Toric, as Cabelas would be.

In other words what is to keep Cabelas from going to Kamakura and asking them to build an equivalent binocular for them which they can sell under the Cabelas name at the same price as Tract is selling theirs?

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