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Message: <blockquote data-quote="brocknroller" data-source="post: 1748137" data-attributes="member: 665">As my Aunt Minnie used to say, "Howdeeeeee!" Podner.So a "students price" is $1400 these days? Well, if you are "in-state," University of Arizona tuition for resident undergraduates is only $5,933 per year (that's up $659 since last year, geez, I'm sounding like encyclopedic Kevin now <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" />. Sit down for this one. One year's tuition for Penn State, my fat alma mater, costs $24,626 per year IN-STATE! That's $4K more than out-of-state tuition at the UA! No wonder you have money to spend with your low tuition! But not enough for a Swarovision 10x42 EL until Doug at Cameraland offers some demos at blow out price, which probably won't be for a year or two. I personally prefer the image quality of the 10x42 Venturer LX to the Premier, but if I were climbing to the top of Humphreys Peak, I'd rather have the 8 oz. lighter Premier. But note, both the Premier and Swarovsion have "rolling ball," which some people (me) find bothersome. Images appear to roll over a positively curved surface. Sounds like you've already tried both (hopefully outdoors) and you're still interested so their "rolling ball" apparently gathers no moss for you. If you can get past that, then you have made a very good choice with the Premier (the field flatteners are good for stargazing too, which you listed as one of your pursuits). However, I have to say, especially with all that rigorous activity and thin air, you might have a hard time holding a 10x bin steady, even as good as the Premier's ergonomics are (even for the Big Handed) w/out some kind of support, and I don't know if you want to drag a monopod with you. The 8x42 Premier is easier to hold steady and with only a 7* FOV (10x is 6*), I don't think you will have to "hunt" around for the image like you would in wider field bins. The 8x42 also has larger 5.2mm exit pupil in case you get stranded and need to look for an Arizona Mountain Rescue helicopter in low light!  Plenty of ER on both for eyeglass wearers, and the Premier's construction is quite rugged. No electronics to fizzle out on you, and the 10x42 has a larger exit pupil than the Canon (4.2mm vs. the Canon's 3.7mm). Plus, the batteries would get eaten up like flies in the freezing cold temps of the mountaintops. If I were mountain climbing, I'd probably buy a Premier 8x32 rather than a full sized bin since it's much more compact (also a bit lighter). I'm not crazy about the shallow depth of focus for medium range birding, but for long range, it works quite well, and you still get a respectable 4mm exit pupil. Or I might buy a Swaro 8x30 SLC if I could live with the pinky focuser. Steve (mooreorless) owns both the 8x32 LX and Swaro 8x30, so he could advise you if you decided to go that route. OTOH, Tokyo Rick might have some sagely advice about watching your budget. Even though he's from Japan, as an investment banker, he has his ear to the ground of the world economy. As a regional business journalist, I have a more limited perspective, but for what it's worth, I'm writing about the business outlook for 2010 in our region, and the business owners I've talked with are "cautiously optimistic" (now where have I heard that phrase before?). I don't know if you plan to stay in Arizona, but the recovery will probably take longer in the "sand states" than the Mid-Atlantic where I am. I wrote an article about engineering firms recently, and the environmental engineering and architectural engineering firms I spoke with involved in public projects were holding their own, not so with firms who had most of their eggs in the private sector basket, which has become an empty nest. Now those private sector firms are bidding on public projects too, so it's making it harder for the smaller companies to win bids, because they don't have established relationships with government officials and they can't absorb costs as well as the larger fish. A large contractor, which has its headquarters on the next block, laid off 300 workers last year. Thanks to the ARRA, they were able to hire most of the laid off employees back, but the CEO told me that unless there's a second stimulus package, most of those projects will be dried up by this summer, and he will have to start laying off again. No new projects, no new construction, no new engineering jobs.I also know a woman who's husband graduated last fall from Penn State with a Masters in Civil Engineering, and he's working on a construction crew now "pourin' 'crete'" despite the fact that this one of the few areas in the state that has not stopped building throughout the recession because of the university. However, firms have their pick of the litter at the end of each academic year with new graduates so competition for engineering jobs is stiff. So for now, you might want to consider an 8x42 or 10x42 Monarch III for $279 and put the rest in your piggy bank and save up for a Swaro (or EDG) after the economy has become "righteous" again and you become a rightful engineer. If they fall off the mountain, you're not out a quarter of a year's tuition! Or you might want to make a compromise and buy a bin in the $500 range such one of the Chinese ED clones. Not sure how rugged they are, I just got mine (ZR 7x36 ED2), but they are the best "bang for the buck" out there. Let us know how you make out, and remember to send us a post card from Mt. McKinley!</blockquote>

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