carjug
Well-known member
I broke down and bought a really really nice pair of bins. They are fantastic by any standard and cost at least a month's pay. Super clear glass, wide field of view, handle like jewelry, these suckers are sweet. Will they make me a better hawkwatcher? NO. Will they make hawkwatching more fun? YES. Are they good for anything else, warblers, the backyard? Yes. Old Uncle carjug is a happy birdwatcher. Stargazer too.
My previous set was a nice pair of 10x50s with nice glass and a narrow field of view. (Scrunched.) I became jealous of a woman at our hawkwatch who had a pair of awesome little Swarovorskys. She was spotting birds right and left. I wanted that wide field and good glass. I wanted to spot those birds first. I also wanted to see the darn Buzzards better. I began the miserable process of shopping the internet for new binoculars.
The first thing I looked at was lens size. Big glass soaks up more light than little glass, so I started looking at the 56 millimeter size ones. The prices ranged from one paycheck to four paychecks, and reviews were hard to find. The cheapest of the bunch had mixed reviews, and I finally coughed up a good chunk out of my bank account. B&H Fedexed them to my house, and I had to be home to sign for them. I went outside after lunch and found them on the porch. I took the buggers out and compared them with my old set. They weighed like two bottles of Bud, and required a binocular bra. (Men with gender insecurity can call it a harness). They showed about twice the area of view as the old 10x50s, and were bright as the dickens.
I've since looked at plenty of Vultures, searched for springtime RTHAs and other migrants on high hills near my home. The rubber lens caps could be a lot better, but that's my only complaint. They put my scope to shame.
I don't know if brand makes a difference, the ones I got were Zeiss. Vortex used to make "Vultures" with the same lens size, and I'm sure Leica and Nikon and Swearingovsky do some nice work. The rejected brand was Kowa, I became suspicious of their reviews. More power to you if you get a bad case of the "I wants".
My previous set was a nice pair of 10x50s with nice glass and a narrow field of view. (Scrunched.) I became jealous of a woman at our hawkwatch who had a pair of awesome little Swarovorskys. She was spotting birds right and left. I wanted that wide field and good glass. I wanted to spot those birds first. I also wanted to see the darn Buzzards better. I began the miserable process of shopping the internet for new binoculars.
The first thing I looked at was lens size. Big glass soaks up more light than little glass, so I started looking at the 56 millimeter size ones. The prices ranged from one paycheck to four paychecks, and reviews were hard to find. The cheapest of the bunch had mixed reviews, and I finally coughed up a good chunk out of my bank account. B&H Fedexed them to my house, and I had to be home to sign for them. I went outside after lunch and found them on the porch. I took the buggers out and compared them with my old set. They weighed like two bottles of Bud, and required a binocular bra. (Men with gender insecurity can call it a harness). They showed about twice the area of view as the old 10x50s, and were bright as the dickens.
I've since looked at plenty of Vultures, searched for springtime RTHAs and other migrants on high hills near my home. The rubber lens caps could be a lot better, but that's my only complaint. They put my scope to shame.
I don't know if brand makes a difference, the ones I got were Zeiss. Vortex used to make "Vultures" with the same lens size, and I'm sure Leica and Nikon and Swearingovsky do some nice work. The rejected brand was Kowa, I became suspicious of their reviews. More power to you if you get a bad case of the "I wants".
