Yes, good luck Tim with your choice and future mobility improvement.
It will be interesting to see what finally gets your approval and why (and maybe even a reveal of your scorned secret bin 8-P).
I imagine there will be several bins that get you thinking when the time comes but for some reason or other there will be a winner or possibly several.
If it makes you go WOW HOLY ETC :-O when you take in the view this is a good sign but try and mentally picture how it will look for where or what and when you will be viewing. I only really get to know my bins once I've taken them on some of the routes that I have known for a long time and have previously viewed with quite a few other bins (it's all relative). I don't think a shop viewing can ever really do this but it's better than nothing and if it's nice to handle then that is another important aspect. It's actually amazing how much there actually is to a relatively simple thing like a binocular.
Of course keep asking here if you have any more queries. You will be much better prepared when you finally get to the checkout panic, overexcitment stimulation, danger zone :-O
Folks in the States have reported on here about their bins being returned from repair having had lenses with the latest coatings fitted, so the answer is, yes.
Lee
I suppose that if there are enough new models left in stock it might be more cost effective to replace one rather than have technicians drop what they are doing and repair the problem.
After they get enough of them to sit down and fix them all they end up on the big internet outlet at discount prices with doubtful warrantys.
Bbo
Get in there Tim. Result, of sorts 8-P
I'm definitely going to follow this. Who knows what will happen?
You're doing fine. :t: :-O
Oh, here's a crazy site if you are not already aware of it. Amazing graphs of some pricing trends on each model.
http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/Nikon/Nikon-Binoculars
Dear All,
Briefly examined and looked through the following;
Swarovski CL- P 10x25 green
Swarovski CL Companion 10x30 Sandstone/Traveller
Zeiss Conquest HD 10x42 ...er, black !
Thoughts; I wasn't wickedly impressed with the optics of any of them but marginally impressed with all of them, if that makes any sense.
My journey has begun in earnest.
All the best
Tm
I have about 10 bins and I use them all at some stage in rotation and to be honest they all have their merits. They're just different in aspects but they all can provide great viewing even the cheapest but they are all at a standard that I myself set and if some bin doesn't meet the level then I get rid.
We're always chasing this perfect bin or camera lens or whatever but maybe they are all good and it doesn't really matter as long as it's good enough and most bins nowdays are better than good enough.
Clive
Couldn't agree more. Ask yourself 'which are my best bins?' Answer: the ones you are looking through now.
With an open frame of mind most pairs of bins can give enormous pleasure.
Lee
Ok this stands out a bit. Doesn't really sound very good.
I've owned a Swaro EL, Leica HD and Zeiss FL (all 32mm) and Nikon LXL 8x20 and they were all good/great but I'm not altogether sure they would stand out optically either against bins such as my base model Kowa 8x32 SV.
I suppose bins make me go wow more nowadays when the light is good and is more dependant on that than the actual bin as long as it's good enough. My Hawke Sapphire 8x43 definitely makes me think wow most often but even my little 8x20's can do too.
It may be that some day you are trying a bin and the light is good and you think oh this bin makes things look great.
I have about 10 bins and I use them all at some stage in rotation and to be honest they all have their merits. They're just different in aspects but they all can provide great viewing even the cheapest but they are all at a standard that I myself set and if some bin doesn't meet the level then I get rid.
We're always chasing this perfect bin or camera lens or whatever but maybe they are all good and it doesn't really matter as long as it's good enough and most bins nowdays are better than good enough.
Just a rambling thought.
Post ramble thought. I suppose you were only dealing with 10x bins and the 8x are the more scenic viewing. Yes forget the 10x next time.
Just kidding of course Tim but there was a time and it probably still exists that holding two Swaro and a Zeiss I would have been doing a lot of Wowing but as you say if there isn't a view and good light and it's all a bit of a rush hassle then it's not ideal.
Really it probably would need some hours back and forthing with a lot of bins and that's only after you've narrowed things down.
I've idled much time doing such a thing at home over the years (which is another benefit (?) of buying loads of bins 8-P) (well you've got to do something to avoid doing something else) as I'm sure most of the enablers on here -with which you surround yourself- will testify.
God I love a good laugh while typing :-O
I rescued a cat recently (a ginger spotted tabby kitten, looked like an Ocicat, I actually named it Octi before I found this out because I got it on the 1st Oct and thought it looked Ocelot like), and subsequently discovered why it had been abandoned when it decided I was good pray practice and since I had fed it up and it gained it's strength, it became downright dangerous. I lost it again and I'm sure it's happier and it escaped before it's deballing appointment and I'm glad about that but no more cats for moi although I still don't think I could walk away and leave one in distress as it was when I found it in a quarry but I discovered even the rescue organisations don't want them either. It may even turn up again but it had better have improved it's behaviour though I doubt it. I definitely got the impression it was looking for wild adventure. Little bugger.
Enablers - ha ha.
Laughter is a tonic. The best. It all gets a bit too serious sometimes.
Kitty sounds like it's gone ferrel. You did your best Clive. Real beautiful looking cat eh?
Narrowing down. I can't really decide where to carve the cake until I've had a good look at this new Monarch HG.
Purely for the sake of rambling my thinking currently is;
Not a 10x.
ER - it's either ok or it isn't.
With the exception of the MHG and maybe the relatively modest dimensions of any given Leica I'm probably ruling out most 8x42's. A big EL or Victory FL is not really where I'm heading....I think. However, the extra EP at dawn and dusk is a finely balanced thing.
My current kit comes in at around 650g including strap and covers. Weight, to a point, less important than size as a parameter.
FOV - well, anything the same or better than I have is good. The MHG is a bonus there. Zeiss Victory have that one licked bar none if I read the stats. right.
I'm so befuddled by the whole 7x or 8x thing it's driving me nuts. An 8x seems such a stock all rounder but just so many compelling arguments for a 7x.
I'm currently less inclined towards a compact but more so than a big 8x42.
That leaves a 7x or 8x in mid size with the Conquests being an early front runner in an 8.
I'm not wild about open 2 or 3 span bins aesthetically but Leica seem to have pulled it off with the NV and from a more practical, hand holding point of view there is much to credit the format so I believe. It could grow on me.
Build quality, fit and finish and reliability are really important.
Also want to take a cold, deep breath and track back a bit in terms of price point. A good Opticron in the right size,a Monarch 5 (or other Nikon) and a Hawke, maybe Frontier or Sapphire all deserve a really good look at too. They all have much to recommend them.
Tm
Well then, there can only be one conclusion.
Tim is a collector :'D Gasp :eek!:
He bought a big bag to hide them in 3
Clive
Well done on your radio repair.
For an exotic island destination I recommend any island off the west of Scotland. Bliss,
Lee
TM
Don't forget that the field of view isn't a straight line at the end of a set distance.
That straight line is the diameter of a circle of view and the bins with a FOV of 350 ft have an area of view at 1,000 yds of 96,223 sq ft. The other bins with 370 ft FOV have an area of view of 107, 535 sq ft or 11.75% more area.
This is not a trivial advantage when you are scanning a big sky for circling hawks or the sea for a re-surfacing diver or otter or seal. And that nearly 12% difference is constant at all distances so gives you a better chance of getting your bins onto a close flying dragonfly or warbler erratically flitting between bushes.
Lee