My Most Important Binoculars? (1 Viewer)

[chill6x6]

My most important binocular overall was my first step to a premium binocular back in Sept 1997 when I bought a Swarovski 10X42 SLC WB. That was over 25 years ago and I still have it, the box, and receipt! After that point my eyes were open. Next eye-opening was in 2015 when I bought an SV 8X32 and decided I didn't need the weight/size of a 42mm binocular any longer and that SV became my favorite and most used birding binocular. I've owned many others along the way(still have most of them) but those two really made an impression.

 

[bartd]

I have the Meopta MeoStar B1 Plus 8X32 and love them. Excellent clarity and easy to focus. I bought them for a Rhine River trip with my wife, knowing they'd find their way into my back pack later. Their function was outstanding as we cruised past castle after castle through the occasional patch of fog. The folks I let try them out were very impressed with the image quality and brightness. They sure seem to deliver above their price, in my opinion. That is 3 pairs of Meopta bino's now.

 

[quincy88]

What do you like about the UV 7x42 over the FL 7x42? More color saturation in the UV?

The color saturation in the UVs is more to my taste, yes. Also I like the eyecups better on the UVs. Actually I like the whole package of the UVs a bit better, but the FLs are also very comfortable to hold and use. I prefer the more classic distortion of the UVs a little bit more than the FLs which is a bit more complicated.
I do prefer the focus wheel of the FLs though. Also they are noticeably a little bit brighter.
Overall they are close, and would highly recommend either. If I had the FLs first I think it’s possible that I would prefer them. The UVs have been a trusty companion for years, so I could be biased by familiarity and by sentimentality.

 

[quincy88]

The color saturation in the UVs is more to my taste, yes. Also I like the eyecups better on the UVs. Actually I like the whole package of the UVs a bit better, but the FLs are also very comfortable to hold and use. I prefer the more classic distortion of the UVs a little bit more than the FLs which is a bit more complicated.
I do prefer the focus wheel of the FLs though. Also they are noticeably a little bit brighter.
Overall they are close, and would highly recommend either. If I had the FLs first I think it’s possible that I would prefer them. The UVs have been a trusty companion for years, so I could be biased by familiarity and by sentimentality.

Oh. Also the field of view on the FLs is slightly wider which is always appreciated. The difference is very slight though, and only noticeable when using them side by side.

 

[Rg548]

I have the Meopta MeoStar B1 Plus 8X32 and love them. Excellent clarity and easy to focus. I bought them for a Rhine River trip with my wife, knowing they'd find their way into my back pack later. Their function was outstanding as we cruised past castle after castle through the occasional patch of fog. The folks I let try them out were very impressed with the image quality and brightness. They sure seem to deliver above their price, in my opinion. That is 3 pairs of Meopta bino's now.

Meostars do punch well above

 

[Paultricounty]

Funny, I have just bought my first pair of 8x32's.
I too have always favoured either pocket binos or 42' and upwards. I thought 32's were neither here nor there.
But I like the 8x32 format so much I am thinking of going on a '32' journey, and possibly letting my 10x42's go.
But I'm very fond of those, so at the moment they stay!!
Loving 8x32's though.... way more than i expected.

You must’ve bought Dennis‘s Meopta‘s , right?

 

[Rg548]

You must’ve bought Dennis‘s Meopta‘s , right?

No, I bought a Leica 8x32BN fresh from Leica service. I've always liked them, and couldn't afford them in the day.
Very much enjoying the old school build and view..... it's surprisingly good.
The last BN's I looked through a few months back must have needed an overhaul, they were awful.
I saw these in a shop, and had to have them.

 

[Trinovid]

...I bought a Leica 8x32BN fresh from Leica service. I've always liked them, and couldn't afford them in the day.
Very much enjoying the old school build and view..... it's surprisingly good.

I remember finding out about the 8x32 BN when they were still being made and seeing them as unattainable because of the price, so your story immediately reminded me of that. I like them so much that I'm pretty much at the cusp of letting my 8x32 HD+ go, but not the wonderful 8x32 BN.

 

[LucaPCP]

On 16th June 2012 something totally unexpected happened when Troubadoris and I were in Focus Optics with a view to buying her a Leica Ultravid HD 8x32. Personally I had always thought that only 40/42mm binoculars were for serious nature observers and regarded 32mm binoculars more or less as childrens' instruments. Troubadoris didn't share this rather elitist attitude and after looking through the Ultravids that we were about to buy, I astonished myself by picking up a pair of Zeiss FL 8x32 and liking them so much we bought those as well.

Buying those FL8x32s turned out to be a crucial moment in my choice of binoculars and so I consider them to be the most important binos I have ever bought, and today, 32mm is my favourite binocular format, and I have sold all my 42mm models apart from a Meopta MeoStar 7x42 that I kept to enjoy the view that 7x magnification delivers.

I wear spectacles all the time but have never found it a problem to align the exit pupils of the 32mm binos with my eyes, so for me there has been no diminishing of the 'ease of use' factor when moving from 42mm to 32mm.

Lee

Interesting. I have recently gone exactly the other way. I used to use only x32 binoculars, but recently, I have come to very much appreciate the eye relief and brightness of my Leica UVHD+ 8x42 over the 8x32. In Summer, I can use the x42 with my sunglasses; in Winter, the x42 give me a brighter image; ease of viewing is also better.
Of course, they are also heavier, but due to a period of neck ache, I have started using them with a harness: now that there's no weight on my neck, I really don't mind the difference in weight between x32 and x42, and I find the x42 more of a pleasure to use.

So now when I go birding, I take the 8x42 with their harness without a second thought.

 

[Pinewood]

Hello Lee,

I bought my 8x32 FL in 2005 and it instantly became my first choice for bird watching. The bird watching community looked down on its fiberglas reinforced polycarbonate body but it has certainly stood the test of time. Before the FL, I had a Leica 8x32 BN, a Zeiss Dialyt 8x40, Nikkon 8x32Se and 8c30 EII but the FL worked best of all. Only the EII, with its wider field, but less robust build, was close.

Stay safe,
Arthur

Oops! That should have been an 8x30 Dialyt.
Arthur

 

[lmans66]

For "EVER"...I owned and touted 10x42's with SLC, HT's and a Noctivid. I could hold them even, and I liked the view, especially from the SLC and Noctivid. Since COVID days I have shifted to the 30-35 range and find I am not missing out on anything but added weight.

Now,....7x, 8x or 10x?....ah which one?.....how about all 3? I have a Leica retro 7x35 and that is a keeper for sure. I have a Meostar 8x32 B1.1 and that is a dandy....I wish I could find a good pair of 10x's in the Meostar line. I know Meopta and you need a pool to draw from to find that perfect pair in terms of the focus wheel, and there are not that many pools of the 10x B1.1 to draw from. But I do miss the 10x enough to want to compliment my 7x35 and 8x32...

 

[Paultricounty]

For "EVER"...I owned and touted 10x42's with SLC, HT's and a Noctivid. I could hold them even, and I liked the view, especially from the SLC and Noctivid. Since COVID days I have shifted to the 30-35 range and find I am not missing out on anything but added weight.

Now,....7x, 8x or 10x?....ah which one?.....how about all 3? I have a Leica retro 7x35 and that is a keeper for sure. I have a Meostar 8x32 B1.1 and that is a dandy....I wish I could find a good pair of 10x's in the Meostar line. I know Meopta and you need a pool to draw from to find that perfect pair in terms of the focus wheel, and there are not that many pools of the 10x B1.1 to draw from. But I do miss the 10x enough to want to compliment my 7x35 and 8x32...

10x32 EL, NL, UVHD, SF, EDG to name a few. In the Meopta level, Conquest, MHG, Razor to name a few.

 

[lmans66]

I hear you....all good bins...but not for me....one reason or another as we all have our preferences and no reason to extrapolate on mine.

If I wanted one of your selection, I would now take the UVHD 10x32, while the rest can remain where they are. I had a nice pair of Meostar's 10x32 at one time and should have kept them to compliment the 8x32 Meostar.

 

[Paultricounty]

I hear you....all good bins...but not for me....one reason or another as we all have our preferences and no reason to extrapolate on mine.

If I wanted one of your selection, I would now take the UVHD 10x32, while the rest can remain where they are. I had a nice pair of Meostar's 10x32 at one time and should have kept them to compliment the 8x32 Meostar.

Meostar B1.1 10X32​

 

[lmans66]

Exactly....but a cherry one. The focus wheel and whether it is smooth or chunky can be an issue. All else, ...no problems with

 

[Paultricounty]

Exactly....but a cherry one. The focus wheel and whether it is smooth or chunky can be an issue. All else, ...no problems with

Buy two or three new , pick the one you want and send the others back. Or keep a cherry second one as a backup. Problem solved. 😀🙏🏼

 

[lmans66]

I have done that prior.... might have to this time as well to make sure but I feel so guilty sending back merchandise. I haven't gotten used to the 'new and improved way of shopping' ... jim

 

[Paultricounty]

I have done that prior.... might have to this time as well to make sure but I feel so guilty sending back merchandise. I haven't gotten used to the 'new and improved way of shopping' ... jim

You could call and tell them your intentions, I’ve found that they may not love it, but don’t have issue. You could also order one and if it’s not to your liking send it back for another.

A third option is to find a vendor that will open up and check to make sure everything is smooth.
I do that with a few different retailers.

 

[lmans66]

I have gone thru Sports Optics in LA, ...USA...and they have done that for mr prior, if one is near the warehouse,... jim

 

[Zedster]

In 1994 I spend every cent I had to buy a pair of Swarovski SLC 8x30 from Eagle Optics on sale. I think they were 675ish. As a poor field ornithologist it was an extremely hard buy. Of course what I REALLY wanted was a pair of Leicas but they were just too dear for me at the time. They were (and still are) such a nice pair of binoculars. There was a review of them in a leading magazine at the time where the reviewer literally threw them across a parking lot and they were undamaged. That's what sold me, I'm hard on stuff. Well that and the WP/FP.