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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Steve C" data-source="post: 1473190" data-attributes="member: 56622">Well, the mistake here is definitely mine  |:S|.  I checked my notes from the Sportsman's Show and I definitely had Japanese written down.  Good thing I did not make a bet or my binocular bucks stash would have taken a hit for sure, because I have definite memory of the Nikon rep saying Japan.  I just checked with Eagle Optics and the Monarch X is Chinese.  I also had them check the Leupold Northfork, as I had the same definite memory of the Leupold representative telling me Japan.  In this instance, I am correct.  The Northfork is Japanese.  So as Frank postulated above, we have one of each.The Monarch X now seems a bit strange at its price, which is some $200.00 higher than the ZEN ED, and it has no ED glass to boot.  It has dielectric prism coatings, but I doubt those coatings are that expensive.  Plus the fact the Monarch X has much less fov.</blockquote>