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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Robert Wallace" data-source="post: 3600488" data-attributes="member: 5690">I wonder what proportion of "alpha" binoculars sold by the RSPB are to online customers. The advice on these forums is "try before you buy". I accept a minority of people in the UK may not be able to easily access a suitable retailer and even some of the so called top specialist retailers do not stock all the top brands.On a personal note I have bought my Nickel Supra mail order from Opticron in 1975 and my Swarovski 30x75 drawtube from Ace Optics both models not readily available in optical retailers. My Nikon Fieldscope I bought at the Birdfair in 1991 and my most recent purchase a Swarovski ATS 65 was from RSPB Titchwell in May.Most of my binoculars were bought in store CZJ 10x50 Dekarems,  Zeiss 10x40 Dialyt, 7x42 Dialyt and most recently (June) Zeiss 10x42 SF. My Swarovski 8x25 and 8x32 were purchased online, the later from Photospecialist (pre Brexit referendum)  and saved me almost £200. All the optics I bought on line I had tried at various birdfairs and demonstrations so I knew what I was buying, variations in manufacturing quality not withstanding.Many popular bird reserves in the UK now stock optics or hold optical demonstrations.</blockquote>