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Sightron "Blue Sky" II 8x32 (1 Viewer)

Steve C

Well-known member
It has been interesting (I guess you could say that) to see Dennis degrade under his other brother Howard's influence. Maybe we should ask Howard to say hi to Dennis for us should he chance to run into him ever again.
 

BrightIdea

Well-known member
Steve, any further consideration re the theron vs the sightron?

The cons re the theron are that the eyecups wiggle a little (fixable) and the diopter is (as you mentioned) needlessly complicated. I am digging the wide views though.

The Sightron has less fov, and I notice it, but otherwise just feels a little bit "sturdier" in regards to the diopter adjustment & eyecups.

Both focus wheels are similar, with the sightron slightly stiffer but not problematic. Some may prefer it. I prefer the theron here slightly.

In terms of view, I cant quantify it but the sightron has "something" about it that makes everything seem more... I dont know. It may be the sweet spot is larger? I am having trouble pinpointing it.

Tough call. One is staying, one is eventually going.

I am leaning theron due to wide open FOV...
 

eitanaltman

Well-known member
what are your feelings on the center-axis sharpness of the Theron? As I mentioned in the Wapiti LT thread, I found a distinct downgrade in sharpness from the Zen ED3 which caused me to return them. No matter what I couldn't get that feeling of "snap" where you get this crisp, razor sharp image in the middle. It's possible that there was an issue with my sample so I'm curious to hear what others think.

for the record, I do not have this problem with the Vortex Fury 6.5x32 that are currently in my position, I find them nearly as sharp as the ED3's. Of course the lower mag makes it a bit easier to get a nice view, so maybe not a fair comparison.
 

BrightIdea

Well-known member
I havent noticed a problem with that, they sure seem "sharp' and I get a nice image very very easily. HOwever, perhaps thats where the sightron bests them and is that "something" that I cant put re finger on re the sightron image.
 

eitanaltman

Well-known member
have you tried some controlled sharpness/resolution tests, e.g. the tried-and-true reading the nutritional information on a box of cereal from 30ft away sort of thing?

the Theron gave nice views just looking at stuff, but that "something" I couldn't put my finger on was obvious when I did that kind of center-axis sharpness test.
 

Steve C

Well-known member
I have not yet bought the SIghtron. The one I had was Frank's and I sent it back to him.

I'm happy with the Theron and will keep it for now. No it is not as sharp as the ED 3, but for a $200 class glass it is more than OK for me. What sample variation there may be there I don't know.

Yes, there is a "something" about the SIghtron. For me it is right when you look at the Sightron, in the first instant of the view. It seems a tad "something better". But if you switch back and forth to try and define the "something", It then goes away. The Sightron is sharper when the sun is ahead or directly to the side of you when viewing. The Theron seems sharper if the sun is anywhere behind your line of view. Tough call. Maybe Howard will fix us all up on what "it" is.
 

BrightIdea

Well-known member
have you tried some controlled sharpness/resolution tests, e.g. the tried-and-true reading the nutritional information on a box of cereal from 30ft away sort of thing?

the Theron gave nice views just looking at stuff, but that "something" I couldn't put my finger on was obvious when I did that kind of center-axis sharpness test.

NO, I havent. So far I've just been looking at "stuff"... birds, trees, deer, houses, etc. I have yet to actually do an quantitative tests. I think on your advice that'll change soon.
 

BrightIdea

Well-known member
...

Yes, there is a "something" about the SIghtron. For me it is right when you look at the Sightron, in the first instant of the view. It seems a tad "something better". But if you switch back and forth to try and define the "something", It then goes away. ...

Well, at least I'm not alone, for what thats worth.

I think its time I look into some actual testing instead of using. Could be enlightening.
 

Highway Dog

Well-known member
Can anybody describe bringing the Sightron Blue Sky to focus? It seems to take a little bother to hit the sweet focus range. I do bring it to focus after a stutter. Is this the usual deal for a regular 4mm exit pupil? Maybe it is the slightly quick focus that contributes to this small behavior I have.

Other than that focusing issue, it works very well. I don't use the binoculars for dawn or twilight evening. --Or even for a socked in cloudy day.

It is good to have a good array of binoculars sizes!
Rob.
 

[email protected]

Well-known member
Supporter
As opposed to the rest of us, who have unknowingly fallen under the spell of Frank's pied piper call of the $200 dollars binocular.

What's great about this whole process IS the return policy. We don't have to take Frank's or anyone elses word for it. We can use Frank's or others posts as a sign post, saying "hey look over here, there may be something of value you may like" and we order it and see for ourselves. If it's not our cup of tea, we send it back.

Of course from the viewpoint your coming from now, some of us are so clueless that we can't even be trusted to get that right. Thank god we have someone like you on here to open our eyes and set us straight.

John

Amazon's the best for that too. They pay the shipping both ways and it is so easy with printing out the shipping label right on there website.
 

[email protected]

Well-known member
Supporter
Wow! Did not know that. Thanks for the tip.

John

Remember though you have to find a defect in the item you are sending back and check the box for defective item. For binoculars it is easy as there often times is something wrong with them. Just check they were defective and state whatever is defective about them. Tight focus, out of alignment, etc. If you just say you are returning them for a refund YOU pay the shipping back. It won't put a dent in Jeff Bezos wallet(CEO of Amazon) he is worth about 15 billion dollars. Amazon wants it to be easy to return things that's why they sell so much stuff. Also, remember it has to be sold by AMAZON not one of there sellers. The sellers have there own retun policy. I always try to buy from AMAZON.
 

NDhunter

Experienced observer
United States
Remember though you have to find a defect in the item you are sending back and check the box for defective item. For binoculars it is easy as there often times is something wrong with them. Just check they were defective and state whatever is defective about them. Tight focus, out of alignment, etc. If you just say you are returning them for a refund YOU pay the shipping back. It won't put a dent in Jeff Bezos wallet(CEO of Amazon) he is worth about 15 billion dollars. Amazon wants it to be easy to return things that's why they sell so much stuff. Also, remember it has to be sold by AMAZON not one of there sellers. The sellers have there own retun policy. I always try to buy from AMAZON.

Dennis:

I believe you are right. Amazon is very good about returns, but many of
these are quickly resold on the Amazon warehouse, so good luck there! ;)
I have found, Amazon, does not pack things well, as in a too big of box,
with simple large airpack, not very good.

Jerry
 

[email protected]

Well-known member
Supporter
Dennis:

I believe you are right. Amazon is very good about returns, but many of
these are quickly resold on the Amazon warehouse, so good luck there! ;)
I have found, Amazon, does not pack things well, as in a too big of box,
with simple large airpack, not very good.

Jerry

I agree there. A HUGE box with one large airpack but I have never had anything damaged and I have bought ALOT of stuff from them. I probably gave Bezos one of his millions.
 

lilcrazy2

Well-known member
Last pair of Nikons I bought, all I got was the envelope! And a refund. Amazon sent me a pair of binos with no airpack, and the binos slammed around so hard in the box that the top of the D rings that holds the zipper pull tab got broken off. No damage to the binos and a call to the bino mfgr got me a new case in the mail.
 
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Twobits

Well-known member
Anyone know if Sightron Philippines manufactures their own Optical Glass...Or do they use Japanese/Chinese Glass in their Blue Sky Sll series ? I got to use a pair of Sightron Sll 8x32 Binoculars this weekend...They are PHENOMENAL ...I did own a pair of Nikon 8x32 SE's for about twenty years and I do own a pair of Leaupold 8x32 GR HD's...The Sightron"s view, sharpness/brightness,to my eyes, is very close to both.

Twobits
 

jaymoynihan

Corvus brachyrhynchos watcher
Anyone know if Sightron Philippines manufactures their own Optical Glass...Or do they use Japanese/Chinese Glass in their Blue Sky Sll series ? I got to use a pair of Sightron Sll 8x32 Binoculars this weekend...They are PHENOMENAL ...I did own a pair of Nikon 8x32 SE's for about twenty years and I do own a pair of Leaupold 8x32 GR HD's...The Sightron"s view, sharpness/brightness,to my eyes, is very close to both.
Twobits

I currently use both of those. This has gotten my attention.
 

[email protected]

Well-known member
Supporter
I currently use both of those. This has gotten my attention.

I get the Sightrons 8x32 Blue Sky's II Thursday. I had a small scratch in the eyepiece of the Nikon 8x32 EDG I's I bought off E-bay for $750.00 so since I am a perfectionist I sent them into Nikon and I figured they would repair them. They wanted $10.00 for the repair plus shipping costs back so I thought that is fine. Then I noticed on their repair notice they were replacing the binoculars with the newer EDG II's so I thought that is fine. So I basically have a BNIB pair of $2K Nikon 8x32 EDG II's for $750.00. Cool,huh! So when I do the review it will be the newer Nikon 8x32 EDG II, the Zeiss 8x32 FL and the new Sightron 8x32 Blue Sky II's. The new Nikon 8x32 EDG II's will arrive on Friday so I will start the evaluation over the weekend if the weather is nice. Looking forward to see how they compare especially the Sightron.
 
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