eitanaltman
Well-known member
Seems like I always agree with pbjosh, just get whichever is cheaper between the Styrka and M7. It’s not worth the trouble IMO to agonize over the differences with similar Chinese clones, both will perform and both will be about as good optically as you can get in a tiny package for under $300, and both may break down over time if used hard. Neither should be expected to last through decades of heavy use and abuse.
But you’re not dropping $2k on a big 3 alpha so does that really matter? If you need a new toaster and you go for the $59 on sale basic model will you freak out if it dies in 5 years? Probably not like if you splurged $799 on the super fancy uber toaster with top of the line finish and features right?
The concern over Styrka’s longevity as a company is similarly irrelevant to me when you’re talking about a $250-300 investment. If you’re dropping $2K+ on a Maven S1 scope and you want it to last 20+ years, well, I would argue it’s worth considering spending a bit more for say a Meopta S2. But $259 off Amazon? Who cares if they aren’t there in 10 years? If they are a lemon they will fail quickly, and Styrka will be there to replace them. If they last 10 years and then fail and Styrka is gone? Well you got 10 good years out of a pretty cheap binocular.
My first “real” binoculars were a pair of Eagle Optics Platinum Ranger that I bought for $300 around 2004. I dragged those suckers throughout Mexico and Central America, Borneo, Madagascar, and many other far flung spots. They gave me 7-8 good years, had to send them in for service one time, and when they were done I moved on.
For the record, I also had an M7 8x30 for several years which was used moderately hard. The rubber looked well worn (though not as extreme as the example above!) and was a bit loose. I have no doubt that rubber armor would look like garbage if they were really abused. But mechanically and optically they were still perfect.
Bottom line, just get the cheaper of the two and enjoy it
and if your friend is pinching pennies and not that critical about optics he’ll probably be perfectly happy with the Diamondbacks as well.
But you’re not dropping $2k on a big 3 alpha so does that really matter? If you need a new toaster and you go for the $59 on sale basic model will you freak out if it dies in 5 years? Probably not like if you splurged $799 on the super fancy uber toaster with top of the line finish and features right?
The concern over Styrka’s longevity as a company is similarly irrelevant to me when you’re talking about a $250-300 investment. If you’re dropping $2K+ on a Maven S1 scope and you want it to last 20+ years, well, I would argue it’s worth considering spending a bit more for say a Meopta S2. But $259 off Amazon? Who cares if they aren’t there in 10 years? If they are a lemon they will fail quickly, and Styrka will be there to replace them. If they last 10 years and then fail and Styrka is gone? Well you got 10 good years out of a pretty cheap binocular.
My first “real” binoculars were a pair of Eagle Optics Platinum Ranger that I bought for $300 around 2004. I dragged those suckers throughout Mexico and Central America, Borneo, Madagascar, and many other far flung spots. They gave me 7-8 good years, had to send them in for service one time, and when they were done I moved on.
For the record, I also had an M7 8x30 for several years which was used moderately hard. The rubber looked well worn (though not as extreme as the example above!) and was a bit loose. I have no doubt that rubber armor would look like garbage if they were really abused. But mechanically and optically they were still perfect.
Bottom line, just get the cheaper of the two and enjoy it
and if your friend is pinching pennies and not that critical about optics he’ll probably be perfectly happy with the Diamondbacks as well.
