Binoculars

[Team Sergeant]

What's everyone's favorite choice for bino's?
Let's set some standards;

Bino's should be between 100-500 dollars.

You have had to actually use them to post an opinion.

Make, model, power and price should be included in the post.

I'm interested in your opinions.

TS

Oh, and I personally would not waste my time looking at laser range finding, GPS, compass capable bino's....

[NousDefionsDoc]

Steiner.

I have a pair of the Firebird II, I'm not sure they still make them. 8X30. Small and bomb proof. I've had them for about 10 years. Nothing fancy.

[lksteve]

my favorite binoculars are the ones my dad left to me after his passing...8x40, make not remembered (Mom still has them for bird watching)...i believe they are Redfield...

the constraints on the price range leave out the better optics, IMHO...i had a pair of Zeiss 8x30s i bought in Germany for several years and thought the optics were great...they never fogged, made many a jump with me...those are in storage right now, but a similar model in Cabela's runs $979...

i had a pair of Steiners in Germany, as well...don't recall the model, but it had a built-in compass, was 8 or 10x50, decent optics...i traded those for a gun....

i used a pair of Swarovskis...i'm not sure the optics were much better than the Zeiss...they are right spendy, difficult to get something other than opera glasses for less than $500...

for the price range specified, i tend to agree with NDD...Steiner makes several models in that price range...

while i agree that GPS/compass/alarm clocks/rangefinder are superfluous on practical binoculars, i still get a warm and fuzzy with stadia lines graduated in mils...

[Air.177]

I have had good experiences with the Leupold Wind River Katmai Binos in 6X32 and 8X32 models. I have hunted with them and used them to observe targets on a range. They are not overly heavy and their optics are good quality. They run between $275 and $300 depending on magnification.


my .02, HTH

Also, whatever you decide to go with, Bear Basin Outfitters usually has pretty good prices on optics.

[Endorphin Rush]

I tried the bino's that Blake described above and loved them, but went with the Nikon 12x42 Team Realtree Monarch ATB, instead. I love most everything Leupold, but the Nikon's were quite a bit cheaper and not much different otherwise. I played with both pairs, inside and outside of the store, before buying and thought them pretty much equal. I believe I payed somewhere in the neighborhood of $280 for the Nikon's. Great optical clarity, easy and fast one-hand focusing, and they let in so much light I could view objects just fine even at dusk. I hunt with them all the time, and have not found one reason to reconsider my purchase.

Of course, I've not owned many optics so I don't have that much to compare to, but I'm pleased with these.

[Cincinnatus]

I've got a couple of pair of surplus Belgian mil 6x30s, they look like crap, and one has some flecks of something on the inside of the lens, but they're surprisingly sharp. Glass nearly as good as some Zeiss Jena (DDR) lens I've seen. I got them for $39, IIRC, from Cheaper Than Dirt, or maybe it was Sportsman's Guide.

That deal is probably gone for good, but I've seen similar deals on some of the Russian glasses, and heard good things about them. Anyone tried them?

There was some discussion of the Weems & Plath, Apache 7x28s w/ the M-22 reticle, here;

http://lightfighter.net/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f/2756008371/m/627109738/r/627109738#627109738

that included this link to where they're sold for a reasonable price;

http://www.boatownersworld.com/weems_plath/7x28_apache_military_binoculars.htm

Several folks who seem to be pretty squared away spoke well of these and, because of their size, they will fit well in a BDU pocket or gear pouch. I'm in violation of the Team Sergeant's admonition (Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa), in that I've not used these, but as this might help out someone headed into harm's way, hope for forgiveness. If penance is required I'm guessing it'll be pushups rather than Hail Marys?

[Team Sergeant]

Several folks who seem to be pretty squared away spoke well of these and, because of their size, they will fit well in a BDU pocket or gear pouch. I'm in violation of the Team Sergeant's admonition (Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa), in that I've not used these, but as this might help out someone headed into harm's way, hope for forgiveness. If penance is required I'm guessing it'll be pushups rather than Hail Marys?

You were doing well until.......

I asked for educated/experienced opinions, not baseless opinions.

I do not care what those "folks" have to say. For all I/we know their are paid to endorse a product. There are large numbers of internet forums that welcome baseless opinions, and these same forums thrive with the uneducated, IQ of a north American porcupine, jerry springer types, this is not one of them. Take it elsewhere.

TS

[Peregrino]

TS - Check out the Steiner Military & Marine, 8x30s, $179.00 at AAFES. It meets all your caveats and it's been a good pair of binos - within limits. I bought a pair for the wife 4-5 years ago and we've both been happy with them. They are NOT good low light binos (not enough light gathering/exit pupil) but they do everything else adequately. Personally I quit looking at anything that didn't meet a MILSPEC years ago simply because it made a good initial quality filter and they're usually ruggedized. Unfortunately that pushes almost everything out the top end of your price range. I also prefer multi-use insturments (w/range finder and/or compass integrated). They aren't as fragile, nor do they eat batteries the way they used to. Spend a little more time in a MAROPS (that doesn't mean your current suburban desert sprawl) environment and you'll have a renewed appreciation for range and bearing info from a single piece of equipment. Besides, monocular (anything) laser rangefinders tend to cause (me) eyestrain after extended use. You can sometimes purchase optics from well outside your price range at SWFA/The Sample List. The East European/Russian, manufacturer's overruns/seconds, etc. that you find at CTD, Sportsman's Annex, etc. usually aren't worth the eventual failure at a critical point (personal opinion - there are some things I don't think worth the risk). FWIW, that's my .02 - Peregrino

[Huey14]

We had a small pair of Nikons we used for mufti work and a similer pair at the Embassy. Very clear and light, as well as shock proof- which is what you need with dumb guards.

Worked well on humid days, too. I foget the size of them now, but 6x30 sounds about right.

[mugwump]

I have a pair of Steiner Military Marine 8x30s that I used for years. Rugged, but too big for a day pack IMO and not very bright for 30mm.

Someone recommended a pair of Vector 10 x 25s: center focus, very compact roof prism, waterproof, nitrogen purged, shockproof, and bright. I really like them. They've been recovered off of a 35' reef (my daughter drops things) and they spent about 20 minutes underwater in a fresh water slog up a river in Dominica. They've been banged around (in their nylon case) in dive bags for two years, and that's an environment that kills bad kit. When they get dusty I wash them off under the faucet, dry the body with a towel, and clean the lenses with Zeiss wipes.

I sent a pair to a scout in the 2/27 Wolfhounds who used them for 6 mos. in the mountains of Paktika province. He said he was cutting every ounce he could find (slogging an M-14 w/ Sage, ouch) and he really appreciated their brightness and light weight. They have no killflash option -- I don't know how he worked around that. He returned them with a bad ding/cut in the plastic armor that extends 1/4 inch past the objective -- they appear to have been dropped on rocks from some height or slammed in a truck gate. They functioned perfectly but I don't know if they remained waterproof -- I sent them back to the guy, they were his.

They have loose ocular caps and no objective caps (the only PITA feature) and 1/4" eyecups. Nice stiff ocular adjustment, which I prefer. Good double hinges allow the barrels to touch when folded. At 8.8 ounces and $100 bucks they are a steal in my book.

http://www.eagleoptics.com/search.asp?q=vector&pid=3781

[The Reaper]

I guess I'll be the odd man out.

I have owned two sets of Steiners over the years, both Pilots, and both broke (one lost alignment and the other one fogged).

I would not own another set.

Currently having good results with Nikons.

Concur with shopping off the SWFA Sample List. http://www.samplelist.com/

TR

[Cincinnatus]

Team Sergeant,

I understand your concern and it was only after some thought that I posted what I did.

The three folks who spoke well of the Weems & Plath binos in the thread that I linked to are, I believe, a Marine Captain of artillery (Capt_M), an Army infantryman who has served/ is serving as a sniper in Iraq (cyclops), and a former Navy intel guy who'd been involved with spec ops folks and trained as a sniper (Abu Buckwheat). Any, or all, of them may not be who they pretend to be, I've certainly been fooled before, but I judge them credible. I think others here may know them, as well.

Their opinions were consistent in recommending these binoculars. As they appeared to fill a niche (i.e., rugged, good optics, small enough to fit in a BDU pocket), that could be useful to those going into harm's way, I decided to post the links.

Sorry, if this offended.