Looking for new binoculars, suggestions encouraged

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It's been ages since I bought binoculars and I've never bought an actual good pair by a real optic manufacturer. I imagine much like scopes there's plenty to learn and what you should buy depends on what your intended use is. So I'm looking for some suggestions for "general use", bird watching, camping, that kinda crap. Also my girl really wants to know what the squirrels way up in the 80ft tall palm trees are up to and all my scopes are mounted on rifles so using them for casual wildlife spotting is a no-go. It'd be nice if they could double as a shot spotter at the range but that's really a secondary thought.

So what all do you like for binoculars?
Last edited by kronkmusic on Sun Apr 12, 2020 8:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Looking for new binoculars, suggestions encouraged

4
We got tired of lugging heavy 10 x 50 Celestron binoculars (OMG I bought those to look for Halleys Comet!). After considering a number of roof prism designs, we purchased Nikon Monarch binoculars, 10 x 42. We use these largely for identifying birds etc. they’re nice and light. Very bright. And have great images across the field of view. Built in eye cups with a clever design.

Serious birders may feel that the magnification is a little high for avian surveillance but they hold very well. You can get them for about 300 bucks.
Image

Re: Looking for new binoculars, suggestions encouraged

5
It's not clear if you want compact or full size binocs.
In full size, if you have multiple applications from bird-watching to being able to see the football game from the Nose-Bleed City Upper deck, 7x50 is the way to go. It gives you a fantastically wide field of view, so you don't have to "hunt" so much, and the 7x magnification is strong enough to really make things pop, but not so strong you can't hold it steady. Combine it with a floating neck strap which both cushions your neck and will keep it from sinking if you drop it overboard (remember the sealed feature I mentioned?) My marine is a surprisingly good Tasco model

If you really want to go to higher magnifications, like 15x or 18x, then you need to consider image-stabilized binocs. They are heavy but amazing--the 15x are lighter and fairly flexible in usage--good for star-gazing. They can range from fairly expensive to "OMG!" (ie, several thousand bucks)

Compacts can range in quality from crappy to really nice! My favorites are a tiny Copitar 6x16 pair that are half the size of a pack of cigs, and with a surprisingly wide field of view. Roof prism and each tube is only 1" across and just under 3" long! The tubes fold in:
Copitar.jpg
More common are the 8 x 40 which again, can be really good, or crappy. You'll want on any pair to either have separately focused eyepieces, or one adjustable and a center focus. You also want decently long eye-relief, too.
"Even if the bee could explain to the fly why pollen is better than shit, the fly could never understand."

Re: Looking for new binoculars, suggestions encouraged

6
I used to be a Steiner dealer. Their product is as about perfect as lenses can be, for the top end stuff relies on the coating.

Anyone in the glass business can make optically perfect lenses today, but not everyone can sputter the rare metals onto the lenses to make the light transmission amp up. The best is, and always has been, from Germany/Austria.

So get yourself a pair of 7- or 8X50's from them. You won't be disappointed in the performance or longevity. Plus, a lifetime warranty if you somehow screw them up.

Or Zeiss, Swarovski/Kahles, or Leica if you just have to.

SR
"Oozing charm from every pore, he oiled his way around the floor."

Re: Looking for new binoculars, suggestions encouraged

7
SubRosa wrote: Mon Apr 13, 2020 11:57 am I used to be a Steiner dealer. Their product is as about perfect as lenses can be, for the top end stuff relies on the coating.

Anyone in the glass business can make optically perfect lenses today, but not everyone can sputter the rare metals onto the lenses to make the light transmission amp up. The best is, and always has been, from Germany/Austria.

So get yourself a pair of 7- or 8X50's from them. You won't be disappointed in the performance or longevity. Plus, a lifetime warranty if you somehow screw them up.

Or Zeiss, Swarovski/Kahles, or Leica if you just have to.

SR
I cannot disagree with any of this. However, my Tasco 7x50 marine binocs are amazingly good, and the coatings work really well--which, as you point out, is the key. They are 15-20 years old now, and my main worry is making sure the battery for the compass light doesn't corrode! :w00t:

I believe it's Canon that makes the image-stabilized binocs. Pricey but nothing compared to,Fujinon that runs about $1100!

But this may be your ideal choice for price vs quality. Celestaire is a weird little company that sells nautical navigational equipment out of Wichitaw, KS!

https://www.celestaire.com/product/niko ... h-compass/
"Even if the bee could explain to the fly why pollen is better than shit, the fly could never understand."

Re: Looking for new binoculars, suggestions encouraged

12
kronkmusic wrote: Mon Apr 13, 2020 4:53 pm Ordered a set of some Nikon ProStaff 3S 10x42 binoculars on sale at Academy for $99 w/free shipping and free returns. They get really good reviews and are recommended by the Audubon Society. I'll try them out for a few days and return them for something nicer like some Steiners if I don't like them.
How did you like the Nikons? I was looking at those today, but they are now $140 everywhere.

I really wanted something compact like the Copitar 6x16. I cannot find those anywhere.

I ordered some folding cheap binoculars off Amazon. They are so small, they would only work for a child. I am considering the Nikon 10x42 and giving up on finding decent folding compact binoculars.
It is an unfortunate human failing that a full pocketbook often groans more loudly than an empty stomach.

- Franklin D. Roosevelt

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