What To Look For In Buying Binoculars

This thread is pure gold. Can we make it a sticky @AfricaHunting.com ? I think the thread answers the question "right" for about every budget and style of use better than anything written elsewhere on the Net.

rookhawk said:

This thread is pure gold. Can we make it a sticky @AfricaHunting.com ? I think the thread answers the question "right" for about every budget and style of use better than anything written elsewhere on the Net.

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Sticky it is... at least for now!

Well, I got home from work this morning to find a cardboard box on my front porch. The new binos arrived yesterday! Zeiss Terra 10*42. It's now just after twilight, and I had to go out back to see if my trampoline had any life left since it got tossed by the insane tornado-threatening winds last night. I figured I'd bring along the new toy and see how it fares.
I'm quite impressed at the image quality after the sun was below the tree tops. I could pick out detail on the church steeple two blocks away. I read the marquee sign at subway a little farther away. The weather spinner next door was pretty vivid, even though it was really going at it.

Then, just to compare against an "orange," I went to my son's room to try it against a Bushnell 8*21 pair. Chance gave me two passing cars under the street light about a block away. While slightly less than scientific, I noticed my eyes strained with the Bushnell, and I couldn't make out the license numbers. On the other hand, the Zeiss didn't give me the straining feeling, and if I was faster at reading I may have caught a couple numbers.

This is obviously not the same as what I'll find in the bush, and it could have been the lighting of the vehicle itself why I couldn't make out numbers, but I'm pretty happy about this purchase.

Noteworthy: no sky light was really of consideration. Heavy wind and thick clouds this evening.

Burris,10x50.just my choice.

Congrats, ArmyGrunt. Knowing what I know about sporting optics--which, admittedly, is not encyclopedic, although it's been a passion for years--you have a great pair of binos. Perhaps my most important takeaway from this thread is the following. Sporting optics have improved dramatically in the last 30 years. And they will continue to improve. But the *absolute* quality of something like what you have--as opposed to its quality relative to the next model up, or the model that will be introduced 5 years down the road--is something that even our fathers would have dreamed of, with a couple exceptions.

Bottom line: there ARE better binos than your new Zeiss Terras, my Leica Trinovids, Edward's Burris or the many Nikons and Leupolds that you see in the field practically every day. And Red Leg is absolutely right in pointing it out, because it's not a matter of opinion! These things can be measured (I am a fan of numbers). But whatever you're buying today at the $500-800+ MSRP level is plenty of glass for most types of hunting done by amateurs (especially with guides!) in natural light--period. Or look at it another way: even if you spend $3K on the latest Swaros EL, you're buying just that--the latest. You can bet that in two years' time, there will be someone here rightfully bragging that his Swaros EL Mk. 2 Plus HD Featherweights with Gyroscopic Stabilizers are head and shoulders above your antiquated ELs. He'd be right. But so would you in saying that you still have a bonzer pair of binos--no doubt with some lovely trophies to prove it.

Ridgewalker said:

CAustin has given you good info. Lrntoliv's suggestion of comparing brands at a store is also a very good suggestion.
I used a Bushnell Custom Compact 7x30 for probably 30 years while bow hunting. Never needed more.
I took a pair of Nikon 8x40s to Kodiak on a brown bear hunt. The guide was constantly seeing bears that I could barely make out. He used Leupold 10x40s. Next trip I had a pair of top-of-the-line Swarovski in 10x40s. They were vastly better to look over two miles distant early and late. As CAustin said, they were very heavy! Now I mostly use a small Nikon Monarch 7 in 8x32...light, great optics, and perfect for bushveld where shots are rarely over 200 yards.
Each has its purpose. The 10x40 is a great truck bino while hunting antelope, or mule deer in the vast open spaces of Colorado and Wyoming, but terrible in dark timber or tight bushveldt. The 8x32 works great in the dark timber and tight bushveld.
So, IMO (quantifying.. in RSA I'll take my 8x32. In Namibia, probably my 10x40. Either after discussing with my PH.

Best of luck with your decision!

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Normally I'd read a bunch of quotes and texts and threads...but Ridge pretty much nailed my progression. In my case...

Nikon Monarch 8x42's
Minox 8.5x42 HG (*Lifetime no questions warranty...these are now my truck Bino's)
Minox 8x33 HG
Leica 10x42 Ultravid HD (*best glass in my collection...)
Zeiss 8x32 Victory
Zeiss 10x32 Victory

And...a Minox 10x50's from a friend who passed on. These are my top loaners for hunting from a blind.

My favorites? Leica Glass...but only if I don't have to carry them.
My most carried? Zeiss 10x32 Victory. The 10x really is worth it for me. The size is superb, carried extensively in africa.
My most nostalgic? Minox 8.5x42 HG. The first "extra grade" glass that started a nasty downhill slope that has cost me soooo much...

IMO, Leica glass is indeed the best. It's not the clarity or crispness that wins (which is magnificent) - it's flare control. Looking into near setting sun, the coatings really did a great job managing the flare. They're just plain heavy though. Too heavy to carry as much as I want.

The x32's really hit the sweet spot for me for weight to quality. I bought the Zeiss Victory's when I was wearing glasses...since getting laser surgery I've come to appreciate the Leica's more and more.

All I can really say is this: I spend a LOT more time looking through bino's than my scope. If I had to do it over...spend the money on the best BINO's you can afford that work for your eyes (Zeiss works much better for glasses wearers - longer eye relief). For a scope, Leupold VX3 2.5-8x36 out to 300 is more than good enough to any shootable light to 200 yards shooting hogs in a moonlight Texas night.

Bino's are worth soooo much more than a scope. I spent countless more hours looking through my Bino's...and only mere seconds with my riflescope.

Good luck out there!

I bought a used pair of Swarovski, 20 years old and used heavily by their guide owner. They were cloudy and Swarovski swapped them out for new no questions asked I am blown away by how I can visually move through the bush by changing the focus - it is really a neat experience to be able to pick through the branches like that and not something I was able to do with my cheaper glass. For my pocket book buying a used pair is the way to go.

One thing that was not emphasized much in this discussion is that really good glass can be wasted on a user with poor eyesight.

I found this out for myself years ago when hunting Dall sheep in the Yukon with a guide. I was using moderately priced pair of "top end" (Ha!) Bushnell binoculars, my guide was using a truly top end Leica. He tried mine for comparison, snorted that they were barely useful, and invited me to try his. I insulted him when I said I couldn't see much difference. But it was true.

A few years later, I had LASIK eye surgery to correct myopia and astigmatism in both eyes. To celebrate my newly improved vision I went binocular shopping. I kept trying more and more expensive binoculars and was impressed that the detail and clarity and light gathering ability kept improving with the price tag.

So I bought some Swarovski EL 8.5x42's for a couple thousand dollars. Couldn't be happier! But about $1,500 of that would have been wasted on me a few years before.

@Longwalker, interesting story. The human body does some strange things when it starts breaking down.
I also did lasik abut ten years ago, and I'm still thrilled for it. At times I will, even now, get surprised at how much detail I can see in trees at a distance.
And I agree, I could see a fair bit of difference between the 4-5 brands in the store when I bought last week

wesheltonj said:

I have bad news for you. Those Zeiss lens for your Hasselblad, were made by Hasselblad under license from Zeiss . The only thing Zeiss about them was the design/engineering and the logo. The only lens not made by Hasselblad was the ones made by Schneider.

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So the lenses on the Hasselblad that say they were made in Germany were made by whom?

I took my new binos and my mini me out hiking the trails today. I love these things! Had a lot of fun walking with him, and when I convinced him to quiet down we started seeing these. The first "amazing" pic was him looking at a lake. The rest were of various deer we saw in the last half hour. In total there were 8, I think.

I'm really surprised how I can practically dissect the woods with the slightest turn of the dial. I'm thrilled with these Zeiss Terra.

ArmyGrunt, thank you for the reminder on this. And you have to love it when a youngster looks through Bins the first time.

I thought you all might enjoy this. I used my iPad camera and shot these vids through my Leica 10x42's. I set the Bins up on the edge of my blind and focused them in on the deer while they were feeding, then lined up the iPad through the lens.

The results were pretty stellar, I think, other than the holding issues. Very clear when I got that part right.

Very nice. All we saw were does and fawns. The first one we watched a good 20 minutes, and she kept stomping her foot at us, trying to elicit a response. The noise they made when the fled and stopped again sounded sort of like a horse to me. I heard that again from another later, and saw more stomping

Great to see you using the binoculars, I'm sure your son had a wonderful day!

He did. We walked about 3.6 miles. Later that night and the morning he complained of foot pain, but the next day (today) he was just fine. I can't wait to get him out again. And maybe take him on an easy hunt in a year or two.

I might be looking at European trips instead of going to bed like I should...

I just bought a pair of Vortex Vipers 8x42..I looked side by side through SLC 8x32 and MeOpta8x32..Although objective was a little larger on Vortex,they were quite a bit better for me..I was amazed at half the price how good these things are(490)..I was looking for lighter and easier to adjust than my MeOpta 10x42 meostars..Never would have believed if I hadn't tried for the heck of it..Right eye adj locks too once set,light ,,,,,,,I had stopped with intention of buying SlC 8x32

I am currently looking at the SLCs and wondering whether the viper HDs would be as good. Unfortunately I'm nowhere that I cab try a pair of viper 10x42s I was trying 10x42s SLCs this afternoon as well as Meopta 10x42s and swarovski CL 10x30, the CL were clear but nothing on the SLC, the Meopta were right there with the SLC but substantially heavier and only 450 dollars cheaper @ 1650. If I could try the vipers out it would satisfy my curiosity before I buy something.

Poz said:

I am currently looking at the SLCs and wondering whether the viper HDs would be as good. Unfortunately I'm nowhere that I cab try a pair of viper 10x42s I was trying 10x42s SLCs this afternoon as well as Meopta 10x42s and swarovski CL 10x30, the CL were clear but nothing on the SLC, the Meopta were right there with the SLC but substantially heavier and only 450 dollars cheaper @ 1650. If I could try the vipers out it would satisfy my curiosity before I buy something.

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Save yourself a couple hundred dollars and buy the Vortex Diamondback. They are just as good as the Viper.

I have many binos, but IMO the Leicas are far superior. Inevitably after I spot game that a PH missed they want to see my binoculars. One small factor: I had a pair of Leicas that I bought for 1800 more than 10 years ago, I recently traded them in on a new pair with the rangefinder built in and received 1500 credit for them. I used the leicas for more than 10 years and in the end it cost me $300. None of the lesser glass will hold its value like that. That being said, I do carry smaller lighter glass when I am hunting thick areas where it is impossible to see long distance.

curtism1234 said:

Save yourself a couple hundred dollars and buy the Vortex Diamondback. They are just as good as the Viper.

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Neither the Diamondback or Viper HD will hold a candle to the SLCHD's in any form or fashion. Are they good enough? Only you can decide that. After looking through a Tract Toric 8x42 UHD, my SLC HD, Meopta meostar HD, Conquest HD,, and Gold Ring HD, and Razor HD (Vortex's best by far) all side by side on tripods, I found that the Toric and SLC Hd are virtually indistinguishable, and the Toric is a bit better than all of those others listed. You have to spend $2k to get something better than a Toric 8x42 IMO.