Binoculars

[444marlin]

Need to replace my hunting binoculars. Any suggestions ($300-$500 range). Will not be using for long distances as I have a good spotting scope. Mostly for deer and black bear. I hear Nikon makes decent optics.

[Spuddge]

Vortex make some good optics for reasonable prices, I have a pair of Talons that I paid around $250.00 for and am very pleased with them.

[Island Blacktail]

Leupold optics are your best bang for your buck 300-600

[cdub]

Ihave a pair of leuopold wind rivers and they are great for the bucks spent. Very clear and good light.

[Steeleco]

I use Nikon Monarch's, if you want in close work, 8x42 will do you fine.
I got my deal at binoculars canada.com

[Jagermeister]

I use Nikon Monarch's in 10X42. They are very good and are about $350.
Here is a write up about binoculars from Wikipedia, very informative.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binoculars

[huntcoop]

My hunting partner and I both have Vortex Vultures in 10x50....they are awesome. Zero complaints and the clarity is wicked.

[Edward Teach]

x2 for the Vultures. I got 12x50s from Eagle Optics.

http://eagleopticscanada.stores.yahoo.net/

[todbartell]

best bang for the buck - Bushnell Excursions for $225

best $500 bino - Bushnell Elite E2

[FLHTCUI]

just bought a pair of Minox 10x42 from a shop on W4th and Blenheim(sp?)
they where $314.00 but, blowing htem out at cost plus a dollar.
$186.00 befpre tax $208.00 after havnt had them out yet, but am hoping for good things.
last I heard they had couple more pairs on these glasses.
cheers,
Rob

[Bow Walker]

best bang for the buck - Bushnell Excursions for $225

best $500 bino - Bushnell Elite E2

You haven't had the opportunity to try Vortex have you? I've owned a pair for a few years now and have been recommending them ever since. No complaints at all from the 'lucky ones' who took my advice. 8-)

The 100% warranty is totally transferable from owner to owner. Best warranty in the optics business.

[OOBuck]

Need to replace my hunting binoculars. Any suggestions ($300-$500 range). Will not be using for long distances as I have a good spotting scope. Mostly for deer and black bear. I hear Nikon makes decent optics.

I just bought the Nikon eagle vision and they rock!

[longwalk]

Two words . Nikon Monarch.

[Candocad]

I'd recommend Steiner's. I have the a pair that I bought 18 years ago. Used on 4 different continents from desert to artic (well almost the Yukon?) and still as good as the day I bought them. Clear optics, robust and reliable.

I use Nikon SLR's and one of their spotting scopes, but prefer Steiner's on in the binocular field. A pair of rubber armoured 7x50's or 8x30's from their miltary range. IMHO.

Candocad.

[Sitkaspruce]

As you can see there is quite a few models to pick from a even more guys who love "their" bino's. The truth is you, and only you can pick the right pair of bino's

The best advice I can give you is go to an optics store and check out the different ones. Bino's can also fit people differently, so remember that you want them to be comfortable as well as have clear optics. Try them all out in your price range and then compare them to the higher priced and over priced ones. Try the bino's on a cloudy and/or rainy day and go outside and see what they do in real light, not store light. Look at objects close up (timber hunting) and as far as you can see (cutblocks, fields). Look for differences in focus, clearity, colour resolution and so on.
Pick the ones that fit you best as well as give you the best view. Also pay attention to warranty and customer service, as they can make or break the deal.

I have a pair of the higher priced bino's. but if all I had was $500, it would be a toss up of the Bushnell Elite2, Vortex Viper and Pentax DCF SP, all in 8x42. Sorry to the Nikon guys, but they just are not as good, and for some reason just did not fit me right.

Good luck in picking your bino's, it took me a year and a half and demoing about 1/2 dozen different ones before picking the one's I own right now.

Cheers

SS

[Tikka7mm]

I use Bushnell Legend 10x42 and I'm pretty happy with them. I bought them from optics planet...landed here to the island for about 350.00 all in. Anywhere else they are 400.00 plus taxes at least. Here's a link if you're interested.

http://www.opticsplanet.net/bushnell-10x42-legend-realtree-ap-camo-binoculars.html

When I upgrade I'll probably go for the Vortex Vipers..."Best of the Best by Field and Stream".... I have a friend who has them and he says they are incredible.

http://www.opticsplanet.net/vortex-viper-10x42-binoculars.html

Hope this helps!

[dime]

I use Nikon Monarch's, if you want in close work, 8x42 will do you fine.
I got my deal at binoculars canada.com

I too have the nikon monarchs, got them from Cabela's when the dollar was better. I saw an interesting comparison done by a group of bird watchers where they compared higher end bino's like Zeiss, Swarovski, Leupold and the nikons held their own against longeyes that cost $1000 more. I really like them and for the money they can not be beat.

[todbartell]

You haven't had the opportunity to try Vortex have you?

Ive looked through the Vortex Vulture 10x50 and they were pretty good, similar to any other Bushnell or Leupold bino under $400

PS I have a pair of Nikon Monarchs 10x42, they're decent but nothing spectacular.

[Shermdog]

Vortex make great optics for the price....I would say they out do leupold for price/performance ratio. I have a nice pair of sightron SIII 10x42s I picked up for ~400 and they are pretty nice... I think I should have waited and saved a little longer for the vortex vipers!!!!

[huntwriter]

Bushell, Steiner, Nikon, Burris, Leupold, Vortex and the list could go on and on. There are many quality binoculars in your price range available. Best advice I can give is to go to a store and try as many out as you can.

Good binoculars should provide crystal clear vision without blurring at the edges on full zoom. Preferably they should be waterproof and of the roof prism type. Good hunting binoculars also should be rubber armored to protect the optics from shock occurred by falls or banging it on to something. To avoid spitting headaches good binolurars should offer seperate settings for each eye piece and have multi coated and purged lenses to prevent fogging up and reduce sun glare.

Plenty of binoculars fulfill these essential requirements in the 300 to 500 dollar range.

[dutchie]

I am using the Leupold Mojave 10X42, spend $397.53 on them after tax shipped to my door.

Before I buy anything I research every aspect and go and look through everything one after another and make my decission from there.

Both of my friend use the Nikon Monarchs (one 10X42 and the other 12X42) and in low light these out perform them in all 3 of our eyes. Feild and Stream rated these the #1 bino under $600. Beating out the Nikon, Vortex, bushnell elite e2 (all binos except the Elite hd)and all Leupolds (other then the gold rings.)

The day that I got them, my dad to put a sprite can in the bush when I was at work and measure out 200 yards so at dusk, starting 15 mins after sun down, I would glass for it. The light transmission was impecible, and i could see perfectly. I found the green blue and yellow pop can in 5 min in very low light.

If i ever had to reccomend a pair of binos, and you wanted to spend less then $800... these are the binos.

I have heard the Cabelas Alaskan Guides are better then anything else on the market, other then Swaro's, Zeiss and Leica, and are sub $600. But i couldn't put my hands on them so i decided to stick with the binos that have write ups and are well known.

Just my 2 cents

dutchie

[RayHill]

Need to replace my hunting binoculars. Any suggestions ($300-$500 range). Will not be using for long distances as I have a good spotting scope. Mostly for deer and black bear. I hear Nikon makes decent optics.


Nikon make great everything!!

[mikethemilkman]

agree with steelco nicon monarchs i use 8x42 and 10x50 awsome bang for the buck

[harbinger]

personally, the nikons do nothing for me. Check out the pentax DCF SP. Went through this all recently and that is the best bino in the $500 range.IMHO.

[KevinB]

I will agree with the Pentax DCF SP - I have a pair and optically they are very good, and very very bright especially in low light. They also seem to fit my hands well. The Pentax's don't seem to get as much press in the hunting world, but search around through the birding websites and you'll find a lot of info on them, they are pretty popular with birders, who also tend to be the type of people who can and do spend a lot of money on optics.

But a disclaimer is in order - these are my second pair, after my first pair blew a seal and started icing up inside in cold weather - this after only about 2 years of use. It took sending them back in a second time with a nasty note before their warranty department did anything about their lifetime warranty, although they sent me a brand new pair that second time. The new ones have been fine so far, about another 2 or 3 years on them.