What Binoculars between $500-$1500 would/have you purchase(d)?

[Dirty]

Not everybody can afford to spend $2000+ on binoculars. What mid-lower high end binoculars would or have you purchased out of the following list. What ones do you prefer? What ones do you not like? Pros? Cons? Trying to gather some information for future purchases. Let's stick to the list provided, there is another poll about which ones are your favorite in another thread.

[Gateholio]

I thinik the Elites are very good, close to the high end Euro Binos..

[srupp]

hmmm I may be selling MY ELITES..8 power..GREAT BINOS..

Steven

[Dirty]

Srupp,

If I was in the market for 8X I would consider them, but I am in the market for 10X.

[CoqTrophys]

Dont forget about the Nikon Monarch. Great clarity. I wasent expecting to get such great quality out of a pair of 400 dollar binos but they are worth every penny. Take a look through a pair before you buy anything else, you might be surprised.

[Kirby]

The Elites have several problems, they are heavier than the others and the socket that the neck strap connects to breaks alot. If you have the money get zeiss or Swarvo, if you don't the Leupold gold rings.

Kirby

[Rob]

I really like my Viper 10x42's

[Veener5.0]

Dont forget about the Nikon Monarch. Great clarity. I wasent expecting to get such great quality out of a pair of 400 dollar binos but they are worth every penny. Take a look through a pair before you buy anything else, you might be surprised.

X2...I've used a buddie's and they're outstanding glass.

[d6dan]

Love my Vortex Furys 10x42's.

[Dirty]

The Elites have several problems, they are heavier than the others and the socket that the neck strap connects to breaks alot. If you have the money get zeiss or Swarvo, if you don't the Leupold gold rings.

Kirby

The elites are 23 Oz, which is comparable to other top end binos. I was thinking Leupold Gold Rings,because I like the warranty.

[mainland hunter]

I'm really happy with the vipers I bought, I looked through a bunch at the hunting show and for the money the vipers are fantastic. very clear, fairly light weight and pick up a lot of light.

[threedhunter]

got two pair of legends, got em 6 months after columbine so they have all elite components, just not as much money.

an ausie army guy has looked thru both and confirmed they are as good as his swarvos,(at night anyway).paid less than 500 for each pair, 1 in 8 , the other in 10 power.just my .02, threedhunter:razz:

[StoneChaser]

A few of my buddies have the elites and I'm not impressed. Optically they're nice, but the barrels are thin and hinges are scrawy (a cheap, poorly done knock off of the EL's). Furthermore the rubber eyecups fall off (and get lost). I looked through one pair last year, and the hinges had loosened up the point where they were floppy (my buddy doesn't use them that often or hard either).

Definately get the swaros....

[StoneChaser]

got two pair of legends, got em 6 months after columbine so they have all elite components, just not as much money.

an ausie army guy has looked thru both and confirmed they are as good as his swarvos,(at night anyway).paid less than 500 for each pair, 1 in 8 , the other in 10 power.just my .02, threedhunter:razz:

There is NO free ride w/respect to optics (or most things for that matter). Your legends won't be optically equal to the Elites, and are definately not Swarovski, Zeiss or Leica quality....sorry!

[BCBRAD]

Brunton eterna's, list $509.00, bought slightly used $250 dollarettes. They are 10x 42 and are much better than I can see.

[Fisher-Dude]

So you save up for six months and have your $1500. Why wouldn't you wait another couple of months and buy the ultimate for another $500? You'll be disappointed, and lose money when you finally decide to upgrade the $1500 pair. My buddy made this exact mistake by buying B&L's for $1450 - he looked through my Leicas as we were waiting for shooting light on the side of a big cutblock, and cursed his decision to waste $1450. You will too.

[mcrae]

I really like my Viper 10x42's


Same here. I also have the Nikon Monarch 8x42's which are really good as well but my 10x42 Vortex Vipers are better glass IMO... 1500-2000 bucks is never gonna be an option for me I can't spend that much on binos with kids,bills,etc...

I bought the best I could afford I believe with the Vortex Vipers...

[Phil]

I bought the Elites about a year ago from Specialty Shooting for around $500 and am very happy with them.

[Ambush]

Dirty, if you get a chance, check out the Minox HG's. I have Swarovski EL's, but have looked through the Minoxs, while sheep hunting, and they are good. About $800 for the 10X53, a little less for 10X42.

[Shooter]

Vortex Viper's definately. I compared them side by side to the more expensive elite's and the leupolds and IMO Vortex was everybit if not a little bit better glass than either of them and was a couple hundred less. Can't really comment on the "high" end glass but at the prices of those I would assume they are all pretty good.

[randymac]

Just received my Vortex Vipers, very happy with them.

[martyonthewater]

can't see myself needing anything better than the vipers I looked through at the tradex a few weeks ago. wow, nice glass. canadian made as well which is good enough for me

[Blainer]

I personaly don't think Steiner get enough recognition.
Definately worth looking into.German glass is best.

[Rob]

can't see myself needing anything better than the vipers I looked through at the tradex a few weeks ago. wow, nice glass. canadian made as well which is good enough for me

Pretty sure Vortex was started in the mid 80's and is still in the U.S (Wisconsin?) This was my concern when I looked into them, as I figured great glass came from overseas, not South of the border. But ive got no complaints with mine!

[mcrae]

Pretty sure Vortex was started in the mid 80's and is still in the U.S (Wisconsin?) This was my concern when I looked into them, as I figured great glass came from overseas, not South of the border. But ive got no complaints with mine!

Vortex is and an American company but has the Vipers/Razors made in Japan.

[mcrae]

Vortex Viper's definately. I compared them side by side to the more expensive elite's and the leupolds and IMO Vortex was everybit if not a little bit better glass than either of them and was a couple hundred less. Can't really comment on the "high" end glass but at the prices of those I would assume they are all pretty good.

I did the same thing and I agree 100%. I have been able to compare them against Swarovski and I have looked thru a pair of Zeiss binos as well. The Vortex are great but those binos are really nice just too pricey for me.

And as others have said you get what you pay for. There is no doubting the higher end stuff is better but I think the Vortex Vipers are a good compromise for the guy that can't spend 2000 bucks on bino's.

[eastkoot]

Can't vote cause Leica 10x42 are not there. I did pay less than 1500 bucks but that was a few years ago, not sorry and would pay the going price today..Also have Zeiss pockets 10x25 very clear glass!!

[Sitkaspruce]

So you save up for six months and have your $1500. Why wouldn't you wait another couple of months and buy the ultimate for another $500? You'll be disappointed, and lose money when you finally decide to upgrade the $1500 pair. My buddy made this exact mistake by buying B&L's for $1450 - he looked through my Leicas as we were waiting for shooting light on the side of a big cutblock, and cursed his decision to waste $1450. You will too.

FD, while I agree with you on the Leica's are great glass, they are not worth $2200, no glass is. I have looked through so many different pair, done so many comparisons and seen that, yes you do get what you pay for.....to a certain extent. I personaly believe, and have done the compairisons, that most Bino's in the $700 and above range will do 99% of what the hunters wants. Is the $2200 bino's going to help all hunters?? Possibly, but for most, they wont. I just could not tell the difference between my GR HD's,my bosses Leica's and my clients Ziess, other than the cost. And that was over a week of comparing them. The Ziess were the least comfortable, the Leicas were the most, but for my eyes, the Leupolds were the clearest, and we all agreed on that. But everyone needs to go test and compare for themselves, as all our eyes and face are different.


Dirty, if you get a chance, check out the Minox HG's. I have Swarovski EL's, but have looked through the Minoxs, while sheep hunting, and they are good. About $800 for the 10X53, a little less for 10X42.

Dittio. These were the set I was going to buy, until I looked through the Leupolds. The Leupolds were just a bit more ergonomical for me and came with the a damn good warranty plus a bunch of other things that other glass did not come with.

Looking for a good price on Minox, Leica, Ziess glass, talk to Doug at
http://cameralandny.com/
Also look at their demo prices. Great deal on Minox HG's right now.

Cheers

SS

[BlacktailStalker]

Its not just the glass you need to consider. I took in to consideration how they felt in my hands for prolonged glassing, eye relief, how they focus to YOUR eye (some may be real close to the +/- maximum making one set a bad choice leaving no room for future adjustments as your eyes change) fluidity of the focus knob (and how precise the adjustments are) weight and even how they balance hanging on the strap (can take a toll on a guy and give him that "weight forward" feeling on his neck)
Nice having a texture to them that isnt slippery when wet as well.

[KodiakHntr]

an ausie army guy has looked thru both and confirmed they are as good as his swarvos,(at night anyway).

Its easy to look through glass and say that they are "as good as my ......", different story altogether when you have both pairs in hand and can look at the same things in the same light....

Its not hard to make a distinction between mid-grade glass ($500-900) and high end euro glass when you can hold them both at the same time...

[Bow Walker]

I'd be buyin' me-self a set of those Vortex Razors. Top of the line binos, IMHO.:cool:

[eastkoot]

I use mine every day, either watcing birds or animals and there is no way that you can convice me that your Vortex, Leupold, or Bushnells are going to be close to the resoution and clarity that the high end Binos give you. Look thruough them and if you feel that at any yardage you can actually feel you are out there with or can just reach out and touch the subject, then I say purchase that optic..You have to be certian as your investing a lot of cash. Ever think why medical labs and high end cameras have leica, ziess optics???

[srupp]

I JUST walked in the door from kamloops...and one of my projects was comparing the ELITES with the Swaro ...

I will be selling my ELITES...:eek:

I agree with Dirty they are LIGHT......

I dont know about all the problems Stonechaser has experienced or heard of...my pair look pretty well built...hmmm the rubber is attatched to the eyecup...

But I will be going Swaro.10x 42 EL....just have to sell my Elites....someone will get a very good set of glass for a very good $$$$

Also stopped by the Wild sheep meeting and saw some of the 'usual suspects..:eek:"

steven

[eastkoot]

I wouldn't even spend 500 bucks on a pair of binoculars. That is just freakin crazy

That's why you can't see past yor nose!!;-)

[Ambush]

True Story: several years ago we had a fellow in our hunting camp that had never shot a deer. So two of us took him along for the day. This was in the Churn Creek area, so lots of open terrain. We would see some deer in the distance, pull up the Swaro's and say "no bucks" This happened several times. About noon, we were sitting on a hillside, having some lunch. Finally this guy, rather timidly,asks, "Can you guys really see if those deer have horns, or do you just not want me to shoot a small buck"? He had some inexpensive bino's, and literally sometimes couldn't even see all the deer we were talking about. My Buddy gave him his Swaro's to try. He was totally astounded!! Then I looked through his cheapy's and I could see why.

If $200 is what you can afford, then do the research and get the best $200 dollar bino's available. Same thing for $500 and up. We all have different wants and priorities. My bino's are worth more than my work car.
I hunt from '92 Dodge. But I like top end hunting gear!

I've got an old pair of Ziess Jena 8X40 that I would sell for $75, and I bet they're better glasses than anything you can buy for $200.

[Fisher-Dude]

Seriously I have to wonder at the mentality of those that would spend that much on a pair of binoculars......Cmon now...its NOT going to make you find or shoot an Elk or deer any better than the the hunter dude that bought his binoculars at Canadian Tire.


You're 100% wrong KK. Until I bought my Leicas, I didn't realize how much game I wasn't seeing. The good glass makes your hunting experience way different. You spend much less time looking at stumps and rocks, and you find animals in brush when only an antler tip or a rear hock is showing. It's really amazing, but so hard to explain to those who don't know any better. I'd conservatively estimate that I see 40 - 60% MORE game now than I did before - no kidding.

[Slee]

I got a pair of 10x conquest a month ago when the price was still $999.95

Great binos so far. cant wait to get some good time behind them

[BCBRAD]

I didn't want to post this on the thread because of all the guys who would claim I was lying, but unlike most of them I have actually looked through a bunch of scopes side-by-side, in various degrees of dim light, at an optical chart. There is so little difference between the Leupold VX-3 and the Swarovksi Z6 that I can't really tell. I suspect one big reason they claim there is a vast difference is that they like to show off how much money they spend on scopes, and have to justify it somehow.

My eyes are 56 years old, by the way.
_________________________
This is from a noted gun writer.

[mcrae]

I didn't want to post this on the thread because of all the guys who would claim I was lying, but unlike most of them I have actually looked through a bunch of scopes side-by-side, in various degrees of dim light, at an optical chart. There is so little difference between the Leupold VX-3 and the Swarovksi Z6 that I can't really tell. I suspect one big reason they claim there is a vast difference is that they like to show off how much money they spend on scopes, and have to justify it somehow.

My eyes are 56 years old, by the way.
_________________________
This is from a noted gun writer.

With rifle scopes I would agree but I think with bino's and spotting scopes you get an improvement with the high end stuff.

Its my opinion that a good solid pair of 300 dollar bino's is about all the average guy needs. The rule of thumb on optics is spend as much as you can afford. My price range was 500-600 bucks cause that's all the damn govt. gave me back:frown:. I don't agree with someone saying your an idiot if you don't spend 2000+ dollars on binos but I also don't agree with calling someone an idiot becasue they do:wink:. To each teir own fella's...

I would rather hunt with a Stevens 200 and have great optics than have a 2000 dollar rifle and 75 dollar Canadian Tire specials for optics. I spent 600 bucks on a pair of Vortex Vipers because I wanted to get as good as I could afford.

One thing some guys don't understand is we are not all created equal in regards to eyesight:biggrin:... I need good glass to see that 4th point or sixth point my eyes just are not that good...

[tracker]

You're 100% wrong KK. Until I bought my Leicas, I didn't realize how much game I wasn't seeing. The good glass makes your hunting experience way different. You spend much less time looking at stumps and rocks, and you find animals in brush when only an antler tip or a rear hock is showing. It's really amazing, but so hard to explain to those who don't know any better. I'd conservatively estimate that I see 40 - 60% MORE game now than I did before - no kidding.



I totally agree !!!!!! Colors are so much brighter and detail is incredible.Truley made a huge differance in the way I hunt and judge the animals I would like to shoot that year, I use the leupold 10 x 42 gold rings,but I am so looking forward to a pair of swaro's or leica's

[416]

I didn't want to post this on the thread because of all the guys who would claim I was lying, but unlike most of them I have actually looked through a bunch of scopes side-by-side, in various degrees of dim light, at an optical chart. There is so little difference between the Leupold VX-3 and the Swarovksi Z6 that I can't really tell.

Don't say your lying at all.......just think your eyes need adjusting!! :) l use LE's and there is a signifigant difference from what l had. Couple of years back they made the difference of identifying a 4pt for a buddy who had passed up on the deer because he couldn't count enough tines with his glasses and thought it wasn't legal.
One good thing l have noticed with binos is the quality of the "middle class" units certainly improved in the last decade and the selection is alot better for us.

[eastkoot]

Cmon now...its NOT going to make you find or shoot an Elk or deer any better than the the hunter dude that bought his binoculars at Canadian Tire.


Someone piss in your cornflakes this morning?? Not going to argue, you save your bucks , I'll spend mine on what I like..I am convinced that my money was well spent and has allowed me to see animals in the dawn and dusk that you won't even know are there. I've had lots of cheepos and midrange binos and you can't convince me that that was money well spent.. I bought mine because I want to be absolutely positive in antler restrictive seasons that I am shooting a legal animal and I enjoy watching birds and animals with a crisp clear set of glass.. Just makes it so much nicer..Not trying to be a snob, just my preference..PS.. Got a pair of leupold porros for sale..

[srupp]

I have been in the field with a couple of hunters sitting on a "break" on the Fraser river waiting for the sun to start the day, having hiked in ..in the dark..
I started spotting five cali bighorns bedded on a saddle below us.. when I tried to explain to the others where they were...they just couldnt pick them out..So I tried their glasses..much less than the B&L I was using..with their Tascostype glasses neither could I...it was approx 15 min before their glasses could pick up the sheep...did it make any difference to the shooting no but it did show the difference in the glass and what GOOD optics can do..

Steven

[mcrae]

I will say this though there is a much better level of quality these days with the mid range level of Binos than in years past. A guy can spend between 600-1000 dollars and still get a good set of glass. I firmally beleive that in this price range you still get a big step up from the cheap stuff.

I am not going to sit here and try and say optically my Vortex Vipers are as good as the Zeiss and Swarovskis I looked thru becasue that would be a lie but they are pretty good binos when compared against the big boys as is most of the mid range stuff that is made these days.

[Spitzer]

Check out ZEN ED 8x43's. There's some great things happening in the optics world that don't cost that much, but rank up there with the best alpha's.
http://www.zen-ray.com/store/


There has been many reviews on these and they sound great for under $500. Check out the reviews, might save you some money.

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=132057

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=135248



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/Spitzer/ZenED8x43.jpg

[Viking]

So what do you really get for the big bucks when buying bino's? All you get is a bit more field of view about 30ft and their own special coating, but is it worth the money? like $500 to $2000. Go to opticplanet.com and read about bino's and compare the makes and models. the only thing I could find different between $132 10x42 Bushnell's and $2195 10x42 Leica's were leica's had about 30ft more field of view and they have HDC coating. Field of view does increase cost, but is it worth the $$ to see 330ft instead of 300ft of fence at 1000 yards?? Both have fully multi coated lenses, so does Leica's HDC coating make them so much better that they are worth the extra $$$?

[Dirty]

So what do you really get for the big bucks when buying bino's? All you get is a bit more field of view about 30ft and their own special coating, but is it worth the money? like $500 to $2000. Go to opticplanet.com and read about bino's and compare the makes and models. the only thing I could find different between $132 10x42 Bushnell's and $2195 10x42 Leica's were leica's had about 30ft more field of view and they have HDC coating. Field of view does increase cost, but is it worth the $$ to see 330ft instead of 300ft of fence at 1000 yards?? Both have fully multi coated lenses, so does Leica's HDC coating make them so much better that they are worth the extra $$$?

You obviously have not had the mind boggling binocular experience, as mentioned by Srupp earlier.

I have posted this in previous binocular thread. To make a long story short. I was sitting with 3 guys on a ridge glassing for sheep. 2 had Zeiss Binoculars, 1 Had Swaro EL's, and I had Bushnell Legends ($200-$300 binos new). All 3 of them could see 6 elk bedded up a valley, quite far away. No matter how many landmarks they gave me I could not see them. Finally, one of the other guys said, let me see you binoculars. He looked, said " Aha, there's the problem", and handed me his Zeiss. Promptly the elk magically appeared in the Zeiss binoculars.

Obviously some people need to have this type of experience to realize why expensive glass is worth the money, and is expensive in the first place.

[srupp]

to properly purchase optics one simply can not do this from the internet or any website or magazine..GO take 2 or 3 pair , go outside and compare them honestly without any $$$$$ considerations...thats where the difference is seen...doesnt matter what I or anyone tells you go check them out for your self...99% of your "hunting" is looking..1% is the shot..

A good pair of binos are worth their weight in gold..all the time "lookie lookie see"..and will save miles of hiking and last your entire lifetime..far less expensive than upgrading 2 or 3 times..

Most folks go in with a $300 or $400 budget and expect and then stubbornly insist that the $300 pair of sWENGALII BIFRK RELINKAS BINOS are every bit as good as Swaro or Zeiss... sorry..been around too long for that..your choice its your $$$$$...:lol:

steven

[338 winmag]

Does style come in to play here , i mean do u really want to be the guy in hunting camp with the wind river binos around your neck while everyone else is cleaning their Zeiss or Swaros :biggrin:.

[Slee]

Not everybody can afford to spend $2000+ on binoculars. What mid-lower high end binoculars would or have you purchased out of the following list. What ones do you prefer? What ones do you not like? Pros? Cons? Trying to gather some information for future purchases. Let's stick to the list provided, there is another poll about which ones are your favorite in another thread.


So, have you made up your mind yet?

[Mr. Friendly]

what I'm considering isn't on that list...the Minox 8.5x43 HG.

[BCrams]

There is no disputing the high quality binos like the Swaro EL's. I'd love to own a pair. I picked up the ziess classics a number of years ago and they do the job for me.

However, as it has been said in the past, the binoculars (and spotters) are only as good as the person using them.

A person who knows what he / she is doing can take the much cheaper elites and make the guys who have the EL's wishing they owned elites. Or if using the EL's - those same guys will be wondering what the hells up until the spotter zoomed in proves there's an animal there.

Practice, knowing what to look for and where to look makes a big difference.