Binoculars - Page 2

deepcreek · June 21, 2013, 09:16 AM

Quote:

With the exorbitant (in my view) cost of some binoculars, I would like to ask some who own the alpha bins if they believe that they were able to find game that they would not have been able to find with something like a pair of Nikon Aculon bins?

Looking through $100 binoculars all day most people will probably get a headache. The light in low end binoculars is usually much lower so you will not see as much in shaded areas like timber, bushes, and the clarity is much poorer so your eyes will strain much more. So I would say yes a person could see more game especially in dim lighting conditions and farther distances.

Cheap glass vs high end glass I would compare it to looking through a dirty window pane compared to freshly cleaned window pane. Then you amplify it at 10-15x. Some people look through dirty windows all day and never notice but you get used to clarity and it is hard to go back.

If you go from $100 to $300 you will usually get much better glass but going up from $300 get very expensive jump in price with smaller refinements and smaller improvements on quality. To me it is not worth it.

I do know a good number of people with 2-3k binoculars most of them are older and have spent thousands of hours looking through them all around the globe. Some weeks seeing hundreds of bird species, other animals and creatures in exotic countries. They would probably say it was worth it.

JerryM · June 21, 2013, 03:48 PM

Hi deepcreek,
While you may be correct that looking through a pair of $100 bins "all day" would give many a headache, I have to say that in all my years of hunting the mountains I never spent all day sitting and glassing. Even if I spent several hours glassing I was not always looking through the glasses.

I think that overall a medium priced glass, in the $400 - $600 range, offers the best value. I mentioned the Vortex Viper which is in that range, and has a good reputation in my own readings. I have never seen one. Nikon and others make a similar quality bin. The Viper 8x32 would be ideal for me if I were still hunting. So far I am pleased with the Vortex Vanquish 8x26. There is a limit on size and weight that I find acceptable in a hunting binocular.

I have to say that the only bins I ever used were Bushnells. One an 8x30 purchased in 1958, and the other a pair of 7x26 Custom Compacts purchased in 1965. I never got a headache or eye strain when using them from the sheep mountains in Alaska to the desert SW of NM. I never felt the need for more clarity or light gathering ability before or after legal shooting time.

Thanks All for the comments.
Jerry

603Country · June 21, 2013, 04:46 PM

There is a down side, other than $, on the high end binocs. Years ago I was waiting patiently, down in the bushes, for the big buck that I knew would be following all the does. Light was just about gone, but I could still see pretty well through those Leica binocs. And finally...here he came, in all his alpha male glory. I slowly picked up the rifle and....can't see him in the scope. Back to the binocs. Yep, there he is. Back to the rifle. Nope. Can't see him. Finally I counted deer. He was the 5th deer from the big oak tree. I could count deer in the rifle scope, but couldn't see antlers. So I counted off to the 5th deer and cranked off the round. Dropped a big fat doe. Dang. And my hunting buddies found out about it and decades later, over whiskey, they'll relive the wonderful experience of my shooting the wrong deer. Makes them SO happy.

I went and got a better scope. And we ate the doe (it was legal).

So...just cause you can see it in the binocs doesn't mean you can shoot it.

deepcreek · June 21, 2013, 04:56 PM

Quote:

While you may be correct that looking through a pair of $100 bins "all day" would give many a headache, I have to say that in all my years of hunting the mountains I never spent all day sitting and glassing. Even if I spent several hours glassing I was not always looking through the glasses.

I think that overall a medium priced glass, in the $400 - $600 range, offers the best value. I mentioned the Vortex Viper which is in that range, and has a good reputation in my own readings. I have never seen one. Nikon and others make a similar quality bin. The Viper 8x32 would be ideal for me if I were still hunting. So far I am pleased with the Vortex Vanquish 8x26. There is a limit on size and weight that I find acceptable in a hunting binocular.

I have to say that the only bins I ever used were Bushnells. One an 8x30 purchased in 1958, and the other a pair of 7x26 Custom Compacts purchased in 1965. I never got a headache or eye strain when using them from the sheep mountains in Alaska to the desert SW of NM. I never felt the need for more clarity or light gathering ability before or after legal shooting time.

I agree that the medium price range offers the best value.

I used Bushnells for years then upgraded to $300 Leupolds which I really like. A few weeks after using them I looked through the Bushnells and could not believe I was using them for so long..

Before I bought my Leupolds I looked through as many binoculars as I could in my price range. I noticed each make had different hues, lighting and clarity. Some had nice clarity but I didn't like the hue, some had nice hue but I didn't like the clarity. The Leupolds just felt nice on my eyes. So did more expensive ones but they were out of my price range.
I was lucky and had access to a few stores that had a decent selection of display binoculars to look trough some had windows to look outside also.

I looked through some Vortex binoculars they were nice I liked the Leupolds better, they were lighter, felt better and I liked the glass.
But I ended up buying a Vortex spotting scope the other year I like a lot and I didn't really like the Leupold scopes.
Vortex is a very nice mid range brand. I like my scope a lot, it is nice for a $600 scope.

I do a lot of birding so some outing I will spend a good amount of time looking through glass at the finer details, is that a Lincoln sparrow or a swap sparrow..? ahhh.. it just jumped in a bush.

JerryM · June 22, 2013, 08:28 AM

Thanks, deepcreek.
My wife has a couple of feeders in the backyard. Sometimes we see a bird we want a better look at, but suddenly it's gone. Some of them really zip around.

Since my hunting a hiking days are over, I do regret that I do not have any reason to buy something like the Vortex Viper, but I just don't.

If you don't know any better you don't miss it. I mean, after all, when I lived in the country in the 40's who ever thought about flush toilets??

Regards,
Jerry

deepcreek · June 23, 2013, 05:19 PM

Quote:

Since my hunting a hiking days are over, I do regret that I do not have any reason to buy something like the Vortex Viper, but I just don't.

yeah, I know what you mean. My stuff all has to justify me spend money on it.
My $600. Vortex spotting scope has me wondering,, I just don't use a spotting scope that much so I am hoping it will pay off over the years, it is nice for looking for stuff in the desert and outings with kids that are to young to use binoculars.

I use my binoculars every day so $300. is nothing. From my house I can see a lot of aircraft coming into Denver so it is nice to have good glass to read insignias, numbers and other details. I also watch the birds in the area.

June 21, 2013, 03:48 PM	#27
JerryM Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 1999 Location: New Mexico Posts: 1,889	Hi deepcreek, While you may be correct that looking through a pair of $100 bins "all day" would give many a headache, I have to say that in all my years of hunting the mountains I never spent all day sitting and glassing. Even if I spent several hours glassing I was not always looking through the glasses. I think that overall a medium priced glass, in the $400 - $600 range, offers the best value. I mentioned the Vortex Viper which is in that range, and has a good reputation in my own readings. I have never seen one. Nikon and others make a similar quality bin. The Viper 8x32 would be ideal for me if I were still hunting. So far I am pleased with the Vortex Vanquish 8x26. There is a limit on size and weight that I find acceptable in a hunting binocular. I have to say that the only bins I ever used were Bushnells. One an 8x30 purchased in 1958, and the other a pair of 7x26 Custom Compacts purchased in 1965. I never got a headache or eye strain when using them from the sheep mountains in Alaska to the desert SW of NM. I never felt the need for more clarity or light gathering ability before or after legal shooting time. Thanks All for the comments. Jerry __________________ Ecclesiastes 12:13 ¶Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

June 22, 2013, 08:28 AM	#30
JerryM Senior Member Join Date: April 4, 1999 Location: New Mexico Posts: 1,889	Thanks, deepcreek. My wife has a couple of feeders in the backyard. Sometimes we see a bird we want a better look at, but suddenly it's gone. Some of them really zip around. Since my hunting a hiking days are over, I do regret that I do not have any reason to buy something like the Vortex Viper, but I just don't. If you don't know any better you don't miss it. I mean, after all, when I lived in the country in the 40's who ever thought about flush toilets?? Regards, Jerry __________________ Ecclesiastes 12:13 ¶Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

June 21, 2013, 04:46 PM	#28
603Country Senior Member Join Date: January 6, 2011 Location: Thornton, Texas Posts: 3,998	There is a down side, other than $, on the high end binocs. Years ago I was waiting patiently, down in the bushes, for the big buck that I knew would be following all the does. Light was just about gone, but I could still see pretty well through those Leica binocs. And finally...here he came, in all his alpha male glory. I slowly picked up the rifle and....can't see him in the scope. Back to the binocs. Yep, there he is. Back to the rifle. Nope. Can't see him. Finally I counted deer. He was the 5th deer from the big oak tree. I could count deer in the rifle scope, but couldn't see antlers. So I counted off to the 5th deer and cranked off the round. Dropped a big fat doe. Dang. And my hunting buddies found out about it and decades later, over whiskey, they'll relive the wonderful experience of my shooting the wrong deer. Makes them SO happy. I went and got a better scope. And we ate the doe (it was legal). So...just cause you can see it in the binocs doesn't mean you can shoot it.