new binos?

bamaranger · January 20, 2017, 11:14 PM

Hey, I'm going to take some gift cards and cash them in at Gander for new binos. I'm thinking a hunting pair, 8x. I'm thinking $250 total cost. counting my cards. We had honest to gosh Steiner military grade binos at work, and they were outstanding, (and expensive) both 7x50 and 10x50. Big, heavy, HD models, but very rugged and wonderful optically, even at night. 'Course I had to give mine back when I retired!

The sport version of the Steiner 8x30 seemed nice and bright, and I could get the unit expanded enough to index both fields of view. That's a real problem, as I have a pretty good sized noggin. But....near as I can tell, Steiner only offers a 10 yr warranty on that model. That's an issue when other outfits offer lifetime, or limited lifetime warranties. Online, bloggers are calling the Steiner 8x30 military marine (as sold to civilians) Steiner "lite".

Some of the name models I tinkered with at the store would not open up enough to get indexed, seemed like the Nikon ATB were guilty of that. I'm a Leupold guy, and the Cascade and Acadia's are in the same range, but no examples.

So, who has a set of the Steiner Mil & Marine 8x30 as sold to the sport market and what is your opinion of them?

For the money, is their another 8x30, or 8x42, roof or porro, that will accomodate my big noggin, and will hold up to real use afield, with which you own and are using satisfactorily?

MarkCO · January 21, 2017, 04:23 PM

Won't try to talk you out of the Steiners, but Burris did just release 4 sets of binoculars, and I am going to get the 10x HD. They are excellent.'

Wish I could give you a link, but they are not on the website yet.

bamaranger · January 23, 2017, 01:24 AM

Thanks Mark.

I'm not going to rush into this, and will look at the new Burris models as they surface. My parameters will likely be:

-no more than 10x, and very likely 8x
-likely porro as opposed to roof, for any optical advantage
-but, they will have to be portable, so roof holds some attraction
-glass and coatings will have to useable at night, the Steiner "lites"
allegedly come up short in this department. I won't be navigating the Gulf,
but there seems little point in having a set you can't take on the lake at night,
or to see a night ball game
-really do not want to take the cost over $250 but might go a tad more
-there gonna have to fit my punkin' head

shootniron · January 23, 2017, 02:21 AM

Not sure if these will work for you, but I LOVE them.. I use the 6x30. Just google some reviews...they perform far beyond their approx $85 dollar price tag.

Leupold Yosemite 6x30 or 8x30

baddarryl · January 23, 2017, 08:14 AM

Sounds like you know more about bino's than me, but I do like my Vortex Diamondbacks from somewhere near that price range.

darkgael · January 23, 2017, 08:34 AM

Budget $250.
Alas....Canon has a set of Image Stabilized binoculars (8X25) for just under $300.
Image stabilized binos are amazing. I have two pairs - one is the Canon IS 10X30 and the other is a pair of Fujinon 14X40s.
Why mention this? Performance is, as noted, amazing and more than makes up for the small size of the Canons mentioned here.
You bring them up to your eyes. press a button, and the image STOPS moving. Optical clarity, edge to edge is top shelf. Battery life is excellent.
Performance in low light conditions is surprisingly good - the stabilization adds to the clarity of the image. I routinely use my 10X30s for astronomy - a task normally reserved for 7X50s or larger. The 10s perform as well.
Pete

jmr40 · January 23, 2017, 06:25 PM

I had some of the Steiner M&M 8X30 and thought they were some of the worst binoculars I'd ever looked through. The $85 Leupold Yosemite binos were much better.

For $250 or less I'd be looking at Vortex or Redfield.

A $250 budget is sort of in no mans land. Truly good binos are $400-$500 and on up. You sometimes find deals on closeouts etc., but I'm talking MSRP. The $250 glass isn't all that much better than the $150 glass. I might be tempted to suggest something in the $150 range until I could afford something really good.

Texas45 · January 23, 2017, 06:55 PM

NC Star 60.00 at the gun show
Life time warranty. Decent glasses for the cost.
Had a red dot of theirs that went bad.
Sent it in they sent me another no ? No $$ at all not even shipping. I did pay a few bucks to return old one.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

lefteye · January 24, 2017, 10:06 PM

I've posted before that optics quality varies directly with price. Binoculars that cost $1,000 may not be exactly four times better than binoculars that cost $250, but the more costly binoculars will be MUCH better. Steiner makes some very expensive and some very cheap binoculars. A buyer should "test" binoculars by looking through both cheap and expensive binoculars (of the same brand if possible) before making a final purchase decision. The quality of binoculars is probably much more important than the quality of rifle scopes simply because a hunter will be viewing through the binoculars much more and for longer periods of time. I have Leupold's best scopes on a few rifles and I have a couple of Swarovski binoculars for hunting that are definitely much better than the Leupold optics. (This is definitely not a slam on Leupold, one of my favorite brands.)

Hawg · January 25, 2017, 12:11 AM

I've long been a proponent of cheaper rifle scopes, especially for hunting situations but a pair of high end binoculars can't be beat.

January 20, 2017, 11:14 PM	#1
bamaranger Senior Member Join Date: October 9, 2009 Location: North Alabama Posts: 8,300	new binos? Hey, I'm going to take some gift cards and cash them in at Gander for new binos. I'm thinking a hunting pair, 8x. I'm thinking $250 total cost. counting my cards. We had honest to gosh Steiner military grade binos at work, and they were outstanding, (and expensive) both 7x50 and 10x50. Big, heavy, HD models, but very rugged and wonderful optically, even at night. 'Course I had to give mine back when I retired! The sport version of the Steiner 8x30 seemed nice and bright, and I could get the unit expanded enough to index both fields of view. That's a real problem, as I have a pretty good sized noggin. But....near as I can tell, Steiner only offers a 10 yr warranty on that model. That's an issue when other outfits offer lifetime, or limited lifetime warranties. Online, bloggers are calling the Steiner 8x30 military marine (as sold to civilians) Steiner "lite". Some of the name models I tinkered with at the store would not open up enough to get indexed, seemed like the Nikon ATB were guilty of that. I'm a Leupold guy, and the Cascade and Acadia's are in the same range, but no examples. So, who has a set of the Steiner Mil & Marine 8x30 as sold to the sport market and what is your opinion of them? For the money, is their another 8x30, or 8x42, roof or porro, that will accomodate my big noggin, and will hold up to real use afield, with which you own and are using satisfactorily?

January 21, 2017, 04:23 PM	#2
MarkCO Senior Member Join Date: October 21, 1998 Location: Colorado, USA Posts: 4,307	Won't try to talk you out of the Steiners, but Burris did just release 4 sets of binoculars, and I am going to get the 10x HD. They are excellent.' Wish I could give you a link, but they are not on the website yet. __________________ Good Shooting, MarkCO www.CarbonArms.us

January 23, 2017, 01:24 AM	#3
bamaranger Senior Member Join Date: October 9, 2009 Location: North Alabama Posts: 8,300	no rush Thanks Mark. I'm not going to rush into this, and will look at the new Burris models as they surface. My parameters will likely be: -no more than 10x, and very likely 8x -likely porro as opposed to roof, for any optical advantage -but, they will have to be portable, so roof holds some attraction -glass and coatings will have to useable at night, the Steiner "lites" allegedly come up short in this department. I won't be navigating the Gulf, but there seems little point in having a set you can't take on the lake at night, or to see a night ball game -really do not want to take the cost over $250 but might go a tad more -there gonna have to fit my punkin' head

January 23, 2017, 08:34 AM	#6
darkgael Senior Member Join Date: February 9, 2006 Location: Homes in Brooklyn, NY and in Pennsylvania. Posts: 5,473	Canon Budget $250. Alas....Canon has a set of Image Stabilized binoculars (8X25) for just under $300. Image stabilized binos are amazing. I have two pairs - one is the Canon IS 10X30 and the other is a pair of Fujinon 14X40s. Why mention this? Performance is, as noted, amazing and more than makes up for the small size of the Canons mentioned here. You bring them up to your eyes. press a button, and the image STOPS moving. Optical clarity, edge to edge is top shelf. Battery life is excellent. Performance in low light conditions is surprisingly good - the stabilization adds to the clarity of the image. I routinely use my 10X30s for astronomy - a task normally reserved for 7X50s or larger. The 10s perform as well. Pete __________________ “Auto racing, bull fighting, and mountain climbing are the only real sports ... all others are games.” Ernest Hemingway ... NRA Life Member

January 23, 2017, 06:25 PM	#7
jmr40 Senior Member Join Date: June 15, 2008 Location: Georgia Posts: 10,805	I had some of the Steiner M&M 8X30 and thought they were some of the worst binoculars I'd ever looked through. The $85 Leupold Yosemite binos were much better. For $250 or less I'd be looking at Vortex or Redfield. A $250 budget is sort of in no mans land. Truly good binos are $400-$500 and on up. You sometimes find deals on closeouts etc., but I'm talking MSRP. The $250 glass isn't all that much better than the $150 glass. I might be tempted to suggest something in the $150 range until I could afford something really good. __________________ "If you're still doing things the same way you were doing them 10 years ago, you're doing it wrong" Winston Churchill

January 23, 2017, 02:21 AM	#4
shootniron Senior Member Join Date: April 16, 2011 Location: Georgia Posts: 1,599	Not sure if these will work for you, but I LOVE them.. I use the 6x30. Just google some reviews...they perform far beyond their approx $85 dollar price tag. Leupold Yosemite 6x30 or 8x30

January 23, 2017, 08:14 AM	#5
baddarryl Senior Member Join Date: March 29, 2011 Location: Cape Fear! Posts: 1,683	Sounds like you know more about bino's than me, but I do like my Vortex Diamondbacks from somewhere near that price range.

January 23, 2017, 06:55 PM	#8
Texas45 Senior Member Join Date: October 20, 2016 Posts: 223	NC Star 60.00 at the gun show Life time warranty. Decent glasses for the cost. Had a red dot of theirs that went bad. Sent it in they sent me another no ? No $$ at all not even shipping. I did pay a few bucks to return old one. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

January 24, 2017, 10:06 PM	#9
lefteye Senior Member Join Date: January 30, 2006 Posts: 1,433	I've posted before that optics quality varies directly with price. Binoculars that cost $1,000 may not be exactly four times better than binoculars that cost $250, but the more costly binoculars will be MUCH better. Steiner makes some very expensive and some very cheap binoculars. A buyer should "test" binoculars by looking through both cheap and expensive binoculars (of the same brand if possible) before making a final purchase decision. The quality of binoculars is probably much more important than the quality of rifle scopes simply because a hunter will be viewing through the binoculars much more and for longer periods of time. I have Leupold's best scopes on a few rifles and I have a couple of Swarovski binoculars for hunting that are definitely much better than the Leupold optics. (This is definitely not a slam on Leupold, one of my favorite brands.) __________________ Vietnam Veteran ('69-'70) NRA Life Member RMEF Life Member

January 25, 2017, 12:11 AM	#10
Hawg Senior Member Join Date: September 8, 2007 Location: Mississippi Posts: 16,188	I've long been a proponent of cheaper rifle scopes, especially for hunting situations but a pair of high end binoculars can't be beat.