Best Hunting Binocs...

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gizamo

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I finally upgraded....( should read: replaced the last set that I lost )..:p

Bought a inexpensive set of Leupold 8X32's at Walmart. Very happy with the way they are working out. However, I'm planning a Texas hunt this Spring and wanted to find out what folks thought were top of the line performing optics (notice I didn't say expensive).... for longer range shooting.

What all are you using?


giz
 
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I have a couple of different pairs of Steiner binoculars. I have one pair that I have used on duty (LEO) for about 10 years. I liked them so well I bought another pair for hunting about a year ago. Very good binoculars, they are not the cheapest but I think they're worth the money.

I got mine at Sportsmansguide.com, caught them when they were on sale.
 
Leica 8X32's...........awesome, but a bit spendy
 
I use Bushnell Trophy and Legend. I like your choice of 8x32, that's what I find the best all around also.
They aren't too large, rubbercoated, waterproof, and won't break the bank. I've had good luck with them from Texas to Montana. They also have a lifetime warranty.

There are a lot better out there, but you really have to step up in price.

Opticsplanet has a heck of a sale on them right now also.

Munster
 
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ladder13 said:
giz, leave the glass home, just take some corn with ya :)
Click to expand...


Mike, good advice...


When it became known that I was headin' over to San Antonio to hunt pigs.....Quarter Cherokee offered to set me up with some Hogs..... Then he was trying to tell me at what bars to meet up withem' in... Don't think we were quite on the same page...:D

Still might have to set up a day trip to his Peach Orchard...just to shake hands.


giz
 
Go with Swarovski, Leica, or Zeiss. All else pales by comparison. Yes they are spendy. But YES they are worth it.
 
oldwiley said:
Go with Swarovski, Leica, or Zeiss. All else pales by comparison. Yes they are spendy. But YES they are worth it.
Click to expand...

+1 on this post... And if money is an issue, Nikon Monarchs are good glass for the $$.
 
I like my Swarovski 10x SLC glasses. A friend has a comparable Zeiss model, and it's excellent as well. Another friend recently bought the supposedly "improved" 10x Swarovski EL glasses, and while they may be imperceptibly optically superior to the SLC (there wasn't much room for improvement...) the tripod mount arrangement is inferior, as it does not permit quick and easy adjustment of the interpupillary distance --- an essential feature for sharing the use of tripod mounted binocs among users. The 10x42's are not difficult to hand-hold, focus pretty close for watching birds, butterflies, and other little critters, and have a sufficient FOV for any hunting application.

Money can buy happiness, in the form of great binoculars!
 
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leica 10x32. small enough to easily carry and powerful enough to see with. performance glass is not cheap unless someone really needs money.
you do get what you pay for. the best of the europeans are just that, the best.
 
I've been enjoying modestly priced Pentax bino's. Pentax, while no longer made in Japan, still uses a its pentabright multicoatings on the lenses which produces a very bright and sharp image.

I have the urge to make a crack about hunting requirements for New York. Going to let it go.

Out West
 
Giz.
Hunting bino's while moving thru the field, or hunting bino's while sittting in the blind?
Light weight bino's wiggle a lot and cause eye fatigue after using for longer periods of time.
Older folks, geezers over 45, do better with lower powered bino's such as 6X, older weaker eye muscles
12x are for bird people, hard to hold steady
10X bino's work great on a tripod or need to be very heavy to be stable in the hand, don't forget you may be walking up and down hill and huffing and puffing.
8x is a good choice for handheld use. Steiner make some great 8x30's and has had 8x56 Night Stalker for low light use.
Consider the time of day you will be using them the most. Bigger objective lense lets in more light.
I was issued Steiners and have bought several other pair. Buy a good pair that is suited to what you are going to use them for.
Bill@Yuma
 
"Money can buy happiness, in the form of great binoculars!"

boy that's the truth!!!!

I lucked into buying a USED pair of Zeiss 8x40 Dialyts about 20 years ago and haven't needed any upgrade since then.

I had a series of cheapos which were each a step better than the prior model. If I'd splurged for what I wanted in the first place I would have saved time AND money.

Same thing goes for telescopes too.

Besides resolving 45 slugs on the target at 200 yards, I can enjoy the rings of Saturn as well with my Swarovsky AT80.

Good glass ain't cheap. Old eyes need all the help they can get. Good glass will make the difference in what you see, and when you see it. And as an extra.....you only have to buy it ONCE!!!

Good luck with the hunt.
 
About 30 years ago I bought Zeiss 8x32GA binoculars. I only wanted to buy once in my lifetime. They have been worth ever penny. I've watched friends replace decent glasses, but I never had to. Excellent optics and solid construction meant I used them for hunting, sight seeing, and everything else that required field glasses. I even used them for a rest while firing my C96.

I can unreservedly recommend Zeiss. But that really means buy the best binoculars you can, and you won't have to spend more money replacing them.
 
I bought a pair of Nikon Monarch 8x a couple of years ago after seeing an online study done by Cornell Univ. Ornithology Dept. I believe. They separated the bino's by cost and had 30-40 people of all ages rate them. The study showed the Nikons to be a best buy at around $300. I have hunted a lot with a gentleman with an expensive set of Leicas. His glass is very good, but at $2000 or so, the Nikons look better all the time. I used my Nikons on a Fall Bear hunt in NE Oregon in the Eagle Cap Wilderness, and we glassed almost all day. My eyes never got tired. Just my experience. Something I learned, a good man/woman with cheap binoculars can see more than an amateur with the best glass in the world.
 
For a hunting binocular in the $300.00 price range, Leupold has the best relative brightness rating and presents a superior image. I borrowed a set of Steiner compact binoculars that a friend had purchased relatively inexpensively from Sportsman's Guide and took them on a deer hunt last fall. I was impressed with the brightness and clarity in a compact package. I have owned Pentax compact binoculars from the era when they were made in Japan and was very well satisfied with them. My current binoculars are 8X Kahles which I purchased used, they are excellent quality glasses which retail for about $800.00, mine cost me a little over $500.00.
 
I bought a pair of Zeiss Compact 8x20 binos about 6 years ago.
They've survived 1.5 years in Iraq riding in my left cargo pocket, and they've been in the same pocket for the last 4 months here in the mountains. I use them each and every day, I mean EVERY day.
The glass is crystal clear. I've had optics retailers look at them and just smile and shake their heads because they aren't offering anything close to the quality in this little jewel.
The were about $400 when I bought them, not sure what prices on Zeiss glass is these days, but I feel they've been worth every penny.
They show no marks at all, not one. They look brand new.
These binos will probably outlast me.
 
"... study done by Cornell Univ. Ornithology Dept. ..."

Birdwatchers tend to use binocs only intermittently, raising them occasionally to take a closer look at something they've already spotted with the unaided eye. Glassing for hours for big game (or even worse, fairly small game such as javelina) will reveal the migraine-inducing flaws in inferior glass. This is among the many pitfalls of casual comparison of optics at various price points. The pricey stuff is pricey for the very good reason that demanding users are willing to pay for what they get, to turn the old axiom around...
 
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