High priced vs low/mid ranged optics

[wags]

The vortex customer service post got me thinking about my recent experience during this hunt season. I have a pair of diamondback 10x42 binos and had an opportunity to use a $1500 set of vortex on this hunt. There was so little variation between the two. They were both used at all hours and all light conditions and I am just not convinced about buying high dollar binos. If you are spotting all day, maybe but who spots all day with 10x?

Me. I just spent ten days glassing ALL day for ten straight days using a pair of 10x Zeiss classics. There are a couple of good reasons for high end binos other than sight clarity, the main one being eye fatigue (that will be followed by bad headaches). I've had hunters (clients) who have attempted to use relatively good mid-range binos like Nikons while glassing all day; many times they end up with headaches in the evening. I actually would recommend Nikons, but not for use hours on end.     

[jeffro]

All of my standard hunting gear says Leupold on it somewhere.
Mainly for their customer service, and being somewhat local.
All equipment purchased used at a reasonable price, binos, spotter, range finder, scopes
I have only  had to send one scope in for service, and had to order turrets on another.
Service and communication was spectacular on both instances.

I do have two rifles with Nikons mounted atop.
A .308 Remington with the Prostaff BDC reticle, this thing is spot on to 500yds
And a rifled slug shotgun with a Slugmaster BDC, hits 8” plates at 225 all day
Very impressed with these, especially at the price point.

[boneaddict]

All my scopes say Leupold on them. The fact they are all from the 70s probably says something. LOL

[medic090]

As so many have said before, I'm going to catch flack for this but... here's my $.02. I hunt blacktail on public land, in the wet west side of the state. I do glass clear cuts all day with my 10x42 Nikon Monarch 3 I had a pair of Leopolds (stolen) and a pair of "fancy" bushnells (backup pair). I can use my nikons all day and my eyes don't get tired. Here is the catch, I sometimes find myself with too powerful of glass. I am not going to glass a clear cut from half a mile away because while hunting public land back when I was growing up my dad would use a spotting scope and see blacktail a ways out, every time we show up it was long gone. Either spooked up by others or wandered off by the time we got the (at that time paper) map out and found out how to get there. I spend all my time on my few honey holes where I see plenty of sign, or know the bucks are there. I guess my point is YOU have to decide what you need, the only way to do that is buy the nicest glass you can reasonably afford, and then adjust a few years down the road when you are settled into a hunting style that works for you. I also don't need crazy high powered glass because most of the time I'm 30' up a tree (yes in rifle season) cause that's what puts meat in the freezer for me. Also I can't tell you how many times I have glassed an area that the younger me didn't think I needed glass for and just seen a bedded down deer twitch. Anyway I hope that provides a different prospective. Good Luck!

[Windwalker]

Also consider moving the bar lower by registering at sites like https://www.expertvoice.com or digging deeper for available discounts.
Check Black Friday sales etc, and reconditioned optics are another source for lower prices. https://aaoptics.com/
 
I've found that most sites give deep discounts (sometimes around 40%) using LE/MIL/First Responder credentials.
I won't disclose which outfit, but for example a scope that retails for $2,599.99 is $1,429.99. Or instead of $714.99 a more palatable $393.24.
A $400 scope AFTER the discount is a good quality scope.
Optics is one of the few items where the price usually reflects higher quality.
And don't be afraid to ask for clearance models. I've gotten some real eye opener discounts by just asking.

[Rainier10]

I just upgraded this month from Cabela's Euro 10x42's to Swaro EL 10x42's. I had paid $700 for the Euros 8 years ago in the cabela's bargain cave and $2,700 for the swaros.  I did get 10% of the swaros and had a bunch of cabelas points on my credit card so out of pocket they were $1,750.

Right out of the box I adjusted them to my eyes and set the diopter focus, left eye/right eye.  The sweet thing about swaro's is once it is set you lock it and it won't come out of adjustment.  Big plus.

They felt great in my hands compared to the Euros.

Then I started glassing out my back door with both of them. First glance, no big difference.  Maybe a little clearer all the way to the edges of the swaro's but I wasn't impressed.   Waited an hour and checked again.  Maybe a little more difference.  Another hour and the gap was starting to widen.  20 minutes after sun set and the difference was pretty clear.  The swaros were much brighter and clearer.

Two weeks ago was my first hunt with the swaros.  They performed well and I noticed less eye strain with extended periods of glassing.  I used them again last weekend and I am really starting to like them.  I think over the next 10-15 years I will continue to appreciate them more and be happy that I made the investment.

Update one month and a few hunts in.  I am really starting to like the Swaro EL's.  I love the locking diopter adjustment wheel. I haven't had to adjust it because it can't get bumped out of focus.  Every time I pull them up they are crystal clear after I adjust the main focus wheel to the distance I am viewing.

Low light they are absolutely amazing.  The sharpness and clarity is crazy.  You can really get a good look at antlers and every little detail.

Crazy expensive but I think they are worth the money.

I would highly suggest picking a set up either new or off of the classifieds here at the end of the season as they come available.

[bobcat]

If I spent $2700 on binoculars I'd have to quit hunting for the next four years. 

I always thought really decent binoculars could be had for around $400, and the really nice, premium binoculars a little over $1000. Wow. I'm using Bushnell's right now, along with a $100 Kowa 6x30 when I don't need more magnification.

Think I'll stick with what I've got for now. Just keeping gas in the truck is expensive enough.

[KFhunter]

I have a slight astigmatism, if I set the diopters with contacts out its like zero and -four, with contacts in they're pretty much set to zero and zero.

[Magnum_Willys]

I do notice the better the optics the more noticeable the shake.  I.e. fuzzy ones don't shake at all.  hehe