What Bino's do you use?

[Intruder]

I haven't kept track.... what's the price difference between the Razor and the Viper?  When I looked through them (been months ago) I didn't remember there being much of a difference.  I thought the Viper for the $ was outstanding.

I know this.... there are a bunch of really nice binos in the 500-800$ range these days.  To step up in quality from there is a smaller and smaller increase in quality for a greater and greater price.  Unlese you are someone who spends hours upon hours glassing it's pretty hard to justify the jump up past the 500-800$ range.

That being said I'm really under the believe that a guy/gal should buy as high a quality pair of binos as they can afford.  I would scrimp on the rifle scope, the spotting scope, etc to afford better binos.  I have no regret what-so-ever in laying out the extra dough on my Leicas.  But, I do spend hours behind em too.   

[Bean Counter]

I have the 10x42 Leupold Wind River's and just bought the Swarovski EL's.  Last night I got to compare them right at dark.  To start with I was just picking up my Swaro's and then picking up my Leupold's and looking at the same thing and I didn't see much of a difference.  I could tell the Swaro's were nicer but wasn't sure that was worth the $1,300 difference.  The thought of returning the Swaro's seriously crossed my mind.  Then I remembered people talking about stacking them on top of each other and going from one to the other quickly without touching either one and WOW!! There is a big difference!  Not only were the Swaro's brighter but SOOOO much clearer edge to edge.  As it got darker the whole image in the Swaro's were clear and bright and with my leupolds it felt like I could only see clearly in the center of the image.  When I was just picking up one and then the other, it was like my eyes would forget what they were just seeing.  But when I stacked them, it was very clear how much nicer the Swaro's are!!

Good review.  Those reviews are hard to come by for the average joe in a store trying to compare IQ in darkness.  Thanks for the info... now shut up so I don't go breaking my bank to make the same investment 

[Bean Counter]

I have Nikon Monarch ATB 8x42s.  Decent IQ for the money, decent low light performance.  I've only noticed chromatic abberations when looking at the edge of glaciers as they transition into shadows/rock slides.  If there's one minor improvement I wish they had, it woudl be the angled eye cups that I think the Leupold Pinnacles have that help keep daylight out of your periphery as you look through 'em. 

[wastickslinger]

Leica Geovid 10X42

I was really impressed tonight at 9:00 pm with the amount of light that these suckers pick up. UNBELIEVABLE. Still shooting ranges on smaller targets out at 800-900 yards and buildings at 1200-1300 and it was almost pitch black too. Thanks to all those who talked me into them. And if you are in the market, I reccommend testing out the optics right at dark vs. mid day. That is where the huge difference in the high end glass is. Critical time to be able to see as well. I have never been able to be convinced until now. 

[andrew_12gauge]

I just have some alpen 10x42 they only cost 120 bucks but they are clear and have good low light visibility, work great for me

[BlackTail]

Bean Counter,  the price tag is definitely hard to swallow, but like others have said "buy once, cry once"! 

Funny story, I registered my swaros online and got added to their email list.  About two days later I got an email from Swaro that said something to the effect of "The world awaits Swarovski's release of their new binoculars, August 2008!"  WTF I thought, I just bought there top of the line glasses.  So I went on an optics forum and asked if anyone knew what these were.  One guy came back and said he has just returned from Swaro's presentation and they are coming out with some new flouride HD EL's. He said he had looked through them and they are incredible.  Now I'm thinking, do I take mine back and get these new ones???  So I ask the guy if he knows how much the new glass is going to cost.  He says yeah about 2500 € which in US dollars = $3,924!!     I think I'll be keeping my current EL's!

[Jeremiah P]

I have the cabelas euro binos and personally think they are every bit as clear, bright, etc as the other way over priced binos out there and mine cost a whole lot less($800)
And yes I have compared them side by side with swarovski

[Wacenturion]

I use a pair of Fujinon 10x70s.  Yep...a little heavy to pack  , but since I set and watch most of the day, these are great.  Almost as good as two spotting scopes tied together like binoculars.  Big bubba's....and great optics...easy on the eye and they really gather the low light.

[thinkingman]

Cabelas Euros are re-labeled Meopta's and excellent glass.
One of the best buys out there.
Good job.

[Bean Counter]

I have the cabelas euro binos and personally think they are every bit as clear, bright, etc as the other way over priced binos out there and mine cost a whole lot less($800)
And yes I have compared them side by side with swarovski

Did you compare them in the field, at dusk???

[Bean Counter]

Bean Counter,  the price tag is definitely hard to swallow, but like others have said "buy once, cry once"! 

Yeah I'm not so much distrusting the quality that you get in the price you pay, but distrusting my ability to respect and hold on to them while afield.  I'd probably get suicidal if I spent $2,000 on a pair of 'ELs and lost them.

That being said, my very first hunting season I went out with a $20 pair of Bushnell 10x25s. I lost them in the rolling hills of Umptanum.  Probably one of the best things that ever happened to me because I may not have spent the money on a quality product otherwise.  However, that warning still remains in my mind--you might lose 'em in the field so don't spend too much! 

My next big glass investment will be a Zeiss Conquest 3-9x with the Z-600 recticle.  $550 or so, but since its on my rifle I doubt I could lose it 

[wastickslinger]

Man I know I wont misplace my Leicas. I got one shot at buying them, caught the wife in a good mood. There was one night that I slept alone, that is alone without the Leicas. Oh ya, they have their own pillow

All kidding aside I thought there was no way I would ever spend that kind of $$ on binos. After glassing at at dusk and dawn I am convinced I made the right descision. It is a must to compare in low light, that is where the good glass really pays off. The range finder in it is far better than I expected as well.

[rjm5]

I have the swarovski 10x32 els for backcountry hunting and the 10x40 zeiss classics. The swaros are a little better than the zeiss but I got the zeiss for 700 as opposed to 1500 both good sets of binos though.

[MountainWalk]

This was the first time I actually hunted with my new Swaro's. I am simply amazed at them. Ive used them hiking and I always knew they were good, but today they really showed their worth. I dont know how you could get any better than a pair of Swaros.

[MuleySniper]

I've had em all JK, I actually own a set of Swaro SLC's, my dad has a pair of Zeiss Classics, and I just got rid of a pair of Leica Geovid's, (sold em to wastickslinger for a killer deal) Just no comparison to my Swarovskis. All kidding aside, all of those three are the best  Like other guys say, buy cheap, your gonna end up buying again.
MS