Sorry I did not reply sooner Steve but when this thread did not get any comments for a few weeks I just left it go. For what it is worth these are the new "Nikon Monarchs" at just a slightly higher price bracket. They offer $1000 optical performance at the $500 price point. My opinion of them has not changed at this point.

However, keep your eyes open. It appears this design is gaining momentum. There are at least three other companies (Vanguard, Hawke and now Orion) that are offering this design with and without the ED glass objectives.