Help me pick out new binos
 

I was at Cabelas today and was looking at new binoculars cause im ready to get a new set. I really liked Leupolds Wind river Cascades in 8x42, but the guys at the store were really pushing Nikon Monarch 8x42s. They are about the same price and are right about what I want to spend, what does everyone think of either of these or anything else in the 300 dollar range. I think I liked the Leupolds better, but the Nikons have a no fault warranty, The Nikons seemed very touchy on focusing , if you barely moved the knob, they would be out of focus, as far as clarity and sharpness, I couldnt tell any difference, but I did look at Bushnell Trophys and theywerent nearly as clear..I dont know what to do, Help me out. Thanks

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

I am also in the market for a new set of quality glass, I have been looking at the Nikon Monarchs also. In the last few days I have read almost every post on this site regarding the Monarchs as well as google searching them up one side and down the other and I have yet to find a bad review of them, on the contrary, reviews have been stellar. Several well qualified guys doing hands on comparisons have said they are definently the best in the 300 dollar range and quite possibly top of the line all the way up to the 600 dollar range. A few have gone as far as saying, "After the Monarchs the next step upis to go to the 1000.00 dollar plus Swarovskis, Zeiss etc..." and "I could see the difference between the Monarchs and Swarovskis but not 4 times the price difference" Toss in the no fault deal and I really think the Monarchs are tough if not impossible to beat for the guy that does'nt have the dissposable income for 1500.00 dollar binos.

Metro...

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

Guys-- I was in your shoes just about a month ago. I did the research, looked through endless binos and read the reviews. I bought the Nikon Monarchs 10x's. I'm a Leupold diehard with scopes and my father in law has a pair of Wind Rivers. A great review exists on the Monarchs on Cabela's website. They way he tested them for anti-fog by running them under water, then putting them on the heat vents is great. I have had the Monarchs for a month and feel like it was the right purchase. I really, really like them and feel I got a quality piece of glass without spending $1000. This is very rare on binos where $$'s usually equates to quality.

IMO - Nikon Monarchs

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

It seems I was quoted up above. I am flattered. :)

One thing that pops out when comparing the Cascades and the Monarchs is the fact that the Cascades aren't Phase Coated. Phase coating or Phase correction is a process done to the prism in roof prism binoculars in order to get the maximum amount of clarity, sharpness and contrast. Without PC the image just doesn't look quite as good as a PC binocular or a porro prism model.

My two votes for binoculars in the $300 range would be the Monarchs and the Bushnell Legends.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

i believe if you look threw a pair of Steiners you will not interested in the Nikons or the Leupolds anymore. i have a set of the Steiner Predators. they are without question one of the clearest lenses that i have every looked threw. once you get them adjusted there is not need to refocus for differant distances. super clear and super fast to use. and they start right in your price range. i did the same thing i looked at the Nikons and Leupolds first then i went back to the Steiners.:)

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

I've got both Swarvoskis and Leica - both are excellent. If I'd bought them first I'd have saved a ton of money and time on buying crappy binnocs.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

i spent a day looking through a pair of steiners and zeiss while on a hunt. not sure of the models but the steiners with the yellow lens i thought they were crap. the 700$ 10x40 zeiss were amazing. i also spent the day looking through binos at cabelas and the monarchs were close to the zeiss at half the price. i still want the zeiss though.:D

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

I bought the Nikons- best bang for the buck!

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

The Classic Zeiss definitely are nice binos. The image is excellent and they have been highly regarded as excellent binoculars since their inception. The only negative thing I have heard about them is that they are not waterproof despite advertising claims to the contrary. For some folks that is not a big deal but for others it may cause problems.

The new Zeiss Conquests in 8x30 are waterproof though and provide an exceptionally sharp, contrasty image. Price is around $500 if I remember correctly.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

Sums it up IMO. For $300, they are awesome and give you $500+ quality and one could argue not too far off the $1000 range either. Sure the others are nice, etc., but I had a very tight budget. If I had $750-1000 I wouldn't have bought Monarchs! :D

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

liquidorange i'm pretty sure the yellow tint is for low light conditions and to be used after dark with lights. they make differant tints for differant uses. i use the green tint because i hunt in the east in heavy brush and trees. dulls the green colors and makes deer and coyotes stand right out. yellow would not work good here either. you can buy Steiners in clear or a tint but the tint should be matched to when and where you are hunting and then they really work well. if you do this then you would see why i like them so much. :)

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

I went through the same thing in febuary. I went to grice's and compared several bino from $250.00 t0 $600.00 dollars . I bought the nikon monarch 10x42 I though they were just as clear and bright as any of the ones I looked at.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

Hey guys, thanks for all the input, like a lot of people, I dont have the budget to spend 700 bucks for optics, I wish I did, it will be hard enough to spend 300. I think all of you have made up my mind for sure to get the Monarchs, No one seems to have anything bad to say about them, for the money they seem to be the best bet.. Thanks again.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

If you get a chance though, take a look through the Legends next to the Monarchs. The Monarchs provide more realistic colors for the image but I think the Legends color bias provides a slightly sharper image. Just something for you to mull over. I still enjoy the Monarchs but the Legends give them a run for the money.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

Monarchs good for the buck also not to bulky. On a budget they are the best IMO.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

On a somewhat related note, if any of you happen to live within reasonable driving distance of the Hamburg Cabelas store or are planning on taking a trip there soon then definitely check out their bargain cave. I just bought another pair of binoculars....the original Nikon E series porros for $100. That is about 33% of the original price and they provide an outstanding image...almost as good as the Venturers. Cabelas apparently received some type of special shipment from Nikon and they have some excellent, inexpensive binos there. Just thought I would pass it along.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

Concerning the Nikon Monarchs, I have read some good reviews of these in mags, but have seen them recieve bad reviews on some birding forums. Some people don't like the ease of focusing and they could be brighter.
Also keep in mind the Leupold binocs are not made by leupold but are "Imported" by Leupold from Japan. Have read some good things about the Leupold Wind river Katmai model.
In the same price you need to check out The All time Inexpensive Binocular Cahmpion of the Bird watchers, The Swift Audubon 8.5x44. Around$279.99or $379.99 withExtra-low dispersion (ED)glass. They are a porro design and water/fog/shock proof with lifetimewarrenty. Swift also makes a roof prism model. The Swift Audubon Roofs are 379 but I don't know if they make an ED model in the roofs.ALot of people swear by these binocs over the last 25 years and Swift keeps improving them to keep them current. Do a search on Yahoo or Google for "Swift Audubon reviews" or Binocular Reviews and see wht you get.
Good luck
Okcmco

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

If $300. is what you are going to spend..
Buy a quality a porro prism bino .....A well made roof prism bino
is too hard to come by at that price you may find one but chances are probable you won't..
A $300.00 porro is equivalent to a $500.00 roof bino..

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

The only problem I see with the Swifts or Celestron style binos is that nobody in the hunting crowd is familiar with them sort of like how Leupold was an unfamiliar term in birding circles ten years ago. Good optics on all counts but people like to buy from companies they know.

I have seen some folks argue thata $300 porro is equivalent to a $1000 roof when it comes to image quality.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

You're right there
To tell the truth..I don't see any adv that the roof has over the porro..Except for the compactness..And maybe eye relief..
But with twist out eyecups being offered in Porro its out the widow now..
Roof prism may have the adv of being more waterproof, but there is not too many cond where this offers any advantage over the porro..One would have to dump there bino in a lake to notice..
It takes 200-300times longer to properly align the Roof Prism models over Porro prism..
Thats where the added expense comes in..Labour..
I can assure you right now those roof prism models that are under
$400.00 you're taking a risk..
Ya might as well stand on the sidewalk and chuck that money into the air and walk away..
You will find lots of lemons in the bunch..
If $300.00 is all ya can afford get Porro and get something made that has a rep of good products,,
Steiner makes lots of good models designed in Porro check them out.
B&L Disc in the Porro is also a great bino..
Swift also has Porro binos that are great..

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

I would agree to an extent. There is alot more problems with quality control at the $300 price point for roofs but there definitely are some good units out there. I have owned several I would call respectable by high-end standards.

As for porro vs. roof...there are other issues as well. Close focus distance, speed of focus, etc.... that might stear folks in the direction of roofs. I love the image my Nikon E provides though I prefer the handling and larger eye relief of the LX. The waterproof/splash proof issue is arguably a moot point. Unless you hunt in extremely humid conditions I can't see where it would be a major sticking point either.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

Yeah I've heard some good things about Nikon Monarch and Pentax Hr 2..and Bushnell Legonds..My budddies use them...They well work for them..All are Very bright Fully multi coated..Phase Coated..Waterproof ..great eye-relief and focus is awsome They've got everything a hunter can ask for ..
But to show them how far off of allignment they were I set up a target ..With the binoculars in a fixed position (STABLED)And one objective lens covered I had them look at the bulls eye then repeat the procedure..Covering up the other objective lens and looking through....Each binowas off both horz and vertically by lots..
If all one is doing is looking at game that has been spotted by the naked eye it will work..This is 90% of the hunting anyways..
One will notice it when they start to glass in terrain that looks barren and you have to concentrate hard to find game..
Eye strain will happen and headaches will occur in a matter of little time..
If money is tight and I needed a binocular for hunting.. depending on how I findgame I'd give Porros some thought.A hunter can glass
a long time with a good set of Porro Bino's and all those features
like Waterproof..Fully Multicoated..Rainguard Armorcoated etc.
are offered in these as well..The Image is brighter and clearer in a Porro and Depth of field is greater ..
I do hunt with Roof Prism Bino's but I spent 3 yrs saving money until I could afford to buy a quality pair...
If I didn't have the option of "borrowing" :D:DI would have got the
Porros a long time ago..
But since I've bought mine I havn't seen them around much...They are always being used by my family members...They have been around the world .. Which is cool..

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

try this web site. You may be able to find something a little better around the same price. But personally I love my Nikon's.

http://www.natchezss.com/category.cfm?category=20&CFID=377090&CFTOK EN=44408252

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

All true...especially that last bit about the price. I may have said it here before but if I haven't then...

...if any of you live relatively near or are willing to drive to the Cabelas in Eastern PA then check out their bargain cave. They have some real steals in there if you know what you are looking for. They recently received a shipment of refurbished Nikon bins of various styles and combinations. I just bought a $300 Nikon E series porro for $105 and its brightness, clarity and resolution come close to matching my more expensive Nikon roof prism binos. If I get a chance I am heading out again this weekend to see what else they have hidden away in there.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

Wish a Cabelas would open in Canada..:D:D:D

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

At the rate they are going you may just get your wish. I hear they are opening another one in New Jersey now and I believe somewhere up in New England. That bargain cave is an absolute steal if you know what to look for.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

Jeff, I’m lucky living in Winnipeg that I can go to a Cabela’s in East Grand Forks. It’s only a 2 hour drive. I‘ve been there a number of times and would have to say . It’s worth the trip.

Back to the topic, I have the Leica LRF 900 range finder and find it to be very good for just a small lens. So if you have a chance check out the Leica.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

My dad was sick of me borrowing his Zeiss 8x30's so I bought the Nikon Monarch 8x42's before last season and love them. I have been very impressed. There are better ones out there but only if you pay more.

RE: Help me pick out new binos
 

i read an article that said your better off with porros as compared to roof prisms that arent phase correcting. my set of crappy burris is a great example of that. my brother bought the porros 10x42 where i bought the roofs. i like his much better and a little cheaper. my next set will be zeiss.