bagem

I spent an hour today at Cabelas comparing 4 different binoculars. I thought I would give my impressions of the optics and invite feedback. I fully realize that looking around the big, well lit, store is hardly a great playing field for comparison, but I made the most of what I had. I should mention that I had all but talked myself into the Nikons before even going in there, based on numerous reports.

1) Nikon Monarch ATB 10X42, $300
2) Leupold WR Cascade 10X42, $310
3) Cabelas Alaskan Guide 10X42, $570
4) Swarovski EL 10X42, $1850

I thought the Nikon and Leupold were indistinguishable in the optical quality. The optics were very good on both.

Next I tried the Cabelas Alaskan Guide and immediately noticed a step up in optical quality. As I said earlier, I was predisposed to the Nikon, so spent a good deal of time trying to convince myself that the Alaskan Guide was not better, but the difference was unmistakable. Advantage Alaskan Guide.

I then wondered how much better the Swarovski would be since it had a much heftier price tag. The Swarovski was indeed fantastic. I then spent a good deal of time comparing the Alaskan Guide to the Swarovski and felt the Swarovski had only a slight edge.

I felt that the Alaskan Guide was much closer in quality to the Swarovski than to the Nikon or Leupold. If I were to buy today (I won't actually buy til summer), I would go with the Alaskan Guide as a "best value".

Again, I will say that the comparison should ideally be done outdoors both in sunlight and low light conditions, but the indoor test convinced me to give a serious look to the Alaskan Guide when it comes time to buy.

Anyone out there have similar experiences with these binoculars??

Matthew V. (An outdoorsman)

I really like the sound of your report. I'm really considering some good quality binos and the Alaskan Guide Binos were one of them. The other pair I was looking at were the Steiner Merlin 8X42. The Alaskan Guide's are about $50 more. Which ones should I buy?

maytom

Before you buy, be sure to try out the Bushnell Legends. I picked up the 8X32 power and I love them. I chose these over the ones you mentioned.
For the money, it was the best pair in my opinion.

okcmco

I have to say that I was impressed with the alaskan guide binos also. I could be wrong but I think they are made from a company called Light Optical of Japan. At under 600 bucks I was suprised to find them comfotable, attractive and had very good optics. They were not equal to the Zeiss victory FL T II, the nikon premier LX or Swarovski EL. But I would say they were 80% as good and theywere about 35%-45% as expensive.
I was also impressed (though not at all surprised) with the Meopta Meostars. Under a grand, made in europe, and very high quality. Meopta has been making optics in Czech republic for about 70 or 80 years. BTW the cabela's euro binoculars are made in Czech republic so they are made by meopta. There is probably not a better roof prism bino for the money than these.
Still, I would not hesitate to go anywhere in the world with a pair of Cabela's Alaskan Guide 10x42
okcmco

PABowhntr

My comments mirror that of okcmco. I owned a pair of the 10x42 Alaskan Guides and would agree that their optical quality was a step up from the Monarch, Pinnacles, etc... I would rate them in the same class as the Bushnell Elites, Leupold Golden Rings, Steiner Peregrine, etc... That is saying something though as those other binoculars cost around $300 more than the Alaskan Guides. Though Cabelas will not say anything about the manufacturer other than it is "a leading Japanese manufacturer" I believe that I read in several places that the Alaskan guides were manufactured by Fujinon. Fujinon has several models that are very highly regarded and often compared with the high end European brands.

If you are curious as to why I returned them, though their optics are top notch and their ergonomics were extremely comfortable I had a difficult time with the "click stop" focus adjustment. It seemed that in practical, outdoor use I ran into several situations where the "pefect focus" was right in between the click stops. I found this particulary frustrating and returned them. If they were to get rid of this one feature I would not hesitate to buy another pair. They are a steal at that price.

Also, if you enjoyed the Alaskan Guides then I would also suggest you take a look at their Professional WP series. Same ergonomics as the Alaskan Guides but no phase coating on the roof prisms. Brightness was noticeably less but resolution/clarity was on par with the Alaskan Guides at least in my opinion. Considering you can get them for about the same price as the 10x42 Monarchs should warrant them at least a cursory glance.

On a somewhat related note, though you did try the 10x42 Monarchs I would suggest also trying out the new Monarch configurations. Though I am lured to the 8x36s because of their size I think you might find the 10x56s or 10x36s appealing. Th 56 mm'slow light gathering ability should be excellent though their size might put some folks off.