Binocular recommendations? (1 Viewer)

[CazPaul]

A good quality pair for birdwatching, nature.
Anybody recommend a decent pair please.
We live up on the moors it's like a giant nature reserve, it's a crime not having good binoculars.

 

[andy63]

I got Bushnell.. not cheap but very good.. lifetime warranty withvany defects..
Andy

 

[JeanLuc]

The starting point is budget. Binoculars range from under £100 to £2,000. Broadly speaking for decent nature watching you need 8 or 10 times magnification by 32 or 42 mm objective lenses. 8x42 will give you better light gathering but are a bit heavier than 8x32. Having said that, the best 8x32 will beat a cheap 8x42. The apparent advantage of going up from 8 to 10x magnification has to be balanced against the fact that it is easier to hold the 8x steady, thereby getting a crisp image.
If you have to wear glasses then it can be an advantage to get binoculars that allow you to keep your glasses on. If this facility is needed then make sure the binoculars have decent ‘eye relief’, that is the distance that the pupil can be from the eyepiece. Look for a figure of at least 17mm, ideally more.
Broadly speaking, you can divide binoculars into three quality bands (leaving aside the real cheapos). Around £200-£500; £500-£1,000 and £1,000 plus. Three premium brands dominate the top end, the so-called ‘alpha bins’, Leica, Swarovski and Zeiss. Leica and Zeiss also make excellent products in the middle range. At the bottom end there are loads of brands but many of them are made in China, not necessarily a problem but be careful when choosing.
Other good brands to consider in the mid/lower ranges: Opticron, Vortex, Hawke (made in China) Kowa (mid to upper), Celestron and Bushnell.

Ultimately, you must try before you buy and try to do it in poor weather rather than on a clear sunny day. I have heard a story of a high-end brand rep referring to bright days as ‘crap telescope days’ because under those conditions even a crap scope can perform ok. In poorer conditions, the quality of better instruments shines through. Try to do your testing in realistic outdoor conditions, not in a showroom. Better dealers will have this facility.

Hope this helps and ask any more questions as and when they arise.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[irnbru]

I got Bushnell.. not cheap but very good.. lifetime warranty withvany defects..
Andy

I wouldn't expect any less from you. You dont know what cheap means and only go by price tags

 

[MikeD]

If money is not an object then I consider Swarovski are pretty good.

 

[JeanLuc]

Swarovski are excellent but they don’t make anything under £1,000 apart from a couple of compact designs and they are a bit limited regarding field of view and light gathering. Their 8x32 and 8.5x42 EL products are outstanding but they are c. £1,500 and £1,825 respectively.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Speve]

Vanguard are very good at a reasonable cost I’ve been using them for many years and they have a lifetime guarantee.
Broken Link Removed

 

[andy63]

I wouldn't expect any less from you. You dont know what cheap means and only go by price tags

Cheeky git... im a poor pensioner..
If you want quality you generally have to pay the price...
Youer catching on slowly...but have a ways to go yet
Andy

 

[DBK]

Another factor to consider is size. I inherited a pair 10 by 40B binos which are superb especially in low light levels but they are not something you can pop into a pocket. So a year or so ago I bought some Zeiss 8 by 20s which in normal daylight are very good, the only disadvantage is the reduced field of vision. Their big advantage is they are so light and small they can be tucked into a shirt pocket so you never have an excuse not to have some binos with you. You can have the best and biggest binos but they are not much use if you left them at home.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[irnbru]

Cheeky git... im a poor pensioner..
If you want quality you generally have to pay the price...
Youer catching on slowly...but have a ways to go yet
Andy

Dont start me

 

[WillH]

8x32 will slip into a jacket pocket and should do the job. I use Zeiss.

 

[hilldweller]

A good quality pair for birdwatching, nature..

Big is Beautiful.

The more light you gather the brighter the image will be. A guide is lens size divided by magnification. 50 / 8 = 6, 25 / 8 = 3 which will be much dimmer. I have a pair of 15 x 75 which are positively dazzling but too heavy to hand hold. I've seen 60 x 50 advertised, they would so dim you'd see little.

Don't even think of zoom. Too many pieces of glass involved.

My favourite size is 8 x 50.

After that it's down to quality of manufacture which shows in the price.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[dabhand]

https://www.bestbinocularsreviews.com/binocular-awards-2018.php

I went on safari 20 odd years ago and asked for a reasononable pair of bins for to see the animals, I ended up with Fumoto horizon 10 x 50 at around £100, still got them they still seem ok to me, but I would never argue with people that know, like some of the above, whether my eyes would tell the difference between a hundred and a thousand pounds I will never know until I get to see through a pair of the really expensive ones!

 

[CazPaul]

Thanks all, I have been a keen birdwatcher all my life, need a decent pair.
Suppose it's like motorhomes, do I go for cheap, mid range or high end, would love high end but can't justify the price. Wonder if any used high end ones around?

 

[ianthebuilder]

If money is not an object then I consider Swarovski are pretty good.

They also look really sparkly when hanging round your neck!!

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Whitebirdyman]

I do a lot of hiking and used to carry a pair of compact binoculars for weight and size reasons, but as others mention above the compromises were too great to get good enough image quality.

Instead of that I now have an Opticron monocular, which naturally is slightly less than half the size and weight of equivalent binoculars, and the image quality and light gathering are excellent. The only thing that you miss out on is the stereo vision you can get with binoculars, but you have to balance that against resetting the inter-pupillary distance, which is always wrong when you pull them out of a case, and keeping the dioptre adjustment correct.

Two other advantages for me are that the monocular is only half the weight to hold to the eye and now, with a bit of practice, I can keep the second eye open and have an awareness of my unmagnified surroundings, similar to what photographers sometimes do.

You can generally pick up an Opticron 8x42 or 10x42 in the £150 to £200 range, if you can cope with a slightly less bright image they do an 8x35 cheaper (and lighter and more compact) and even smaller ones.

Jim

 

[Speve]

Thanks all, I have been a keen birdwatcher all my life, need a decent pair.
Suppose it's like motorhomes, do I go for cheap, mid range or high end, would love high end but can't justify the price. Wonder if any used high end ones around?

When I was looking for some they were a bit like hens teeth

 

[Silas]

Another vote for opticron here. Very well made and good value. You can get their 8x32 for about £80.00 and they are really good

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[icantremember]

Wonder if any used high end ones around?

When I was looking for some they were a bit like hens teeth

Good quality binos well cared for will almost hold their original price.
My Leica Ultravid 8x42 are about 15 years old and apart from replacing lens caps they have been great and perform as well now as when new.... happy to recommend Leica.

 

[Ninjabob]

Canon Image Stabilising Binoculars - brilliant piece of kit - try them. With any binoculars the higher the magnification the harder they are to keep still unless tripod mounted.

 

[scotjimland]

Another vote for Opticron

Opticron Imagic 10x50 .. had them for over 20 years .. a bit big for walking perhaps, but excellent quality and clarity , with long eye relief and waterproof ..not a twitcher, I bought for general purpose and star gazing

review here http://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/review/binoculars/opticron-imagic-10x50

£170 from Wex

as for objective lens size, ?
.. much like engines.. there is no replacement for displacement

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[hilldweller]

would love high end but can't justify the price.

And just like MHs does a £300K MH give more pleasure than a £50K MH ? Just like the £300K MH, buy very expensive and you'll forever be worried about them being nicked.

 

[Larrynwin]

I have Nikon Monarch 10 x 56 waterproof , not for the pocket but bright sharp image.

 

[JeanLuc]

A few second hand high-end bins here https://www.cleyspy.co.uk/used-equipment.html bear in mind that the premium manufacturers tend to make incremental improvements to their models over the years without making a song and dance about a new launch, so an older pair may not perform as well as the most recent incarnation. CleySpy is an excellent dealer. We make a point of visiting north Norfolk if we need anything from them; also a great birding area of course.

P.s. I don’t have a pair of Swaros myself but would definitely go for them if changing. I use Zeiss Conquest HD 8x42 which are very good indeed; they are Zeiss’s mid-range and about £1,000 less than their Victory SF which is the alpha bin. I do have a Swaro scope and the quality of the image is outstanding.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Larrynwin]

If you don’t already have one a Sony RX10 3 or 4 camera, incredible magnification, image quality and steady shot, look and snap, great camera.
Sorry a bit off thread but worth looking at .

 

[DP+JAY]

Viking Badger 8x42, don't be put off by the sub £100 price tag.

BROKEN LINK

We wanted something decent but that wouldn't hurt too much if they were lost,stolen,or dropped by grandchildren etc.

 

[Lenny HB]

I got Bushnell.. not cheap but very good.. lifetime warranty withvany defects..
Andy

Another Bushnell fan here, tried some out at one of the RSBP places they were selling 8x40 under their own name for £250 went to Jessops same ones £110. Superb for the price.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Snowbird]

I know absolutely nothing about binoculars, but I inherited a huge pair of Russian bins from my father and they are great apart from I need a caddy to carry them. I was given a modern pair of Penta, made in Japan by a friend which are much easier to carry, but they are not in the same class as the old Russian ones.

 

[icantremember]

I need a caddy to carry them

I know what you mean, I have a huge pair (no laughing at the back please) 25x100 but can only use on a tripod.

 

[Lenny HB]

I know what you mean, I have a huge pair (no laughing at the back please)

Know the problem, had the op last year.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}