Newbie bino question

norfolk shooter

Well-Known Member
Just wondered what to get 8x or 10x mag? Also advantages and disadvantages of them? Sorry about this but minox vs steiner???:?::?:
 
Hi mate are you open or woodland 10x50s i use open hill stalking how much you spend for the quality you get.
Don't do what i done when i started bought a cheap pair.Then went out with someone with a good set well the differance. Its when
the light starts to go you will SEE the differance.You don't have to spent thousands but you do have to spend hundreds.
I did the same with my rifle scope you have to spend as much as you can on your optics.
good luck brian
 
+1 on the above even cheaper rilfles will shoot strighter than you can hold them but cheap binos will not help you see in bad light as well as good ones the differance is truly amasing in poor light.
 
Buy the best binos you can possibly afford. The magnification you require will depend on what type of stalking you intend to do the most. As woodfordfallow rightly says, if you are doing a lot of hill or open field stalking I would go for a pair of 10's but if you are going to be mainly woodland stalking then a pair of 7 or 8's will be much better in that situation. To be honest I would try and stick with Swarovski, Zeiss or Leica. There is often many of these on eBay and I wouldnt be put off by an old (ish) pair, if they have been looked after the glass will still be first class.


All the best,

M
 
7 - 8 is my recommendation. woodfordfallow is bag on the money. I have had my bins for over 10 years and they never leave my side.
 
Most of my slaking would be a combination of Norfolk fields and woodland if that helps. As for budget I would say about £200-£250. I've had good reports on the minox bv 8x42 br bins and I have a seen a pair for £170!! Found them by accident while looking at trousers
 
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Regarding the Steiner Minox question, yes I agree that Swaro are superb, if I could afford them I would love ELs. I have looked at Steiners around the £500- 600 mark and found the Minox far far supier in build quality so opted for a pair of 10x52 HGs. I have alo used my mates Swaro SLC and found them better, but thats my personal choice. One thing I do know is I was amazed at how good the Minox were at low light in the woodland in the morning. If you buy Minox try Sherwoods in Notts as the do cracking ex demo.
 
Add Bausch and lomb to your search. They make some good binos. I don't have much experience of minox or steiner. Not a bad idea to buy second hand if it is one of the better makes.
 
I used a cheap pair of 10x42 for a few years and they were good in both woodland and on the open fields.

Once I knew I was happy with the mag I saved up for a good pair and ended up with 10x45.
The 8x42 give better light transmission to the eye and normally weigh a bit less, which could be worth considering.
 
I just forked out for my first ever dedicated piece of stalking kit: 7x42 Swarovski Habicht binoculars, bought on eBay for £300 from a bloke in Tuscany. They're the rubberised more recent version. I did a lot of research beforehand, looked at what was available in used binos and how much they went for. There are a hell of a lot of old Zeiss binoculars, but you have to be careful as there are quite a lot of counterfeit versions of the 70s and 80s models. Don't buy any with "minor damage to the lenses" etc, it's not worth it. But companies like Swarovski and Zeiss build products to last, so there are bargains to be had.
 
You should consider using the same magnification as your rifle scope assuming you have fixed magnification if not the 8x for forestry 10x on the hill.
If you do have variable mag on your scope then preset it to the same as the binoculars as it will be easier to get back onto your target when swapping. You may also want to consider built in range finders as per the Leicas.
 
Hi. I have used a pair of 8x50 Leupolds for a few years now and been well impressed, as was the bank manager because they are much cheaper than Swarowski et al. I have since bought a pair of 10x50 Leupold Tactical but find the depth of field to be shallower so I am forever tweaking the focus. I have tried the more expensive bins but found that they don't suit my eyes - maybe because I wear glasses.... best thing to do is spend what you can afford - as much as you can afford, and just try out as many as possible before making a choice.

Good luck!

Steve
 
Opticron DBA, great glass . I founf that these justified their price well alongside swaro`s ziess etc
 
Are the old vintage Ziess jena's any good??? Lot of them on ebay for not a lot of dosh!!!

If you can find a pair of Carl Zeiss Jena Notarem's in 10x40 then yes, they are surprisingly good. I bought a pair about 12 months ago and have been impressed with them. Not as good as Swaro, Zeiss, Leica, etc. but certainly worth a look.

Until recently I also had a pair of Carl Zeiss Jena 7x40 "checkpoint charlie" binoculars. They were very clear and focus free, which I liked, but did have a slight yellow cast - presumably to enhance contrast. They were comfortable to use and tough as old boots. I used them for years and was very happy with them. I have just sold them to help fund a pair of Leica 8x40's to complement the Swaro 8.5x42's I already have.

If you haven't already noticed, I'm a bit of a binocular tart! I also have a pair of Optolyths and a pair of Steiners. Both of these are secondhand, but in terms of optical and build quality don't come anywhere near the above.

willie_gunn
 
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