First Pair of Binoculars

[Mithrandir]

Hi Guys,

Could someone recommend a good pair of Binos around the £400 mark?

Looking to get the basics together to start with and build from there.

Cheers

 

[@theroedeerguy]

Buy cheap buy twice!

if you are restricted to £400 budget I would consider either 2nd hand Swaworvski or brand new Minox.

Best option for future proofing your purchase though is to increase your budget and go and look through some brand new Swavorski or Leica binoculars.

Alternatively buy yourself a £10 pair of any binoculars off eBay and take advantage of the £500 discount trade in with RM McLeod on a new pair of Leica!

 

[Cawdor118]

Swarovski SLC's are amazing optically and around that price

 

[highland stalker]

For that kind of money it's got to be Swarovski slc's. As said above Gregor at Macleods of Tain will likely be able to sort you out with a pair of ex demos or such like.

 

[NigelM]

12 years ago I bought a 2nd hand pair of Swarovski SL's from a dealer in Scotland. Last year I upgraded to a pair of RF bins and the same dealer gave me exactly what I paid for them on trade in. That's a very cheap 12 years of use of a very good set of binoculars.

I don't think you could get that buying any brand other than Swaro.

 

[slider]

Vortex Viper Hd's are top class, come with a lifetime warranty and can be picked up (new) for less than £500.

If you don't want to steady that far the Diamondbacks are a decent set of first binoculars

I got mine on ebay from Luzerntech., who i would happily recommend

 

[Irish Bob]

Used Swarovski SLCs.

 

[Tom D]

Vortex really are excellent value for money.

 

[Buchan]

I have a set of 8 x 50 available £450 plus possst

 

[Edinburgh Rifles]

brand new Minox 10x42s in the classifieds

 

[Cottis]

Just replaced my old bins and finally decided 400 quid as about my budget. I looked at lots and undertook much research in to how a massive amount of companies are outsourcing their wares to China but using pretty good optical materials. You are looking for ED Glass, coated prisms, decent chassis, good lens caps, eye cups, straps, case etc and a set that are reassuringly weighty but without being heavy.

After going through tons of reviews I finally went for Vortex Viper HD in 8x42 flavour which I found for £399.

I am VERY impressed with them. They beat the following contenders in my price bracket; Athlon Cronus/Aries, Vanguard Endeavour III, Alpen Wings ED, Minox BL HD

I doubt you can do any better new for £400. I considered S/H swaros but did not see anything come up for 400quid that I thought was acceptable. The Vortex also came with a no quibble lifetime warranty and having used one of their scopes now for a while, I had confidence in their build quality. So far so good but the real proof will be how the pudding tastes in a coupla years.

 

[bluesako]

hi I would go for a pair of Swarovski slc,s 8x30,s they are a fantastic bino for about the £400 mark second hand

 

[karlbird]

I bought Minox to start, they are good and I knew no better.

Then on a whim I bought a pair of Swaros when left some money by my grandfather. Amazing things, so much better than the Minox, which are good and would still be my main pair had I not changed and I'd never know.

Minox aftersales is amazing. After being left in my car all summer and developing an issue possibly due to the heat, they swapped them for a brand new pair.

 

[enfieldspares]

Best binoculars a I ever had were Zeiss Dialyt 10x40. But if you increasingly wear glasses then no. The eyepieces are roll down not push down...a big disadvantage.

So I now use Leica 7x42 BA or a pair of Optolyth 7x50. I bought my son the Leica 7x42 HD. Never really been that much struck on Swaro stuff. If I want something with greater magnification I use my Grey's telescope.

But keep permanently a cheap little Russian Tourist-4 'scope in the car. It does for checking flocking pigeons or anything else of interest. So the cheap Cold War Soviet, Czech Meopta or East German Jena stuff still has a role even today...if you put it down and forget it you don't cry!

In Suffolk, although I think they are somewhat pricey, take a trip to Cley. To Cley Spy. On the Norfolk north coast. Client base appears mainly for "twitchers" who, by reputation, are more obsessed with their "glass" than are stalkers.

Buy Binoculars Telescopes Online - Cley Spy

They have hundreds of binoculars, new and used, Zeiss, Leica, Minox, Opticron, Swaro etc., etc., etc., and a three hundred yard field out back to look across to some woodlands. All prices from fifty quid up to a thousand quid and beyond. You may find that what suits what you want to do is somewhere between those two sums.

 

[bockos]

I can recommend swarovski habicht 8x30: very sharp, contrast and bright and in this price range. it is also an older version 8x30B which is even cheaper.