which binoculars

cyrixoutside · Post by **cyrixoutside** » Thu Jul 27, 2006 5:59 pm

Hi,

i was just wondering if anybody on this group has used Minox binoculars. I am planning to get one. Also any idea about nikon binoculars. The Nikon 8x42 Monarch ATB seems to be the best bet for an under USD 500 set as per the reviews on the net.

rajat

Post by **Mack The Knife** » Thu Jul 27, 2006 9:36 pm

cyrixoutside wrote:The Nikon 8x42 Monarch ATB seems to be the best bet for an under USD 500 set as per the reviews on the net.

You are on the right track.

http://www.theopticzone.com

Mack The Knife

mehulkamdar · Post by **mehulkamdar** » Thu Jul 27, 2006 10:00 pm

Rajat,

Most of the Japanese optics manufacturers use the antiquated Porro Prism design for their binoculars which makes then unneccessarily bulky and heavy. Their lens coatings are excellent and there is usually not much flare, edge to edge clarity is also very nice.

Minox offer the much better Roof Prism design which makes their binoculars considerably more compact and with a better design from an optical viewpoint - use a pair with equivalent magnification and an equally sized objective lens as a Nikon or any other Japanese brand and you'll see the difference especially as far as colour is concerned. Minox even offer their 12x52 model with aspherical lenses which would be the best binoculars available today IMO.

One hint - if you are a frequent flyer on Lufthansa or know someone who is, you would be able to get a substantial discount on Minox prices. The difference could be as much as 50% over even online prices.

Cheers!

Mehul

cyrixoutside · Post by **cyrixoutside** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 10:18 am

hi,

Mack The Knife thaks for that link, it has the lowest price i have seen anywhere on the net for the nikon monarch. My only gripe with the nikon monarch is that they dont make a 7 x 42 model.

the 8 x 42 model has a fov of only 330 feet at 1000 yards.

Mehul

as per my understanding porro prisms as optically superior to roof prisms (of simlar quality price) the only disadvantage of porro prisms being their larger size.

The particular Minox Model i am interested in is BD 6.5x32 IF. It has aspherical lenses and large fov of 420 at 1000 yards the only thing that is confusing me about this model is that it has independent focus and i am not sure how this will work for close range work.

and thanks for the Lufthansa tip

rajat

mehulkamdar · Post by **mehulkamdar** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 10:49 am

Rajat,

Roof Prism binoculars can be made with phase correction which makes them far superior to Porro Prism ones. That is the reason why they cost considerably more. The best way to choose, however, would be for you to check out a few different models and let your eyes be the judge.

Cheers,

Mehul

Post by **Mack The Knife** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:53 am

cyrixoutside wrote:Mack The Knife thaks for that link, it has the lowest price i have seen anywhere on the net for the nikon monarch.

Jon's a good man and his advice is honest. Me and a few friends have bought from him and have been happy with his service. He may also be able to get you models that are not shown on the site at a competitive price. E-mail him.

Mack The Knife

cyrixoutside · Post by **cyrixoutside** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 12:23 pm

hi,

Mehul

these kind of bino's are not available india. i will need to make my decison based on internet reviews and get some one in the US to buy them for and then bring to india. I can not ask them to be posted as they will vanish for sure.

anyway has anyone out here used independent focus bino's and can they tell me how they work in the real world.

thanks

rajat

Ranjeet Singh · Post by **Ranjeet Singh** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 6:54 pm

Hi Rajat,

By independent focus if you mean, adjustable focus for each eye, yes I have one.
I bought a Steiner 9X 40 (its called Ranger in Germany, Big Horn elsewhere), after quite a bit of research. Would have bought the Steiner Night hunter XP, If I had the extra 500 Euros.

Few things that i've found- pls excuse if repetative

0) buy the best you can afford.
1) in a price range, you would get better Porro Prims than Roof, of course as other members have pointed out- makes the bino bulky
2) Don't go for more magnification than 7 or 8X- The shaking of hand is magnified- very uncomfortable if you use it for birding.

3) for me robustness was also a factor.

And as Mehul pointed out, its really necessay to check out a bino to really see what diff does the size in objective makes to the use of Bino in low light..what effect does the exit pupil has on low light conditions..

I could try a lot of Binos here in Munich and could see the difference..

Well none the less here is a very good site which has a section Binocular school- Its from Zeiss, considered the best by many..

http://www.zeiss.com/C1256BCF0020BE5F/C ... CF00613214

Regards
Ranjeet

Ranjeet Singh · Post by **Ranjeet Singh** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 7:14 pm

gave all the gyan

, but forgot to answer the question.

if I understood, independent focus as separate for each eye:- if you are the only one using it - its great..no problems, but if you got to give the bino to your friend and then he has to go through a round of adjustments to focus properly- more trouble if your friend uses specs...

if you meant focus free:- focus only once for a distance and no need to re-focus for any other distance then your concern of focussing on short distance is valid below 20 ft.

But then you won't use it for anything less than 20 ft right? Beyond 20ft and more you would like the feature...Atleast my bino gives a very clear view at varying distances.

hope not too much gyan

Regards
Ranjeet

cyrixoutside · Post by **cyrixoutside** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 8:47 pm

hi,

i mean indepenedent focus where you focus of each eye seperately.
What i am trying to find out is this

lets say i focus each eye seperately and now i am looking at such object maybe 200 yards away, and the i shift to some object about 30 yards away. will i need to refocus to see the nearer object or will the bino's work with out any adjustment.

thanks

rajat

Post by **Mack The Knife** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 8:55 pm

cyrixoutside wrote:lets say i focus each eye seperately and now i am looking at such object maybe 200 yards away, and the i shift to some object about 30 yards away. will i need to refocus to see the nearer object or will the bino's work with out any adjustment.

Ranjeet's Steiner will, the ATB will not.

Once focused for each eye, you only have to turn the central wheel for different distances. At least that's how it works on mine.

Mack The Knife

cyrixoutside · Post by **cyrixoutside** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 9:14 pm

Hi,

Mack The Knife do you have a nikon monarch atb, the stuff on the net says it has close focus of 8 feet, does this mean that its will not be able to produce clear images of objects at less than 8 feet.

just curious i am not a butterfly or insect watcher.

the literature for the minox BD 6.5 x 32 IF (on the UK website) say the following

Their optical design means that once the individual diopters have been set to the user's own personal settings, eveything further away than 15m (9.5x42) or 8m (6.5x32) will be in focus thus eliminating the need to have a central focus wheel.

so if this is so then these are the bino's for me.

rajat

sat · Post by **sat** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 10:54 pm

Pentax DCF SP have got very good reviews too. If I had to make a decision on a pair of binos based on reviews, I would follow Jon advice at 'The Optic Zone'.

Some reviews:

http://www.birdwatching.com/optics/pentax_sp.html

http://www.optics4birding.com/RevPentaxDCFSP.aspx

http://www.optics4birding.com/reviews.aspx
http://www.optics4birding.com/RevNikon1 ... chATB.aspx

Mehul,

Can you suggest a Minox dealer/shop in Germany, Frankfurt would be ideal where a friend could purchase a minox at a good price.

thanks

sat

sat · Post by **sat** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:33 pm

Rajat,

Leica have a dealer in Mumbai. I used a Leica 8x50 and apo 77mm televid spotting scope for a short time, superb.

some more binos to look at. SWFA ownership has changed hands, perhaps mehul can update us.

http://www.samplelist.com/default.asp?p ... sold=False

sat

mehulkamdar · Post by **mehulkamdar** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 4:18 am

Sat,

The best way to get a good price on Minox products would be through Lufthansa's inflight service for frequent flyers. The moment you go to a store, prices go up. I have a nephew coming to join university at Dearborn next week and shall ask him to bring the inflight shopping guide along. Will post details here.

Ranjeet,

Have you been able to check out Steiner's riflescopes? They recently bought the old and highly respectable Nickel name and have started selling riflescopes under that brand. The prices are premium ones but I have no idea what the quality is like.

As far as Zeiss are concerned, they bought Docter Optic, closed the original company down and now sell their low end scopes under the Docter name. In the USA they bought the old Humphreys plant and have brought out what they sell as their Conquest series, just junk under another name. It is sad what they have done to some of the finest names in optical history!

Some of the Russian optics manufacturers also make incredible stuff - I have been to the BC Rubin Optomechanical plant at Lytkarino at their invitation when I worked for my father's business and some of their stuff was incredibly good, albeit very cheap. The exterior finish on their binoculars is somewhat militaryish, but there is no way you can fault the optics. The Russians also have a secret process of coating their lenses by immersing them in a liquid bath instead of the more common vacuum coats with magnesium fluoride powder that are used in the rest of the world. I am told they sell these scopes in Germany and Austria but not in the rest of the world for some reason.

Cheers,

Mehul

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