School me on binoculars

[Little Dutch]

Invaluable, thanks.
I went to Sportsmans this morning and looked at the binoculars again. The Vortex Razor in 10x42 would fit my needs nicely. I was rather taken with them. As per Delfuego’s suggestion I may call cameraland to see what he can offer me. I see a lot of their posts over on longrangehunting offering deals if you’re willing to call.
It’s going to be a while though. I’ll start a bino cash stash so I can purchase with a larger budget.

[Duman]

As pointed out earlier, once you've looked through good glass, there's no going back.
Also pointed out, good glass is expensive unless the pawn-fairy blesses you.

I have a pair of Leica compact binos which are better than some full-size I've used: https://www.opticsplanet.com/leica-u...ars-40252.html

[longrange2]

I just picked up a nice used pair of Zeiss Conquest 10x42 for $600 and they are great. I have a set of Swarovski 10x42 ELs and the Zeiss hangs with them pretty well. I wanted a less expensive pair I wasn’t afraid to leave in the truck and have been pleasantly surprised with them. I saw a like new pair on Snipers Hide I think for $700.

[zimagold]

Vortex Razor HD 10x42s are my main hunting binoculars. As previously mentioned they hit a sweet spot for performance, weight, warranty, and cost. I borrowed all the majors brands from friends before settling on the Razors.

My dream binos are the new Swarovski NL Pure line, but the Razors work well enough for now. Edge resolution and distortion could be better. With the center glass, I can routinely spot mule deer out to a mile off a tripod in twilight. Sometimes the edge distortion makes gridding a mountain hard. The weight and size is quite good for their class. I also dont have to baby them with Vortexs warranty which means they go everywhere all the time.

I bought mine in 2017 and paid $900 after calling a few places and ultimately getting a better than price match from Opticsplanet.

[Duman]

Zima, curious, why the NL over the EL?

[zimagold]

Zima, curious, why the NL over the EL?

New NLs are supposed to have an apparent field of view of >70 degrees resulting in a more immersive experience with less fatigue. The new prisms are about 1oz heavier than the ELs. Looking at 12x42s for mostly stationary or tripod use.

I would probably keep the 10x42 Razors for ground work and high risk stuff. As a direct replacement the 10x42 ELs with Swarovision were excellent when I borrowed them.