I am getting more and more interested in a pair of quality lenses. 10×42 I think? Nikon, Leupold, Vortex, Zeis, Swarovski, etc.
Too many choices. Although Swarovski likely too expensive. I would love some fresh information from people.
Believe it or not I just ran into this fight, and I’d say I definitely came out on top. I too was looking for a high end Bino but didn’t want to spend over 1,250
I was at Game Fair bumming around, and ran across Maven Optics. After chatting with the guys for an hour or so, I was sold.
After using them out in the Badlands for 6 days I am singing their praises. It was the best money I’ve spent, and after having tried Zeiss and Swarovski side by side with the Maven B1s, I saved a lot of money and received a piece of glass that goes head to head with the best.
I believe the guys who started the company came from some of the big dog bino companies, and wanted to offer the same quality at a more affordable price. They don’t do any retailers to save money, all custom built online.
The low light performance blew me away….pretty cool stuff.
It was a pretty big decision for me, as it was a lot of money to spend, and was impressed by how much time they spent on the phone with me taking the time to figure out which pair would suit my hunting style the best. Went online and built them just how I wanted.
Here is their website.
If I had to pick the over-achiever, it would be Leupold Acadia and Mojave. My father has the Acadia, our P-dog guide this summer had the Mojave. Both are fantastic, especially considering the Mojave is under $500 and the Acadia is under $400. I would recommend either depending on your budget. I don’t necessarily think the Mojave gives that much more for the price increase, it’s always difficult to REALLY tell, but the Mojave is fully waterproof/submersible where the Acadia is just “sealed” whatever that means.
Leuopold have the best setup for being able to use bincos with glasses that I’ve ever used. Their dial-up eye cups work well and stay in place, I have to wear sunglasses all the time while in the field, so I need this feature.
Minox are an under-appreciated brand in the hunting world. For whatever reason, Minox does not market specifically to hunters, but they are very well-known and appreciated by the bird and wildlife watchers. Minox is a German brand and they use Schott glass in many models. Schott is the glass supplier to Zeiss and many other top brands.
Stiener are also excellent and worth a look.
I have NOT heard good things about the new Zeiss compact models. Try before you buy and compare carefully. During a brief try-out, to my eyes, Zeiss just proved again that, in optics, you cannot beat the system. The are definitely NOT high end Zeiss with a low end price tag, IMO.
Take the time to set up each pair while testing including the L/R focus differential.
Grouse
big fan of vortex…. I believe when looking at higher end binoculars your really splitting hairs so I turn to customer service and from whjat I can tell and have heard from numerous people is that vortex has top notch warranty!!! send them in and they will almost always give you a new pair! plus I think there based out of cheese country…..wis connie
I just picked up the Leupold Mojave BX3. Had a pair of Zeiss Terra EDs but they broke right out of the box and it kind of soured me. Sent them back. Bought American made.
Lifetime warranty for anything but loss. I paid $355.00 to my doorstep. I’ve peaked in a few neighbors windows, but haven’t been able to give them a real test yet.
I just picked up the Leupold Mojave BX3. Had a pair of Zeiss Terra EDs but they broke right out of the box and it kind of soured me. Sent them back. Bought American made.
Lifetime warranty for anything but loss. I paid $355.00 to my doorstep. I’ve peaked in a few neighbors windows, but haven’t been able to give them a real test yet.
Yes, have yet to hear of anyone who was satisfied with the Zeiss Terras. Major mis-step for Zeiss to try to go low end and it’s totally bitten them in the backside.
I will hopfully be getting a new Minox spotting scope for Christmas. This would be the replacement for my last Minox spotting scope that died in an accident that was so stupid that I don’t even want to talk about it. T
here’s nothing sadder to a man than when good glass dies badly.
Grouse
Well now I’m interested!
No matter what you buy, look through them at an optical chart. That will seperate them real fast. Most people look around a store or outside and think they look good. …until they look through great glass. I’ve got Burris/stien and love them.
Lenstarg_lin_720.png
Those Mavens look pretty sweet but push it past the Grand mark. Plus a life-time warranty from a new company doesn’t instill me with confidence. Still, I am intrigued.
I am getting more and more interested in a pair of quality lenses. 10×42 I think? Nikon, Leupold, Vortex, Zeis, Swarovski, etc.
Too many choices. Although Swarovski likely too expensive. I would love some fresh information from people.
I guess I’d take a different route and ask what you’ll be using them for?
I lived out west for awhile and used a variety of glass when I worked for the Park Service, but most of my hunting is done in the Midwest, so I’ve got some experience in both expanses. To me, that’s how I’d break it down, because we just don’t get the wide-open spaces (and elevation) they do out there. Truth be told, most of the mid-range binos from many of the mfrs. listed here do a great job for the deer and turkey hunting applications I’ve put them up to. I have a pair of 10X42 Nikon Monarchs that were recently replaced under their 25 year warranty, after I literally put them through hell and back again. I was impressed with the service and how well they stood behind that warranty.
Now I’ll be the first to admit that the glass on those $300 binos are nowhere near what I’ve seen from comparably priced models today in Vortex, Leupold, and other brands, and of course the high end stuff. That said, I can’t seem to justify the 2 – 4X price increase to step into the better stuff for what I do, which is primarily spotting beard vs. no-beard at up to 500 yards, or shooter vs. non-shooter at ranges often far less than that. I’ve used Swarovski’s, Ziess, and even the Cabelas Euro knock-offs to check out deer and saw differences, but not nearly as stark a difference as you’d expect from glass that retails for exponentially more $.
I get it if you’re hunting outside of most of the upper midwest. After looking through quite a few spotting scopes and binoculars in western states, I really think that out there the longer distances, amplified by effects of atmospheric haze, smoke from fires, air quality, and plain moisture, most hunting situations really require the use of better glass. We’d check out wolves in scopes at distances of miles, and with poor glass, you could barely tell there was a mountain in the background, let alone animals in the foreground. Good glass, you could make out almost every detail.
I guess in my mind, there’s a big difference in the quality and construction of the high-end stuff, but you might want to make sure that for the uses you’ll put them up to you’ll actually be able to make use of those differences!
Joel
Portable and powerful. I wont be glassing for bighorns. More than likely they would be used mostly from my vehicle Just to see animals and things at a distance. I’m a swamp hunter for deer so binos have no place in my deer stand.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
