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Binoculars in the under$300 range |
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Urimaginaryfrnd
MODERATOR Resident Redneck Joined: June/20/2005 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 14964 |
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Posted: September/26/2020 at 00:20 |
I would like to pick up a set of binoculars in the under $300 probably under $200 range however I have always had horrible luck with binoculars since I wear glasses. In general I find it much easier to glass with a rifle scope due to its eye relief. The only binoculars that I ever looked at that really impressed me were Zeiss but I'm not likely to buy ones that expensive and their little monoculars seem to have vanished.
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"Always do the right thing, just because it is the right thing to do". Bobby Paul Doherty Texas Ranger |
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koshkin
MODERATOR Dark Lord of Optics Joined: June/15/2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 13182 |
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Honestly, I have not looked at any binoculars in this price range for quite a long time, so I am probably not much help there.
That having been said, if you wear glasses it gets a little rough. Depending on the fit, you basically need binoculars with around 19-20mm of eye relief. Depending on the eyecup design, something as short as 17mm might work too. I vaguely recall looking at Steiner Safari 8x42 a couple of years ago and I thought there were very respectable and usable with glasses. I think these are in your price range. Hawke Frontier 8x42 also seemed good, but I think they are a little more expensive than the Steiner. ILya
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Urimaginaryfrnd
MODERATOR Resident Redneck Joined: June/20/2005 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 14964 |
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"Always do the right thing, just because it is the right thing to do". Bobby Paul Doherty Texas Ranger |
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John A Roberts
Optics GrassHopper Joined: January/22/2020 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 23 |
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Hi Urimaginaryfrnd,
Particularly at a low level like $200 (or even $300) my general advice would be: firstly, a Porro prism design will provide better optics than a roof prism one In terms of working out what’s going to fit your parameters, go to a online seller that has a wide variety of stock: - set your preferred magnification - sort from lowest price to highest and see if anything has suitable eye relief Once you’ve got a couple of possibilities, search for reviews and hopefully someone will address the issue of the effective eye relief As an example, the Opticron 8x30 Savanna Porro has a stated 18 mm eye relief (I don't know what the effective ER is) The same binocular is also marketed under other names Good Luck John |
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Urimaginaryfrnd
MODERATOR Resident Redneck Joined: June/20/2005 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 14964 |
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https://www.swfa.com/steiner-8x30-predator-af-binocular.html
I am curious about : Steiner 8x30 Predator AF Binocular. quote: "Always Focused lets you focus each eyepiece to your vision once, then keeps images razor-sharp from 20 yards to infinity - no more chasing focus on moving objects." With glasses I seem to be able to get one eye in focus and the other not so much which just makes me hate binoculars. I'm wondering if this might fix that.
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"Always do the right thing, just because it is the right thing to do". Bobby Paul Doherty Texas Ranger |
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John A Roberts
Optics GrassHopper Joined: January/22/2020 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 23 |
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Hi Urimaginaryfrnd, In relation to binoculars, Steiner uses ‘Auto Focus’ as a marketing term, and in this instance it’s a highly misleading one! i.e. it does not indicate any form of opto-mechanical auto focus as used in camera lenses Instead, the AF Steiner’s are conventional individual focus binoculars: you separately focus each eyepiece so that it is at optimal focus at one distance Auto Focus is used by Steiner to indicate that, when an optic is focused at one distance: - there will be a gradual progressive decline to the acceptable focus on either side of the focus point (in photographic terms the useable depth of field), and - the human eye will actively adjust to attempt to bring a slightly unsharp image to better sharpness i.e. accomodation The degree of accomodation varies between individuals, and declines significantly with age And accomodation requires involuntary muscular tension in the eye. So such viewing becomes increasingly uncomfortable the longer it’s maintained So an AF Steiner is no different - and no more useable - than any other IF binocular of the same specification And looking at the specifications, the 8x30 Predator has a very narrow field of view of only 302 ft at 1000 yds (100 m at 1000 m) As the old saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true . . . John |
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John A Roberts
Optics GrassHopper Joined: January/22/2020 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 23 |
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Hi again Urimaginaryfrnd,
As my previous post indicates, it’s the user that provides the Auto Focus system when using Steiner binoculars! And you’ve indicated that you have some difficulty with your own AF system - at least in getting each barrel of a binocular to equal focus, when making the initial dioptric correction i.e. altering the focus bias in one of the barrels, so that both barrels will then come to the same focus with your vision The good news is that you’re not alone in this regard. The related issues have been recently discussed in some threads on BirdForum: - For selecting a suitable target to make the adjustment easier, see the comments of others and myself in the thread ‘Is this a record? Re: Ultravid 8x32 HD Plus’ https://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?p=4039747 - My post also links to one by Bill Cook that specifically addresses the importance of the need to stare while adjusting the diopter i.e. keeping the eye in a relaxed state - And for some practical detail in setting the dioptre adjustment, see the attachment in post #12 by Bill that’s in the thread ‘Bino Thoughts #3’ (and also my field expedient suggestion in the next post) https://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=390836 Hopefully the above can help you to get the best focus from a binocular John |
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Urimaginaryfrnd
MODERATOR Resident Redneck Joined: June/20/2005 Location: Iowa Status: Offline Points: 14964 |
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Thanks John I will check that out.
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"Always do the right thing, just because it is the right thing to do". Bobby Paul Doherty Texas Ranger |
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ffhounddog
Optics GrassHopper Joined: January/12/2012 Location: DC Status: Offline Points: 7 |
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dang I guess i should Not have gotten the 8x42 Steiner Safari. I got Them for $180 shipped with many discounts including $50 gift certificate.
I had an old Steiner porro but my 2d ex gave them away.
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