I just went through the exact same process and you're looking at the very same brands that I worked with.
I had to rule out the Nikon's because I wanted something more than the Monarchs but didn't have the money to pay for the Premier Venturer LX's and the porro Superior E 8x32's didn't seem sturdy enough for the type of hunting I do. I loved the optics in the Superior E's, but I was afraid they'd never stand up to the type of rough use that my glasses normally get. In fact, the Superior E 8X32 porros had the brightest, sharpest images of any glass I looked through (except maybe the Zeiss Victory II 10x40's or the Leica Ultravid's, but jeez, both of those were over over a thousand dollars).
I tried the Steiner Predators and while they seemed EXTREMELY rugged, I didn't feel their optics were any better than the Pentax DCF HRII's that you can find routinely for $250. I felt the Predator's didn't offer very good contrast--when I looked into a woods at an old, weathered barn that stood amongst a group of only slightly different colored tree trunks and underbrush, I really couldn't distinguish clearly between the tree trunks and the wood slats of the barn. I figured if I had a problem making that distinction then I'd probably have a hard time picking out a white tail deer or a grey squirrel if they were standing in dim-light and shadows in a mist. I might be wrong, but it seemed important to me.
I thought I was going to get a pair of Leupold Pinnacles in 8x42 until I found a store that had both the Pinnacles and the Kahles 8x42. I hadn't really considered the Kahles--I hadn't read enough about them to get excited enough to go looking for them.
I've always been a Leupold fan for my scopes--for the money, I always felt I got better service and great performance than I could expect out of Pentax or Nikon or the others. And I was pretty set when I saw the fellow that writes the Binocular reviews for http://www.betterviewdesired.com - www.betterviewdesired.com was promoting the Pinnacles in a recent Leupold ad... that guy's a veteran bird watcher and pays a heckuva lot more attention to this stuff than I do. If he was going to promote the Pinnacles, that was good enough for me.
And then I picked up a pair of Kahles and tried them side by side with the Leupolds. Brightness--by far in Kahles' favor. Ease of use with eyeglassess--heavily in favor of Kahles (the Pinnacles actually make a 'clinking' noise against my glasses when I hold them up to look through--I'm guessing that metal against glass is a bad thing over time, a very bad thing...). Contrast--narrowly in favor of Kahles. Rubber armoring--the Kahles felt like the steering wheel on a Ferrari, the Leupold felt hard like an automobile tire.
I changed my mind right then and there. I decided, however, that rather than spend $709 at the gun store I would check with SWFA and see if they carried the Kahles.
I talked to "JW" at SWFA about buying a new pair and he mentioned that The Sample List here at riflescopes.com had a few of the 8x42's for $539. I bought a pair, got a couple of Motorola radios with them, and feel like I made a great buy. I made a post here on OpticsTalk last week that you ought to be able to find pretty easily wherein I described the particular aspects of the Kahles in great detail.
These are FIRST CLASS hunting binoculars.
At a great price.
From a great vendor that supports the forum, the industry, offers quality used and demo merchandise, and overall delivers top flight service.
Oh, by the way, to get a warranty card, I simply called Kahles Customer Service and told them that my new 8x42's came without a card. They asked me where I bought them and I told them SWFA in Texas. The Kahles rep immediately offered to send the card and a catalog and we chatted about what good folks SWFA are to deal with.
Just my two cents worth of advice, take it or leave it.
gremlin
Take the long way home...
|