So many choices, which is best

I am thinking of purchasing one of the following

Steiner  miltary-marine 10x50

Swarovski  SLC 10x50

Leica Trinovid 10x50

Minox 10x52

Which has the best warranty?   Which is clearer not, necessarliy the most expensive, but the clearest, sharpest image.  I am looking for a glass that is good in low light during the morning and evening hours.  I am going to use them from hunting in the rockies to fishing in Alaska.  I have a pair of steiner 7x50 and think they are great and offer a crisp image, but I know they only have a ten year warranty.  Minox is a part of Leica.... is there a significant difference between the two?  PLease tell me what you think the best concerning these four choices, why, and any warranty info as well.  Also, there is some economical insentives concerning two of the choices please feel free to tell me that I am cheap or if you think I am in line concerning my choices, so basically what is the best "bang for the buck".  Thanks guys, I look forward to hearing from you.

Leica has the best warranty hands down.  Lifetime no fault.  Swarovski and Leica are neck and neck as far as clarity, resolution, light transmission.  Leica is far more durable with its aluminum housing and beefed up construction.  The Minox is very nice for money but not quite to the Leica level.....same can be said for the military marine Steiner.

Leica is the best.

Minox is the best for the money.

Thank you for the info.  I am definitily leaning towards Leica.  Minox you said is the best for the money... is there a  good warranty with the minox ?   Also, with the Leica, what is the BA binocular?  HOw does it compare with the trinovid and the ultravid or is it one of the same?  I am quite new to the Leica line ......for the moment anyway...and totally unkowing of the minox line other than they are a division of Leica.  One thing is for sure...hunting season is now upon us.

Thanks for the quick response, looking forward to your next bit of wisdom.

samhill79, before you rule out the Steiners, you should look through the 10x50 NightHunters which utilize Steiners top grade optical glass and coatings. If you own a pair of Steiners in 7x50 then you already know the design advantages ( Sports Auto Focus ) for low light hunting situations. In my opinion this feature allows you to scan the landscape without the need to manually adjust a focus wheel which is a huge advantage that center focus binoculars don't provide. Also, you should take a very hard look at the roof prism 10x42 & 10 x50 Predators if you are leaning towards a more compact glass that should compare favoredly with the bino's you are currently considering. As Chris stated somewhere in a past thread, the Predator lens coating really perform as advertised, which is one of the many reasons I am so fond of my Steiner 7x50 Whitetails ( Poro) and my 8x42 Predators. Even though my Whitetails are THE brightest bino's I have ever looked through, My 8x42 Predators are my favorite hunting glasses. Good luck with your purchase of bino's through SWFA with whatever you decide on. The SWFA guys will not steer you wrong!!!

P.S. All the bino's I have mentioned have a 30 year warranty.

Roy,

Thank you for your advice.  I am and have actually been torn by my lustful desires to own a pair of Leica's and my other more economical side.  This economical side says, "yes, your Steiners are awesome and are great and you probably can't justify the added cost when you know they are good enough for the military".  I appreciate all of your and SWFA's opinions and hope to continue our communication.   Thanks again.

I have owned and used Swarovki, Leica, and Minox.  Currently my roomate has a pair of Swarovski 10x50 SLC and I have used them on many hunts.  I currently own a pair of Leica 10x42 BN and a pair of Leica 8x 32 BA.  I used to have a pair of Minox 8x32.  I have compared them all side by side many times and will try to give my opinion.

To my eyes and my roomates the Leica's are the best.  The Swarovski are a top of the line bino and the low light performance is neck and neck between the two.  But the Leicas seem to produce a slightly sharper, clearer, and cleaner image than the Swarovski.  I agree with Chris that the Leica have the best construction, they are simple awesome.  On the Swarovski 10x50 the focus wheel is too rough in spots and too smooth in spots.  The Leica focus wheel is perfectly smooth and consistent throughout the entire range.  My roomate and I both prefer the Leica although they are both top of the line.

I bought a pair of Minox 8x32 after my first pair of Leica 10x42 because I wanted a smaller bino for football games, turkey hunting, ect.  I liked the construction but never really was happy with the optics.  Don't get me wrong the optics were good, maybe even great, for the money.  They just weren't nearly as good as the Leica and once you get used to looking through top of the line binos it is hard to be satisfied with anything else.  I ended up buying a pair of 8x32 Leica and before I sold the Minox I compared them side by side.  The one thing that stood out right away was that the Leica were razor sharp from edge to edge where as the Minox were only clear in the center.  Keep in mind the Minox I had didn't have the ALT glass that they use now.  I also disliked the Minox focus wheel, it was way too smooth and sensitive, which made it hard to keep focused.

The only difference between the Leica BA and the new Leica BN is that the BN will focus closer.  They improved this for birdwatchers so they could view birds 10ft away, but it doesn't make any difference to a hunter.  When they launched the BN line a few years ago they also claimed that they created a new HDC lens coating to make the BN more scratch resistent.  I think that this was more marketing fluff than anything else.  Whether you buy the BN or BA, you will not notice any difference optically or mechanically between the two.  The Ultravids came out this year and are designed to be lighter than the Trinovids.  They also claim to have developed a new prism coating.  I couldn't tell any difference optically between the Ultravids, Duovids, or Trinovids.  To me, they are all razor sharp optically, but the Ultravids are a fair amount lighter than the Trinovids and alot lighter than the Duovids.  You also will pay a good bit more for the Ultravids because they are lighter. 

To me Steiners are not in the same league as Leica, Swarovski, or Zeiss at least not any that I have used.  I would recommend to go with the Leica and you won't regret it.  One more point, to me the 10x50 are twice the size and a good bit heavier than the 10x42 and very little if any improved performance.  I am not trying to talk you out of a 10x50 but for hunting you may want to take a look at a 10x42.  I have used them both and think the 10x50 are just too big and are not noticably brighter than the 10x42.  They are very close.  Just my opinion though.  I hope I have been a help.  Feel free to post any more questions and good luck.

thanks for the great insightful info tbone1!

I really appreciate the great feedback I have recieved from opticstalk.  If anyone else has something to add it would be great.  I am now torn between  the Leica and the steiner.  Steiner because of cost, I already know that I love them, and the fact that they focus so easily.  The Leica's because they are simply awesome and are under the best warranty I can find.  Both are heavy, but so is a rifle and you can't shoot it unless you see it.

Thanks again tbone1 you obviously know your stuff, keep it up.

Samhill