Best quality binoculars by price

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brybenn

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southern ontario
So my old man has pretty much everything but his binoculars suck. He wont admit it but they do. With fathers day and his birthday next month i thought id buy him a new pair
So this leaves me reading reviews and its a mess so aim asking her
I want a durable quality clear crisp binocular.
I havent looked thru any under 100$ that were worth buying but my local market is small so ill break it down in brackets
$100-200
$200-300
$300-400
$400+
Any experiences welcome
 
Depending on where you are in S On try Pelee Wings at Point Pelee. They have a variety of binoculars at different price points and if you are in the showroom you can compare many kinds at the same time. They are also on line and will deliver. We have bought Vortex Razor $1500 and Viper $700 binoculars from them and have been happy with both. A lot depends on what you are using them for we have 8x42s and 10x42 that are great for bird watching etc that you can use all day with the proper harness. I have an old pair of 7x50s that are heavy for birdwatching but great for astronomy. I would suggest not getting anything less than 8x42 for general use. The ones that are smaller than this tend to be mostly, but not always, toys or junk. Good luck every Dad deserves something nice!
 
GMC403 said:
I’m a fan of the Leupold BX-2 Cascades 10x42’s. I started off using some mid price range Bushnells but they never really impressed me. I looked through many other higher priced Binos and they are impressive, but bang for buck The Cascades were what I ended up going with. No regrets here.

I’ve heard good things about some of the new Nikon lines, but I haven’t spent much time looking at / through them yet. They make a good product at a decent price IMO.
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That's pretty much where I am right now. Haven't gone beyond the midrange Bushnells as of yet.
 
Do not cheap out on binoculars - that is my experience after owning "inexpensive glass". For example, you can get used VGC Zeiss Classic binos starting at around $600,-. Clarity, light sensitivity, ruggedness and build quality is way ahead of any new offerings at given price point. I can tell you they work in the tropics @ +50 c, in the Arctic @ - 50 c and everywhere in between.

I cannot understand the rave/hype on "optics warranty" like the Vortex fan-boys celebrate. Good optics do not need to be send back for replacement or repair except it's an accident or user's fault causing malfunctioning.
 
I've been a binocular nut all my life, bought and sold many pairs, and ended up with three Bushnell elites. I think the current model in 10x42 is a very good value if you shop around. (I got mine new for 400$ last year while Bushnell had their 25% rebate, so ended up owning them for 340$ all in). I haven't seen the current 8x42 I believe the FOV is a little lacking. I bought a pair of Nikon MHG (Monarch high grade) used for 900$ last year, and preferred the Elites. The Elites are made in Japan, and feel to me to be very well made in every way. I've never owned the expensive brands (Leica, Swarovski, Zeiss); I am too cheap :)
 
The use is hunting. Moose and turkey.

Im only an hour or so from point pelee so ill check it out

Im done with vortex. Great service but sub par product. Ive sent 3 broken scopes back
 
riversrest said:
Do not cheap out on binoculars - that is my experience after owning "inexpensive glass". For example, you can get used VGC Zeiss Classic binos starting at around $600,-. Clarity, light sensitivity, ruggedness and build quality is way ahead of any new offerings at given price point. I can tell you they work in the tropics @ +50 c, in the Arctic @ - 50 c and everywhere in between.

I cannot understand the rave/hype on "optics warranty" like the Vortex fan-boys celebrate. Good optics do not need to be send back for replacement or repair except it's an accident or user's fault causing malfunctioning.
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I dropped a pair of Leupold binos while climbing (long story) and it ended up tumbling down about 160 ft of rock face. Hours later when I recovered them, they were beat to the living heck. The body looked like they had been run over by an Abrams. Two of the lenses were still intact. focus rings were good. I called Leupold and explained what happened, totally my fault, they said send it in. 9 days later brand new pair on the door stop and a letter asking if they could use my story for promo materials, as the binos were still very usable on one side.

brybenn said:
The use is hunting. Moose and turkey.

Im only an hour or so from point pelee so ill check it out

Im done with vortex. Great service but sub par product. Ive sent 3 broken scopes back
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Like showed up broken brand new in the box? Thats pretty bad luck.

In any event, here is my advice. You are not buying binos. You are buying a capability. The capability to see further than you can with the naked eye. You want to tailor this capability to the circumstances you planning to need it. Also remember that this particular piece of equipment will fit within the other visual aids that he uses, IE rifle scope. Does he use a spotting scope?

Also does he mind having several pieces of gear that compliment, or does he want a single do it all?

I use a 20-60x spotting scope for detailed glassing, therefore I went with a much smaller pair of binos (8x32) for quick looks. If I were to carry a single pair of binos for everything than I would want an 8-42 and ensure it has the mounting screw for a small light weight tripod.

In any event, regardless of choice, I would get the most expensive, highest quality glass I could afford. If I had to start all over again, I would have spent far less on my firearms and invested far more on my optics. On a good hunt you fire a single shot, but spend hours and hours scouting and looking for game. You get a far bigger return on the investment with optics. Don't go cheap.
 
The vortex scopes broke. Dont know whether they were assembled wrong or if they cant take recoil. Either way 3 scopes from 3 lines failed. Warrenty was great but id rather not need to use it
He doesnt use a spotting scope. Mostly to see if turkeys are legal birds and to check out moose from across a pond or marsh or clearcut. He wont be spending hours looming thru them. Just hes the guy who wants something he goes and gets it. Buying him a gift is a pain in the ass. His binos are crap so i figured id up his glass quality
 
I wear glasses, so I need binos with fold down rubber eyepieces so I can use them well while wearing my glasses.

The last pair (15 years ago) I bought were $99 7x35 Tasco from a catalogue.

They are fantastic. Excellent clarity and contrast.

We have compared them in the field to Leica and are hard pressed to see the difference.

They are quite light and I wear them on a hunt with just a short strap.

With the cheaper binos the issue is how perfectly do the 2 tubes superimpose? I got lucky.

If buying cheapos, look through several pair and see if one is better than the others.
 
Another recommendation here for Pelee Wings. Those guys are extremely well-versed in optics, and they have a set-up that lets you take various optics outside and compare them directly, with excellent targets at various distances.

They deal mostly with birders; that's a group of users that, whether we want to admit it or not, puts hunters to complete shame in terms of their optics knowledge and their demand for perfection in optical performance.
 
Im headed down to pelee wings right after i drive a buddy to work. They advertise having the largest selection and also sell kayaks which im looking at for myself to prove or bust a theory. But thats a different story entirely.
Thanks for the suggestions. Im happy with my alpen apex with the bak4 itll be interesting to see how they compare
 
My alpen apex is great except in extreme low light like 45 mins before legal shooting light or if theres any fog
I could make out facial features of a white hen out 90 to 100 yards 20 mins before sunrise. Maybe ill find something to upgrade myself if i can get a compact low light pair
 
Have a look at the Nikon prostaff 7s. I have a 10x42 they go on sale for around 200 from time to time. Very impressive. I liked them better than binocs twice the price.

I also have a 10 year old pair of $500 minox 8x42 but wanted more magnification so I got the Nikon. Nothing wrong with being able to choose which one comes with today. I notice no difference in optical quality between those 2. Nikons are bigger physically but lighter.
 
I currently use a pair of leupold bx1 Yosemite 10x30. They are porro prism so they're wider but shorter. Got them on sale at wss about a year ago for $99, they're listed on Cabelas.com for $150usd, I think the regular price at wss was $199 or $229. I'd rather something with a bit less magnification(apparently they make an 8x30 too), but the price was right and the glass is excellent for what I paid.

I am a smaller guy, and some of the bushnell and vortex binos I tried didn't have enough adjustment range for pupil distance, which makes them basically unusable for me. These ones have a huge adjustment range, my kids can even use them.

715vUi2EZZL._SY355_.jpg
 
Well i took the drive down to pelee wings. The lady was exceptional and let me play with everything. The woman and i really loved the swarvarski i didnt check the price but when i told the wife not to drop it cuz they was prolly over 2 grand the lady behind the counter said way above 2 grand lol
It came down to bushnell legend with ed glass and the nikon monarch 5 both 10x42. In the end the nikon monarch 5 was the winner. It was just a little more sharper at longer ranges and thru glass windows it was clearer. As my old man will be glassing from a truck mostly that was an important quality
I got it for 389+tax
I may also sell a shotgun or two and go back and buy a kayak. I liked one but it was $2100+ tax so it didnt come home with me yet

Thanks for the help all. Hope the old man enjoys them
 
Suther said:
I currently use a pair of leupold bx1 Yosemite 10x30. They are porro prism so they're wider but shorter. Got them on sale at wss about a year ago for $99, they're listed on Cabelas.com for $150usd, I think the regular price at wss was $199 or $229. I'd rather something with a bit less magnification(apparently they make an 8x30 too), but the price was right and the glass is excellent for what I paid.

I am a smaller guy, and some of the bushnell and vortex binos I tried didn't have enough adjustment range for pupil distance, which makes them basically unusable for me. These ones have a huge adjustment range, my kids can even use them.

715vUi2EZZL._SY355_.jpg
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I have something similar to your binocular.
Mine are Kowa YF 8x30mm porro binoculars; light, waterproof, rubber armored, wide field of view and very, very sharp.
They are a touch dim in extreme darkness compared to my friend's porro Nikon 7x35mm Action Extremes but for 99% of time
are as good but way, way lighter. Paid $150 US and are worth every penny.
IMHO to get roof prism binoculars equal in performance to porro prism binoculars ones need to spend three times as much.
 
I have tried
most, if money is no object Swarovski ELs were the nicest, since it is a consideration for me I settled on Chinese made Zeiss terras, a round $470 on sale and subjectively around 85% of the clarity of the swaros and despite country of manufacture really nice glass which is German Schott glass
 
GMC403 said:
I’m a fan of the Leupold BX-2 Cascades 10x42’s. I started off using some mid price range Bushnells but they never really impressed me. I looked through many other higher priced Binos and they are impressive, but bang for buck The Cascades were what I ended up going with. No regrets here.
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I'll echo the Cascade recommendation, I was prepared to pay far more - but after trying a few sets, the cascades were the right balance of clarity and weight, at a good price.
 
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