$1000 Glass-Off

[Anglo-American]

I like my Conquests in 8x32 more than my Nikon HG in 8x42. But you cannot go wrong with either, and both will resale just fine. I avoided Kowa and Meopta due to heavy weights. The new Opticron Aurora are supposed to be as good as the aforementioned binos, and retail in the UK for 800 pounds, $1000 USD. The FOV on the Nikon 10x42 HG is really nice and wide too. I come from both a birding and hunting background and the most widely recommended binos for purchase sight unseen/ untested that work well for "Most" users are the 8x32 Conquest and the Nikon Monarch HGs for eye placement, eye relief for glasses and facial structure, and very high quality optics. Cant go wrong!

Thank you Drew.
Bird watching is more popular here/UK than hunting so that's something to navigate.
The shop I was in traditionally got alot of work though horse racing events as well as bird watching and hunting so his range of advice was canny good, though not specific to hunting.
Thank you for your feedback.

 

[Anglo-American]

I'll be interested to know how you get on, dude.

I’ll have more time with these in a few weeks. I’ve used them around home, but not on a goal oriented glassing session, we’ll see!

 

[dtrkyman]

Pair of Cabelas euro(meopta) on ebay now, buy em before I do I'm broke! They are 15s though.

 

[Spiral Horn]

Really surprised nobody asked what you will primarily be using the binocular for and in what kind of environment. It makes a difference. For example, if planning on a forest environment and being mobile for most of the day with a few periods of deep study of things I come across I‘d probably opt for my Monarch HG 8x42. If hunting out open country or the mountains and some deep study of landscape to see what is hiding, then at least a 10x42. If going on a hike and doing more glancing at game or birds then an 8x32 might be the ticket.

Due to intense competition at the ~$1k price point there are plenty of high quality binoculars available today. It really comes down to personal preference, and each purchase is a compromise of different features - size, weight, ergonomics, characteristics of view - FOV, resolution, color, focus, depth of field, etc.

You already have a solid starting list. Would suggest going to a shop and comparing a few to determine what your preferences are before buying.

 

[Anglo-American]

Really surprised nobody asked what you will primarily be using the binocular for and in what kind of environment. It makes a difference. For example, if planning on a forest environment and being mobile for most of the day with a few periods of deep study of things I come across I‘d probably opt for my Monarch HG 8x42. If hunting out open country or the mountains and some deep study of landscape to see what is hiding, then at least a 10x42. If going on a hike and doing more glancing at game or birds then an 8x32 might be the ticket.

Due to intense competition at the ~$1k price point there are plenty of high quality binoculars available today. It really comes down to personal preference, and each purchase is a compromise of different features - size, weight, ergonomics, characteristics of view - FOV, resolution, color, focus, depth of field, etc.

You already have a solid starting list. Would suggest going to a shop and comparing a few to determine what your preferences are before buying.

Mixed, but..
I'm a firm believer in reserve options also.

I'm looking at different options for different conditions like you say.
Right now a pair of 8's would be the most suitable for most of my needs, but 10's would also work well.
One thing in favour of the much more expensive Swarovski was the 10's I tried were as stable, as wide a field of view and brighter then the medium range 8's.

 

[longjoshr]

Another Meopta vote here. I bought a pair of the Cabela's Euro's (MeoStar model), and they are fantastic.

 

[ZackP]

I would also say the Meopta Meostar.
HG’s are pretty damn good, especially at the refurb prices.

What about the Maven B1.2? I spoke with Maven the other day. They will be back in stock in less than 2 weeks

On a side note, the Leupold BX4’s are very under rated, especially for the price point. So much so I have them as a spare pair, and sent back the BX5 I ordered. I should also mention they’re made in Japan (under $500).

 

[KHNC]

I've decided to avoid, Vortex.
Two reasons;
- I don't respond well to advising and they advertise everywhere!
- Alot of people post and comment about having faults with their different model vortex.

Now tbf to Vortex they sell alot of units, so some of those product returns are just due to that and not JUST a higher percentage of problems.
And, every single person, EVERYONE always adds that they were 100% looked after by Vortex regardless of the issue, even in cases that Vortex were not responsible for. So they offer really, really great customer care.

But, I don't want really good after care to look after problems. I just don't want the problems.
Build it right, build it once.

Well, in my personal experience, I bought the Viper HD 10x42's in 2012, then Razor HD 10x42's 2 years ago. I have not had even one tiny issue on either set. I think the problems of some are just blown out of proportion. They do build a quality product, especially the AMG and japan made glass. I have 4 different VIP HSLR scopes with zero issue as well. Although some swear you cant hit a dot two times in a row with any Vortex scope. Even though PRS titles are won with Vortex glass.

 

[Anglo-American]

Well, in my personal experience, I bought the Viper HD 10x42's in 2012, then Razor HD 10x42's 2 years ago. I have not had even one tiny issue on either set. I think the problems of some are just blown out of proportion. They do build a quality product, especially the AMG and japan made glass. I have 4 different VIP HSLR scopes with zero issue as well. Although some swear you cant hit a dot two times in a row with any Vortex scope. Even though PRS titles are won with Vortex glass.

It's always easier to blame equipment than work ethic.

Mebbs they have had a bad experience and needed to get a replacement but instead just sulked. Maybe.

Alot of fans of Vortex, and good marketing can do that, but good marketing combined with a good product will do it better.
I'm just not one.
The top of the line Vortex RRP makes it more expensive than alot of really good glass listed above also made from high end Japanese glass and more than and equal to in price to some European glass including Zeiss, Leica and some Swarovski models.

I k no ow alot of guys in the States can get good deals on vortex with 10-30% off RRP but I'm more likely to get deals like that on European brands.

Maven is the most interesting American brand to me. A friend of mine has a pair of Maven B2. It was looking though those that made me think about parting with some cash.

 

[ShakeDown]

I bought a pair of Meostar 8x56s (beat to chit) for $300 on ebay. Sent them overseas and 3 months later had literally a brand new pair of bins.

I have put them next to my 10x42 SLCs on a tripod and they are fantastic glass. No “for the money” caveat. They are superb.

 

[AntlerFever]

It's always easier to blame equipment than work ethic.

Mebbs they have had a bad experience and needed to get a replacement but instead just sulked. Maybe.

Alot of fans of Vortex, and good marketing can do that, but good marketing combined with a good product will do it better.
I'm just not one.
The top of the line Vortex RRP makes it more expensive than alot of really good glass listed above also made from high end Japanese glass and more than and equal to in price to some European glass including Zeiss, Leica and some Swarovski models.

I k no ow alot of guys in the States can get good deals on vortex with 10-30% off RRP but I'm more likely to get deals like that on European brands.

Maven is the most interesting American brand to me. A friend of mine has a pair of Maven B2. It was looking though those that made me think about parting with some cash.

For me personally…

my eyes absolutely love the Maven B2s. So much light, color transmission, depth , and easy to focus. I get bad eye fatigue quick and seems to be less pronounced with these. For me the 9x45 gets a better picture than $2k + Leicas, the $1499 Vortex Razor HD, and superior to the $1000, Zeiss Conquest HD 10x42.

Swaros are superior, but my eyes can’t see the extra $1500 difference. If i was a guide and putting thousands and thousands of hours a year behind them maybe.

bx4 isn’t a terrible bino for the price, but whole different class than the aboves when looking side by side. I haven’t looked through the $400 Maven C series, I hear they are excellent for the price. I would guess they are in the ballpark of the BX4 or maybe a click above but cannot say.

 

[Anglo-American]

I bought a pair of Meostar 8x56s (beat to chit) for $300 on ebay. Sent them overseas and 3 months later had literally a brand new pair of bins.

I have put them next to my 10x42 SLCs on a tripod and they are fantastic glass. No “for the money” caveat. They are superb.

I bought a pair of Meostar 8x56s (beat to chit) for $300 on ebay. Sent them overseas and 3 months later had literally a brand new pair of bins.

I have put them next to my 10x42 SLCs on a tripod and they are fantastic glass. No “for the money” caveat. They are superb.

I just tried to have a look online.
Wired, I can only find them for sale in the US, not in the UK.
I'd have to look into European sites to check but that can sometimes be hard work, (language) meaning buy from the US and paying important tax from there is often a better option.

Thats quite a comparison you gave, I'll be interested to look though a pair.

 

[TX_Diver]

I had Kowa Genesis Prominar 10.5x44s and they were superb, replaced with SLCs at the end of last year and the ONLY reason I'm sticking with the SLCs is size/weight. Optically the Kowa's were great for me, just a hair larger/heavier than I liked.

Leica Trinovid and Zeiss Conquest get a lot of attention in the $1k range. Meopta Meostars too. I haven't tried any of those last 3 though.

What part of England btw? I have some family in the Northeast.

 

[Anglo-American]

I had Kowa Genesis Prominar 10.5x44s and they were superb, replaced with SLCs at the end of last year and the ONLY reason I'm sticking with the SLCs is size/weight. Optically the Kowa's were great for me, just a hair larger/heavier than I liked.

Leica Trinovid and Zeiss Conquest get a lot of attention in the $1k range. Meopta Meostars too. I haven't tried any of those last 3 though.

What part of England btw? I have some family in the Northeast.

I'm from Newcastle in North East England but I live in the North West, in Cumbria.

 

[S.Clancy]

One vote for Meopta Air 10x42. I got to test them for 8 days in NV while my Meostars were in the shop. While I still like my Meostars better, the Air's are really good. Compared side by side to Sig Zulu 9 11x45 (same as Maven B.2) I like the Air better. The optics between the 2 are too similar to really judge a winner, Meopta wins on size/weight and ergonomics for me. It's a lot of bino for $1K

 

[Liftman101]

I compared only the Leupold BX-5 and the Vortex Razor HD. I liked the Leupolds better and was able to get some 8x and 10x for under $700 each thru Amazon returns. In fairness, I also got a set of BX-5 returns where some jerk had stuffed a set of BX-1 binos in the BX-5 box. Amazon made good on the return.

I previously had Canons with image stabilization and thought they were great. No comparison in the clarity and detail of the image produced though the stabilization was nice for handholding 10x.

 

[Liftman101]

Leupold BX-4 units are not bad in the glass department and can be had for under $400. They also have a different diopter adjustment where you pull out the focus wheel and adjust the right eye using the same knob.