Original Razor Binos

[nettereo16]

Looking at a pair of the original Vortex Razors 10x42s. How were these older binos regarded? Are they a big step down from the new Razor HDs?

Alternatively I can get Athlon Cronus G2 for the same price

 

[CorbLand]

Pretty good discussion towards the last 3 pages of this thread.

Vortex has no value.

I'll start this thread by saying I know nothing of optics. Hence the reason when I was asked to buy a Vortex scope for target archery I went for a pricier one thinking it's a solid investment in a quality glass ( lol) . Everything became reality when I tried to sell my 2 months old scope. Brand...

rokslide.com

 

[nphunter]

Looking at a pair of the original Vortex Razors 10x42s. How were these older binos regarded? Are they a big step down from the new Razor HDs?

Alternatively I can get Athlon Cronus G2 for the same price

The vortex Razors are good binos. It’s hard to say depending on what you mean by old, are they old Gen 1 razors or Japan Razor HD’s? It also depends on cost, used Razors HD’s can be found at a reasonable cost and are great binos if found for $600 or less. I can’t speak for the old stuff as I’ve never looked through it, Vortex gets a bad rap and IMO they are great optics, especially when looking used. They have so many optics on the market that you hear of failures but honestly I’ve never had an issue with a Vortex optic and any issues I’ve had with Vortex (tripod) was handled very quickly by them. I’ve had a Razor HD 65mm scope and I have 4/10’s HD’s the first Version from Japan. The binos have been awesome, I’m hard on gear and they have worked great for me and are an awesome lightweight chest optic all around. I also have 5 pairs of Viper HD’s and a Viper HD scope for work vehicles and a coupe scopes in the last 10+ years of owning their optics I’ve had zero issues.
Yes there are better optical quality binos out there but you won’t find any in the same price range as the used Razors with the exception of the Meostars which come at a large weight penalty. I also love my Meopta glass but I don’t fell the optical quality of the Meostar over the Razor bino outweighs the weight and size penalty they come with for an all around bino.

 

[nobody]

Never looked through the old Razor non-HD’s. I’m assuming you’re talking about the old open bridge model?

That said, I wouldn’t purchase any Athlon binos. I’ve been underwhelmed by the models I’ve looked through. On top of that, it feels like they’re just another “me too” brand jumping on the exact same business model as Vortex. For me, the difference is Vortex has survived a recession and has been around long enough to prove their staying power. Athlon isn’t doing anything THAT mind-blowingly different from everybody else, and I personally have concerns about whether they’ll even exist in 3 years. Reminds me of what Brunton was doing when they went bye-bye after their brief renaissance in the 2000’s, the recession did them in. It wouldn’t surprise me at all to see the same thing happen to Athlon.

 

[Reed104R]

I buy and sell used optics. I have sold two pair of the older non HD Razor binoculars. These were open bridge and 1st or 2nd generation. Optically, they are not even close to the modern HD/UHD models. They are also bulky and heavy with a stiff focus wheel. On a positive note, if you have any issues, they will likely send you a new pair of HD's under warranty.