Binocular Recommendations Requested

[stu]

Y'all,

I am in the market for a new pair of binocs. I am open for recommendations.

Stu

[DJofSD]

Use? Only on track for racing or other things too?

[stu]

Use? Only on track for racing or other things too?

Single purpose: racetrack-only

[CincyHorseplayer]

Bushnell Instant Vision 10 x 50's.You can see snot coming out of a horse's nose at a half mile.No focus adjusting.They're great.

[Robert Fischer]

Y'all,

I am in the market for a new pair of binocs. I am open for recommendations.

Stu

May have been Stauffer, one of the race caller guys recommended a good pair a while back.:ThmbUp:

[v j stauffer]

May have been Stauffer, one of the race caller guys recommended a good pair a while back.:ThmbUp:

I use Nikon Superior E's 12 x 50.

[CincyHorseplayer]

I use Nikon Superior E's 12 x 50.

I could use a new pair and those sound enticing.How much?Are they instant focus?That's key.

[craigbraddick]

Cincy:

The Superiors were the forerunner to the Nikon Premier range. Both were/are top of the range optics from Nikon. The Superiors in the views of many were the better range, especially in the porro prism (dog leg shape) designs.

The Premiers easily run $800 upwards.

Vic can hold 12x50's steady but I cannot.

My raceglasses of choice are a pair of Swift Audubon 8.5x44 binoculars. Very good clear optics, especially in low light conditions and just right for hand holding if they cannot be mounted onto the stand I usually use. And I have tried various pairs of Leicas, Zeiss, Canon Image Stabilized but the versatility of the Swifts is hard to beat.

That said, I prefer a wider field of view. I think the Swifts have a field of view of 446 feet while the Nikons are around 288. he difference in magnification narrows the field of view.

Swifts can be purchased new for around $360. Should last you forever. None of the bins I mentioned are instant focus. There is a reason they are only a feature on lower end bins. Get a properly focused pair of quality optics and compare, I promise it will be night and day, especially on edge to edge sharpness.

Craig

[FantasticDan]

http://www.justabovesunset.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/jun805_binos_estbl0.jpg

[CincyHorseplayer]

Thanks Craig.I appreciate the thoroughness here.I'd have to look through some of these,and will,to make the comparisons.I do have a pretty solid view with the ones I have now and they are far better than the Kmart models I bought in 96.The other consideration too is price,and that's only because I leave my stuff sitting out on the table when I go to the paddock every prerace.I've had stuff swiped.Plus you are a race caller.I don't think I need a tripod to watch the races brother!Will definitely check out your recommendations.

BTW are you down at Turfway this meet or are you in New Mexico?I'm going to hit a few days at TP in March because it makes me sick after a while to never see a horse.Let me know.




Cincy:

The Superiors were the forerunner to the Nikon Premier range. Both were/are top of the range optics from Nikon. The Superiors in the views of many were the better range, especially in the porro prism (dog leg shape) designs.

The Premiers easily run $800 upwards.

Vic can hold 12x50's steady but I cannot.

My raceglasses of choice are a pair of Swift Audubon 8.5x44 binoculars. Very good clear optics, especially in low light conditions and just right for hand holding if they cannot be mounted onto the stand I usually use. And I have tried various pairs of Leicas, Zeiss, Canon Image Stabilized but the versatility of the Swifts is hard to beat.

That said, I prefer a wider field of view. I think the Swifts have a field of view of 446 feet while the Nikons are around 288. he difference in magnification narrows the field of view.

Swifts can be purchased new for around $360. Should last you forever. None of the bins I mentioned are instant focus. There is a reason they are only a feature on lower end bins. Get a properly focused pair of quality optics and compare, I promise it will be night and day, especially on edge to edge sharpness.

Craig

[Grits]

Canon 10 X 30 IS, I've had these for about 10 years. Anything heavier is far too much for me if watching races all day. These have an Image Stabilizer that's excellent. If I were buying new one's today, I would possibly buy the 12 X 36s, instead. Maybe a little lighter, but I doubt much.

Try your nearest Wolf Camera store, look through, while holding, several different pair. Buy what's comfortable . . . from knowledgeable sales staff.

http://shop.usa.canon.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/subCategory_10051_10051_-1_14251

[Robert Fischer]

http://www.justabovesunset.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/jun805_binos_estbl0.jpg

you can rent these trackside. Quite heavy.

[craigbraddick]

Thanks Craig.I appreciate the thoroughness here.I'd have to look through some of these,and will,to make the comparisons.I do have a pretty solid view with the ones I have now and they are far better than the Kmart models I bought in 96.The other consideration too is price,and that's only because I leave my stuff sitting out on the table when I go to the paddock every prerace.I've had stuff swiped.Plus you are a race caller.I don't think I need a tripod to watch the races brother!Will definitely check out your recommendations.

BTW are you down at Turfway this meet or are you in New Mexico?I'm going to hit a few days at TP in March because it makes me sick after a while to never see a horse.Let me know.

At the momen I am in NM. If that changes I will let you know. bro!

[DJofSD]

A couple of minor additions.

The field of view when expressed as 288 or 446 is for a distance at 1,000 feet. IOW, if you were to look at something 1,000 feet away, the width of an object that would be just filling the field of view -- just touching the left and right side -- would be either 288 or 446 feet.

For low light or night time use, what is sometimes overlooked is the size of the exit pupil. While your iris will dialate when dark adapted, it only opens so far. If the binoc has a beam coming out of the eye piece that is bigger than your iris, there's a bunch of light not going into your eye. It's a waste.