So I need some help here, because I've never hunted out west, and it's a little different out there. Right now I have a cheap pair of tasco binoculars that I keep in the truck, and carry hunting with me. Obviously when hunting out west I'll be looking at stuff farther away. I'm looking for opinions on binoculars, or, do I just forgo binoculars and get a spotting scope on a tripod. I really have no idea what people use in the field out there, so any help would be greatly appreciated.
For what its worth, I'm currently considering Nikon Prostaff binoculars.
Sorry to see you got no response. You likely upgraded your field glasses long since, so this is probably of no use to you, but I'll throw in my two cents.
My dad was a hunter and a birdwatcher. Yes, I know, they call themselves "birders" today - but when he and I were doing it, we were birdwatchers. He had an post-war pair of Swarovski binoculars that were very fine, as I recall. Stolen many years ago. Dad always told me that money spent on good glass was never wasted, he felt you should buy the best optics you can afford. I sort of agree, but the really high-end glass put out by Zeiss, Leica, and Swarovski can cost upward of $3.000. I, for one, will NEVER have that kind of money, not for glass. But I'll never go back to Tasco and the cheapies...too many evenings in camp with a splitting headache from hours scoping hunting areas through cheap glass. Luckily, there's a wide middle ground.
There are very affordable binoculars put out by Nikon, Redfield, Brunton, and Leupold -- all make high-quality glass for under $250.
I think everybody should have a pair of compact binoculars -- with 25 and 32 mm objective lenses, they aren't great at dusk, but when you're hunting, they go easily into a cargo pocket and are out of the way until you need them. I just saw a pair of Leupold BX-2 Acadia 8x32's for under $160. Never owned a pair, but used them for one hunt. Lightweight, and good quality. They won't fit into a normal chest pocket...so get a bigger pocket
. I have an inexpensive pair of Brunton 8x25's -- they are decent quality and fit in my pocket...barely. I've seen the Brunton Eterna 10x32's for as little as $150 on eBay, which is way less than MSRP. I haven't used them, but they get good reviews.
For more traditional "full-size" glass, the binocs I use right now are Redfield (Rebel) 10x42. I have no complaints. They are bright, distortion is minimal, nice large exit pupil. They aren't small - 6" x 15", but they're pretty light...maybe a bit more than a pound? And they're not expensive -- I got mine for under $90. B&H is selling them for $129 (with a free Fenix
flashlight, which is nice, too).
I've never found anything made by Leupold I didn't like. They have mid-range glass that should do the job for you.
I like the Nikon glasses, too. I window shopped for a pair of Prostaff 7S 10x42 all-weather binoculars...I liked them a lot...but I really don't need more glass. The Redfields are good enough for now. I also looked at the Nikon Monarchs...but they're out of my price-range.
Happy hunting!
