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Rifle Scopes Cheep Binos??

Roadwild17

Roadwild17

Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
Sep 6, 2009
229
1
39
Central East Texas
Hey guys, I have to get a cheep set of binos for work. The use is mostly to look at towers and elevated electrical structures anywhere from 25ft to 100 yards. The cost needs to stay around $100 (cheep ass boss) meaning anywhere for $5 to around $125.

Heres what I come up with so far:
Sightron SI 10X32
Sightron SII 10X42
Vortex Crossfire 10X32
Leupold Yosemite 8X30
Nikon Action 10X40
Bushnell H2O 10X42

Of the above, I have looked through the yosemites at a store and liked them pretty much & a guy at work has the Bushnell H2Os which also look good.

Any experience with these or others would be appreciated.


Also the sightrons are roof prism, whats that all about?
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I'm assuming they will be riding around in vehicles and not carried much. Go for the larger objective lens models. I prefer the Nikon or Bushnell in that price range.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

There are at least a dozen sets of older Steiners on eBay. Great stuff... but last century's models don't fetch much even if they were state-of-the-art in 1997.

If water/weatherproof isn't a big factor, older Zeiss (Jena) binoculars are amazing glass. They may be antique-looking but some are MUCH better than today's 'budget' optics.

Don't skimp on glass. You will never be happy. Even if you have to buy out of pocket. Don't let a cheap boss steer you into garbage optics. Get the good stuff, it's an investment.

Cheers,

Sirhr
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Roadwild17</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
Sightron SI 10X32
Sightron SII 10X42
Vortex Crossfire 10X32
Leupold Yosemite 8X30
Nikon Action 10X40
Bushnell H2O 10X42

Any experience with these or others would be appreciated.
Also the sightrons are roof prism, whats that all about? </div></div>

Doesn't really matter which one you get. They are all shit.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I have looked through a cheap set of Vortex, and for the money they seemed to be not half bad.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Sirhrmechanic</div><div class="ubbcode-body">There are at least a dozen sets of older Steiners on eBay. Great stuff... but last century's models don't fetch much even if they were state-of-the-art in 1997.

If water/weatherproof isn't a big factor, older Zeiss (Jena) binoculars are amazing glass. They may be antique-looking but some are MUCH better than today's 'budget' optics </div></div>
+1
I have old Hensolds and they are at least as good as my buddys lower end Steiners. Only half the price that he did pay for those Steiners.

Im not sure which has better glass but my Hensoldts are built to last.
IMG_0274.jpg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVTKuRVf0Rs
http://www.holgermerlitz.de/index.html
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Ho Chung</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Roadwild17</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
Sightron SI 10X32
Sightron SII 10X42
Vortex Crossfire 10X32
Leupold Yosemite 8X30
Nikon Action 10X40
Bushnell H2O 10X42

Any experience with these or others would be appreciated.
Also the sightrons are roof prism, whats that all about? </div></div>

Doesn't really matter which one you get. They are all shit.
</div></div>
Ha Ha. Who the fuck are you to judge. He was looking at cheap binos, not some dicks opinion on shit he has no clue about.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

No shit thats hard. He even compiled a list of what he thought would fit the bill. Tell us all why they are shit (if you have even used them), and what you consider a decent budget pair?
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I own a couple pair of the Nikon Action Extremes (10x50 and 7x35). I think they would work for what you need them for.

I know REI carries them if you wanted to check them out before purchasing. However, online would be least expensive. I purchased mine here . The 7x35's fit in this case perfectly.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: carbinero</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I'd get those PCF WPIIs from gr8tfulDoug, or what I got: ZenRay 10x42s from ceylonc (SH member). They are awesome for the $$. </div></div>

+1
Pentax is the way I'd go. Good value.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

IMO, they are a good glass for the money. If you get them and don't agree, just send them back. For what you're looking for they should be perfectly acceptable
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

There was a guy who was importing russian military binoculars on the For sale board.
BEST deal imo, they hovered in like the 120s-140s range for real deal military optics.
If anyone could remember his name/user, i'd buy those again.
I have like 3 pairs.


Fuck found it.

For further information contact:
USSR
PO Box 722
Burdett, New York
14818
phone 607-546-7700 between 1800 and 2200 est.

See if theyre still alive. They
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I've used the Nikon Action before for hunting 150-250 yds at dusk and dawn and worked well.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I showed my Zen Ray Vistas to a buddy who has all Swaro stuff and his comment was, crap, that's a lot of glass for almost no money. They are the 2010 model with silver prism coating and phase correction. I didn't figure out what all that meant, but am very happy with them. No shops in town have even heard of the brand, so I think they are real sleepers, kinda like Vortex when they first came out. In fact, looking at them online, the ZRs and Vortex look identical.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Ho Chung</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Roadwild17</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
Sightron SI 10X32
Sightron SII 10X42
Vortex Crossfire 10X32
Leupold Yosemite 8X30
Nikon Action 10X40
Bushnell H2O 10X42

Any experience with these or others would be appreciated.
Also the sightrons are roof prism, whats that all about? </div></div>

Doesn't really matter which one you get. They are all shit.
</div></div>

Well then sir, in your expert opinion, which is the least shitty?
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I have been using some Vortex Diamondback's for awhile. They are great binos for the price. I primarily use them for surveillance at night.

The depth of field is a little shallow, but they are very fast to focus.

IIRC I got them from Camera Land NY. They were listed as seconds because they had a blemish in the rubber armor. I wish they had more I would buy an extra two sets at the price I got them for.

Here is the current model:
http://www.cameralandny.com/optics/vortex.pl?page=vortexdiamondback10x28
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I have an older leupold binocular that I like a lot, but it's a little large to be carrying around. I would check out the Vortex or Steiner models and I would probably go for a used pair off ebay.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

Camera Land has a blowout on Minox Binoculars and CDNN has so Kahles Binos at a great price. Both great binos and great deals.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I have some Vortex from cameraland that I like for the money. They were a closeout with blem finish I got for like $130. They were half price and I think they are great for the money.
 
Re: Cheep Binos??

I got the Leupold Yosemite 6x30 for my boy's first hunt this year. I find them astonishingly good for the money - totally worth buying: their lowlight capability is only a few minutes behind much more expensive models, very compact, good center clarity, decent clarity on the edges. I did hear, however, that there is some variability in the low end models. Not sure abt the 8x30s, or the other models on the list.
 
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