Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Tract Bino Review (8x42)

Ive spent 6 or 7 hours with these. For comparison, I went back and forth between older non-swarovision EL 8.5 x42 and Zeiss HD 8x32. I’m frankly very impressed with the Tracts.

Mechanically they were comfortable and easy to focus/adjust. The attention to detail appears outstanding.

Optically, the only real difference with the ELs is the ELs are sharper around the edges. This gives the impression of a larger field of view. Clarity and brightness, even in very low light is indistinguishable to my eyes. In good light, the Zeiss were the equal in clarity (obviously, it’s not fair to compare them to the larger EL/Tracts in very low light).

To my eyes, the Zeiss glass brings out colors best. Interestingly, I felt the ELs and Tracts were identical in the color contrast test. By way of full disclosure, I’m severely red-green color blind so the color contrast may be experienced differently by others.

Everyone’s eyes are different. Having said that, I would rate the Tracts an exceptional value.

But did you throw them off a cliff and drive over them with your truck to test durability?

I knew that was coming.....

Do you think performance wise that they sit in that $1k range - Conquest HD, Razor, Trinovid, etc?

Absolutely. Hence, I’m quite impressed with the value

Having owned Conquest HD,Razors none of which I own anymore they do not measure up to a Trinovid, in fact not even close. I have owned the last 2 iterations of 8x42 Trinovids and sent the newest version back to Doug ...glass was sterling but the build quality was better on previous generation.

Glad you like the Torics, and I'm not surprised. I've had them side by side with several different binos and they are the best available under $1500 IMHO. Enjoy!

So you guys compared them to MEOPTA MEOSTARS? I’m sure the Meoptas are a little more durable since they are really solid and heavier than most but would you guys say optically they are at least equal in clarity and low light performance? Do the TORICS have just as good depth of focus and do they fit the hands well?

As to the Toric/Meostar durability thing, who knows? Time will tell. I'd guess the Meopta to be king here. As to ergos, optics, etc, my 56 yr old eyeballs give the edge to the Toric. They're both great.

nuguy,

I've been using a 10x42 Toric pretty hard for several months now. I second what JG says about the optics, but have also found the Torics very well-built, while not being as heavy as the Meostars.

The focus wheel is noticeably better on the 10x42 Toric compared to my 8x42 SLC's(2015 version).

I'm no optics expert by any stretch of the imagination. I don't even know what chromatic aberration is. I only know what I see through my own eyes. I wound up buying a slightly used pair of Tract Torics in 8x42 off of archerytalk for a good price. Optically, TO ME, these are the best binos I have ever owned, and I had some Swaro 8x42 SLC's a couple of years ago, which I wound up trading. Again, TO ME, these were better in my eyes than the Swaros, especially in low light situations. The only complaint I have, and it is minor, is that the twist up eyecups, don't really lock in very well in the intermediate positions. I like them in what I consider position 3, and too often when I pick them up to look through them, one of the eyecups is out of position, and has to be readjusted. If there is a fix for that, these would be the perfect hunting binos, for these 63 year old eyes. That's my unprofessional take on the Tract Torics.

If you haven't, can I borrow them for a quick test?


jokes aside, I've been impressed with the glass in a Toric scope. Several evening hunts have shown it to be some really good glass. It seemed really good just shooting, but using it as the light fades has been an eye opener. If the bino's are cut from the same mold, especially considering the price, they would be the first place I'd look for new bino's.

Bamasnyper, I stacked some o-rings under the eye cups to lock them to the furthest position.

Okay, thanks. May give that a try.

Truth.

Scott, after comparing the 10x42 Toric and the 8x42 SLC I was so disappointed in the focus wheel on the Swaro that I sent them in for tune-up.

Actually I first tried to smooth them up with a little silicon but that did not, I repeat did not work.....
(bad idea....)

Explained the situation to Swaro and they fixed me up. The wheel is now better but still not as smooth as the Toric.