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Joined: May 2020
Posts: 87
Campfire Greenhorn
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OP
Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: May 2020
Posts: 87 |
Never owned a pair of binoculars. I see some whitetail deer trackers use and recommend binos, while others don't seem to use them. Even guys that use iron sights.
Just wondering if any of you still-hunters or trackers use and recommend them?
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,241 Likes: 4
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,241 Likes: 4 |
Never owned a pair of binoculars. I see some whitetail deer trackers use and recommend binos, while others don't seem to use them. Even guys that use iron sights.
Just wondering if any of you still-hunters or trackers use and recommend them? essential gear imo for use in stillhunting imo, at least for me.
Quit giving in inch by inch then looking back to lament the mile behind ya and wonder how to preserve those few feet left in front of ya. They'll never stop until they're stopped. That's a fact.
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Joined: May 2020
Posts: 87
Campfire Greenhorn
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OP
Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: May 2020
Posts: 87 |
Never owned a pair of binoculars. I see some whitetail deer trackers use and recommend binos, while others don't seem to use them. Even guys that use iron sights.
Just wondering if any of you still-hunters or trackers use and recommend them? essential gear imo for use in stillhunting imo, at least for me. What size and pair do you use and recommend?
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Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 4,749 Likes: 12
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 4,749 Likes: 12 |
I carry a tiny monocular.
The way life should be.
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Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 15,360 Likes: 10
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 15,360 Likes: 10 |
I carry a pair of 8x32 Meopta's in my pocket or on the plain old neck strap tucked inside my coat when I am on foot. I have also checked out the Maven 6x32's as well, thinking those might be real nice.
Semper Fi
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Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 10,958 Likes: 7
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 10,958 Likes: 7 |
I always carry some type of bino regardless of how I'm hunting. If I'm tracking/still hunting in the ADK I will have a compact pair of 8X Leupold Yosemite under my jacket. They weigh nothing and don't interfere with shooting. I may not use them much but when you need them you'll be glad you have them.
They say everything happens for a reason. For me that reason is usually because I've made some bad decisions that I need to pay for.
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Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 13,669
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 13,669 |
I keep "borrowing" the 6X Leupolds I bought my boys. I have found them WAY more useful in tight cover than I expected to. So much so I am thinking I need a pair of my own. Gonna take a hard look at the Kowa version.
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Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 28,945 Likes: 23
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 28,945 Likes: 23 |
Mule Deer, and maybe some others, have pointed out that higher-powers tend to make stuff “pop” by virtue of the shallower depth of field. Comes at the price of size, weight, and brightness. I carried a Leupy cheapo 6x for a long time, but now have a Sightron 8x32, and use it or the Vortex 10x42 was a Christmas gift some years back. I usually just stuff them inside my outer layer on a harness.
What fresh Hell is this?
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Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 6,441 Likes: 8
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 6,441 Likes: 8 |
I can’t imagine deer hunting without binoculars no matter what terrain I expected to encounter.
~Molɔ̀ːn Labé Skýla~
3-7-77
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Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 1,669
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 1,669 |
I'm a tracker. I track desert mule deer. I own two 6X, one 6.5X IF, three 8X, one 9X, and one 12X. If I want to see deer before they see me, I need to use binoculars. They allow me to see through cover. I prefer the cheap Leupold, 6X30 Yosemite. For still hunting, a more powerful 8X works better. The other advantage to me is the ability to see small branches and twigs that can deflect a bullet. The bucks I hunt are at least 4yrs. old. That means they know how to survive hunters. Trying to hit one as they duck and dodge through cover is really tough. I've got far more stories about the ones that got away than those that I got. Binoculars give me an edge that I really need. E
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 6,864 Likes: 2
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 6,864 Likes: 2 |
I can’t imagine deer hunting without binoculars no matter what terrain I expected to encounter.
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 4,186
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 4,186 |
Still-hunt? Sure. Whatever fits you well.
Tracking? Nope. The lighter my gear the better off I am.
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Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 3,394
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 3,394 |
Like the saying goes “don’t leave home without it”
I Kill Things......deal with it..
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Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 2,248
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 2,248 |
I stillhunt with iron sights and always have a pair of Kowa Genny 8X33s on my chest. If I was looking for a pair of binos specifically for this use in my thick NE woods, I'd be looking hard at Maven B.3 6x30s. I'm thinking about getting a pair also, because they'll slip easily in and out of vertical chest coat pocket, allowing me to leave the harness at camp, and travel lighter. K.I.S.S.
Last edited by eaglemountainman; 02/22/24.
My heart's in the mountains, my heart is not here. My heart's in the mountains, chasing the deer.
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Joined: Apr 2020
Posts: 200
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Apr 2020
Posts: 200 |
“That you will become way less concerned with what other people think of you when you realize how seldom they do.”
But, I have it on good information that "There are no ATM machines in hell".
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Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 13,990 Likes: 6
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 13,990 Likes: 6 |
Still-hunt? Sure. Whatever fits you well.
Tracking? Nope. The lighter my gear the better off I am. This
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Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 2,738 Likes: 3
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 2,738 Likes: 3 |
Still-hunt? Sure. Whatever fits you well.
Tracking? Nope. The lighter my gear the better off I am. This X3
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Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 1,397
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2020
Posts: 1,397 |
I take them with me on every hunt. Archery treestand sitting, or rifle season sneaking.
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Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 1,903
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 1,903 |
In Maine I use a small pair of compact Leica's, think they're 10x25s. Small, light and I hardly know they are there. Sometimes you come to openings or cuts that it's good to look over before you go trudging through there. Or see something in heavy stuff that could be an antler or could be a branch, nice to know which. In PA usually use a full size pair unless I'm covering ground, then the Leica's.
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Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 963
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 963 |
I would rather forget my gun, than my binoculars when going hunting.
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