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Hello All

I have to say that I'd just presumed that I'd pack my 10X42 BGATs for my upcoming safari to Zambia, but a chum with a fair bit of experience of african hunting essentially said absolutely not. He recommended a properly small pair of almost opera glasses, Swaro 10 X 25 sort of things.

Would be grateful for your thoughts and thanks in advance...

Shikar, to each his own, but I never warmed up to the small glasses. I'd take what you got, but take a set of those bino harnesses, that hold the binos against your chest, when not in use. Regular bino straps are a PITA while hunting. JMHO.

maddog

Not a fan of the little glass either...take your faves..the bino harnesses are very popular, but Ive never warmed up to them...
I use 8x30 Swaros on what I have heard called a "short carry"...or something like that...


Ingwe

I used one of the chest carry systems, and hated it. It works well for still hunting, etc. but bounces if you move any faster. My PH used a full length sling that he looped over the opposite shoulder. It looked very fast and comfortable.

Last Christmas, my wife bought me a pair of stabilized 8x30 Canons. While heavier than an equivalent pair of non-stabilized binos, they are simply amazing in the field.

On my last African hunt, I took my Leica 10x42 Geovids.
Having the instant rangefinder capability and superb optical quality of the Leicas makes them about a perfect choice for a lot of applications, Africa included.

They will definitely be in my pack for the next African adventure!

I use the ones I use all the time here at home, which are my Swaro 10x42 SLCs. I've taken them to Africa 3 times and find them ideal, particualry in the situations where we're at a stategic point and are searching the distant bush for something we're after. Several situations come to mind, and finding a beautiful fringe-eared oryx in Massailand at about 800 yards is one of them.

Absolutely the most miserable binocular I've ever used in the field was 10X25 Zeiss. They are way too light for any kind of unsupported use.
I'd go with a light 19-20 oz. 6X or a heavier 8X say 25 ozs.
I like the "short strap carry best for the lighter binoculars and the long, across the body carry for the heavier ones. E

I would absolutely not go with the ulta small pocket binoculars for any price.

With regards your current bino's, what ever you take, its likely that you will be carrying them a lot..If you're not used to that, a set of decent 8x30mm would be my choice.

If you are alread used to carrying the Zeiss 10x42mm's while hunting anyway, stick with those...

Regards,

Peter

8x30 Swaro's did me fine in Zim and SA and have done so for 20+ years!

Take it from painful experience, go small but no smaller than 8X30s. My preferences are either the 8X30 SLCs or the 8X32 ELs from Swarovski. I have a pair of 10X42 SLCs and a pair of 8X42 Geovids (with rangefinder) and they work great for glassing but for Africa where you hunt with your "feet", small is the way to go. Now if you are cat hunting over bait, nothing beats my 8X42s. jorge

IMO take what you're used to using regularly. I have 10x42 ELs I use routinely and 10x25s I sometimes use. I took the 10x42s in the same carry harness I use when hunting here and they felt and carried the same in Africa. Next time I'll take them again because I'm used to them and they definitely provide better detail than the smaller bino. Whether to use 8x40 or 10x40 IMHO is a matter of preference but either is a significant step up optically from the pocket binos.

Bring your big glasses. My PH was looking at one mountain and I was looking at another and I spotted what ended up being my trophy Kudu with my glasses. Defintely 2 good sets of eyes is better than one. Bring em and keep them and all your valuable stuff in your carry on luggage too! Those suckers in Joburg have been known to stick a knife to seperate the zipper of luggage and pilfer thru all the good stuff and then just run the zipper back over to rezip it up. They can get right around the lock no sweat. Or get luggage without a zipper, just a lesson learned there I thought I'd pass on.

I took my 8X42 Leicas to Zim but ended up leaving them in the truck or even in camp. Buff and elephant hunting involve a lot of walking and a few hills. It was hard enough for me to keep up at my age. The PH always could spot stuff quicker than I did anyway.

I know nothing of Zambia, but 10x42 SLC's and 8x30 SLC's worked perfectly in Namibia a month ago. To me, the compact glasses give up too much