Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics What is you experience hand holding a 15x50 bino?Can you do it?

Im currently in the market for new binoculars. Any advice would help.

It's a no-go for me.

One of the latest fads here are switch power binoculars. I happen to like them and a search will find a topic or more on them.

The switch powers that I have are the Leu 7X-12 32mm. They work fine even with glasses. So far its only once in a while that I 'need' the 12X. Most of the time I can glass fine at 7X.

I would not want 15X only binoculars but perhaps some do. Even the 50 mm is big to carry. It gets old fast for me and I have 8-56's



Leupold Switch Power Technology

John Barsness on Switch Power binoculars

I can't use a 12x or 15x hand held at all.

I have been carrying nothing but 15x binos for a few years now for mulie and elk hunting out west. For serious glassing, I sit down and put them on a tripod...but I also carry them around my neck while hiking and I'm comfortable glassing with them without a rest. In fact, I still prefer them to a 10x even without the tripod.

With a good, heavy binocular, like the 46 oz. Leica BN, I can use them hand held. But they work alot easier/better off of a tripod. The only 15X I've tried was a complete loss hand held. However, it also didn't have the image quality of my better 8X bins, even when both were used on a tripod at the shorter, under 800 yd. ranges.
I'd also point out that even if useful, really powerful binoculars tire me out faster than similar weight 8X ones.

JG: Me neither.....but give me a rest of some type and they get better real quick....t'was graphically illustrated last year that they will show stuff the lesser bins cannot...on a bedded buck in a brush and sage clump.

At several hundred yards, we could distinguish antlers that were just not discernable through the 10X's.But we had to rest the 15x's to do it.

I can't either, at least effectively that is and for extended periods of time.

The 12 I can do, but not the 15, it needs and deserves a tripod.

Dober

Dober: They might be big and heavy but they are still the Catz Azz when stuff is far.....

I can't figure why I love big bins but hate big scopes?????

Must be something wrong with me.....

Mine are only 13x but I do know that using a chest harness helps. Clearly, that way they are readily available and easy to carry, but the slight tension the harness puts up against the binos when you pull them up does help reduce shake.
And at around $15, the harness is pretty inexpensive to try out.
As always, YMMV!!

Nope nuthin wrong with you...grin

Dober

What I like to do when glassing way out there is to rest my 12X50 on my 82mm Nikon ED spotter. If I spot something, I just drop down to the spotter and really look it over. Nothing like having 55X82 plus to back up the 12X50's. E

Most any of us can hold it. The question is can we see anything steady out of them. The answer is no.

I can.



Of course I cheat a little. My 15x50 are image stabilized.

If I'm going to need a tripod anyway, like I would with a 15x or 12x bino I'd much rather have my spotter. Judging a big muley buck at 2 miles is not a problem then, but that's just me.

Sure, I can hold em.... Doesnt mean I can see a damn thing though!

I've got a nice Minox in 15 if you want to try them out. Never used hunting.

I can hand hold my 15x56's using a harness. Of course the hunting I'm doing I can't see past 600-700 yards.

no, I am too wimpy to handhold 15x50 steady. no go for me

Hawker-it's not so much a wimpy thing, it's an effectiveness thingy. I can use my 15's for a quick look see but for truly effective glassing with them slam o dunk one's way better off going with a good tripod.

Dober