Slowly been widdling down mine over the past few years, but those jap production guys with the "almost 3d view" (and oh SO wide !)
at a fraction of the cost of the new phase corrected roofs that can compete with the view, makes it hard to part with them !
Swift 820 audubons
B&L custom compacts
Kowa prominars
and even a sears model !

My #1 go to binoculars are still my Fuji Polaris 7x50's! Big, bulky and heavy but I can't beat the view and I just keep coming back to them.
Leupold 6x30's as backup and loaners.
An old Fuji Miebo 8x40 sits on top of the refrigerator as a backyard binocular. If it was multi-coated it would rival any binocular of today. Relatively compact for a porro, built like a tank and smooth as silk.

Now you are making me work to come up with a list.

I also enjoy binoculars and have several, and among the
porro's, my best ones are the Nikon SE models, the
8x32, 10x42 and the 12x50. These do compare with the very
best roof binoculars, as I do compare them regularly.

I will always own an example of the 8x32 SE, as it is
a reference standard for many experienced optics users.

Next would be the 10x35 EII, and many other 7x35 - 12x50 Nikon Action models of various types.
I have several older vintage porro models in 7x35 and 8x30, nice older glass from the 60's and 70's.

Next is the Leupold Yosemite 6x30, a great small glass,
and well regarded here on the site. I have a couple
tucked away for grandchildren when the time comes.

yeah i loved my nikon se's as well, but let them slide as they were one of the few that i could actually recoupe my $$$ om

i cant remeber on my last fuji's if they were roof or porro, but i do remeber thge ones i had were as good as anything i had looked through to date !

OK, I have

Bushnell Rangemaster 7x35 early Fuji Optical.
Bushnell Rangemaster 7x35 later slope shoulder Tamron model
Swift Audubon 8.5x44 Type 1c early 804 from 1968
Bushnell Custom Featherlite II 7x35
B&L Zephyr 8x30
Jason Venture 4000 7x35, 631' fov

Binolux 7x35
Swift Nighthawk 8x40
Swift Apollo 8x30
Holiday 7x35
Carl Zeiss Jenoptem 8x30
Carl Zeiss 6x30 (post war Slivarem clone)
5 different Tasco 7x35 wide angles
Wards Ultra wide angle 7x35 624'

The first six will hang optically with ANYTHING. Hey, they might not win, but they are not going to slink quietly into the sunset either

Now that i think about it I have a Vortex Raptor 6.5x32, a Leupold Yosemite 6x30, and I just bought a new Nikon Aculon 7x35 for a new modern sample of a multi coated porro.

Steve:

You have a great collection, good to see the list.

I find Elks title to this post interesting. What porro's
are "still" in your collection? There are some optics guys
that are still "adding" to their collection.

A good porro prism binocular has many advantages over a
lesser made roof style binocular. That is why Nikon and
Bushnell sell thousands of them every year. They beat the
pants off the next up roof style they sell optically, in
a similar price range.

Some of those I have just added. One of them, the Swift Nighthawk was the first binocular I bought, back in 1969. Yeah, porros have some advantages that roofs will never have. Vice versa too, so pick your favorite flavor I suppose. I'll always have both.

I'm still sort of flabbergasted by the Fuji Rangemaster and the Zephyr. The Rangemaster dates to 1953 and the Zephyr to 1951. The view in those 60+ year old binoculars...well people won't believe how well they stack up without looking at them.

I'm using a Swaro 10x40 porro.
Great view!

Eric

I have yet to jump back on the roof bandwagon.

I use 8x42 Bushnell Legends provide a better, more comfortable view than the several hundred dollar Wind River Pinnacles that were so highly touted.

I bought 6x30 Yosemites and gave them to my B-I-L because he loved them and I bought 6.5x32 Eagle optics Kingbird which I believe are same as the Raptors. Think I might prefer the Yosemites but it is abuot a draw.

My dream is a 7x35ish and am really looking hard at the Zen Ray 7x36 ED2. Will I be disappointed???

The porro prism binoculars owned (and regularly used) by my wife and I are:

Nikon Superior E 10x42 (amazing resolution)
Bausch & Lomb Custom 8x36 Audubons (IMO great bang for the buck)
Leupold I.F. 7x30 Wind River (like a Timex, they've taken many a licking but keep on ticking)

While we have a couple of nice roofs, I also much prefer holding and using good porro prism binoculars.

Leica 10X42 HD-B

I have the ZEN 7x36. It is a good glass, so I to really equivocate, I would not be surprised one way or the other if you either were or were not disappointed. You never know how somebody's eyes will react to a particular glass. In all glass with field curvature it sort of comes down to how the curvature in the field matches the curvature of your vision and how well your eye accommodation functions away from center axis. I have no problems with the edge performance of the 7x36, but some do. Otherwise it is a great glass.

I just bought a new Nikon Aculon 7x35 that aside from a pretty flimsy looking bridge is optically on par with the Yosemite.

Always good to get your take Steve. I recommended the 7x35 Action EX to a friend of mine who was buying for his kid. He won't part with them. 7x35 is just the right amount of everything in my book.

My kowa prominar is the 7x35 featherlight (which is quite a stretch)...wonderful view that is very wide and built like a tank...only have used them at games and graduation ceremonies cause i've been afraid to ding them up !

use to love all the I.F. series from leupold for hunting, but for some reason, dont have any of them any more...???...must have run out of room at that time or thought some fuji's i use to have beat them out, cant remember..

I'd bet that anyone in the budget price bracket still has reason to opt for porros.
I can't afford roof prisms that give as nice of a view as my old cheap $40 Bushnell 10x50 porros. I find roof prisms inferior in view at up to 5x the cost of those 10 year old Bushnells. For hunting, I choose a roof just so it will stow well. But if I want great depth perception, with limited optical defects, I still opt for the cheap porros in that price bracket. If they ever croak, I'll probably get some Nikon AEs or Pentax WPs

I currently have three pair of porro prism bino's that I use on a liminated basis as my go to bino's these days are Steiner Nighthunter XP's in 8x42.

Nighthunter XP's......8x42 are my new go to.





I also have two pair of Steiner Whitetail's, one in 7x50 and the other in 6x30.




Another porro Steiner "Hunting Series"in 8x30...



My original Bushnell Custom Compacts in 7x26...even today, they have incredibly good optics.



Miscellaneous ...

Two pair of Nikon SEs both 8X32, and my old B&L 9X35 Zephyrs.

I prefer the view through porro prism binoculars; but alas, none of the above are really weather-tight.

In stormy weather out comes the roof prisms.

kenjs1,



The bold answer is a resounding, Yes!

I wanted something with more field of view than my Bushnell 8X42 Legend Ultra HD Rain Guard. I ordered a Zen Ray 7x36 ED2. I could hardly wait to lay it on a sand bag next to the Bushnell. With the Bushnell I could read the first and second line on the eye chart 127 yards away. I couldn't make out any letters on the second line with the Zen Ray. I returned them for a refund.

I ordered some Nikon Action Extreme ATB 7X35 waterproof/fogproof porro-prism. With these I could also read the second line. They are in the bino-budy now. They cost 1/3 what the Zen Rays cost.

Often I post here this statement: You don't get what you pay for in optics you get what you shop for.

Thanks Ringman. I have agreed with Poodleshooters assessment for a while now and keep probing to see when roofs might be cost-to-view affective compared to porros. Guess I will keep looking for a new lighter weight porro with super glass. In looking at the various models I have become amazed at the difference in field of views between some in the 7x to say 8x43 size bins.

Nikon 7x35 Naturalist III
Leupie 6x30 Yosemite

The Nikon Action series in 7x35 are by far the best bino out there for the dollar.

My Swarovski 7x42 SL's still seem to work.

Swarovski 6X30 Traditionals. HUGE depth of focus as well as field of view, better than anything else I've owned. Very sharp image - the lower power negates a lot of perceived shakiness. They won't quite hang optically with the Leica 8X42 here but they sure aren't far behind. Plus they're lighter and more compact and have their own usefulness when I don't want to carry the bigger and heavier Leica.

Nikon SE 8x32 are my best and I love them. I also have a B&L Zephyr 7x35 and a late 60's Bushnell 7x35 that I wore the finish off of when I was a field biologist.

Ergometrics just work for me and whatever other issues they have I can live with. My brain has a problem with even the best roofs fuzzy ring around the image. Porro's don't have that problem and let me glass for hours if need be.

RDFinn , you are spot on about the 7X26 Bushnell Custom Compacts . Many decades ago , I shopped around and found the Bushnells to be nearly as good as the Leicas and Zeiss of that day and way , way cheaper . Most of my shooting was at Varmints in plenty of Sunlight , and I still would rather use the Bushnells today to spot Prairie Dogs . Hand holding these light weights all day was a pleasure . There were 2 varieties of the Custom Compacts : the originals had eyepieces which always seemed to turn by themselves when being carried and had to be refocused , and a later spare set ( still unused ) which I bought which has eyepiece detents . These are poor for Deer Hunting near dusk & dawn , but I never seemed to mind too much . BTW ,those Custom Compacts were picked for the first Astronauts in Space .

My Nikon 8x32 SE is still my favorite and reference standard for judging binoculars.
I also still keep a set of 7x35 Kowa Prominar, 7x35 B&L Zephyrs, 7x30 GR Leupold and 6x30 Yosemites around camp for loaners and my travel binoculars are Bushnell Discoverer compacts in both 8x and 10 x. They are the waterproof versions of the older custom compacts.

I bought those Bushnell Custom Compact's after having a pair of Zeiss 8x20 B/GA's which had very bad flare if you looked anywhere near the direction of the sun (dawn or dusk). They were nice and sharp otherwise and I thought perhaps I just got a bad example, so I retuned them for a replacement, but the replacement were the same. I sold the little Zeiss 8x20's and bought the Bushnell Custom Compact 7x26's and never looked back. They were just sharp, a little brighter and had no flare.....mine have the diopter side detent clicks also.

For size comparison ...

Sweet wife bought my Bushnell 7x26 Custom Compacts for Christmas in the late 70s (they were not inexpensive in 70s dollars). They are not moisture resistant, but can be cleaned. Like RDF, I still find them very useful. Back then, they were the cats meow for small glass. Unlike some more expensive binoculars that are sealed, the heat of riding in a vehicle does not seem to affect them.

Jack

Only pair I have are a pair of Carl Zeiss pre-war Telexem 6x24s that I bought here for $40 shipped then had Nicolas at NRC Optics open up, clean up, re-seal and re-lube for $87. They are simply stellar optically.

6x30 Yosemites - great glass for the money

I believe that the B&L 9x35 Zephyr was Jack O'Connor's favorite sheep glass, IIRC.

I still have my B&L 9x35 zephyrs, first really good set of optics I bought, back when I was mid 20's. One of the smarter equipment buys I've made.
We've covered a lot of miles together, and while I typically carry a set of Minox 8x32s now when I'm in the timber (most of the time), for longer range stuff or a lot of time glassing the zephyrs are still good to go.