I get to look through a lot of different brands each fall during my guiding season, and my opinion is a bit different. The top three Alpha brands are still miles ahead of anything else in low light conditions, and Swaros are at the top of the heap when light is scarce. Good glass in my opinion is the most important piece of equipment you can have. If you want to save money there are many ways to cut costs. Lots of good rifles can be had for $500, a cheap Savage will kill just as sure as that custom or semi custom job. Same goes for clothing. I see hunters show up every year that look like they just walked out of a Sitka catalogue. A rain suit from that company will set you back hundreds of dollars and it isn't as good as my Helly Hansons that I got for $50. Get into their super down stuff, and you just spent more on clothing than I did for my Swaro glass. Also keep in mind that you only need to buy good glass once. I spend 60-70 days afield each and every season and my Sawros are over 15 years old and still as good as the day I bought them. Their warranty is as good as it gets too. Mine accidentally got left in a storage barrel that was sitting beside a hunting cabin one fall. A bear showed up after we left and tipped the barrel over, it rolled down the hill into the lake where it stayed until the next spring. My binoculars were almost unrecognizable when we pulled them out the next spring. Sent them to Swarovski and they rebuilt them and sent back to me at no cost......try that will a chinese pair.
