A friend of mine brought over his new Fujinons awhile back, and after seeing those "noculars" (as my nephew would say wink ), I started getting an itch for a new pair of my own. I currently own three pair of binocs, all cheap-o Bushnells, and all were purchased at various local X-Marts. They all give me severe eyestrain when using them. They also fog up with the greatest of ease, and all have scratches on the lenses from years of use/abuse, which make them pretty much unusable.

So, after checking my bank balance, I decided that I could afford to purchase some "decent" glass. I'm currently looking at roofs in 8x42, that have a street price of around $300-$350-ish, which is about the most that my budget will allow. And while I haven't gone hunting in years, I still would like some nice roofs that could use should I ever decide to go in the future. Or maybe just have something to toss in my truck when I out exploring the Oregon Coastal Range, or playing out on the dunes...

Below is a list of models that I have been looking over, with some rough pricing. The only problem is deciding which model to go with. Do any of you own any of these 8x42's? If so, which model would you recommend that I pick up? Right now I am leaning towards the Eagle Optics Ranger SRT's or the Vortex Furies. Picking up the Olympus Magellan's at only $180 would awesome, but I have no idea just how good they really are compared to the others on my list..

Any advice that any of you can give would be most appreciated.

Audubon Equinox HP 8x42 - $279
Vortex Fury 8x42 Demo's - $290
Eagle Optics Ranger SRT 8X42 - $300
Swift 8.5x44 HCF Audubon - $360 << Top of my price range.
Swift Ultra Lite 8x42 - $275- $309
Minox BL 8x42 BR Demo's - $290
Minox BV 8x42 BR - $260
Leupold Cascades Green Ring - $270
Nikon Monarch ATB 8x42 - $250
Olympus Magellan 8x42 EXWP 1 Demo's - $180 << Love that price!


Thanks!