Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Can 8x32 Binos Do-It-All (almost)?

Here's a good resource as well;

https://www.allbinos.com/allbinos_ranking-binoculars_ranking-8x32.html

Thanks JG. I've spent some time there reading.

Not sure what to think about the Swaro 8x32 review - not highly thought of. That said - my eyes love the edge clarity. I'm a picky observer and that perfection to the edge of the Swarovsion is something I notice. Rolling ball doesn't seem to bother me.

Current glass (might help the discussion) is 10x42 Meopta HDs. Wonderful view, and almost alpha. I like the size of the bino (overall length) but they are quite heavy.

I had no idea what the hell a rolling ball was, so I had to look it up.

Recently, the globe effect has been linked to the peculiar properties of human visual perception,[3] which adds a certain amount of barrel distortion to the visual field.[4] The amount of barrel distortion is subject to individual differences, which explains the fact that the perceived intensity of the globe effect varies significantly between different observers.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Globe_effect

I bought a demo pair of 8x32SV's before my last trip to Namibia in 2016, intending to take them with me. The view is amazing, but my sample had one major problem that I could not get over. It had terrible glare control when glassing in the general direction of the sun. You may try that next time you look through some and see if yours does the same. I've heard it mentioned a by a few other people as well. Otherwise they are superb IMO.

My 10x42 Meopta HD's are excellent, like yours. I have shorter, thick hands and they are a little bulky to me, but they are extremely well built, tough, and have great optics.

Good luck in your search.

You are not alone. (that's where I landed)

OA-
If the 8x32 makes your socks go up and down, then that's the one you should get - particularly if weight savings is the major factor.
I always found the open barrels on the EL a little handier (than the Leica) - better immediate sight picture too.

Good input.

The weight isn't a huge factor, I've just been wondering if I can get buy with a little smaller, little less weight, little less mag, and still be a happy observer and hunter. Probably the only way to know is to buy and try. Likely pick up a well known alpha incase I don't like what I see and want to pass them along in the classifieds.

I prefer a harness and good 10x42 binoculars i just see better with 10x42 for me

As a (primarily) backpack/mountain hunter, the additional weight/size of a 40/42mm bin is a deal killer, and a harness is as well. The beauty of the 32mm is you can tuck them under your arm, or let them hang on your chest solo. Or, you can fasten them tight with a sternum strap... they’re just far simpler. I’ll give up the lost 4 minutes of viewing twice a day... I’ve yet to have that matter.

I certainly love the view of a 7x42 or 8x42, I just don’t want them around my neck for most of what I do.

Everything is a compromise weighted one way or another...

Everything that guy named Brad just said.

I can't stand bino bras and bino buckets, one more thing to carry and to get in the way. Or 8lb rifles with scopes big enough to use as a toilet drain for that matter. Not for the kind of hunting I do........

Not a backpacker, but I agree on the first and last bits of light. First light, you are going to have lots more to work with. Last light, often too late to shoot many or most times.

If you shop for some 32mm binocs it is not only the weight but also the size that makes them handy. I've been hunting with an old pair of Zeiss ClassiC 8x32 for example, and they are small enough I can stuff them into the pocket of my parka. So I suggest paying close attention to size, some 8x32 are almost as large as 8x42s.

In regards to the loss of time viewing dusk and dawn, in MHO you can see well enough to shoot with a danged ole Leupold scope within the legal time frame of most situations from 30 minutes before or after sunset. So, yes you can still see during legal light with a high end 8x32 binoc. Although a 42mm will be a little brighter. Also, I've learned that I used to think of legal light as being darker than it really is.
This past season I was in Kansas hunting with an outfitter that had some aps on his smartphone that could forecast the direction of wind, and the exact time of sunset locally. When hunting out of state I pay extremely close attention to legal light because I believe that local game wardens drink coffee with their local hunting buds who complain about out of state hunters, and they more than likely would not pass a chance to charge an out of stater with a violation for even ten minutes of light. Anyway I noticed that stopping at legal light I didn't really need a flash light for part of my hike back to the pick up point

Happy Hunting

Had the SV8x32 and they were fine. I liked the size, but settled for the 8x42SLC. I liked them better than the SV8.5x42. Never had the rolling ball effect, but just liked the SLC's better.

While not wishing to muddy the waters even more, I'll throw this one out there - only because I traveled this route as well in my 7-8 year, never-ending quest to catch my tail.

The Leica 8x42 is the most compact of the full-size alphas. It'll check a couple of your boxes - just not the weight issue.

I wouldn’t wanna handicap myself with 8-32’s, pack a few more ounces, worth it for the trade off...

The Tract Toric I saw was pretty small too. Also in the 25-26 oz range IIRC.

42mm binos continue to become smaller and lighter, maybe one of the these days..........

To All,

While I'm FAR from an expert on telescopes & binoculars, one of our local TX Master Naturalists is a retired manufacturer's representative for a binocular company.

He said, during our TMN training course classwork, that the diameter of the forward lens should, if divided by the power, equal or exceed 5, to be "fully suitable" for birding, viewing team sports or hunting.
He further said, that he believed that 7x35, 7x50 or 8x40 binoculars were "the best all-around choice" for such activities.

yours, tex

While the 8x32 size is nice and I do like the old 8x30 SLC's I have for mn. deer hunting, when it comes to serious glassing sessions out west, for me a little more weight is actually an asset as it settles things down . I did go with a marsupial bino harness this year and ended up liking it teamed up with my 10x42 geovids, I guess their weight never seems to bother me, even on backpack hunts. Folks talk about that first/last 5 minutes of the day regarding shooting light, but for me the big advantage is perhaps seeing an animal before shooting light in the morning and getting started on a stalk. Out west I'll take the 42mm every time.

To All,

What I'd like to find/buy is a pair of the 7x35 military surplus binoculars, with the built-in range-finder, of the sort that we had when I was in the Army.

yours, tex

It's been posted many times before that some people's pupil's cannot dialate past 5mm, especially older guys. That negates the need for heavier and bigger glass such as the 7x35, 7x50, etc.

8x32's for me, if they won't cut it - neither will a 10x42. Time for a spotter. I have the Nikon Monarch 7's, I recommend you take a look through a set before you spend big $ on an alpha. You may be pleasantly surprised at what $350 will get you.