24hourcampfire.com
24hourcampfire.com
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Hop To
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,124
S
Campfire Tracker
OP Offline
Campfire Tracker
S
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,124
I have noticed some binocular specs give an operating temperature, and I'm hoping Canadians who naturally know more about cold conditions would share any cold related issues regarding their optics?

I have hunted whitetails in Alberta and Saskatchewan for a total of six trips, but only once was it extremely cold -20f to -25f in 2013. This was the only time I noticed anything unusual, the power selection ring on my Zeiss Conquest rifle scope was really hard to twist.

What if any preferences do you have for cold weather optics?
Thanks in advance

BP-B2

Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,619
G
GRF Offline
Campfire Regular
Offline
Campfire Regular
G
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,619
StrayDog; I've never given it a thought. Brunton, Steiner and Lieca binos no glitches at all in the cold, Leupold, Swarovski, Nightforce scopes no issues in the cold.

Just don't breath on the lenses. I always put a leather flap on my binos to keep the eyepieces covered when not is use to protect them from snow and condensation dripping off my face. The leather is use is soft enough it can also be used to clean the lenses.

Joined: May 2007
Posts: 12,076
Campfire Outfitter
Online Content
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 12,076
StrayDog;
Top of the morning to you sir, I trust this second last Sunday in March finds you well and warm - I see you're in Texas so it should be that way or a bit warmer than up here.

Here in southern BC it's never that cold when we hunt, I can't recall it ever being much below -25°C - so that's comparatively balmy compared to when we hunted in the Saskatchewan prairies and bush as a kid.

There I can recall one week moose hunting where it warmed up to -35° once, but for the most part was well below that. Another hunt a few years later, my then new wife shot her first whitetail buck on a day where it never got above -38°, which she still recalls as "definitely cold". wink Oh and she's a Manitoba girl so wasn't unused to snappy weather.

For the most part then, when we hunted in the real cold weather, we'd try our best to keep the gear outside as bringing it inside made it sweat and even relatively clean, lubricated rifles would sometimes rust. Sometimes as well, moisture formed would then subsequently freeze the parts up - bolt actions, magazine springs, etc.

With optics in particular, I'd say that I can't recall any internally fogging, but we made it a point to figure out which power setting we were using on a variable scope and left it there. Perhaps that's led to me personally gravitating to fixed power scopes on all my main hunting rifles, I can't say with entire certainty though.

We've had an older Leupold 25X spotting scope - the straight tube ones from the '90's I want to say - and it pretty much refuses to focus if its below -15°C. Maybe with a pipe wrench it would, but I'd have to bring a more skookum tripod if I start packing plumbing tools, so it just stays in the pickup on cold days afield.

If I was heading back to the family farm in Saskatchewan to chase the great grandfathers of the whitetail we used to see when we farmed there, I'd likely still be inclined to leave my gear outside as much as possible/feasible and keep it as mechanically simple as possible. My wife's individual focus Leupold binos would definitely come along as my Minox get pretty tough to adjust here on nippy days.

Anyway sir, I'm not sure that was useful or not, but I do wish you good luck on your future hunts, whether they're in your beautiful home state or in cooler climes!

Dwayne


The most important stuff in life isn't "stuff"

Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,619
G
GRF Offline
Campfire Regular
Offline
Campfire Regular
G
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,619
Dwayne; good point on leaving gear in the cold. I forgot to mention that.

Joined: May 2007
Posts: 12,076
Campfire Outfitter
Online Content
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 12,076
GRF;
Good morning to you sir, I hope the weather on your side of the big hills is sunny and warm - but of course not too, too warm if you've got too much snow like we do.... going to be another epic flood year here I'm thinking.

Yes we had all sorts of gear get bound up with condensation in the winter - farming and hunting stuff. In particular I recall rusting the barrel of my then new Browning BBR and while it didn't appear to adversely affect accuracy I always felt bad as it could have been avoided.

I want to say that starter solenoids didn't always like to come inside and go back outside unless they were well and truly warmed to the point of dissipating the moisture inside.

Anyway sir, while I've learned to "never say never", I'm not planning on moving back to the colder lands anytime soon so hopefully I'll only need to search the memory banks for the "really cold" hunting stories and lessons learned!

All the best to you and yours as we head into the spring sir.

Dwayne

Last edited by BC30cal; 03/18/18.

The most important stuff in life isn't "stuff"

IC B2

Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,124
S
Campfire Tracker
OP Offline
Campfire Tracker
S
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,124
Originally Posted by BC30cal


but we made it a point to figure out which power setting we were using on a variable scope and left it there.

We've had an older Leupold 25X spotting scope - the straight tube ones from the '90's I want to say - and it pretty much refuses to focus if its below -15°C. Maybe with a pipe wrench it would, but I'd have to bring a more skookum tripod if I start packing plumbing tools, so it just stays in the pickup on cold days afield.



Much appreciated gents, on the trip I mentioned we were keeping our rifles inside the barn which was probably warmer than leaving them in the truck. It's good to know that adjustments can stop working, I have not read or heard very much about this.
Next time I hunt extreme cold I will set my variable to about 4 1/2 power.
Happy Hunting,

Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 17,491
Campfire Ranger
Offline
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 17,491
Aside from stiff turn rings, focusing adjustments and so forth, all of which I avoid at all costs and simply look long enough to see/shoot. Besides the obvious problem of breathing in the presence to cold glass and fogging it, the near position of a warm moist orb (eyeball) can fog the lenses of binoculars.

And when it comes to scopes, make sure any sighting you do, if you have to make any setting changes to the crosshairs, is reverified after warming the scope up completely and bringing it back out and allowing it to cool down again. Some scopes will gives you fits because they won't move properly when they're very cold; warm them up and whatever adjustments you've made will happen, then you need to reshoot the rifle to verify (since you may not have made substantial progress when the unit was cold).


Sometimes, the air you 'let in'matters less than the air you 'let out'.
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,138
Campfire Outfitter
Online Content
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,138
Yup, moving parts on scopes, binoculars and spotting scopes can get stiff in the cold.

If you bring gear inside, you must remove optics and firearms from any cases. Let them adjust to the temperature before cleaning and putting away. This will help prevent corrosion on the firearms.


Moderated by  RickBin 

Link Copied to Clipboard
YB23

Who's Online Now
719 members (11point, 12344mag, 10gaugemag, 10Glocks, 160user, 117LBS, 92 invisible), 2,749 guests, and 1,307 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Forum Statistics
Forums81
Topics1,187,695
Posts18,399,872
Members73,820
Most Online11,491
Jul 7th, 2023


 







Fish & Game Departments | Solunar Tables | Mission Statement | Privacy Policy | Contact Us | DMCA
Hunting | Fishing | Camping | Backpacking | Reloading | Campfire Forums | Gear Shop
Copyright © 2000-2024 24hourcampfire.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5
(Release build 20201027)
Responsive Width:

PHP: 7.3.33 Page Time: 0.088s Queries: 14 (0.002s) Memory: 0.8278 MB (Peak: 0.9048 MB) Data Comp: Zlib Server Time: 2024-03-28 23:14:49 UTC
Valid HTML 5 and Valid CSS