Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Binocular recommendations for under 200 dollars?

I am looking for a descent set of binos for under two hundred bucks or so. So many companies out there its hard to heads from tails at times. I am looking for something somewhat compact that I can tote throught the thick mosquito and alligator infested swamps of South Carolina in search of wild boar. I appreciate any onformation or suggestions. Sincerely, Chris.

You might want to look at the Leopold Wind River series. They are waterproof-rare at that price-and rugged. E.

Oops a typo:information. Thanks for the suggestion E. I appreciate it. Chris

The Nikon Porro prism glasses are very bright for their size and are available in numerous levels of magnification and objective lens diameters. <P>The B&L Legacy binos are pretty decent too. I found the Pentax glasses to be rather poor.

Nikon Monarch ATB 8x40 roof-prisms can be found for around $220 new. Maybe check ebay for a used pair. Waterproof (as opposed to water-resistant) and designed to take a little jostling from time to time. <P>Steiner predator 8x22 compacts have a street price of around $125 and perform very well for the money (which is the key issue: Performance vs Investment = Value).<P>Save for a great bino though. I saved my mad money, Christmas money, and birthday money for 3 years (literally)so I could get my Leica 8x32. It is the perfect binocular for my use. I walk a lot and didn't want to lug an 8x42. I wanted a wide field of view and good low-light performance. I got it all with the Leica. No regrets.

boarhunter, run, do not walk, to <A HREF="http://www.samplelist.com." TARGET=_blank>www.samplelist.com.</A> Look at the Steiners. You may notice that there are a couple Leicas and Swarovskis for less than a huyndred dollars more than the price you mentioned. Several posters here rave about the service from this company, and you may click the banner here sometimes to link to the site.<P>Personally, I would spend the extra 70 bucks for the 8x20s mentioned above. You will not be sorry. I don't think you will regret the Steiners, either, I think. See also the new Cabelas for comparison.<P>Good luck, Talus

If you must really spend under $200 then consider the Bushnell Trophy 8-32mm. They are not Steiners, but they are not $500 either. Waterproof, but obviously not the best optics. Utilitarian indeed. $149 at <A HREF="http://www.samplelist.com" TARGET=_blank>www.samplelist.com</A><BR>Here's some Steiners for $200. <A HREF="http://www.sierratradingpost.com/product.asp?base%5Fno=72336&str%5Fbase%5Fno=72102%2C72117%2C72120%2C72302%2C72333%2C72336%2C76241%2C76245%2C76326%2C82350%2C82362%2C85172%2C85173%2" TARGET=_blank>http://www.sierratradingpost.com/product.asp?base%5Fno=72336&str%5Fbase%5Fno=72102%2C72117%2C72120%2C72302%2C72333%2C72336%2C76241%2C76245%2C76326%2C82350%2C82362%2C85172%2C85173%2</A> C85174%2C99424%2C99441%2C99442%2C99515%2C99524%2C99949%2C&header%5Ftitle=&page%5Fname=prod%5Flist%5Fdisplay%2Easp&search%5Ftype=L2%7E315&size1=&size2=&gender=0&ShowImages=yes&sq=20 &cont=1&intPgNo=2&mscssid=FBW2STNLH2S92GCH00J74TCGDKE3DUN6

Go with the steiners 8x30 military/marine I love mine <A HREF="http://botachtactical.com/steinmilmarb3.html" TARGET=_blank>http://botachtactical.com/steinmilmarb3.html</A> Under 2 bills.

I like our brunton lite-tech's. they work real well. I used them last week on a sheep hunt and never had a problem with them. I believe they are in the $150 range.

Add another $50 and get yourself a pair of the German Army surplus Hensoldt rubber armored 8x30's ($250) from: <A HREF="http://www.deutscheoptik.com." TARGET=_blank>http://www.deutscheoptik.com.</A> <P>These binoculars have Zeiss lenses, and will compete right alongside binos in the $500-750 range. <P>These are the ideal boar hunting binocular as they are rubber armored, and "German made" to last. <P>If these are not the absolute best value money can buy for under $500, I don't know what is! They are warrantee'd for life by Deutsche Optik.<P>Get yourself the Bino-strap (shoulder harness) from Cabelas along with these, and you'll be alll set.

I'd be inclined to do a similtaneous test where mil surp optics are concerned. They may well have Ziess lenses. But Zeiss has been around for a long time. Binos made back in the 40's, or the 50's, donnot necessarily compare in quality with today's optics. It's possible. I still use a pair of B&L Zephers. But today's Zeiss are better, as are the Leicas. E

Glass and lens making technology has not changed since WW II. Only the coatings have changed, and that's the main difference in the image enhancements between the different manufacturers of today. The Japanese have still not mastered lens making like the Germans have, at least on the consumer level. It doesn't matter what coatings you put on a lens, if you don't have glass purity to begin with, you won't get the clarity or detail that you see in German lenses, old and new alike.

I'm sorry Barry, I don't buy that. Leopold buys it's rifle scope glass from lots of places, including Japan. And their rifle scopes compare very favorably with Zeiss in lab tests.<BR> They had the ability to electronically measure glass lenses in WWII ? I don't believe that. B&L developed that in the late 50's. <BR> The germans had computers, and optics programs back in WWII ? No. <BR> I do agree that top quality glass is a must. But todays coatings make a big difference in performance. E

I'll go along with Joel, I also have the Brunton Lite-Tech 10x42's they just weigh 2 pounds 7.6 ounces, and are roof-prism. Mine cost $220 last year. But that was at REI's. Maybe quite a bit less at other places.<P>Phil

HEy Chris,<BR> I have a set of 15x60 fujinon binoculars, I find them very nice but costly, If I was you I would look at the pentax 12x50. they are a good glass, and they are tripod adaptable. just don't drop them. they are about 183 dollars. another good optic is the 12x50 bushnell. inexpensive, but will do the trick. personally I like my fujinons.<BR>hope this will help. 86

Barry, I'll stack my Pentax 8 x 42 DCF WPs against said Hensoldts any day. I'll also take the excellent warranty and waterproof guarantee they came with.<P>Why don't we take them both to your favorite hunting spot and try them out? Good luck this year.<P>Cheers, Talus

Talus,<P>I've had a pair of 8x42 DCF Pentax's and they are pretty good, but not as clear and detailed at longer distances as the Hensoldts. With the Hensoldts, almost your entire range is in focus. You don't have to be constantly focusing like you do with most of the Japanese models I've looked through. If you're looking at a bush at 100 yards, and an animal moves in the background at 400 yards, you see it all in focus with the Hensoldts. Once I bought the Hensoldts, the Pentax's I had got sold off on ebay.

youngbuck, how in the world do you carry those tanks you call binoculars all day, much less keep them steady when trying to glass? In my experience, anything much in excess of 10 power is almost impossible to keep steady enough to make them usable unless you are close enough to the truck to use a tripod. And 50 or 60 MM objective lens means HEAVY in my book. I guess when you start logging on as "oldbuck" you will probably be using the smaller glass some of us old farts are using these days. [img]images/icons/smile.gif" border="0[/img]<BR>The question was about hunting hogs, and IMHO a 12 or 15 power bino just doesn't fit into this category. Many of the suggestions here have been first class, however I would think the B&L 10x24 units would be perfect for this set up and right in your price range. I bought a pair for my wife last year and I find myself "borrowing" them once in awhile when I want to go for a quick walk and don't want to carry my Leupold or Hensoldt's with me. The clarity and comfort of these glasses is amazing.<BR>Barry, I have to agree with you on the Hensoldt's. Mine are amazingly sharp, better than my Leupold's by far. However, the focus rings and the lens covers just drive me nuts sometimes so I find myself not using them that much. I do keep them in my truck as a spare pair for friends and hunting partners to use, though. Sometimes I have to check to see if I'm going to get them back at the end of the day! [img]images/icons/smile.gif" border="0[/img]- Sheister

Sheister. Which leos did you compare them to? Wind River, or Gold Ring ? Porros, or Roofs ? Did they have the MultiCoat4 treatment on them? I take it the Mil. Surp. Hensoldts are individual focus ? If so, I can see where they'd drive you nuts. You need central focus to look through brush at the various shorter ranges. I love that "seeing through cover" aspect of binoculars. If you can see twice as far, your covering 4X the area. And 3 times as far, 9X the area. E

E., the Leupolds I have are the older 10x40 Porro Prism, individual focus units-much like the Hensoldts I have. They are the model that eventually became the Wind River model, though mine have the Leupold label on them. They are fine bino's and I enjoy them a lot, but I am looking for some Swarovski's after looking through some of those and Silver Bullet's Zeiss while hunting this year.<BR>The thing that drives me nuts on the Hensoldts is the Mickey mouse rubber attached lens covers that have to be "folded back" to keep them out of the way and the individual focus rings that are so loose (I assume from wear) that they won't stay adjusted and I have to constantly re-adjust them as I use them to keep them on the right setting for my eyes. When they are focused, I have no real problem with either pair looking through the brush or trees or while looking across huge canyons, if necessary.