Im considering a pair of 7x42 for my next bino purchase. Right now i own 10x42 Meoptas and love em but theyre a bit hard to keep steady. Have no intention of getting rid of them but would like to add something in a 7x as my rangefinder is 7x and i can hold it much much steadier. What do u guys use?

I've got a set of Swaro 7x42 SLC neu, fabulous view but they are a bit heavy. Most of my hunting is done with 6x32 Vipers. The Swaros are mostly used around the house to look at birds and as an occasional truck binocular.

I hunt in Coastal Georgia, a Long shot is 75 yds, mostly swamps and planted pines,
I use 6X Leupold's to pick out movement in the thick stuff.

6.5x32 Minox for us.

tdbob,

Are those porro?

roof

Older 7x42 Bushnell Discoverers. They are plenty for my coyote hunting which can stretch 1/4 mile, bowhunting in timber and carry them in the truck 99% of the time to look at anything I want.

10x might help at times when looking way off but I am sure the 7x would still see the most use.

Where would you be using them at the most??

I would love a good 7x35. Nikon makes some inexpensive porros but they are a little bulky and heavy.

Mine are under the B&L label. I love mine.

B&L has better glass.

Fantastic glass.

I have been using Leica 7x42 Uldravid HD for a few years. I like these Lots!! To me, exceptional easy looking through for extended periods. And dimensionally were the smallest full size binocular that I could find. No regrets on the purchase.

That view is exceptional!

Hearing that complaint from a lot of folks recently--that and the weight and bulk of 42mm binos.

Have you considered 8x in the 30-32mm range?


Casey

I've used the 6.5x32 Minox for years and really like them, still use them often. Picked up a pair of 7x42 Meoptas and love them...but they are heavy. The weight seems to help me hold them steadier.

I use a pair of 6x Yosemites when hunting eastern timber/thickets. Excellent for the $, IMO.

My son has a pair of 7x42 Swarovski SLC- loves them. They used to be mine, I loved them - bright, wide FOV, excellent depth of field, and no image shake because of the weight. In a stand no problem ,carrying around your neck they were not so fun. A harness helps a lot, and being 15 years old. He dosent find anything heavy

I have but figured the 42 would be better in lowlight. But if the 32mm is lighter and easier to hold steady id go that route for sure

Mostly where i deer hunt i hunt a couple places where i have a view out to maybe 400 yards or so

The alpha 32mm's will do better than many suspect in less than ideal light.

But they are expensive.......

Casey

I use two different 7x42. One is the Swarovski SLC, the other the Zeiss Classic. I use both frequently.

The 8x32's with good glass are bright and light. To me, one of the advantages of a 7x42 is the freedom for the eye to move around in the exit pupil and the depth of field. Those two things are hard to keep when you get to 8x with a 32mm.

Edit to add this is more important to me the shorter the glassing range...thick woods, and the more unstable I may be when glassing...still hunting in thick woods.

I grew up on 7x35 porros as was the norm once upon a time. I still prefer 7x; just easier to look through for whole minutes at a time.

For me all my binocs are "truck binocs" so top-dollar Swaros or Ziess haven't been in the plan.

Fortunately even the moderately-priced stuff has only gotten better over the years. What rides in my car and what were strapped to my chest during my 1,500 mile bicycle trip in Europe last summer is a pair of 7x36 Atlas Intrepids, IIRC about $300 on sale from Eagle Optics.

When I was a young man they would have been considered excellent, but the way binocs are today they are just average, which is still pretty durned decent.

Birdwatcher

Have you considered 6x30's? They are very stable, very bright, very comfortable to use. Given that you already own some quality 10x42's this might be a better option.

There aren't a lot of choices, but the available choices are excellent. Leupold offers the 6x30 Yosemite which is a sub $100 porro prism that is very good for the money. Moving up in quality is the discontinued Vortex Viper HD's 6x32. These are really excellent bino's and you may be able to find a good deal on some close out stock somewhere. Maven optics is offering a 6x30 now. I haven't had a chance to look through a pair yet, but I would be surprised if they weren't excellent. Maven has a demo program that allows you to return the binos if you don't like them.

http://mavenbuilt.myshopify.com/collections/demo-units/products/demo-unit-b-3

David

I like ten power. I hunt in west Texas, able to see 800 yards

I had the non-HD version, and loved them. However I sold them when I needed cache. I now use 6.5 x 32 Meopta or 8 x 32 Fl's. the 6.5 Meopta's have a little better FOV, the Zeiss has better resolution.

Have you tried the Meopta 7x42 Meostar?

Me too. Another happy camper.

I like the idea of new glass with new coatings but these work so well for me that new binoculars never make it to the top of the list of things to buy next.

I use Swaro SLC 7x42Neu as my primary bino. The world is a happy place as viewed through them.

I hunt with MINOX BD Compact 7x28 BR Binoculars Autofocus Flat Field.

They are $341 from Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Minox-BD-7x28-Binoculars-62039/dp/B004Y7C52Q

I havent. If a deal came up on em tho i would consider those

I use 7x42 Swaro SLC's. They have been great the last 25 years and recently were refurbished by Swarovski to as new condition. I love em.

I have these. Great glass, I used them for all kinds of hunts, sheep, mtn goat, moose and elk. You can't go wrong.

fwiw

I use them but not a lot. They go stillhunting with me in the Great Lakes woods.

A circa 2000 Swaro 7x42 Porro. These, I was told by Swaro, got the 2000ish coating update (post yellow tint). They have a narrow FOV for a 7x42 but make up for it with a view that still rivals today's best roof prisms--and do have a couple samples on hand to compare. I like the depth of field that the lower magnifications give you for still-hunting.

They weigh roughly 6oz more than the 6x30mm stuff, but are significantly better in very low light. For me, at least, a slightly heavier bino is easier to steady.

I use the Swarovski 7x42 SLC. I sold off my older pair and bought a newer pair with later coatings. Then I bought a 7x42 SLC Neu just in case. Then I bought a Zeiss FL 7x42 roof prism in case I needed the lighter weight.

That was several years ago and I have not used the 7x42 Neu or the Zeiss yet.

This format works very well for very nearsighted people with strong eyeglass prescriptions.

Swaro 7x42 SLC Neu here along with a Minox BD IF 6.5x32, Pentax DCF-WP 8x32, Zen-Ray ED2v2 7x36, and a factory restored 1st generation Leupold Gold Ring IF 9x32 porro.

Best glass for the money ever! I must have sold 5 pairs for Doug to hunting buddies.

Any new stuff out I should be looking at?

I wouldn't pay full price for them, but have $100 in a set of 7X42 Swarovski's. They were made in the mid 1980's and do great to keep in the truck They are bigger and heavier than I want to lug around. But other than the weight are great binoculars.

I find those to be my favorites

My main binos are a pair of 21 year old Swaro 7x42 SLC that I bought new for $799 in 1999 after using the Swaro 8x30 for several years. Super happy with them. I hunt blacktails in clear cuts and brush, and these are crystal clear and the large ocular lenses are like looking through a big picture window, and the weight is not a big deal for me. That being said, I just bought a pair of the Tract Toric 8x42 to see if they can unseat my Swaros or my Pentax DCF 8x42.

My cousin has Meopta's 7x42 - loves them! Went from 10x42
for the same reasons you mentioned.

While my heart is chasing elk in the Montana breaks, my butt is hunting whitetails in the east predominantly. I am thinking of selling my 10x42 Razor HD, Meostar 8x32 and Meopro 8x32 for a set of alpha 7x42. I prefer the bigger body of the 42s. They just fit my hand really well. I would consider 8x but everything I read 7s are a better combo.

These will be used for deer in woods and swamps and lots and lots of squirrels.

So how do the Tract's compare.......?

I had used a 2000 model slc 8x30 for years. When the Tracts came out, I wanted to see if the 8x42 would be an improvement in low light. When I got the Toric 8x42, they were instantly better than my slc 8x30 in broad daylight. I didnt even use the 8x30 slc again.
A year or 2 later, I picked up a Slc 7x42 that was a 1996 model, that was upgraded with new lenses and prisms in 2013. Once again they were much better than the Slc 8x30.
I knew the 8x30 didnt have the better prisms and lenses that the 7x42 were upgraded to, so I paid Swaro to upgrade them. What a difference the upgrade made.
Before the upgrade, the 8x30 was clear, but the view just seemed cold. They also had quite a bit of glare, looking into the sun. Now the colors are true, and little to no glare.

The Torics view is just as good as either Swaro. They are sharp, bright, and extremely good. The only thing that isnt as good as either slc, are the eyecups, and lack of locking diopter (1st gen Toric). The eyecups dont fit my face as well as the Swaro's, and dont lock at the fully extended position as firmly as I would like. I just stack o-rings to keep them extended fully.

The Swaro's service is second to none! The option to have older binos upgraded, is a great thing to me, and absolutely worth it!
The SLC 7x42 is just so easy to look through. I wouldnt say the view is better than the Tract, just that they fit my face better, and eye placement is so natural.
The Toric is noticably lighter, and the focus knob is smoother.
The Toric is a very good bino, I just happened to get the SLC 7x42 for only a little more than I paid for the Toric.