Binnoculars recommendations?

[harpguitar]

Any recommendations? West marie currently has a sale going on... Should I hold out for a different better brand? Thought would be much appreciated. Oh, for sailing use of course.

Rick

[CapnRon47]

I bought a pair of Canon stabilized binoculars and I like them for reading signs and buoys. But I make sure I use the strap and keep them just inside the companionway as they are not waterproof.

[sailingdog]

The West Marine brand has rated fairly well, but if you can afford it, get a better brand. Steiners, Nikon, Fuji, and Canon all make excellent 7x50 binocs. You don't want to get anything with more magnification, unless they're stabilized, since it will be hard to use them. 7x50s are a good compromise between magnification and low-light capability.

[eherlihy]

I have a pair of the West Marine Tahiti binoc's. I like them very much. For less than $250 they're a good buy. Of course, if you want to pay over $1K for a stabilized set, you can...

[TxLnghrn]

I really like my Steiner 7x30's. The compact size makes them easy to handle and I haven't had a problem with light gathering from the smaller optics.
Michael

[erps]

You get what you pay for. The more expensive binoculars, especially the stabilized ones are a pleasure to use.

[PalmettoSailor]

Originally Posted by erps

You get what you pay for. The more expensive binoculars, especially the stabilized ones are a pleasure to use.

Erps and SD are correct that optics are one of those products were the high end stuff really is superior to the mid range stuff. That said, optics are like race cars, where it takes a huge price increase to get that desired increment in performance.

The West Marine Tahiti model was rated very highly by Practial Sailor in their evaluation of mid range binos. I tried them and was going to buy a pair, but came across a great sale price on a pair of Nikon Marine 7X50's, which PS also rated highly, so I got those instead. Performance-wise the Nikon's are very similar to the WM, but personally I prefer the black and grey of the Nikon over the West Marine blue. Other than the color, the design is so similar it wouldn't take much to convince me that Nikon built the West Marine badged model. I don't think you'll do much better than one of these two products in the <$300 range.

The Steiner Commander model at around $900 is about the bottom end of the high end brands and you can pay double that for some of the top brands. I have a pair of Steiner Military/Tactical 7X30's and they are great, but I wanted center focus for use on the boat. For the money you'll pay for the high end brands, you will get incredible optical clarity and light gathering capability. However, for most of us the performance of the mid range products will be all we'll ever need and we could drop 3 pair overboard for the price of a better performing product. ;-)

[TejasSailer]

You might want to call Eagle Optics - eagleoptics.com - and talk to them about your requirements. Birders use them a lot, and we've bought several pairs for various purposes and been quite satisfied.

Like midlifesailor, I have a pair of the Nikon OceanPro 7x50s, which I have been very happy with, and which were at about the upper end of what I felt I could justify spending. I like the look and feel of them, and the low light ability is sufficient for my needs. I've used the Steiners, and there is certainly a difference, but not enough that I could justify the price difference - the Nikon optics are pretty good. Electronic stabilization is awesome, but not something I can justify either, although if I were doing serious long-term cruising I might think about it.

[Omatako]

I'm planning on buying a pair of stabilised 15 x 50 with internal compass and laser ranging.

All I am waiting for is a hitherto unknown relative to die and leave me a fortune.

I agree with SD, 7x50 is the best level of magnification for sailing. Anything that you can't see clearly with these is too far away to be a worry.

And if I'm spending my own money? Go for the cheapie because then the guy that steals them off your boat has a little more difficulty indentifying you through them while you're hunting him down.