I hope sombody will give me an opinion or
some guidance on this.
I have used the Predator glasses in 8X30 and they seemd wonderful and light weight. I see the identical glasses
called "Night Hunter" and wonder if they are that much better for nearly twice the price?

I would also like any feedback on the Kahales 8-32 glasses if you have any experiecne with them. The Steiners I have used are rock solid nearly indistructable glasses I trust them to hold up to anything I would dish out. I just don't know
the difference in the two different lens's.

If you know anything about the kahales construction let me now how they compare to the other high end glasses.
Their scopes compare with the best made, I would think their glasses do as well.

I have used Leica 10X42's for all my guiding over the years but I need a light weight pair of good glasses for packing long distance for my personal hunting. Those Leica's although the best glasses in the world are 2 pounds of weight around my neck! Fine for the flat land of Africa but a bugger to haul up into the steep remote stuff in the cascades and in SE Alaska.

The Steiners are under 20 oz and the Kahales are 20 exactly as are the Swarovski's. The Swaro's are 250 bucks more then the Khales and have the same glass though!

Thanks for any input.jj

--------------------

Hi JJ,
I've used Steiners for years, including the "Predator" model. They are my favorite for warm weather hunting, not because I feel they are the very best but because of their features, such as ideal size, weight, rubber coating and excellent clarity for the money.
The Individual Focus offers great advantages for hunting and I much prefer it to a center focus bino.
You may be paying for special coatings in the "Night Hunter" model. I can not say if the price differential is worthwhile but
I doubt it is, for general hunting use.

I like the Stieners, I have had a pair for years, just like yours and they are very good offhand...

JJ try using a 1.5" webbing belt and carry your binocs like a ammo bandalier under your left arm, then slide them up and use them and then back under the arm....That is the ONLY way to pack binocs...I thought all PH's did that.

------------------
Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com

Ray that is exactly how I use mine in Africa. However in Alaska under a rain coat it binds way to much trying to dig them out. Plus holding them steady at higher elevations makes 10 power a bit to much. The 8 power I have used are much easier to hold steady with a racing heart beat. I would never think of giving up the 10X42 leicas in Africa but they are a bit much when a long mountain trek over a week to ten days. jj

JJ,
I just equate you with Africa, not Alaska, even though I know better.....

------------------
Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com

JJ,
I have a pair of the Leica 8x32 glasses that I love. They are smaller than my Steiner 8x30's, but heavier. The Steiner's are four times less money. I'd rather have my Leica's, but the Steiner's are really nice. At about the same weight as the Leica's and the same price as the Steiner's are Kern's. These are Swiss Army surplus. They are as clear as the Leica's and really a good buy. See the full page ad in Safari Times. The Kern's sell themselves. They come with a plastic case with its own strap, and then the glasses have a tab to button them down to your shirt/jacket front. Ku-dude

Quality wise, Kahles, Vienna, is top. I won�t say they are better than Zeiss or Swarovski ( Kahles and Swarovski have same ownership, but are separate production lines ), but these three are comparable. For day use and ruggedness I �ve heard good things about Steiner, but for night/dim light use, use above three.

The classic universal glass for Europe is 7x42 ( exit pupil 7 mm, as this is most the human eye may use ) or 8x56. I prefer 10x50 Optolyt.

For real night use the Swarovski 8x56SLC ( or similar ): I�ve tried it. It�s the best but I can�t afford it.

Good shooting! H

------------------