My old 10x42 Trinids developed a couple of problems and had to be sent in for repair. They say that they are not ecomical to repair, so they are giving me credit towards new sport optics.

The question of the hour is what binos to go with. I have gotten spoiled by good glass, thanks to those Trinovids that have literally been around the world with me. They have flown far more miles than the average person flies in a lifetime.

Anyway, I am looking at the 10x42 Ultravid HD's and the Geovid 10x42 HD's. I have some 10x25 Ultravids and LOVE them. I have been wanting a rangefinder for some time now. The Geovid HD's kill both birds with one stone. But that stone comes at the cost of 7oz of additional weight.

What do you think-get the Ultravids and get a laser ranger finder at a later date? This combo would weigh more than the Geovids, but I would only bring the rangefinder when I needed it.

Or i can get the Geovids and always have the rangefinder at my fingertips. But that comes with 7 extra ounces dangling from my neck. Of course if there was a time where I was worried aboutt weight I could leave the Geovids at home and take my 10x25 Ultravids (which of coruse have been mentioned in this forum due to theor abilityto stomp a mudhole in the ass of almost all other 10x42's during daylight hours).

I don't know which way to go and woud gladly appreciate any advice from folks who have been in this same dilema.

I would get a pr of the Ultravid 10x42 HD and get a separate SWAROVSKI 1600 rangefinder and have the best of both worlds. I have the Ultravid 7x42 HD and intend to get a pr of the Ultravid 12x50 HD soon and also the Swaro 1600 rangefinder. I have a Swaro STS 65 spotter with the wide angle 25x-50x eyepiece...great glass. All of this to have the ultimate optics package for anything anywhere. You give up more than weight with the Geovids, as some glass quality is lost as well. The Ultravid HD is the best glass on the market for bino's...at least to my eyes.

Hi Marc,

nice to see you...

So far You have the choice between those 2 Leicas, I would go for the Geovid HD as with the rangefinder in it.

BUT: If You don´t need to take a Leica: Go with the latest Swarovski 8,5x42 or 10x42 SWAROVISION - their image is more then 1 step ahead in brilliance and crisp clear image then any other manufacturer! They are awesome! Take a look prio making any choice...

Klaus

I always had cheap binos and didn't think I would ever buy a good pair. I'm pretty tough on them. I bought a pair of 15X56 Geovids several years ago and have loved them. I'd never go back to a rangefinder and separate binos. I have never once thought about what the Geovids cost because they were the best purchase I could have made.

I have owned and used Leica Trinovid BN, Leica Ultravid, Zeiss Victory FL, and now Swarovski EL Swarovision. To my eye the Swarovski is the best of the lot. However, I have now determined that it is not so much better to justify the price difference.

I think the best solution would be to go to a large retail store that carries every brand you are interested in. Look through all of them and compare using YOUR eyes.

I also own the Swarovski 8 x 30 rangefinder.
It is a great instrument.

quote:

Originally posted by 22WRF:
II think the best solution would be to go to a large retail store that carries every brand you are interested in. Look through all of them and compare using YOUR eyes.
.

No, that does not help to find the best one: It is a good idea to get some first idea, but to see the differences between them, You must go to a low light situation in th dawn or during a cloudy night in the forrest and test them there - then You will see the differences between them... not just at daylight!

Unfortunately, thats about impossible to do at any optics shop. I tried the big 3 at a local cabelas in the 10x and came away with the Leica 10x42 Ultravid as being the better one, although it was tough to tell between them as they are all that close in performance. I ended up getting a pr of the 7x42 Leica Ultravid HD for the much wider FOV in the PA woods and smaller fields. I think I will get a PR of the Leica 12x50 HD for a planned trip next year where there will be large expanses of open areas. What a pr of binos and between the power and resolution...WOW. Really can't go wrong with any of the top 3 optics companies though.

quote:

Originally posted by scubapro:

quote:

Originally posted by 22WRF:
II think the best solution would be to go to a large retail store that carries every brand you are interested in. Look through all of them and compare using YOUR eyes.
.

No, that does not help to find the best one: It is a good idea to get some first idea, but to see the differences between them, You must go to a low light situation in th dawn or during a cloudy night in the forrest and test them there - then You will see the differences between them... not just at daylight!

Well, then go to the store when the light is low. Dusk maybe.

If some customer will be very interested in buying a pair of binos, I will offer him to test it carefully in the field/forrest as well... (of course I can´t do this with items shipped away, but a serious customer in my shop will normaly get the chance to do so)

One result of this was that one customer sold his "just 2 yr old" Zeiss 8x56 FL the other day on the spot after taking a Swarovski EL Swarovision with him...

As much as I like a "range finder" I much prefer my Binoculars without this option so I go with the Ultravids.

My hunting buddy bought the new Geovids with the rangefinder last year. IMHO they are not as good quality as my Ultravids. We've swapped back and forth while glassing stags at different times of the day and he feels the quality of picture is better in mine also. The final piss off for him was discovering his were made in Portugal. I still get endless amounts of fun by reminding him of this fact.

Check out Ziess Victory, I got a pair last October, the rangefing is excellent & the optics are superb, traded in a 1 month old pair of Leica RF, not impressed!

Cabela's no longer carries Leica binoculars. The only thing they continue to carry is the Geovid.

Looking through binoculars in our otside of a store at dusk does not tell you how they will perform in the field. It is better than nothing, but does not necessarily tell you how thye will perform in the real world. The problem is that we can't take demo binoculars in the field to see how they stack up next to each other. Unfortunately most of us are stuck checking them out in a store or parking lot. the best test I have found to seperate good from bad and unbeleivably good glass is to spend several hours a day sitting on one sheep or goat mountain and look for sheep and goats on other mountains. You actually know pretty quickly on the first day. I have yet found a store who would give me loaners to try in this manner!

I am going to get the 10x42 Ultravid HD's. The main thing is that I don't want to have 12 year old rangefinding technology in 12 years. Plus it requires batteries, is soemthing else to break, and it adds 7 ounces to the glasses.

I sincerely appraciate all of the input from the posters!