I'm shopping for a young man getting into archery and hunting. He wants to spend $300 and get the best glass he can for that much.
What jumped to mind were:
Nikon Monarch
Pentax
Sightron
Leupold
Vortex
Steiner
Looking for suggestions they would be primarily archery at the start so I was thinking an 8 power lightweight binocular would be a good starting point.

If You have the chance to get an "old" 2nd hand Leica, Zeiss or best Swarovski, I would take that one!

Second choice would be Minox:

http://www.gecko-climbing.de//minox-optik/index.html

Klaus

Get the Vortex, hands down.

Pentax 8x42 DCF, will beat the Vortex.

Minox, not on your list but check them out.

I have the Nikon Monarch 8x42.

Outstanding!

just a smig above his price range but worth every penny

Kahles

Watch Ebay for Nikon Venturer LX DCF.
Really, Really, Really good glass and a super wide field of view.

If you want a roof prism for no more than $300 with a great view for the money and the best warranty then the Eagle Optics Ranger SRT 8x42mm would be a good choice. If you can go for a little bit more the Vortex Fury 8x42mm has the same warranty and a significantly better view.

You can get the Vortex Fury 8x42mm demos from CameralandNY right now for $290. Same warranty.

go to EBAY and get Bausch and Lomb Rochester NY made and you cant beat them

There really isn't much in the $300 (street price) range. Mostly, the instrumets are going to be under $200 and over $700, so there's quite a midrange gap.

Leupold changes their Asian suppliers and models faster than you change your socks. But their Yosemite model has receive universal acclaim in its price range (often under $100 at discounters).

The problem in low-price binoculars is not usually the optics as optical glass is cheap these days, but rather in their mechanical construction (particularly the collumation - alignment - of the two barrels) and their water resistance.

Whether you choose the Leupold Yosemite or something else, with lower-priced optics it is best to look at, hold, and most importantly take outside the store and view through, in order to assure that the individual instrument works for you. DON'T just look at the display model as this means little. Insist on viewing with the actual instrument your are considering purchasing. There are some excellent bargains in low-priced binos, but you have to make sure that the actual instrument you get is put together correctly.