yesterday I hunted squirrels with a friend and he loaned me a set of swaro 10x probably 30mm binoculars. they were spectacular for searching for squirrels hidden in trees. he said binocs were 15 to 20 yrs old and cost over 2000 dollars. question is does anyone know of a more affordable binocular that would be very good for this type glassing? probably needs to be center focus.

Affordable has different value to different people. What price range are you looking for?

If you like the Swarovski Binos my suggestion is to search for a good used, traded or ex demo set. Often such binos are offered at very reasonable pricing. Doug on here advertises such from time to time. I have done this myself to obtain Swaro Binos at much less than new price. Honestly I found zero difference in optical quality I guess due to Swarovski's high manufacturing standards. Sometimes the bino body looks less than new but what does that matter if the glass is still 100% ?

Good timing, lol
We have an as new open box Swarovski 10x42 EL Swarovsion at the moment for $2,249.99

thanks Doug, let me figure what that brings my price per squirrel to and i'll get back to you.

quote:

Originally posted by gr8fuldoug:
Good timing, lol
We have an as new open box Swarovski 10x42 EL Swarovsion at the moment for $2,249.99

Great timing indeed, I have been agonizing over various binos (Zeiss, Leica, Swaro). Had eliminated Leica due to eye relief. I just bought the one you linked, but seems more still available.

We have another one available at this time.

While I primarily use Swarovski binoculars while guiding, my backup set are Leupold Yosemite 6x30 , which are priced under $100.
They give up very little in resolution and brightness and can be had in 8 x30 if you prefer.

My family has 3 or four sets and they have held up well under wet Alaskan conditions.
You get 95% of the quality for 5% of the price.

The Zeiss rubber armored 10 X 40 that i bought in Germany many years ago have provided good service for me. If still available they are around half the price of the Swarovsky units you mentioned.

My hunting partner's wife called me to ask what binoculars she should buy for him as a gift and I recommended Swarovsky. He is happy with them and they are optically excellent.

As noted - buying 'previously owned' is a good option. There are websites that offer used optics for good prices... Google them up and have a look before you buy. You might end up with some really good glass at a reasonable price.

Used Swaro
KOWA bd!!!
Pentax DCF

thanks to everyone for the replies

I sold 2 pair of Swarovski binos last year. They were great binos but they were getting some age on them and I felt that with current technology there were much less expensive binos that were 95% as good as the swaros.

I replaced them with the Meopta Optik binos for around $300 a pair. Hunted with them this winter and they are great.

To get good reviews on optics check out the birder sites. These guys are serious about their optics.

Dave

Yep I buy used I picked up a pair of Swaro
For 900$
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