Best binos for around $1200

[Thor2j]

Looking to purchase my first set of binos. Always used spotters in the past. For now will mainly be used to spot steel out to 1000. Some for paper as well. Would like to keep budget at $1200 or under. I see eurooptic has Leicra trinovid 10x42 demos on sale for 799(cameraland 849) but have heard they aren't post mountable. Is that a big nnegative? They have a tripod mount for around $100. What are your suggestions??
Thanks.

 

[K80/6.5]

You should give Doug at cameraland a call I think you will be happy with his price I know I will be ordering Binos from him soon.

 

[jsel10]

Picked up a set of leupold bx5 santiam 15x56 from europtic for 799.00. I have been really happy with them this far.

 

[aaronk]

Meopta 15's for that price and call Doug at Cameraland. You're going to want to run them on a tripod - post vs strap type mount is personal preference.

 

[Elnicko]

Check out the Maven B4’s. They come in 10,12, &15x. As for a tripod mount, The Outdoorsmans have one that works very well.

 

[Pckphunter]

Not only are Doug’s prices the best he’s about the most knowledgeable person I’ve talked to about glass

 

[MOUNTIC]

Used set of swaro SLCs. I would say ELs but your budget isn't there. The SLCs are really good though.

The Mavens impressed me for their price also.

 

[hereinaz]

Yup, you can find used Swaro for that price.

 

[Birddog6424]

The Steiner HX 15X56 is a solid competitor at that price point.

German made, Schott glass prisms. Mine are pretty solid. Clearer glass than the Santiam or Khaibabs.

 

[JAS-SH]

Looking to purchase my first set of binos. Always used spotters in the past. For now will mainly be used to spot steel out to 1000. Some for paper as well. Would like to keep budget at $1200 or under. I see eurooptic has Leicra trinovid 10x42 demos on sale for 799(cameraland 849) but have heard they aren't post mountable. Is that a big nnegative? They have a tripod mount for around $100. What are your suggestions??
Thanks.

Hi,

Binoculars for spotting at 1000 yards are not very useful except for larger calibers that make a big splash on misses. Most "high power" binoculars peak at around 16x. I have a pair of Fujinon 16x70s. They are extremely heavy. There is no way to use them for any extended amount of time without a tripod, and that's iffy as well because of the light mounting system. The motion caused by the weight and mounting system quickly overcomes the magnification advantage.

I've looked through a lot of binoculars. I use binocs all the time for spotting while doing bird photography. IMHO the best binocs (any quality name brand) are 10x roof prism types. They are light enough to be hand held and they have terrific definition from the middle to high end of their optical definition range.

But 10X is not going to show you an impact on paper at 1000 yards. Physics. They will show you a steel inpact, but just the motion.

I have the wherewithal to buy any pair of binocs I want. That said I settled on Nikon Monarch 10x36 roof prism types (image below. Not made anymore and the 42s offered now are bulkier and heavier). Optically the are a smidgen off when compared to the much heavier Porro Prism 10x42 ones, but not enough to justify the slight optical advantage and the weight savings are a godsend when hand holding them.

Nikon Monarchs are VERY GOOD binocs. I saw no reason to buy Zeiss or Leica or any other of those more expensive ones. You can buy Nikon Monarchs from anywhere between $300 and $500. TRY BEFORE YOU BUY!

 

[Thor2j]

Since I do most of my shooting solo I went with a longshot lr-3 Target cam for now. Ill get the binos soon though and appreciate all the feedback. Very helpful.

 

[shields shtr]

Binoculars for spotting at 1000 yards are not very useful except for larger calibers that make a big splash on misses. Most "high power" binoculars peak at around 16x. I have a pair of Fujinon 16x70s. They are extremely heavy. There is no way to use them for any extended amount of time without a tripod, and that's iffy as well because of the light mounting system. The motion caused by the weight and mounting system quickly overcomes the magnification advantage.

I have spotted probably thousands of shots on steel with the vast majority being 6 or 6.5 variants. In the right conditions (no heavy mirage) I can clearly see impacts on steel if the target is painted the right color, etc. No, I can't spot bullet holes in paper but can tell if the bullet is hitting center of target, left of center, etc. I use a set of Meopta 15x HDs on a tripod. Other folks that look them usually remark how clear they are. Are they Swaro's? Nope. But I have never found myself wanting more out of them.

 

[Hollywood 6mm]

Hi,

Binoculars for spotting at 1000 yards are not very useful except for larger calibers that make a big splash on misses. Most "high power" binoculars peak at around 16x.
<snip>

But 10X is not going to show you an impact on paper at 1000 yards. Physics. They will show you a steel inpact, but just the motion.

I've watched literally tens of thousands of rounds go down range, the majority of that parked behind 10 and 15x binos. Your statement about binos being not very useful for spotting on steel is utterly false. I've used 10x out to 1200 yards and 15x further than that for everything from 300WM down to 6BRs and never found a good pair of binos lacking. In fact, I typically can see splash and plate movement better with binos than with a spotter due to having both eyes involved.

I've been super happy with my Bushnell Forge 15x binos, and used them to RO a lot of matches at this point. I've never found them lacking in any way.

 

[Andrew07]

I love my meopta 15x. I shoot with a lot of guys who have swaros and the swaros are better in adverse conditions but the meopta have been great for the money

 

[Birddog6424]

I have spotted probably thousands of shots on steel with the vast majority being 6 or 6.5 variants. In the right conditions (no heavy mirage) I can clearly see impacts on steel if the target is painted the right color, etc. No, I can't spot bullet holes in paper but can tell if the bullet is hitting center of target, left of center, etc. I use a set of Meopta 15x HDs on a tripod. Other folks that look them usually remark how clear they are. Are they Swaro's? Nope. But I have never found myself wanting more out of them.

I've watched literally tens of thousands of rounds go down range, the majority of that parked behind 10 and 15x binos. Your statement about binos being not very useful for spotting on steel is utterly false. I've used 10x out to 1200 yards and 15x further than that for everything from 300WM down to 6BRs and never found a good pair of binos lacking. In fact, I typically can see splash and plate movement better with binos than with a spotter due to having both eyes involved.

I've been super happy with my Bushnell Forge 15x binos, and used them to RO a lot of matches at this point. I've never found them lacking in any way.

^^This and this..

My buddy and I run 22BRs as our competition rifles. We have spotted thousands of rounds for each other over the last couple years. He has 18x Kaibabs, I have 15x Steiners.

Nice binos are the bomb for PRS.

 

[redneckbmxer24]

You're literally a few hundred away from what you can get a nice used pair of EL's for. They're more than worth the few extra bucks.

 

[Renomd]

Check out the Maven B series binoculars I have the B5 15x56s, they are 95% of what the Swarovski SLC 15x56 HDs are (which I also own and won't sell either....yet)... I feel the mavens are easier to get behind compared to the Swarovski 15x56 SLC HDs, and have a more realistic color. Edge to edge clarity goes hands down to the swaros. For your budget you can score used swaros but you have to keep perusing rokslide longrangehunting 24hourcampfire and be patient....if you want to acquire them now you can find used mavens sometimes for an incredible price.

FYI there are some used meopta Meostar 15x56s on the rokslide forum for an ok price (but they have the newer models coming out in Q3/4 so I would wait)

 

[gr8fuldoug]

It's my pleasure to discuss different options and special SH pricing with you. If you've got the time please give me a call, 516-217-1000
Doug

 

[JAS-SH]

^^This and this..

My buddy and I run 22BRs as our competition rifles. We have spotted thousands of rounds for each other over the last couple years. He has 18x Kaibabs, I have 15x Steiners.

Nice binos are the bomb for PRS.

I must live in a different planet than you guys. I wont bore you with the technical details of the images below unless you want me to. I went out today around 11AM to get the images - it's only about 2miles from my house. I measured exactly 1000 yards from this sign:

The sign is 24 inches wide by 30 tall. Below is the sign from 1000 yards at 16X (follow the arrow). Again, I will be glad to tell you how I did this if you want, but it is true 16X and true 1000 yards.

All the Best!

JAS

 

[blbennett1288]

Meopta Meostar B1.1 15x56 HDs

 

[665.0coupe]

I must live in a different planet than you guys. I wont bore you with the technical details of the images below unless you want me to. I went out today around 11AM to get the images - it's only about 2miles from my house. I measured exactly 1000 yards from this sign:

The sign is 24 inches wide by 30 tall. Below is the sign from 1000 yards at 16X (follow the arrow). Again, I will be glad to tell you how I did this if you want, but it is true 16X and true 1000 yards.

All the Best!

JAS

There is so much mirage in that picture it's not funny. I would say that a majority of the time a PRS shooter isn't going to deal with that much mirage. I will also agree that PRS guys are moving toward bino's over spotting scopes. I was at a PRS match over the weekend and I would say it was at least 5 to 1 bino's to spotting scopes. I was actually looking for a good pic of the firing line from that match to show how many bino's were being used.

 

[shields shtr]

I must live in a different planet than you guys.

No shit. I guess the Sun is technically a star, but from the looks of the mirage, it appears you live on the Sun. I have never seen that much mirage where I shoot, ever.

 

[db2000]

Looking to purchase my first set of binos. Always used spotters in the past. For now will mainly be used to spot steel out to 1000. Some for paper as well. Would like to keep budget at $1200 or under. I see eurooptic has Leicra trinovid 10x42 demos on sale for 799(cameraland 849) but have heard they aren't post mountable. Is that a big nnegative? They have a tripod mount for around $100. What are your suggestions??
Thanks.

Here's a nice strap option. I use them with 10x42 Leupold BX-T Mil reticle. I wouldn't want to glass all day at 1200+ but an IPSC at 1000 and smaller targets inside of that are reasonable. I haven't had them long but I used them a few times now and quite a bit the other day at a long range practice. Great edge to edge clarity. The reticle is nice also. 15x would be preferred if you're gonna use a tripod almost exclusively. I like mine as they're portable for hunting also.

Amazon.com : Leupold, Binocular Tripod Adapter Tray, Matte Black, Mount: 1/4-20 : Sports & Outdoors

Amazon.com : Leupold, Binocular Tripod Adapter Tray, Matte Black, Mount: 1/4-20 : Sports & Outdoors

www.amazon.com

 

[JAS-SH]

No shit. I guess the Sun is technically a star, but from the looks of the mirage, it appears you live on the Sun. I have never seen that much mirage where I shoot, ever.

LOL! Close enough. West Central Florida. It's like that all summer long.... Today we are at 93 degrees and have a 114 degree heat index as reported by our Davis weather station. Supersonic rounds are easy to see - they have contrails ans vapor shockwaves

 

[Hollywood 6mm]

I must live in a different planet than you guys. I wont bore you with the technical details of the images below unless you want me to. I went out today around 11AM to get the images - it's only about 2miles from my house. I measured exactly 1000 yards from this sign:


JAS

Not sure what your point is here. Photos can't show the difference in ability to detect trace, impacts, and target movement with binocular vs monocular vision, and it's the difference in binocular vs monocular that really makes binos shine.

Again, with *rare* exception (generally spotting at 1300-1400 yards or more, or VERY small targets) I will take binos over a spotter every time, especially when I am going to be behind glass for hours at a time.

 

[JAS-SH]

Not sure what your point is here. Photos can't show the difference in ability to detect trace, impacts, and target movement with binocular vs monocular vision, and it's the difference in binocular vs monocular that really makes binos shine.

Again, with *rare* exception (generally spotting at 1300-1400 yards or more, or VERY small targets) I will take binos over a spotter every time, especially when I am going to be behind glass for hours at a time.

.....Detect trace - (true - Duh), Target movement (same - Duh) Impacts - False. A single image that shows you what you can expect to see? Very true. Why you might ask? I'm not going to tell you. Do your own research.... I did, over many, many years. I've owned tens of thousands of dollars of high end optical equipment (my wife had no say on those thank God!). And, I can press a single button on that little 16X camera and show you a video, uglier than the picture! Then again that would not be exactly what you see in an eyepiece (system differences), That photo posted was what you can expect in my neck of the woods (*important point), I made sure of that - it just math after all .

Take the binos - it's your call, and I'm not here to change that. I love binos! And most of all, enjoy yourself. That's what it's all about. I have zero beef whatsoever with that. Whatever floats your boat is perfectly fine with me!

All the best Bud,

JAS

 

[Hollywood 6mm]

.....Detect trace - (true - Duh), Target movement (same - Duh) Impacts - False. A single image that shows you what you can expect to see? Very true. Why you might ask? I'm not going to tell you. Do your own research.... I did, over many, many years. I've owned tens of thousands of dollars of high end optical equipment (my wife had no say on those thank God!). And, I can press a single button on that little 16X camera and show you a video, uglier than the picture! Then again that would not be exactly what you see in an eyepiece (system differences), That photo posted was what you can expect in my neck of the woods (*important point), I made sure of that - it just math after all .

Take the binos - it's your call, and I'm not here to change that. I love binos! And most of all, enjoy yourself. That's what it's all about. I have zero beef whatsoever with that. Whatever floats your boat is perfectly fine with me!

All the best Bud,

JAS

I've literally, without embellishment, watched tens of thousands of rounds go down range through spotters and binos - Bushnells, Swaros, Nightforce, Vortex, Hensoldt, etc. I've even run stages where I had both a spotter and binos at my disposal and could switch back and forth at will. I've done it in mirage comparable to your photos, black clouds and rain, and I've done it in near perfect optical conditions.

Inside ~1300 yards, I can absolutely see better with a good pair of 15x binos than with a top of the line spotter in probably 95% of cases/conditions. Yes, that includes impacts on steel or in the dirt. At the AG Cup last year, I was able to identify that a shooter was hitting the reflector of the T1000 hit indicator instead of the actual target at ~1040 yards for four consecutive shots - while using a pair of 15x binos. Video review not only vindicated my call, but Tom even sent me a photo of the reflector after the match. It had 5 beautiful little bullet holes in it - 4 from that one shooter.

But hey, what do I know about spotting with binos?

 

[JAS-SH]

Good post! I too have looked through a ton of optics as well. For binos, the crowd I hang around with swear by Leica, and those are truly excellent, in many ways. Seeing better with two eyes is natural to all. Seeing with one eye takes a bit of training. Some say that seeing through two eyes gives you more detail, 3D, perspective, etc. This is mostly true at short ranges because of parallax and so on. At 1000 yards parallax and all the other stuff with binocs is a moot point, they are, like most land observation optics, focusing at infinity.

That, said, I go a little bit further than 1300 yards, like through the whole of the atmosphere, say ~ 9-miles. At that point, optic quality and atmosphere distortion is measured in arcseconds. Those are 1/60th of an arcminute (1 MOA). In that business, when it comes to "seeing", and astronomical term, the difference between shooting images and packing it in is anything greater than 1.5-2 arcseconds on the widest telescopes ~70 to 106 mm objective lens diameter. And those are little, very expensive,. wide angle telescopes.

About you being able to see all that you claim I can't speak to your location. In my neck of the woods (Florida) it is as bad as it gets during the day because of the heat and humidity, Mileage varies.....

Want to see some really good binocs with outstanding optics? I have just the picture:

These on the left are Fujinon 16X70s, next to my goto Nikon Monarch 10X36s. They have 70mm objectives. Objectives lenses are important. That's where definition ( Rayleigh criteria) makes a difference. The larger the objective, the more definition - simple. Not quite. In bad seeing it can work against you.

Those Fujinon scopes are just too big and too heavy for anything other than binocular tables. They were made to be for used on ships, on bridges with binoc tables. Very accurate but @ around six or seven pounds they weigh just about as much as light rifles. Optical quality? spectacular. If you look closely you will see that each eyepiece focuses independently. That's unlike smaller binocs that use a center focus and a one eyepiece diopter.

All the Best,

JAS

 

[shields shtr]

I was able to identify that a shooter was hitting the reflector of the T1000 hit indicator instead of the actual target at ~1040 yards for four consecutive shots - while using a pair of 15x binos

That's a good group! Those things aren't very big at all.

 

[Hollywood 6mm]

Good post! I too have looked through a ton of optics as well. For binos, the crowd I hang around with swear by Leica, and those are truly excellent, in many ways. Seeing better with two eyes is natural to all. Seeing with one eye takes a bit of training. Some say that seeing through two eyes gives you more detail, 3D, perspective, etc. This is mostly true at short ranges because of parallax and so on. At 1000 yards parallax and all the other stuff with binocs is a moot point, they are, like most land observation optics, focusing at infinity.

That, said, I go a little bit further than 1300 yards, like through the whole of the atmosphere, say ~ 9-miles. At that point, optic quality and atmosphere distortion is measured in arcseconds. Those are 1/60th of an arcminute (1 MOA). In that business, when it comes to "seeing", and astronomical term, the difference between shooting images and packing it in is anything greater than 1.5-2 arcseconds on the widest telescopes ~70 to 106 mm objective lens diameter. And those are little, very expensive,. wide angle telescopes.

About you being able to see all that you claim I can't speak to your location. In my neck of the woods (Florida) it is as bad as it gets during the day because of the heat and humidity, Mileage varies.....

Want to see some really good binocs with outstanding optics? I have just the picture:

These on the left are Fujinon 16X70s, next to my goto Nikon Monarch 10X36s. They have 70mm objectives. Objectives lenses are important. That's where definition ( Rayleigh criteria) makes a difference. The larger the objective, the more definition - simple. Not quite. In bad seeing it can work against you.

Those Fujinon scopes are just too big and too heavy for anything other than binocular tables. They were made to be for used on ships, on bridges with binoc tables. Very accurate but @ around six or seven pounds they weigh just about as much as light rifles. Optical quality? spectacular. If you look closely you will see that each eyepiece focuses independently. That's unlike smaller binocs that use a center focus and a one eyepiece diopter.

All the Best,

JAS

I live in FL, and I have RO'd matches all over the southeast - humidity and mirage are a fact of life. You are fixated on the optical side of things and ignoring what the human eye and brain are able to detect in the fraction of a second of impact.

 

[Dai Bando]

I’d go with the Sig kilo 3000 bdx.

Outdoorsman stud mount is awesome, rangefinder is awesome and it bluetooths to your Kestrel which is awesome.

Glass is pretty dang good. I’ve got the 15x slc hd’s and the sigs don’t give up much to them.

 

[rusty_carbine]

Agreed. I've seen a lot of variance in quality with Sig optics, but these are nice.

 

[TN Shooter]

Check out the Maven B series binoculars I have the B5 15x56s, they are 95% of what the Swarovski SLC 15x56 HDs are (which I also own and won't sell either....yet)... I feel the mavens are easier to get behind compared to the Swarovski 15x56 SLC HDs, and have a more realistic color. Edge to edge clarity goes hands down to the swaros. For your budget you can score used swaros but you have to keep perusing rokslide longrangehunting 24hourcampfire and be patient....if you want to acquire them now you can find used mavens sometimes for an incredible price.

FYI there are some used meopta Meostar 15x56s on the rokslide forum for an ok price (but they have the newer models coming out in Q3/4 so I would wait)

What is the newer model Meostar coming out?

 

[Renomd]

What is the newer model Meostar coming out?

Meopta MeoStar B1 R, RX, MeoPro AIR and MeoPro Optika LR - Optics Trade Blog

Meopta started 2020 with a lot of new products. They introduced a few new binoculars, from 3 different series, all designed for a different purpose of usage

optics-info.com

 

[Rangewarrior]

I’ve been hearing great things about the tract optic’s Toric Bino’s. I’m getting ready to order their 34mm elr glass, and found out today they’re about to release a spotter.

 

[Wading]

Meostar HD or used Swarovski SLC. Used Leica Ultravid would be great as well but I would not want a 10x32 personally.

 

[AlpineSniper]

Take a look at the Leupold BX-5s. If you're hunting with them I'd get a wider field of view like 10 power. Really helps when scanning a hillside.

 

[gr8fuldoug]

Take a look at the Kowa Genesis Series Binoculars and call us for special pricing. These are amazing optics

 

[Triton225]

^ I was just about to suggest those. 1st real nice set of binos I've had and they are nice. But I can't compare to others. Supposedly very good especially at Doug's price....

 

[RTH1800]

Always buy glass used. Buy a good name with the features you need or want. Price is 50% of new.
Most folks don't get to look through enough good glass under enough different conditions to actually judge. So, buy something that says Swaroveski, Leica, Zeiss. If you cannot do that buy at the bottom end. Most are OK and you will not lose much. Mid price range, new items are the biggest money losers.

 

[Hawkeyemm]

C

Always buy glass used. Buy a good name with the features you need or want. Price is 50% of new.
Most folks don't get to look through enough good glass under enough different conditions to actually judge. So, buy something that says Swaroveski, Leica, Zeiss. If you cannot do that buy at the bottom end. Most are OK and you will not lose much. Mid price range, new items are the biggest money losers.

Can you direct me towards this land of “used high end binos at 1/2 of new price”?

 

[RTH1800]

I often do favors like that but not for smart asses. Figure it out.

 

[Hawkeyemm]

I often do favors like that but not for smart asses. Figure it out.

Um. Okay. I really wasn’t being a smart ass. That was just my way of phrasing the question. But, uh.....yeah....okay, then.

 

[Mike Casselton]

LOL! Close enough. West Central Florida. It's like that all summer long.... Today we are at 93 degrees and have a 114 degree heat index as reported by our Davis weather station. Supersonic rounds are easy to see - they have contrails ans vapor shockwaves

Is that south of Lakeland?
Phosphate hill in the background?