So I upped my game this year. I bought 4 Zeiss Congest V4's for my 4 hunting rifles. I also bought a Vortex Razor 27-60X85 spotting scope. It's not a Swavorski but it's a very quality spotting scope. And last but not least, I got a Sig Sauer Kilo 2400 ABS range finder. I'm thinking of getting some new binos next. I have a pair of Nikon Monarch 12x42's and a pair of Leupold BX2 Alpine HD 10x42's. I was thinking about going with the Vortex Razor or the Zeiss Conquest. I have two questions for you. Am I being silly and what I have is good enough? And if I do buy new ones, what magnification should I get? They will mostly be used glassing for elk, mule deer and antelope in Colorado. Thank you for any input!
I got a few different binos at different price ranges as I upgraded slowly through the years and got some second hand or on sale, paying more always gets you something better but it all depends on your purpose. For me the sweet spot is "upper mid" glass in the $1,000-and then some range like the Vortex Razors.
I used to use Nikon Monarch 10x42 but a seemingly benign drop, like they were in their Nikon black nylon case and they slipped while putting them in a backpack on the floor hitting the pavement just below was all it took to break them. That is a fall from just 1 foot, otherwise no complaints, for the money the glass was excellent. I also had a pair of Monarch 8x30 and the adjusting focus kept migrating to the more negative until I was at full + and eventually it no longer focused. It took a few years for that to happen but I noticed over time having to keep retuning them to the more and more + but they failed as well. That never happened on "nicer" binos I owned so like with scopes paying more you don't just get better glass or reticles, but more durability which is difficult to quantify.
As per other comments I don't feel 12x really needs a tripod but it does restrict your field a bit that is what maybe another pair in less expensive glass and smaller aperture at lower power does like 8x or so.
I have a pair of Swarovski EL 12x50's and they are absolutely incredible. Best friggin pair of glass I ever looked through. Maybe Zeiss is a tiny little bit brighter but in all other elements like glare reduction, clarity, colors, depth of field it blows everything out of the water. Unfortunately this pair is
very heavy.
But as far as the Vortex Razor 12x50's they are actually my most used pair. They are not my best set but they feel like a lighter 42mm set and I have brought them with me on many an epic mountaintop hike much more so than the "fancy" ones. You can view even in the darkness with some ambient light, before sunrise or after sunset no problem, it's just not as clear as with the alpha. They do have less clarity, less depth of field, less resolution and above all else suffer some glare at sunrise/sunset vs an "alpha" pair but their incredible lightness makes them very practucal, more than makes up for lack in optical clarity vs "the best". For this portability reason the Vortex Razors are the ones I take out the most. I enjoyed so many places, the alps, pyrenees, the Southwest. Hiked the longest/hardest hikes in Zion, Grand Canyon, Canyonlands, Bryce, Joshua Tree all incredible with them.
The way I like to put it is I were on the viewing Safari from a vehicle to just watch the animals, or say from a cruise ship to view from the balcony I would want the nicer Swarovski or "alpha" glass. If I were more on a hunting type Safari out in the field where weight counts, the Vortex Razors would be my choice lugging them around all day. If you plan to be out and about I highly recommend the Vortex Razor 12x50 they glass is very good to excellent (not perfect) but they are much easier on both your shoulder and the wallet vs anything better which costs (and weighs) a
lot more.
