I have here a 7x50 binoculars I got for boating years ago, Cali-optics brand. It has given good service for 10-15 years.

Today my wife noticed there is a blemish, like a drop of liquid, or a small lens, inside the near left side.

I have no idea where or if service is available. The manual, if there was one, is long gone.

Is service available? Feasible? Or is it a tosser, get replacement?

My wife uses it to spot birds now, and other objects around the estate.

For birdwatching in daylight, as opposed to twilight, you don’t need the heavy 7x50’s. Some Nikon Monarch 7 8x30’s will give her everything Martine needs in a smaller, lighter package, for about $300. If that’s not enough, tell her you’re buying her a big chunk of Swarovski crystal in the form of 8x30 EL’s for over two grand. Hey, she’s worth it, right?

JALLEN, I used this guy to refurb a pair of military Westinghouse 7x50's and was well pleased.

https://suddarthoptical.com

quote:

Originally posted by Redleg06:
JALLEN, I used this guy to refurb a pair of military Westinghouse 7x50's and was well pleased.

https://suddarthoptical.com

Yup, this guy gets great kudos from many many folks to include retired Navy opticialman Bill Cook (aka WJC on many forums including birdforum.net) author of this tome: https://www.amazon.com/BINOCUL...ustry/dp/1548932191/

Suggest dropping Cory a line and asking your questions of him. Jim he'll tell you straight up if your old pair is worth fixing or if you're better off with something new.



As an aside http://www.supersportsoptics.com Super Sports Optics is the online window of Cali-optics Importer, a USA company, dedicated to providing high performance binoculars mainly for marine uses.

Their current 7x50 is an HD model (7x50HD) available direct for $399. http://www.supersportsoptics.c...265/wp_25f19265.html

FWIW It appears identical to many Chinese imports with the same features. These days very little is US made and the quality optics that the Japanese used to provide are now often sourced from China. This is also true even of some well, respected European brands now as well.

quote:

Originally posted by sjtill:
For birdwatching in daylight, as opposed to twilight, you don’t need the heavy 7x50’s. Some Nikon Monarch 7 8x30’s will give her everything Martine needs in a smaller, lighter package, for about $300. If that’s not enough, tell her you’re buying her a big chunk of Swarovski crystal in the form of 8x30 EL’s for over two grand. Hey, she’s worth it, right?

She’s worth all that and more besides, doc, in part because she would shoot me if I spent that kind of money on this.

This is the gal who has refused for nearly 30 years to spend money on wedding rings, jewelry, expensive watches (I did have a Rolex that cost more than my first house while I was pretending to be a big shot real estate impresario but sold it when I retired) and similar.

Since I posted this thread, I did some snooping. These may be cheap Chinese imports, not worth repairs. Anybody ever heard of them?

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:

Since I posted this thread, I did some snooping. These may be cheap Chinese imports, not worth repairs. Anybody ever heard of them?

Honestly, no. And I'm a bit of an optics geek with quite a few binocs and telescopes.

--Bob

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:


As an aside http://www.supersportsoptics.com Super Sports Optics is the online window of Cali-optics Importer, a USA company, dedicated to providing high performance binoculars mainly for marine uses.

Their current 7x50 is an HD model (7x50HD) available direct for $399.

These look more like http://www.supersportsoptics.c...3e4/wp_891ee3e4.html

All black, no blue. $99.

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:

These look more like http://www.supersportsoptics.c...3e4/wp_891ee3e4.html

All black, no blue. $99.

If that's the case, no need to sanity check anything with Cory. Get yourself a nice new pair with better glass and light transmission. Improvements in binoculars over the past decade or two will be worth dumping these old jobs for decent new ones.

That said I enjoy some older well built units. Older glass without state of the art qualities, coatings, etc. but still.... Some for their extremely wide field of view. Others for other reasons.

I have both porro prism and roof prism designs.




Every model I have is either discontinued or superceded.
The Swarovski's were expensive and both impressive and heavy. Those Dakotas were el cheapo close outs for ~$20 that live in a glovebox. Zen-Ray was a Chinese importer that is now dormant and no longer recommended. I've had bigger and more powerful magnification units in the past but sold them off as I found 10x and up I simply can not hand hold steady enough.

My own feeble vision has benefited from a variety of increasingly better optics over the years.

Just returned from a few days at the beach. Without even the modest performance of an on-sale economy brand, would have missed a lot of wave action and wildlife enjoyment.

There's a world of impressive binocular performance for $100 on up. Burris/Nikon/a host of others in the $300-$600 range will surprise & enrichen the outdoor experience.

Even my own Sweet Bride is gradually learning to use & enjoy her special birder binos.

If 'cost' vs 'performance' is the measure, I found a magnificent Zeiss 10x40 pair used so long ago the amortized cost is now running something less than a nickle a day. It's like having free oxygen to use decent binos in exploring the world from a fixed vantage point.

Check Cabela's for Vortex binoculars. Often the bargain cave at the back of the store has them.

quote:

Originally posted by 4MUL8R:
Check Cabela's for Vortex binoculars. Often the bargain cave at the back of the store has them.

Vortex has slipped from its "bang for the buck" perch due to intense competition in recent years. They are also said to have cut some corners on lesser priced model lines as a result. I had a pair of their 10x years ago that were decent.
If looking at Cabelas note that their high end "Euro" house brand has been made by Meopta in the past which is a quality Europeaan brand.

It also helps to try a model out in person although many stores won't let you take them outside where you really get a better feel for their optics.

https://www.birdforum.net/forumdisplay.php?f=112 is an excellent resource for researching bino choices.

Looks like the Cali-Optics warranty is for 3 years. And they want 50 bucks for shipping. I would take a look a Nikon Monarchs. I have a pair and they are very good and fairly reasonably priced.

If they are not repairable, I have A pair of Leupold Mohave BX-3. Made in Japan. Love them. The rest of their line is made in China if you check eBay there is a guy that often sells the Kryptic finish cheap.

I just picked up a pair of Steiner 7X50 Marine binoculars on Amazon for $200 and they’re pretty nice for the money.

The vortex viper Hd 10x42 has a good reputation in the hunting community for the price, I have a pair and while they are not as nice as my swaros or meoptas, I think they are hard to beat for the price. I got them about a year ago but almost immediately started getting interested in higher end glass.

The more affordable binos from maven the c1 I think gets great reviews for the price, I’ve also read that there’s a company called “German precision optics” that makes a good pair for 200 dollars or less.

One good approach would be to call camera land New York, they are sponsors on some big hunting forums and talk to them, they always have sales, discounts and aren’t pushy.

I have a few pairs of Steiners... they're all great.
My other favorite pair is East German border guard issue. Heavy, though. They used to be cheap as surplus but have gotten pricey now that they've dried up.

i would suggest considering the following: Leupold Yosemite, Vanguard Endeavor II or IV, Tract Toric, Zeiss Conquest HD, Swarovski companion CL, and the Leica Trinovid.

Agree 100% with SJ, I am buying my step mom some Nikon MONARCH 7 8x30's for Christmas this year. She is 72 and loves to hike with friends and check out nature. They should work great for her needs without being uncomfortable for her. I have been using a pair for over a year now for scouting purposes and have been very happy.Best of all they carry Nikon's No Fault Warranty and no worries wondering if Nikon will still be around to honor that warranty either.

I have a pair of Leupold Mesa's 10X23. Really nice glass for the $130 price tag. Armored and waterproof.

I've been happy with a pair of Nikon Monarchs in 8x42. The top of the line Monarchs are Monarch HG, at $1000. Next are the Monarch 7, at around $500, and the Monarch 5s, at around $300.

The 5s and 7s are really good mid-priced binos. Mine would be the equivalent of the current Monarch 5.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: jhe888,