Pracman

My Saxon 8 x42 are retired- the Vixen Apex Pro 8x42 roof prism binocular are at least 30% brighter. my wife said 50%. The Vixen turned up today and were focused during the day. Later at night 9pm in the dark at 350 meters is a nice little tree. it is just visible but indistinct to our eyes. Using in turn Redfield 2 -7 scope, saxon 8 x42 bino, Vixen Apex Pro 8x42, Alpen Kodiak 2.5-10 X 44 scope and LEUPOLD VX-III 3.5-10x50 scope. I am pissed off!!!! the vixen are at least 30% better than my Saxon, My wife said 50% better! I can see the trunk of the tree clearly with the vixen and the LEUPOLD. The vision of both the thirty year old Redfield and saxon are about the the same- the Saxon have a much wider field of view as you would expect of binos V a rifle scope. My am i pissed? The Saxon were cheap my LEUPOLD was not. The vixen were clearly better at viewing the tree and several people and dogs walking under it in the dark than my scope. Watching a deer and being unable to site up with the rifle would be more than a little frustrating. The brightness and field of view was significantly better for the vixen. I would give them 2-5% over my LEUPOLD at any magnification. The Alpen were better than the Saxon and Redfield but not up to either the LEUPOLD or the outstanding Vixen binos. I will find a few set of more expensive binos to put to this test- lol $460 for vixen was cheap. field testing this week end- STAG time after 2 hinds I hope I am not a expert - I now know LEUPOLD was over sold or somewhat waffle now but will live with that- it not a bad scope but !!!!!!!!!!!!- it will be a while before i get to try the other optics but interesting to play with the few I now have. Some of the advertising needs a independent review- no body pays me- lol Regards the weakest link- I paid for the shite or not quite prefect bits! LOL You could try http://www.myastroshop.com.au/ but i couldn't care less- just don't tell Steve

Saxon- Don't do it- see new post on vixen Regards The weakest link

Vixen Apex 8*42 advertising re night use- I hope this is right-lol The ultimately bright field of view produced by the objective and eyepiece lenses on which multi-layer coating is applied on the entire surface proves its power in the dusk or in a dark theater. from http://www.optbinoculars.com/category.aspx?uid=66-13-26

The reviews were by a star gazer so night time- lol. I fully agree, picking the difference during the day is difficult. Deer and many other hunters want the preformace to shine at dawn and dusk not only in daylight. I will have the 8*42 today I hope. http://www.myastroshop.com.au/products/det....asp?id=MAS-206 A reliable source said that the Vixen brand is made both in Japan and China. The Japanese are the ones I am getting and I was told there is a both a price,quality and performance issue. Your right again RE the price. OS can be a lot sharper. I am concerned to have exactly what I want and a place to go if I don't get what I paid for. Buying OS cablea or others is fine BUT its easer to have a chat with a person who knows there stuff like many of our local gun/optic shops even interstate. Steve at MyAstro Shop and similar knw there stuff a lot better than me. Little bits like China/japan made for the same brand could be almost impossible to pick from reviews. I will run then side by side with some more expensive ones asap.

20*80 would be almost impossible to hold steady with out a tripod. 8*42 or 8*50 or 10*50. Prio prism are the go. The Saxon 8*42 would work better for hunting Deer than 20X50 unless your shooting at 500 meters plus across a face or something even then a spotting scope might work better? What and where are you hunting? My saxon are up for sale now as I have ordered Vixen Apex Pro 8x42 from My Astro Shop in QLD ( Steve). A mate who has several pairs and brands is raving about them and a Mr E Mason is apparently about to be selling or importing them. I'll post a review after a hunt this weekend. Make sure you look and understand Prio Prism V Roof Prism before you buy. Kirks camera's in Ringwood ahv saxon, Bushnell and Lecia which you can review side by side. The is a power transmission line a few kilometers away. Looking at a wire join with all three was very interesting- Lecia won!

1w 2w 3w & 5w used by a crew doing a cull in Eastern Vic. you can hear everything on a 1w but noone could hear them even at 1 km in hilly stuff. I used a 1w once before giving it back to the kids- lol. My next one is a 3w and is good to transmit to about 8-10km If your hunting in open country not thick bush it might be different and work out to 10km. On the boat a 3w would be good to 12km. A few places sell a pack of 2 3w for about 200-300 odd which makes a reasonable compromise. 1 or 2w are not really suitable. Hunt hard and have fun

I have been look at these for months. The price $2800 to $3400 is a bit of a turn off. At the shot expo I looked at a bit of Barbed wire at 1.5km though them and seveal other brands. The optics are sharp. A mate suggested I look at Vixen Apex Pro. For about $500 from MY Astro Shop they are reportedly top flight. I hear Errol Mason is going to be a importer and wholeseller of them and is giving them a good rub. http://www.cloudynights.com/item.php?item_id=1642 has a review. The $500 is direct from My Astro Shop in QLD. My mate spends a lot on his hunting gear and is absolutely rapped in his. Mine turn up tomorrow. 3000 or 500 with marginal difference and a lot of change for a bloody good range finder- Hmmmmm? I doubt anyone who has spend Several K on optics would admit they made a mistake or could have got almost as good for a lot less money? A Bino review in a Deer mag a few months ago had binos from about 1000 to 3500. the comment at the end was there is a marginal difference in them. At Kirks cameras in Ringwood they have some. go and have a look at the power transmission line. The Lecia are clearer than the saxon or Bushnell. if you try some better brands beside the lecia the difference is not so obvious. Hunt Hard- Hunt Fair- have fun

duplicate post sorry

Been looking at these for a while- at about $3300 they would want to be dammed good. i like the idea of having both in one unit. A NZ review said the colors were a little distorted but didn't mention much about low light levels. I want more information before spending that much! Regards JB

Harness cost about $30 and leave you hands free to carry your rifle or move through the scrub with out making noise. They are almost essential. The shoulder strap do not work hunting as they swing about and will see you binos broken very quickly. or leave you holding on with one hand all the time. a good cover at both ends is needed to stop dust, pollen and shite making your binos next to useless. Some of the harnesses come with a cover. I leave my case at home and just use the Harness and very good covers Hunt Smart- Regards JB

I have a pair of saxon with much lower power (8X) They are ok and very CHEAP. The eye cups/covers are a pain and keep failing off. The optics are not as good as my scope!!!!!!! They really fall over in the two key deer hunting periods. Sun Rise and Sunset. What ever you get grab a harness to free up both hands. some thing like harness If you get to try some other brands at dusk or dawn or compared them to a reasonable scope at this time you might like to save a little first. They aren't bad. They certainly are not the best! Cheap is an advantage for a while unless you cannot see the deer, spending 7 k on binos is not possible for many of us. Good luck hunting