Anyone here also interested in binoculars?

farlymac

farlymac

PF McFarland
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I was wondering because I've always thought having a pair along on my little photo safari's might help. In actuality, that hasn't come to pass, but I still can't help buying a good looking old pair when I come across them.

My latest purchase are a pair of Kenbar 5432 8x25, with no country manufacture mark. I also can't find any information on them, just closed auctions, and a couple of open ones on different models (Deluxe 8x25, Deluxe Special 8x25, and Supreme 12x45). These are/were mostly located in the UK, so I'm thinking they are a British brand. I also found on my search a Kenbar golf club that was made in Scotland.

They are well made, with what appears to be some sort of Vulcanite coverings that are loose on the left prism housing, and partially missing on the right housing. What may be the original strap is still looped and pinned on the left, but tied on the right as the loop end has broken. There is some condensation and haze inside the lens portion, but they focus well.

They look almost exactly like these (there is some difference in the focus cross bar, everything else other than the markings are a match) https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Vintage-WW2...747309?hash=item41dffc97ad:g:w5MAAOSwodpa1~Hk

Any ideas as to where these were made?

PF
 
I have carried for years a pair of leica Trinovids, great optics and they have taken quite a beating as my other hobbies are fishing and bird spotting, l will ask my father if he has any information regarding your binoculars, his hobby is collecting binoculars
 
A very casual birdwatcher here. Tried to get serious a few times over the years but couldn't apply myself. I have an old pair of Leitz Trinovid 10x40s from the 1980s. Still good binoculars but closest focus is around 25 ft and that limits use in woodlands. Unfortunately I'm pretty ignorant of binoculars in general.

Have you tried looking on www.birdforum.net for information? They have a very extensive sub forum dedicated to binoculars with some very knowledgeable people. It's worth a look.
 
If you are interested in some really compact binoculars to slip into your camera bag or pocket, I own some I really like. All of these are less than 3X4X1 inches. There is the Minolta UCIII 8X18. They have individual focus for each eye. Also there are the Canon 5X17FC and Canon 7X17FC. These seem to be made for use with eye glasses. There is no individual focus adjustment, and without glasses, they work best when held away from the nose.

I just discovered and have not tried a similar size Canon 8X24 by Kenko. It appears by the eye cups that it would be held in contact with the face, unlike the above Canons.
 
Like some of the others I have Leitz Trinovid, but 8x32.

I’m amazed by how sharp they are compared to other binoculars I’ve used.
Be warned, one look and you may not be satisfied with anything lesser.

New ones are very pricy, but I’ve seen used at reasonable amounts. I only paid $150 for my Trinovids new, but that was duty free in Amsterdam circa 1970.
There’s a used pair on sale locally for $350, and if I didn’t already have a pair would certainly buy them.
 
Another user of Leica Trinovids , 10x40.
10X40 are more useful for birding in estuaries and the like but for woodland and general birding 8x32 are more suitable.
 
I have a small collection of binoculars, of which the 8.5x44 Swift Audubons 804 MkII are my favorite. One of those pair are British market and the other American market. They are mostly birding glass but we use them for stargazing as well. As far as I'm concerned, they are perfect. Another Swift pair are a loaner pair of 8x40 Herons. One pair that bangs around in the car are a pocket pair of Nikons which are the handiest since they are tiny and slip into a backpack easily.
Phil Forrest
 
I was hanging out at my fishing buddy's gas station, 30 years ago, when a guy came in and offered a pair of Binocs for a few gallons of gas. He agreed, then turned around and offered them to me for a few bucks.
Genira, ROW 8x30, East German I believe "FSU" I also believe. Have taken them fishing, camping, cycling, never gave them another thought, never needed anything better.
It is bad enough about my Leica cameras, don't tell me how great their binoculars are.
 
I have been satisfied with:

Nikon Action Extreme Binoculars 10x50
Celestron SkyMaster Binoculars 15x70

for birds, wildlife, lunar, sports, concerts, and surveillance.
 
Hi,

Getting back to the original question, probably France as marked. I've several from the mid to late 19th century in the collection and the best were always the French until Carl Zeiss, Abbe and Schott got their act together.

Other than that I've the usual Ross, Olympus, Bushnell, Leizt and Zeiss stuff. Plus the usual 20 x 80's and fake prismatics from the turn of the last two centuries. The baby Zeiss (10 x 25's) and USSR made Tentos (7 x 50's) get the most use. I also had a lot of odds and ends like the CZ microscope adapter and so on.

Regards, David
 
No collection. A pair of ancient 7 x 50s, can’t remember the brand, inherited from my great uncle. In 2008 I did a lot of homework and bought at the peak price ever I reckon a pair of 8 x 42 Leica Ultravid, the ideal magnification for birds out walking. The weight, balance, eye relief etc are all perfect for that job, and they cut through the foliage to focus on the bird. Very quick to focus. I use them for astronomy too. I always carry a little 8 x 20 Monovid, but holding that so steady is much harder and focus is very slow.
 
I had a passing binocular fascination a couple years ago. Visited a lot of birding and sky gazing forums trying to get educated on the best brands and learning the terminology. Ended up with a pair of older Nikon 8x30s and a similar pair of Zeiss Jenas. Great binocs, but I really don’t have a good use for them. There aren’t many birding opportunities in Seoul, and we can only ever see a handful of stars on the clearest of nights.
 
On the other side of the size spectrum from small binoculars is my Zhumell 25x100 Astro binoculars. You can’t practically hand hold them, but they deliver a wonderful nighttime view of star clusters.
 
My first (and only) Leica!

My first (and only) Leica!

My wife is a longtime birder, and we live near and regularly visit birding hotspot Jamaica Bay Willife Refuge.
A few years ago I bought used Leitz Trinovid 7x35B binoculars from Jon Goodman.
They are far superior to most I have used. An NPS ranger had Minox binoculars that were even better.

Chris
 
I have my mother's Trinovids (10x40) but much prefer my 9X35 Nikon for their sharpness, wide field and close focusing. Excellent glass. But if you want glass to die for check out the top-of-the-line Zeiss binoculars. Beautiful imaging.
 
I am using general purpose binoculars...

Pentax 7x35 9.3° from Asahi Optical Japan bought them new about 30 years ago
 
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