When I worked for a now-defunct outdoor weekly news tabloid, I was introduced to much better Bushnell binoculars along with models from Weaver, Zeiss, Leupold, Nikon and Swarovski. It was like a whole new world opened up and suddenly it made all the sense in the world to stop stalking through stands of western timber in my Northwest hunting grounds and just find a spot to sit down and glass the landscape. It’s easier on the feet, too.
I learned a few things about binoculars. They need to have a good user-friendly center-focus knob. I’ve tried some binoculars with a center-focus knob so stiff I couldn’t really use them. You want eyepieces with twist-out eyecups to adjust for use while wearing eyeglasses. Lenses must be easy to clean and they should come with lens covers to protect them from the elements when you’re not actually looking through them. They should have a tough exterior to protect the optics inside through the stresses of hunting in tough terrain. They should come with a good case for storage when not in use.
I prefer binoculars with a magnification close to the upper magnification of my riflescope. I like a 3-9X variable scope so my binoculars are 8X or 8.5X. This results in an image through the binoculars very close to what one sees through the scope.
Binocular vision
One thing every hunter needs
Dave’s pair of Precision Optic is responsible for filling his freezer with this buck
When we were younger, with 20/20 vision, we could see like eagles, hawks and owls but that’s no longer the case — it might be why I keep a pair of binoculars in my truck and several more pairs on a coat rack just inside my front door.
Binoculars have become as necessary a part of my outdoor gear as a spare pair of eyeglasses, extra ammunition, two sharp knives, rope, a First Aid kit, backpack, extra socks and a warm sleeping bag. In my youth I hunted without binoculars and I’m pretty sure it cost me a couple of bucks and at least one elk. When I had to start wearing eyeglasses, I invested in binoculars.
I’ve had the opportunity to use some remarkably good binoculars in the field and, yes, they have played a large part in taking at least three dandy bucks in three different states. Anyone who doesn’t have a decent pair of binoculars should start hinting it would be nice to find a pair under the Christmas tree in a couple of weeks. If all else fails, start whimpering, whining or begging.
My first pair of binoculars came from Bushnell. They were built with a porro-prism design, meaning they had the telltale off-set objective lenses not in a straight line with the ocular lenses (eyepieces). They were okay and served me on several hunts when I couldn’t afford more pricey glass.
Easy-to-operate center focus controls are a critical feature
The quality of lens glass is difficult to measure but easy to see when
comparing various makes of binocular.
Over the years, the quality of lens glass and prisms has only improved. About seven years ago, I popped a nice little 2×3-point buck in a canyon overlooking the Snake River in an area where regulations required at least 3 points on one side. I spotted this guy creeping up a trail, and as I’d already taken a fair number of bigger bucks, I was on a meat hunt and this buck filled the cooler nicely. I wouldn’t have pressed the trigger without being able to discern that third point so down he went.
A couple of years ago I was introduced to a set of binoculars from German Precision Optics. They were lightweight, easily adjustable, delivered a sharp edge-to-edge image and I liked them so much after a fall hunt I bought them.
This was the Passion ED 8x32mm roof prism model, meaning the main body is a straight tube so you’re looking straight from the eyepieces to the objective lenses through what must be some of the finest prisms on the planet. Like most all binoculars these days, the GPO models come with a padded neck strap.
A few weeks ago I wrote about putting my brother on a nice 3-point buck down in a canyon and I initially spotted that deer with those GPO binoculars late in the afternoon.
As I was preparing to write this column, I reached out to a friend at GPO and she tipped me off to some new models that will be introduced next month. There is not going to be a 2021 Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) show, thanks to the continuing coronavirus pandemic, but it’s not stopping progress. Just because the industry isn’t gathering for the four-day gala, doesn’t mean there won’t be any new guns or gear!
In the months ahead, readers will have a chance to see what’s new from Browning, Winchester, Colt, Smith & Wesson, Sturm Ruger, Benelli, Beretta, Franchi, Mossberg, Remington, Weatherby and other gun makers. We’ll see riflescopes, binoculars, hunting knives, handguns and holsters, ammunition and other accessories.
