Monocular's

[Ralph]

My wife has no real interest in birding and she told me that she would come out with me birding, but she said she would like a Monocular.
We do have binoculars as it is and she has used them and then I told her about the one eyed ones and she was taken right away.

If you know anything about them could you please point me in the right to a good set.
They don't have to be the most top quality ones but not the cheap and nasty ones either.
I don't see any sense in over spending on a set that will be used only a few time, but they have to have a good picture.
Thanks for any advice in advance.

 

[FowlersFreeTime]

I have something like this which I had bought to put in my kayaking/camping kit:

Amazon.com : Vortex Optics Solo Monocular 8x25 : Vortex Solo Moncular : Electronics

Amazon.com : Vortex Optics Solo Monocular 8x25 : Vortex Solo Moncular : Electronics

www.amazon.com

I was going for compact, but it does what it says, gives me a bit more reach if I want it. Whether that is what she wants for birding with you, I don't know. Do you want her to have the same level of magnification as you would with your 600mm lens?

 

[Ralph]

I have something like this which I had bought to put in my kayaking/camping kit:

Amazon.com : Vortex Optics Solo Monocular 8x25 : Vortex Solo Moncular : Electronics

Amazon.com : Vortex Optics Solo Monocular 8x25 : Vortex Solo Moncular : Electronics

www.amazon.com

I was going for compact, but it does what it says, gives me a bit more reach if I want it. Whether that is what she wants for birding with you, I don't know. Do you want her to have the same level of magnification as you would with your 600mm lens?

In all honesty she has had an operation on her shoulder and this has taken some of the ranger of movement from her shoulder.
So saying this so long as she can see the like I can I would say she would be happy and I have a 400mm lens on my camera and anything for this area upwards would make her happy.
If you could see like one of your hummingbirds from just a black dot in the distance to be able to say what type it is then I know
that would be ideal for her.
Thanks so much for your reply Mr. Chris Fowler.

 

[Astrnmrtom]

Ralph,

I'll toss out a few general ideas, and a couple questions. Forgive me if I state the obvious.

First, you'll want to shop for a monocular just as you would a binocular. It's all about trying to balance features, quality and cost. Not sure what your budget is.

A few things to look for:
BaK prisms - which are much more common than they used to be.

Multicoatings - Best is ALL surfaces multicoated. Also more common now, even on cheaper optics.

Eye relief - does she wear glasses? If so, and she wants to use them while viewing you'll want around 20mm of eye relief. NOTE: There's no industry standard as to WHERE eye relief is measured from. Some manufacturers list the designed eye relief which may be different and more optimistic than actual eye relief. It's best to assume listed eye relief is measured from the outer surface of the eye-lens. This means if this surface is recessed, that means the usable eye relief if less. Depending on the design of one's glasses, 15mm of eye relief "may" work but it'll be tight.

Aperture - Bigger is brighter, but also bulkier. I'd be a little warry of ones with only a 25mm objective unless you just want something tiny to stick in a pocket to be used on sunny days.

Magnification - 8X is equivalent to your 400mm lens, and is the most common magnification because anything more makes holding the optic steady more difficult. 10X is considered the max for "most" people hand-held. Another note on magnification. The higher the X, the dimmer the image, so if you want more X, make sure you increase the aperture.

Now a little soul searching question. Would she be happier with a small spotting scope on a lightweight tripod? Just plop it down, point it, and view, no range of movement needed. Small spotters will have 50mm objectives and a zoom eyepiece. All the same shopping point above apply.

Budget. How much pain can your wallet tolerate? Is spending big bucks worth it? Dunno. To some people yes, to others no. Years ago I kicked around with a $29 pair of binoculars, and they worked ok. Then I went birding with a friend who had a pair of Nikon Monarchs. Almost $400 at the time, but wow, made me want to throw my cheap binos in the trash. It sent me shopping, but geeze, plopping down several $100 bills on a counter just made me squirm - so I went shopping to any sporting good store I could find to see what was out there. I discovered the brand Chris mentioned to be quite good for less dough. One place that had them also carried the Monarchs so I could do side by side tests. I ended up not going with the Vortex because I found a different brand with better features on close out, AND a with $75 rebate. It really was too good to pass up. I was lucky. They are the Bushnell HD Legends and they are excellent. I mention this because they make a monocular version, but yikes, those are kinda' pricey. Still, if it wasn't for the double sale deal on the Legends, I would have gone with the Vortex.

Hope this helps.

 

[Ralph]

Thomas thanks for going into depth with this and put into a nut shell is this.
All she wants is a good pair to walk about with that isn't too heavy on the pocket and isn't too heavy for her shoulders.
I think anything under the $100 Australian mark will make her happy.
I am not even sure why she likes them as we have got a pair of binoculars at home and she does okay with them.
But I think it is the more direct focus she can get with the single lens set up.

But the pocket side is more me cause she will not be coming out all the time.
So I don't want to spend a heap on them for a few outing's.
I know she has a hard time on the focus with a dual lens thing and this is over all the main reason to why.

 

[Astrnmrtom]

Ok, I hope the info helps. Since there were so many unknowns, I thought it best if I gave a list of features to look for instead of recommending a particular item.

I looked at amazon.au and found quite a variety. I think you should be able to get something that should work for you. Knowing this will be a occasional, casual use helps. I'd suggest you stick with 8X since that'll match your lens and still give her a pretty steady view hand held - especially if she's up against physical limits. A lot in your price range advertise multi-coatings and some are waterproof. The latter may seem like overkill if you aren't going out in bad weather, but it also prevents internal fogging which can happen if you use them in the cold and bring them back into a warm house. If that happens enough times you can get a film or even mold on the internal lens surfaces.

I'd say as long as you stay away from the low end, you should be fine. Good luck with your search.

 

[Boojum]

There are self-focusing binoculars. I have a 30 year old Fujinon binocular and many less expensive have come onto the market. Google is your friend.

 

[Ralph]

Ok, I hope the info helps. Since there were so many unknowns, I thought it best if I gave a list of features to look for instead of recommending a particular item.

I looked at amazon.au and found quite a variety. I think you should be able to get something that should work for you. Knowing this will be a occasional, casual use helps. I'd suggest you stick with 8X since that'll match your lens and still give her a pretty steady view hand held - especially if she's up against physical limits. A lot in your price range advertise multi-coatings and some are waterproof. The latter may seem like overkill if you aren't going out in bad weather, but it also prevents internal fogging which can happen if you use them in the cold and bring them back into a warm house. If that happens enough times you can get a film or even mold on the internal lens surfaces.

I'd say as long as you stay away from the low end, you should be fine. Good luck with your search.

I think the 8x zoom part is for her the most important part of the lot of this. And I know she will never come out with me if outside is not like how inside is and if its too hot forget about it completely. So it has to be a fine day for her to venture out with me. Thank you for your help it is very valuable to me so I can get her the right ones.

There are self-focusing binoculars. I have a 30 year old Fujinon binocular and many less expensive have come onto the market. Google is your friend.

Thank you for your thoughts on this matter and I will go and look them ones up as you have said.