Highpoint Scientific has a sale that might end today. They had Vortex Viper HD 10x42 for around $315 with the discount code BINOCULAR30 .

Thanks Waggler. I hoping to hear from one of you guys. I just ordered some Vortex to try first. If they don't cut the mustard I'll send them back and try that route.

I got a deal on some scratch and dent vortex. Im going to check these out.

I can send them back if I don't like them easy enough.

Talk to Doug at Cameraland. Great company and you can get some good deals there. I bought a set of Liecas from him this spring. As a guide I see a lot of binoculars, and personally I would stay away from Vortex. At least the cheaper models. I can tell you from experience that just because you see some TV host using them on TV, that doesn't mean he likes them or even uses them when the cameras not rolling. All it means is that they sponsor his show.

I had a hunter this fall with a set of Tract 10x42 binos. I had never heard of them before but was impressed by their clarity. He said they are very reasonably priced.They certainly were not in the class of the big three like Lieca, swavorski, or ziess, but I think they would be worth a look.

Thanks yukon I'll check them out next.

I’ve used leupold, Nikon and Vortex. Have had no major complaints with any of them. Had a vortex scope that dogged on me. They replaced it quickly. Nikon binoculars had a broken eye piece. They replaced it but it took a good while. But they did upgrade it fairly heavily so...

As rifle scopes go, I prefer leupold but Vortex is a very close second. For binoculars and spotting scopes, I lean on Vortex. I find them to be clearer than the others I’ve used and the best bang for my buck so-to-speak.

one word.

ZEISS !!!

w

I have a pair of Steiner predator pro 10x42 binoculars that I really like and I take them everywhere, they get beat up because they are always in my truck, lunch box, hunting pack or they are around my neck. I bought the steiners because with a good rest I can count tines on a buck across a section. I know that there are better out there but you can make binos better by just using a tripod or window mount panhead to stabilize them. I am also getting into spotting scopes and bought a Vortex Diamonback 20-60x80. so far it does what I want it to do, what I have learned is a good tripod and panhead will be much more expensive then the spotting scope. I am still trying to figure out what direction I am giong with that. I will add that when you buy an optic make sure the company will fix them when you have a problem, both steiner and vortex do just that. I have also seen some good binos on the trap shed too.

There are some really big differences in the various lines even among the name brands. Just buying a "European" brand doesn't mean you're getting Euro optics, just a Euro nameplate. A great example is Zeiss "low end" stuff: German company using Japanese glass and building in USA. That is not to say they are bad products, just the name doesn't tell the whole story of manufacture as in many other things. I don't know if it is still the case, but some of Zeiss optics were built by Meopta as of a couple years ago. SOME of Cabelas stuff has been rebranded Meopta products, but they are easy to spot. Cabelas does not try to hide or disguise their Meopta-made stuff. Nikon sources some of their stuff from all over Asia, it is not necessarily Nikon-Japan.
Also remember that your eyes play a part regardless of other people's opinions of the particular optic.
As someone already mentioned, eye fatigue is a real concern if you are going to use them for long periods rather than a glance from time to time. I look through Zeiss lenses sometimes for hours at a time with my work. Meopta and Steiner also look really good to my eyes, but I also have/had other brands.
Another thing to consider is warranty/service. Some of the lesser known companies in particular have real difficulties in this area. While the failure rate is low, it won't make you feel any better if you're the unlucky owner and the company is between importers
Just my thoughts.

Check out Maven binoculars, I just bought one a couple weeks ago.

https://mavenbuilt.com/