Posted by Alan Birnbaum on 3/20/2003 3:16:33 PM  
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I decided to purchase a pair of the Minox BD 10x25 BR weatherproof  compact binoculars, over the Zeiss and Leitz versions because they were 1/3 the price, and because they promised more eye relief and a closer focus.

The eye relief seems almost too much! The feel of the rubber coating is very good, not only on my fingers, but where the eyecups contact my glasses. The close focus is 1.6 m or right around 5.25 feet, MUCH less than what any website source indicated, including that of the manufacturer!

Despite an exit pupil of 2.5 mm, slightly less than that of my older folding Minolta 8 x 24s, I cant see any visible difference in brightness, at least on a sunny day. Sharpness seems similar, with of course a bit more bounce to the Minox, on a fairly windy day outside.

But the rather small diameter focusing wheel seems very stiff, compared to the older Minolta, but hopefully will loosen with usage. The 3/32 neckcord I find just barely adequate, creating a toe out carry position, so the thin cord may be useful for safety purposes, but not for any extended carrying.  By the way, one can make the Minox ride toe in, by putting them over ones neck backwards, then bringing them up to the eyes in a crossdraw fashion.

The nice supplied lightly padded nylon belt case includes an outside slit pocket meant as a secure storage area for the eyepiece caps.

These will not be my primary birding binoculars, but for their intended purpose, every day briefcase carrying, Locally much of the casual birding would be of birds that gather, usually of course on the FAR side, of various ponding basins used locally for groundwater recharge, and flood control.

From: | Created on: 10/16/2009 1:48:39 PM