Swaro’s vs other high end brands

[MountainTi]

Originally Posted by markg

When I worked at Cabelas the guys in the optics department dared me to compare the SWARO's to a set of Vortex Razor bino's. They covered both sets with a cloth so we couldn't tell the difference. Then they had us look through both, indoors and outdoors. Of the 4 guys who did the test 3 picked the razors, myself included. The razors at that time were half the price of the Swaro's.

Let me say that I understand that the quality of the Schott glass in the euro bino;s is likely better, but the Hoya glass in the razors is no joke.

I didn't do the test in low light so the lens coatings might be quite different as well. That being said i own a pair and find the lowlight performance to be excellent.

Looked thru a set of rangefinding binos one afternoon last fall out sheep hunting. Ranged extremely well and seemed pretty good. Was actually a bit impressed considering the lower price tag.
Looked thru the same binos in very low light conditions a month later elk hunting.....my swaros are worth the extra money

[270person]

Originally Posted by markg

When I worked at Cabelas the guys in the optics department dared me to compare the SWARO's to a set of Vortex Razor bino's. They covered both sets with a cloth so we couldn't tell the difference. Then they had us look through both, indoors and outdoors. Of the 4 guys who did the test 3 picked the razors, myself included. The razors at that time were half the price of the Swaro's.

Let me say that I understand that the quality of the Schott glass in the euro bino;s is likely better, but the Hoya glass in the razors is no joke.

I didn't do the test in low light so the lens coatings might be quite different as well. That being said i own a pair and find the lowlight performance to be excellent.

Vortex issues aren't the glass as much as the build. Way too many horror stories so I'll give them a huge pass. Mind you I've gone that way with Leupold as well and sold the last ones I'll ever own. Their build quality has slipped huge and the pricing the last 2 years is insane. Sorry Leupold but you Do Not make Euro quality. You just don't. Get real with the pricing.

[MountainTi]

Originally Posted by MountainTi

Looked thru a set of rangefinding binos one afternoon last fall out sheep hunting. Ranged extremely well and seemed pretty good. Was actually a bit impressed considering the lower price tag.
Looked thru the same binos in very low light conditions a month later elk hunting.....my swaros are worth the extra money

I should have said vortex range finder binos

[Bushrat]

Originally Posted by WinefredCommander

Swarovski warranty is second to none!! Even if they’re 40 years old. They will take care of you.

Yes and no. Have a set of older swaro 7x30 SLC's I bought new in 1990. Used them lots, 10 years old the hinge got loose, real loose, floppy, hard to keep the distance between the eyes stable. fixed them no problem. Sent them in another 10 years later around 2010 when they were 20 years old, the diaptor button shaft got loose and wouldn't focus. Called them before hand they said they had no original parts left for that particular model. They said they had made up a kit that they were using on them now/then. Cost $540 have them fixed.

[Fowl91]

The Vortex Razors seem to punch above their price point, and regularly impress Swaro and Leica owners. That being said you can notice a huge difference when you sit behind a Swaro spotting scope for a few hours.

I have been greatly impressed with Kowa, especially for the price. I myself use Vortex Razor binos and love them, I chose Kowa for a spotter and use Swarovski and Leupold for riflescopes. They all have pros and cons.

In the absolute high end you're not going to find too many cons on Swaro and Leica Binos. Take a look at the Warranty though, Swaro only shows 10 year warranty on their EL binos made after 2007. Leica has a 10 year VIP warranty, followed by a 30 year Optical system warranty. Vortex is 100% VIP warranty for life.

Food for thought.

[Travco1]

Lets put it this way . Until you have swaro you will not understand .
And when you have and used swaro it will probably be the last bino you would ever sell or want to upgade .

[laker]

Everyone Ive swapped to look through with my Leica 10-50s never wants to give them back. including a couple swaro guys.

[7MM Mike]

Hey, Not sure if you ever listen to a Podcast called "Beyond the Kill" but they have an episode called precision insights, with Precision Optics owner Omer. Its an excellent listen and will inform your decision. He provides recommendations based on price point, as well as what he considers "the best", after going through all performance aspects. As a sheep hunter, I stare through my glass for hours on end, day in day out when in the field. There is no comparison between high end glass and anything else when it comes to eyestrain from extended use. My suggestion is to "buy once, cry once". You will not regret your purchase. I bought a pair of 10x42 EL range bino's when they were first released. Guess what I am still using 11 years later???

[~altiplano~]

Originally Posted by 7MM Mike

Hey, Not sure if you ever listen to a Podcast called "Beyond the Kill" but they have an episode called precision insights, with Precision Optics owner Omer. Its an excellent listen and will inform your decision. He provides recommendations based on price point, as well as what he considers "the best", after going through all performance aspects. As a sheep hunter, I stare through my glass for hours on end, day in day out when in the field. There is no comparison between high end glass and anything else when it comes to eyestrain from extended use. My suggestion is to "buy once, cry once". You will not regret your purchase. I bought a pair of 10x42 EL range bino's when they were first released. Guess what I am still using 11 years later???

Omer's appearances on BTK are extremely enlightening and highly entertaining.

Statements like "Swaros and only Swaros. Period."

Nope.

It's more like there are 4 manufacturers worth considering if you want the real deal, top quality glass. Those 4 own all the IP, developed all the technology, all the coatings, control production, and they aren't sharing it around. Everything outside the 4 that you can buy is just inferior glass being built by someone else for someone else and having a brand label printed on it.

The bottom line is you probably want to get 10-42. That's 90% of the market for good reason relating to the size of the exit pupil being very close to the average person pupil. You probably want HDs, these coatings correct some if the distortions arising in magnified optics. You probably want to get it from one of the 4 if you want to buy once, cry once. Then see which of the 4 appears best to your eye, colour, definition, contrast, etc...

[7MM Mike]

Originally Posted by ~altiplano~

Omer's appearances on BTK are extremely enlightening and highly entertaining.

Statements like "Swaros and only Swaros. Period."

Nope.

It's more like there are 4 manufacturers worth considering if you want the real deal, top quality glass. Those 4 own all the IP, developed all the technology, all the coatings, control production, and they aren't sharing it around. Everything outside the 4 that you can buy is just inferior glass being built by someone else for someone else and having a brand label printed on it.

The bottom line is you probably want to get 10-42. That's 90% of the market for good reason relating to the size of the exit pupil being very close to the average person pupil. You probably want HDs, these coatings correct some if the distortions arising in magnified optics. You probably want to get it from one of the 4 if you want to buy once, cry once. Then see which of the 4 appears best to your eye, colour, definition, contrast, etc...

This information is all part of the podcast I'm referencing - its worth listening to so the OP can make an educated choice. Swaro is but one of a small handful that are comparable. The rest are "marketers". Your own eyes will tell you what you like.

[~altiplano~]

Originally Posted by 7MM Mike

This information is all part of the podcast I'm referencing - its worth listening to so the OP can make an educated choice. Swaro is but one of a small handful that are comparable. The rest are "marketers". Your own eyes will tell you what you like.

Absolutely. Tons of resources in that podcast breakdown.

I'm just trying to do a meta summary. And refute the comments in this this thread along the line of "Swaros are the best and that's all there is to it."

Of course Swaros are one of the best, but there's more to it, and a few more manufacturers that are on an equivalent plane. And whichever you go with, those expensive high end compact Euro 7x21s might not be what you were expecting when you bought from the best brand

[kw12]

Thanks for all the info on this guys. I will definitely have a listen to the podcast.
Will put my eyes behind a couple different brands in that upper level. Will primarily be for sheep/mountain hunting as I’ve got my pair for bowhunting that work just fine.

[~altiplano~]

Here it is:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1L3...S1ub4IinPr4RCg