Looking for a nice high end monocular.

[roughneckrob]

Hey folks, I am looking for a new monocular. I have a nice Vortex mono but I am considering up grading to something with a little more quality and something that is somewhat easier to Edc. I have been looking at a ZEISS 4x12 T* Monocular but I worry about the lack of waterproofing. Anyone have any experience with these or have a recommendation for something else please let me know your thoughts.......Thanks

 

[Sid Post]

It's really a trade off between weight and size. The Zeiss are really good. Minox makes a wide range of products and their higher end high quality products are competitive with Zeiss, Swarovski, etc.

 

[Scott Free]

I've been EDCing a Zeiss 5x10 Miniquick for several years. It is about the size of a Sharpie marker and weights .75 ounces. It is ridiculously easy to carry. It is not waterproof. (Today I used it to watch a cormorant. I have never seen one in my area before.)

The Miniquick does not come with lens caps. I made my own. For one I shortened a lipstick cap. For the other end, I ground away the inside threads of a travel shampoo cap. They're ugly. They work. Considering the cost of a Miniquick, its amazing to me that they don't provide simple plastic lens caps.

When on the water, I put it in a soda bottle capsule and attach it to my PFD. It fits perfectly.

The Zeiss you are considering looks short but fat. I think the Miniquick might be easier to carry. It also considerably cheaper (although probably not as rugged.)

 

[roughneckrob]

Thanks guys, I am currently looking at a number of differnet models. One that has really caught my eye is the Docter 8x21 monocular. I have heard nothing but outstanding reviews on it and I think I am going to go with one. Its not nearly the quality of the Zeiss which I am going to get but I have to have one of these also and at $150 I can't go wrong.

[video=youtube;Jf8pJQwTuOI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf8pJQwTuOI[/video]

 

[Scott Free]

Small lightweight monoculars are difficult to hold steady. The more magnification, the more frustrating it becomes. My Miniquick is 5X. By cupping my hand around, and then pushing that hand against my face makes it manageable. The Doctor is a bit heavier than the Miniquick so you might be okay with 8X.

I had one shaped similar to the Doctor monocular. While it worked fine, I never carried it because I couldn't comfortably carry it on my person. If it's going to be carried in a bag or pack, no worries.

 

[Sid Post]

The Zeiss you are considering looks short but fat. I think the Miniquick might be easier to carry. It also considerably cheaper (although probably not as rugged.)

The FOV and image quality is much better with the Monocular. Even the 6 power Monocular is a little tight for me. Next time I'd go with the 4 power Monocular. Brightness, clarity, and FOV are vastly inferior to me with the MiniQuick so, I spent the extra $$$ and put up with the increased bulk.

 

[tiguy7]

I have a Miniquick (5X10), a Zeiss 8X30 roof prism monocular, a folding 8X20 Zeiss porro prism monoc, and a Zeiss 8X20 roof prism monoc. I much prefer item 4 because it is very compact, lightweight, and possesses, for me, the ideal combination of features. It is much lighter than the comparable Leitz monoc because the tube/housing is made out of fiberglass rather than metal. It is an EDC for me.