npaden

www.samplelist.com (They part of www.rifescopes.comS.W.F.A) has refurbished Nikon Monarch ATB Binoculars in 10x42 or 12x42 for $249.95. They have refurbished Action Extremes in 10x50 for $79.95 and 12x50 for $69.95. Seems odd that refurbished Action Extremes aremore than60% less than retail price and refurbished Monarchs are only 25% less than retail price. Also it seems odd that 12x binoculars are cheaper than 10x.

Based on price I would expect to see a BIG difference looking through the Monarchs!

*JB*

I haven't read all the replies so this may have been mentioned. I would suggest making a rangefinder your next purchase. Why? Because they are fun. You can get some buddies together along with some beer. Take turns guessing distances at random objects. Anything closer than 100 yards is one drink per yard off. Anything between 101-299 is one drink per five yards off. And anything 300 and beyond is one drink per 10 yards off. Well they are also useful for hunting, but whatever floats your boat.

Parrot Head

So if they are refurbished are they usally still good quality and does it still carry the no fault policy?

Parrot Head

npaden,

I called samplelist.com the monarchs dont have the lifetime warrenty only a 90 day. Do still think they are worth it or order new ones to get the warrenty for life.???

npaden

Thanks for checking into it. That's quite a difference in warranty. It might be worth it to suck it up and buy the new ones for the lifetime warranty.

Parrot Head

That is what I am going to do. I have $2100.00 in Cabelas points so I will just use those.

PABowhntr

My apologies for not getting back to you sooner. I just don't seem to have as much time as I once did to hit the forums. I wish I did.

I will be entirely honest with you. I am not really fond of binoculars with magnifications of more than 10x. The reason is fairly simple. It has been relatively well documented that a person has a difficult time using anything above 10x handheld to extract extra detail from any given object. The key word in there is "handheld". If you can rest them on a ledge or use them in conjunction with a tripod then you could possibly benefit from the extra magnification.

If size and weight are not issues as you stated then you might want to consider a compact spotting scope as opposed to a high magnification pair of binoculars. Some of the 10-30x50 or 65mm spotting scopes are almost as lightweight as a decent pair of binoculars and they allow for much more detailed viewing because of the higher mags/larger objectives and your ability to hold them steadier via a tripod or gunstock type arrangement.

If you are deadset on the two binoculars you mentioned though I would think that the centerfield resolution (ability to count fine details like points on a rack at a great distance) would probably be a bit better on the Action EXs. The porro prism design allows for greater light transmission and clarity because light is reflected two less times within the prism. Roof prisms begin to match and somewhat exceed this level at the high end of the price range but the mid to low cost models have not.

The flip side in this comparison is in reference to overall image quality. Though the centerfield resolution of the porro in this price range tends to be better the overall image produced by the Monarch would probably be more pleasing to the user. The sweet spot (area in focus) of the image will be wider on the Monarchs despite their narrower overall field of view. This tends to produce a more relaxed and pleasing view.

Hope this was somewhat helpful.

Parrot Head

Yes it was. Thank you for your input

Parrot Head

I do want the Bino's. I will still carry them with me while hunting in my backback. I think they would be easier to carry than the scope.

PABowhntr

In which case I would actually think the Action EXs to be a bit more portable. The big 50+ mm Monarchs are a true handful in terms of length and weight though their brightness level was quite impressive the few times I tried them.