Bino Picks:

10x25, Nikon Sportstar, $69.99. Super compact size and very light.

10x25, Nikon Prostaff, $139.99. Compact reverse poro prisms. Great optical quality for the size and those little 25mm objective lenses.

10x42, Hunters Edge Series 3, $149.99. Small and tough optics, not too expensive, but a good hard working set of glass to toss into your range bag. That's where I keep mine.

10x42, Bushnell Excursion. $149.99 to $199.99 depending on when and where you find them. If you can get them on sale, they are a heck of a good deal for the optical quality you are getting.

10x42, Leupold Acadia, $199.99. A little slimmer and lighter than the Hunter's Edge, with a great deal more light transmission and clarity.

10x50, Nikon Advantage. $199.99. These are fairly large roof prism binos, but they are very light in weight. I like the camo pattern. Works in desert and wetland areas. Great optical quality.

10x42, Nikon Monarch, $299.99. Great optical quality, much like the Advantage, but much smaller. No Questions Asked Warranty makes this the better choice for serious hard use... such as for military guys wanting there own good glass.

10x42, Leupold Cascade, $309.99. One of the best binos on the market... I think the optics are a touch better than the Nikon Monarchs, but these guys don't have the No Questions Asked Warranty that Nikon has. This is my choice for uses that are not as hard as say an Infantry mission... but great for most any hunt.

10x50, Nikon Monarch. $399.99. Bigger and heavier than the 10x42 Monarchs, much longer too... but if you don't mind the weight, these are fantastic binos for the money.

10x42, Leupold Mojave, $419.99. Great glass and a good step up from the Cascades as these units do better in lower light. Normally there is an even playing field at the 300 dollar tier and another level up around 500 dollars... so this one occupies a middle ground.

10x42, Vortex Viper, $499.99. These are probably my all around favorite binoculars. The optical quality is striking. These units have one awards from the outdoor industry. Vortex has a great VIP warranty program and is probably the best company to work with for binoculars. Before these came out, I would have said Steiner Merlins here, but for the same money, these Vipers are just flat out better.

10x42 Vortex Razor, $796.99. These are longer than the Vipers, have an Open Hinge like the Swarovski EL series. We have a lot of guys that come in looking for Swarovskis, and walk about with the Razors. Looks similar to the Vipers when you look through them, but really stand out when you get into lower light or transitional light. That dusk magic hour is when these really shine compared to other optics.

Above this level, you have Swarovski. The SLC and the EL 10x42. These are hands down the best glass on the market. Don't even ask the price. The SLC is a tougher built, hard working set of glasses. These are for hunting and serious purpose. Very tough, very strong, and the view through them is nothing short of amazing. The EL's use a lighter magnesium housing with an open hinge design. Designed primarily for bird watching, it has a much closer minimum focal distance. Swarovski also spent a lot of time doing color correction work on these. Meaning that colors look brighter and crisper through these units than anything else.

Nikon also has a high level set of Binos out called the Edge. For 2 grand, they are more expensive than the Swaros. Sure, they are supposed to be fantastic, but Nikon is only making 30 to 40 pairs a month. So essentially these are vaporware.

Now you also have these upper level bino/rangefinder combo units like the Leica Geovids. I don't really like them at all. They are too big, bulky, heavy, and expensive. Rather than spend 2200 bucks on the Geovids, I'd rather have a set of Vipers and a Lieca 1200 and save almost a Grand.

If you want any of these Binos, Contact Basin Sports and ask for me.