Binoculars, What Power Do You Use ?

[Greybeard]

31 minutes ago, hammer4reel said:

Here’s just  2 examples why  I  would disagree .

it’s not about shooting in low light it’s about being able to see around you .

 

last year my target buck was coming in the last few minutes of daylight .

by seeing well into the dark after sunset I wouldn’t get down if he was within a hundred yards of me . Bunch if times I had to sit an hour later than normal .

ended up shooting him when he finally cane in an hour before dark , as I had never blown him out of that location .

 

When you can’t see thirty yards with a pair of 10 power you can see over 200 yards with a pair of 8 with the same size lens .

allows you to see deer coming that you possibly could spook just moving slightly when you still can’t see .

watching around me as soon as there is enough visability to see I don’t gave those early morning deer that spook before first light. . IMO. Most times those deer aren’t smelling someone ghetto are seeing them move in the dark because their eyes are better than ours .

I would leave my bow release home before I ever would leave my binoculars.

 

That's a different hunting situation then I normally would encounter.

[hammer4reel]

28 minutes ago, Greybeard said:

That's a different hunting situation then I normally would encounter.

You find awesome natural blinds .

so if a buck comes in and is 75 yards from you as darkness falls , you don’t want to know he left the area before you exit a spot that’s more locked down than someone that could adjust a stand ?.

I would think because the spot is not easily cganged even more care would be taken to not allow an animal to see you exit it  ?

[electricstart]

10 x42 diamondbacks was thinking going to  10x 30 for the smaller size . Zeiss or Stiener . But after some advice from this NJ w and w site might stick with the 10 x 42 . 

[Greybeard]

8 minutes ago, hammer4reel said:

You find awesome natural blinds .

so if a buck comes in and is 75 yards from you as darkness falls , you don’t want to know he left the area before you exit a spot that’s more locked down than someone that could adjust a stand ?.

I would think because the spot is not easily cganged even more care would be taken to not allow an animal to see you exit it  ?

I've backed out before with bucks and doe 50-60 yards away in the dark, getting down from a hang on.  Only happened once or twice  in 45 years when I hunted a field edge.  Climbed down the backside of the tree and pranced away on tip toes in opposite direction in the dark.  Deer didn't spook.  Got down out of a cedar once after dark and was grunting while sneaking out between 2 bucks that had been grunting along with me for the last hour of daylight.  I knew they were there but it was too thick to see them even with binos, and I had no other way out.  Got between them, each 15-20 yds away, when what sounded like a horse coming off the hill blew by 5yds in front of me and slammed into the buck on my right.  I got past them all with them still fighting and didn't hesitate to get out of there.  Walked up on them in the dark in the morning with a flashlight.  They let me get around 15yds before i hear them run off and stop another 15yds away.  They don't spook as easily in the dark.  

Now I leave if I don't see deer when there is just enough light left to make it back to the truck before needing a flashlight.  Deer don't stick around by me for long.  I'm not hunting over bait.  Not going to carry binos for bow hunting because most the places I hunt I won't see them or be able to get a shot until they are within 30yds, and I can't see behind me from a natural blind which is the direction they've all been coming from lately.

Our situations are different.

[hammer4reel]

6 minutes ago, Greybeard said:

I've backed out before with bucks and doe 50-60 yards away in the dark, getting down from a hang on.  Only happened once or twice  in 45 years when I hunted a field edge.  Climbed down the backside of the tree and pranced away on tip toes in opposite direction in the dark.  Deer didn't spook.  Got down out of a cedar once after dark and was grunting while sneaking out between 2 bucks that had been grunting along with me for the last hour of daylight.  I knew they were there but it was too thick to see them even with binos, and I had no other way out.  Got between them, each 15-20 yds away, when what sounded like a horse coming off the hill blew by 5yds in front of me and slammed into the buck on my right.  I got past them all with them still fighting and didn't hesitate to get out of there.  Walked up on them in the dark in the morning with a flashlight.  They let me get around 15yds before i hear them run off and stop another 15yds away.  They don't spook as easily in the dark.  

Now I leave if I don't see deer when there is just enough light left to make it back to the truck before needing a flashlight.  Deer don't stick around by me for long.  I'm not hunting over bait.  Not going to carry binos for bow hunting because most the places I hunt I won't see them or be able to get a shot until they are within 30yds, and I can't see behind me from a natural blind which is the direction they've all been coming from lately.

Our situations are different.

I agree to a point .

when I hunt with the stick bow I hunt spots I can only see 15 yards without binoculars .

but can see three times-that picking up movement with them .allowing me to know if the buck in the brush is one I want to shoot or just stsy sitting and watch him go by .

.

I also started leaving with no deer around and getting too dark to shoot , to see them on a trail cam picture there minutes after I left .

that tells  me I  didht see them , but they more than likely saw me leave .

 

[Greybeard]

3 minutes ago, hammer4reel said:

I agree to a point .

when I hunt with the stick bow I hunt spots I can only see 15 yards without binoculars .

but can see three times-that picking up movement with them .allowing me to know if the buck in the brush is one I want to shoot or just stsy sitting and watch him go by .

.

I also started leaving with no deer around and getting too dark to shoot , to see them on a trail cam picture there minutes after I left .

that tells  me I  didht see them , but they more than likely saw me leave .

 

Are you hunting the same stand all the time?  Are they waiting for you to leave to come into bait?  It doesn't matter that much to me if a deer spooks when I leave because more likely than not I won't be in that same spot the next day and wouldn't expect a buck to naturally come through the same spot the next night or even a week later if I did see one there.

[Roon]

Lol every spot I hunt I listen to what happened during the day and smell spaghetti sauce cooking as I'm killing a deer LOL. 

I only really need binoculars to look at boobs lol

[hammer4reel]

5 minutes ago, Greybeard said:

Are you hunting the same stand all the time?  Are they waiting for you to leave to come into bait?  It doesn't matter that much to me if a deer spooks when I leave because more likely than not I won't be in that same spot the next day and wouldn't expect a buck to naturally come through the same spot the next night or even a week later if I did see one there.

I don’t sit over bait .

but if I’m hunting a certain deer there is a good chance I may have to sit that same spot or close by .

I hunt very tight pinch points , and hunt specific deer .

So I never want to spook a deer where I sit 

[hammer4reel]

2 minutes ago, Roon said:

Lol every spot I hunt I listen to what happened during the day and smell spaghetti sauce cooking as I'm killing a deer LOL. 

I only really need binoculars to look at boobs lol

That’s why your not shooting big mature bucks , your too busy looking at boobs lol

[Swedish Hunter]

I use 10x42 or 10x50, but for NJ deer hunting only you might want to compare with 8x42

[Haskell_Hunter]

I have the Diamond Vortexes in both 12x50 and 8x42.  For NJ, 8x42 is god enough.  12x is way too powerful, and I would even argue so is 10x.  You only need enough power to spot your target, not see the hairs on it.  Part of spotting is being able to see the prey and also the area around them.

A larger bell allows more light.  However, if the bell on your binos is larger than the one on your scope, it'll make shooting in low light difficult because you'll see better with the binos than your scope (learned this the hard way this year).

I took the 12x50s to NH this year to go hunting in the mountains.  I should have brought the 8x42s because the magnification was too powerful to spot in the woods.  You only want enough magnification to identify your prey and where it is in the field.  You don't want to stop glassing and then search again with your scope to find it.

I am settling more on 8x for that reason.

[BHC]

Decided on these, I'm sure I'll be back in Illinois next year...maybe a overkill....got them from Focus Camera Ebay store...they wanted $169, I offered $149,,settled on $159

 

[hammer4reel]

5 minutes ago, BHC said:

Decided on these, I'm sure I'll be back in Illinois next year...maybe a overkill....got them from Focus Camera Ebay store...they wanted $169, I offered $149,,settled on $159

 

They are a good overall binocular. But. I do think their diamondbacks are built better for constant all weather use .

they are lighter and more weather resistant than the crossfires also 

[BHC]

11 minutes ago, hammer4reel said:

They are a good overall binocular. But. I do think their diamondbacks are built better for constant all weather use .

they are lighter and more weather resistant than the crossfires also 

I could understand if I was on elk, moose, mule deer, or some sort of expensive hunt for better.. but hell vortex's warranty is great

Edited November 23, 2021 by BHC

[hammer4reel]

9 minutes ago, BHC said:

I could understand if I was on elk, moose, mule deer, or some sort of expensive hunt for better.. but hell vortex's warranty is great

Diamondback are vortex also , just a different level .

and lots of places sell the diamondbacks close to the same price you paid .