I just re-read Desert Survival Skills by David Alloway and realized that my outdoor kit was missing a pair of compact binoculars, a top prioroty survival tool, according to Alloway, to locate water and game. Thought I would pass it on.

Good idea. I have an inexpensive monocular that has resided in my day pack for years. I don't like a monocular as well as binoculars, but it is small, light, and always there. I will often carry my compact binoculars along as well, that way I can see even better at long distance...

I have inexpensive 8x21 glasses in my vehicles but some how forgot to include them in my "woodsy" bag.
By the way OBG what kind of RV do you have?

2002 Winnebago Adventurer 32V. Bought it used in '05...

Nice unit. As you know, Winnabago has the largest support system in the US and hold their value better than most. I recently sold my last motorhome and already have the bug again. I may consider a "B" this time, as my health will not permit long trips these days.

How does one choose binoculars? For example, what does 8x21 mean, and how do you determine if another set of numbers is better or worse? For binoculars with the same numbers, how would you choose between them?

A

8 power, 21mm objective lens (the big one up front) diameter. Exit pupil (the column of light that hits your eye) is the obj lens diameter divided by the power -- so an 8x21 will have an exit pupil of 2.6mm. Sonce your eye's pupil gets up to a max of 7mm at night fully night adjusted, the classic 7x50 with its 7mm exit pupil is ideal. For bright daytime condition an 8x21 would work. I have two sets of 8x30 (3.75mm exit) binocs. It's a nice compromise of small size, adequate power and bright enough for most daytime viewing. YMMV

Whatever RAS just said is why I bought my 8X21's. The fact that they were on sale at Northern Tool for $7.49 and were the smallest size Binoculars to fit in my pack had nothing to do with it.

I had a pair in my truck, but they were stolen (along with the rest of my car kit). I haven't been able to replace them yet, but hope to do so at some point. I have a monocular in my BOB, but don't especially like it.

I need to find some compact ones, I have one but its too big to be BOBable

I have some cheapo Bushnell 8X21 minis in my BOB not only for locating water and game, but also for finding the easiest route to traverse. It's a lot easier to stop and glass a potential path than it is to later retrace your steps because you ran into a semi-concealed patch of thick timber. Makes the weight worth it IMO.

I carry a monocular range-finding scope that i got from radio shack for like ten bucks.It works well for me.

One thing to keep in mind, el cheapos are fine for short term viewing, but if you think that you might spend a long time with them up to your eyes (as is scanning for deer, etc, on a large hillside), you will be better off spending more of your hard earned bucks on some quality binocs. The cheapos, and I own several, do not have the same quality glass and coatings, and can give you an eyestrain headache after a while. At least they do me, my wife, and others I know...

How do you recognize a quality one? Usually the more $ the better but sometimes there are high priced products (Sony, Nike for example) whose quality doesn't match the higher price.
What are some good brands.

The old adage "time spent in recon is time well spent" is true. I have a lightweight little monocular that rides in my EDC bag. Very useful when you need it.

In the case of binoculars you can change that to "pretty much always." I hunt with an old '60's pair of Bausch & Lomb 7X35 Zephyrs that I bought on Ebay for $135. To me they look almost as clear as my friends $500 Nikons, but not quite. And neither of those two are as clear as my other friend's pair of Zeiss, which I believe set him back about $1200. But this is serious hunting glass. For my BOB I'm happy with my aforementioned Bushnells, which I think cost me about $19 new.

As far as brands go, Zeiss, Svarovski, Canon, Nikon, Leupold, or Steiner seem to have the best reputation and will certaintly get the job done. Whether or not you want to pay that much is up to you.

I have had good luck with Bushnell, Bausch & Lomb, and my all time favorites, bought overseas long ago, and far from being compact, are Pentax...

The monocular from County Comm is pretty good for a light, small unit. It's not high end, certainly the price is very reasonable at about $12! Still, I find the quality to be pretty good, I have some high end binoculars for the boat that I wouldn't carry around in my daypack hiking, but, this is small enough to always having in that kit.
http://www.countycomm.com/optics.htm

What did I say?

One thing that's rarely mentioned is columnation (aligning the two halves of the binoculars so they point together. I had a nice pair of 7x50's knocked out of alignment years ago and it didn't matter how clear the glass was, they didn't work. A good optics technician who ran a telescope shop back in VA straightened them out and now they're great again. Cheap binoculars will get knocked out easier and I've found they're harder on my eyes. Nikon and Steiner for me. Leupold seems to make good binoculars too.

I have a pair of Pentax DCF MC 8x22 in a small camera bag zip tied to a shoulder strap of my Camelbak. It is great when I am hiking. I can reach over and pull them out to look at wildlife etc.

I think it is worth paying extra for phase coated prisms if you can afford it. I think for a PSK 8x20 to 8x25 is the right size.

Let me add a personal binocular recommendation: the Pentax DCF MP 8x28 (also available in 10X). These compacts are nitrogen filled, fog-proof, waterproof, and meet JIS Class 6 standards. They are available for about $200. Optically they are excellent and very rugged.

Herb,
The Pentax 8x28 DCF looks like a nice set.

I have heard good reports about Canon 10x30 Image Stabilization Binoculars

I have no experience with binoculars but would like to have a small one. Two questions here:

Q1:
Is there a real practical difference between monocular and binocular if they come from the same company and have the same quality ? I mean a mono is HALF the size of binocular. Weight and size do coulnt in psk, EDC, or BOB.

Q2:
I think that 10X magnification needs stablization of some sort. Dont you think ?

You possess binocular vision naturally. Monoculars cause eye strain if used for a long time, and they don't give you the field of view.

As for 10x needing stabilization, why? The shimmy is no worse than rifle scope of similiar magnification. If you find it too bouncy, prop your arm on a tree or rock, or bring your elbows in close to your body and hold your wrist with your off hand. If you're still shaking, you've got too little blood in your caffiene system or it's an earthquake.

ROFL

I couldnt agree more with your diagnosis doc.

IMO a monocular is a better choice for EDC/bugout bags. The point is to be able to look ahead at a situation and get info to help you make a decision. It is not to sit there and watch the birds for hours on end. The cost, weight and bulk savings of a mono over a bino are very significant for EDC/bugout applications.

A1:
My biggest gripe with monoculars is that, with binoculars I can be looking at an object with my naked eyes, then bring the binocs up and be right on target. With a monocular, I have to bring it up to my eye, then search all over the place for hte target. Just doesn't align automatically, at least for me. I also have a harder time holding the monoc steady than I do binocs...

A2:
I have never owned 10x, so I can't help you there. But I suspect that you could provide hte stablization yourself, as suggested by others...

I carry this when in the woods:

http://www.dealtime.com/xPO-Leupold-Wind-River-Roof-Prism-W2-8x42

These are night and day compared to the cheap binos. My buddy did a lot of side by side comparison, and for the money, they were comparable to the $500 binos.

I use this to keep them ready, but out of the way:
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templa...&hasJS=true

I carry a pair of Meade binoculars/digital camara that works very well for the purposes that I have. The cost was $100 and the main drawback is it's lack of a memory card for the camara. If the batteries die, the photos die in the camara.

For it's cost, if it breaks or is lost, it's replaceable. It's fairly lightweight and comes with a pouch so it can be worn on my belt.

I keep an inexpensive pair of mini binos in the BOB and a full size set in the car. Next time I see a good deal on mini binos, I'll get a pair for the car BOB. Was looking at them last night.

Dave

can binoculars be used to start a fire as well? dual use would greatly increase the chance of me luggin em around.

Many years ago I took a lens from an OLD pair of "field glasses" and used it to start many fires, along with burning my name in more than one piece of wood, and making life miserable for a jillion ants. So, to answer your question, yes you can. But I doubt that you could put the binoculars back together again and have them work as well as before. Dual purpose only one time...

Besides, a simple magifying glass (or a Bic lighter) is much smaller and easier to carry. I agree to keep the binoc's intact

Oh, the really old ones. Uncoated lenses, unarmoured, not waterproofed, not nitrogen filled. They don't make them like that any more.

Let's rejoice.

I'm sorry I tore them apart now, they would probably be worth a bundle on ebay....

It's not absolutely necessary to disassemble a bino/monocular for making fire if nothing else is available for that. Just play with the focuser a bit to make the sun image appearing as a sharp circle on a piece of paper, and then move in some dark colored tinder as close as possible to the eyepiece. Be careful enough not to damage the eyepiece as the tinder light's. Also this way it seems to work better, in case your bino/mono objective lens is smaller than 1 inch.
(Oh, and watch the second eyepiece from burning something unexpectedly if using a BINOcular!)


(some info here)

I'm carrying the SpecWell (Japan) 8x20 monocular with extra short focus most of the time. Reasonably portable, wide field of view, and fantastic clarity. It works very well as a microscope at 12 inch distance too. Used it a couple of times to melt the ends of paracord.

I carry a close-focussing monocular. One advantage of monoculars is that you can get ones which focus on things less than a foot away, so they act as magnifying glasses or (very weak) microscopes. You can get a good look at, eg, insects which you might not want to touch.

For distance vision they are useful for checking out routes and signposts so you don't waste time going the wrong way. You can also check out other people before you get to them, if you think they may be hostile. If you watch 24 you'll know that Jack Bauer is always peering through his monocular.

I use an 8x20 Gallery Scope from http://www.opticron.co.uk/