Are monocular scopes a better bet than budget binos?

[Greenheart]

Atlantic Pilot, I normally agree with you...

Is it possible that Icelandic Pilot doesn't wear spectacles, while you and I need them? ?

I bought a pair of Bynolyt RNLI-approved binocs a few years back, and was amazed by their clarity.

If I was still shopping for a pair, I like those Fujinon stabilised 14x44, although they're not guaranteed or waterproofed the way the Bynolyts are (review of the Fujinons from 2011, below).

Fujinon Techno-Stabi Binoculars Reviewed

I imagine if they've been made without variation or unhappy customers for over a decade, they're as good as the review suggests. Of course, they cost more than I'd spend on a new mainsail, but if the stabilisation means 14x magnification is useable aboard a boat, I could probably be persuaded.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

Is it possible that Icelandic Pilot doesn't wear spectacles, while you and I do? ?

Iceland is a bit temperate for me!

Actually, I've had to have strong optical correction since I was about 7. It got so bad that I had to wear contact lenses from the age of 19; normal glasses left me with very distorted vision. Then I had cataract surgery, and now wear varifocal glasses to correct the remaining slight issues. So I have experience of almost the whole range of possibilities.

 

[Greenheart]

Sorry about that A.P., I was only intending a very lightweight laugh at Praxinoscope calling you Atlantic Pilot.

I thought the stabilisation option was thread drift initially, but given that most manageable pairs of binoculars are less than 10x magnification, the cleverness of stabilised binocs seems to offer monocular-style higher power, without the intolerable instability that unstabilised scopes' magnification introduces when handheld, or resting on a boat's rail.

 

[Praxinoscope]

#43 dancrane, I am sure I typed Antarctic Pilot, so either I am losing it or b****y predictive text took over.
I agree about the Bynolyt binoculars, I have a pair on board, they are superb and built like a brick s***house.
I do have a spare pair of 7x50’s on board, which I bought from Gael Force, they use High Index BK-7 glass which reduces size and weight, these are optically almost as good as the Bynolyt’s, except not so rugged.