Opticron30786 Explorer WA ED-R 10x42 Monocular, 47 mm*138 mm*54 mm

This monocular is worth every penny. Clear image, robust and waterproof. The ED version is what I purchased and it’s ideal. Big enough to let enough light in for low light use, small enough for a decent pocket and easy to operate. Yes the focus wheel requires patience as it’s slower to rotate than others but that’s really not an issue to me. Makes you feel it’s more sturdy than anything else. Hardly stops you operating it. Really pleased I bought this for wildlife use and the 8x magnification is more than enough to make it really useful. The case isn’t anything to get excited about but it does the job. Made a veg tan leather one for mine so the finished package is now complete. All I need to do now is not lose it like my last Opticron!If you’re lucky enough to be able to afford one, I certainly recommend getting one.

I ordered three monoculars in order to choose the right one for me. They were the Opticron 10x40, the Opticron 8x32 and finally, as a sort of cheaper benchmark, the Celestron 10x25. I wanted to replace an old cheap monocular that had fogged up and was impressed at how far the technology has come. I need a monocular that is light and portable to take fishing and walking in the mountains. Seeing the three monoculars side by side, I realised at once that choosing the right one was more complex than I thought. Each one had something to offer and there is a critical balance between price, portability,quality and purpose.The Opticron 10x40 stood out as a beautifully crafted technical instrument capable of delivery quality images. It did everything well - bright clear images, easy to see through, focussed down to around two metres and felt solid and well engineered. As a scientific instrument I loved it but it was too heavy and big for me to comfortably slip it into my pocket and forget about it until I needed it. A really big issue for me was whether, without armouring, it would stand up to the general rigours of life outside. I can see that for someone who used a monocular almost continually - watching a sporting event or birds for example - then this would be perfect. But for me, the size and weight of the Opticron made me reluctantly rule it out.The Opticron 8x32 was armoured and also gave a very good image. Frankly, I find the difference between an 8x and 10x monocular virtually negligible. What counts more is the quality of the image rather than absolute difference in image size. One sees less detail through a more powerful instrument if the image is dull and shaking rather than through something less powerful but with more light and a steadier image. The Opticron 8x32 feels great in the hand, gives a good image (almost as good as its big brother) and is undoubtedly very rugged. With all the armouring it isn’t that much smaller or lighter than the 10x40 but it is certainly tougher and easier to carry in ones pocket. However, it only focuses down to around 5/6 metres and the focussing ring is fiendishly stiff.The much cheaper and smaller Celestron 10x25 came as a complete surprise. I only included it to see how cheaper monoculars compared but its relatively small size and image quality, not to mention its armouring, really impressed me. The light transmission is pretty good and detail stands out even in gloomy conditions. I am not price sensitive and would be happy to pay a higher price for a premium product but I would be hard pushed to choose either of the two Opticrons over the Celestron for convenience, portability, price or image quality.

Smallenough to fit in a pocket, top quality optics, solid manufacturing so what more could you want?Not cheap however and doesn't come with a phone adaptor or tripod mount. Both of those will cost you significant amounts of extra cash. But if you want the best you have to pay.The one thing that I really couldn't handle though was having to use both hands in order to focus. If that's not an issue to you then go for it. I returned it though just because I needed something I could work one-handed.

Bigger than I expected but that's just my own stupidity not reading it properly and feels substantial too but very impressive. This is my third set of Opticron optics. I have the Discovery WP 8x42 bins great but fairly heavy and a pair of CX mini 8x21 which are fine. My holy grail has always been monoculars and trying to find the best performance compared to weight. I have had a few over the years.So BGA 10x42 : what attracted me was the amount of light that a 42 objective lens should allow and this is indeed the case. Make no mistake this is a two handed operation but the focus band is firm but easy to use. I use devices with my glasses off but this can be used with glasses, I just prefer off. 10x magnification is always going to need a steady hand but once you get properly braced the images are very good and so far I am very pleased. I tested them in the fading light last night and they captured the light well, as expected. Yes they are slightly bulkier and heavier than I really want but still easily pocketable and thus able to be with me most of the time.They come with an impressive case with a belt loop which is quite tight fitting but probably will ease off. There is a nice cover on a loop for the objective lens which I like. It also came with protective lens covers for packing and I have made a wee cord for the eye cup cover and thus both lenses are protected and I will not lose it. I lined it with a circle of medical cloth tape to protect the lens.I'm not a fan of neck cords but in any event this one needs consideration. The cord is attached to a metal key ring which then attaches to a lug on the side. Within a very short time and I mean minutes, it was obvious that the metal ring was scraping off the black paint from the lug. I replaced this was a wrist cord from a old camera which is attached by thin cord but one to watch if you like to keep your stuff pristine.Only used to test and look at birds in the garden so far but I am pleased with this. If it was half the size and weight I'd be ecstatic but that's just me still searching for the holy grail but this will be perfectly satisfactory till then and I suspect that the holy grail does not exist in my price range anyway. Recommended.

I’ve owned several monoculars over the years but this one is absolutely outstanding. Clear as crystal picture. Just brilliant