binocular for eyeglass wearer for football game

[tbeb]

I wear glasses. Every once in awhile I think about buying a pair of binoculars. Anyhow, I'm going to a college football game pretty soon and would like to have some binocs with me. Today I looked thru a Bushnell Permafocus 8X25, and also a Bushnell Permafocus 7X35. One cannot adjust focus with these. They were great as long as I took my eyeglasses off and positioned them right against my eye. With my eyeglasses on, they were pretty much useless. Any suggestions, from you eyeglass wearers, for under $100? I understand that's not much, but I can't see spending big money for something I won't use very often. Thanks in advance.

[glockgod]

A good pair of binoculars will have rubber eyepieces. If you wear glasses simply fold these down. This will permit you to use them while wearing glasses.

[noydb]

Look for nocs that list eye relief of 15mm or more, 18-20mm is better. Those fold down cups are a PIA. I just cut them off. Do a search on eBay or google for "long eye relief". For sporting events and such probably don't want to go over 8x in a fixed power.

Some examples:

http://www.binoculars.com/binoculars/bird-watching-binoculars/longeyerelief8x42wideanglebinoculars.cfm

http://www.binoculars.com/binoculars/bird-watching-binoculars/celestronoutland8x42wp.cfm

These aren't too bad, especially for compacts.
http://www.binoculars.com/binoculars/spectator-binoculars/8x25longeyereliefbinoculars.cfm

The higher the magnification, the lower the eye relief unless you spend the big bucks. Compacts are smaller and easier to carry but can be harder to hold steady. The higher the magnification, the more they show any vibration and jitter. Most people do best with 7-8x, but some folks can do 10x ok. Zoom nocs lose eye relief as you increase the power. Any of the three I listed would do for what you described, with out breaking the bank.

[jeepmor]

My Nikon Monarch field binoculars have a twist in/out eye relief. I don't wear glasses, so I twist them out so I can rest the things against my eyebrows. A glasses wearer, you would not have to twist them out and could rest the lenses against the eye reliefs twisted in. Here is an image with them twisted out for the non-glasses crowd.

http://www.optics4birding.com/media/images/ui/monarch-10x42.JPG

I have to say I have been thoroughly impressed with mine considering what I paid for them. I had to look through binoculars twice the price or more before image quality got any better. I've often used them for quick viewing through sunglasses and really like this twisting eyepiece feature.

Hope this helps.
jeepmor

[Bottom Gun]

I wear glasses and have found the Pentax DCF and the Nikon ATB binoculars work well for me. Mine are both 8x42 and have good eye relief.

The optical quality of the Pentax seems be slightly better than the Nikon. I tried many different brands and styles before I settled on these. I thnk they are the best value for the money.

I think I paid under $250 for each.

[Ala Dan]

I use Leupold's Wind River (Green Ring) 10x42 Cascades for these old eyes.
They work mighty well, and are reasonably priced between $279-$319;
depending on where you get 'em at~! :scrutiny:;)

[another okie]

I carry an inexpensive monocular, 8 power, to games, but then I don't look through them for long periods of time. I've been considering ponying up for a set of Canon image stabiizing binoculars. They are awesome, but they do cost about as much as a really premium pair of binoculars.

[LHB1]

As a long time eyeglass wearer and user of binoculars/scopes, this is one of my major concerns. The minimum eye relief needed for eyeglass wearers depends on your frames and how closely to your eyes they are fitted. My Leica binoculars have eye relief of 16 mm and this is not enough. For me, the minimum eye relief for full field view must be at least 17mm, and 18-19 mm is better. At 20 mm or more eye relief, eyepiece blackout begins to occur if the binos are not perfectly adjusted for eyepiece width and held exactly right. For football games, I would recommend wide angle 8 power binoculars with objective glass (front end) of 32 mm. These should be big enough without being a major hassle in size and weight. I would NOT recommend any of the super small binoculars with 25 mm objective lens. YMMV.

Good shooting and be safe.
LB

[tbeb]

Thanks for all the replies.

I purchased a pair of Bushnell Trophy 8X42 for $115 out the door. Eye relief is 19mm. I also like the Leupold Wind River Mesa, but the Bushnell's were awful close in comparison (and $55 less).