# binoculars (worth carrying?)



## Hair Trigger Gun Dogs (May 5, 2007)

Do you guys use binoculars while calling? I am considering getting some Nikon Monarchs. What size (if you use them) do you guys like?


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## Jaybic (Sep 8, 2005)

Hello HTGD,

I absolutely carry binos to every stand. I use some small Nikon 8x25 binos with a 24x zoom on them and I have hunted in ND plenty and before leaving a stand took a good look around and seen one way out there and it made me sit back down and try something else to get him in. It also helps when looking for that coyote you can hear howling back at you or warning barking so you can try to put the sneak on him.

I was just out hunting in ND in mid-jan and we had called one spot and had one come in and my buddy missed him. Two days later we came back and hunted another stand on the opposite side of the section line. I spotted a coyote coming in on my side and just about the time he got to about 300 yds, another one started warning barking about 3/4 of a mile away where we missed him two days before. He heard my calling and was making a fuss but my coyote kept coming and I killed him at 140 yds.

All the while old "motormouth" kept up his yelling and we finally picked him off with the binos and my buddy started his stalk while I kept sassing back to the coyote so Joe could keep a bead on him. It was really funny but while I was watching the coyote, he was still carrying on and all of a sudden he just starts wallering on the ground and flopping and the next thing I hear is....Boom....smack and then I knew I just watched my buddy kill him and I was about 3/4 of a mile away. It was very cool. My buddy killed him at 318yards with his .223 and a 50gr Vmax handload.

Moral of the story is.......No Binos...no bonus coyote.

Ps. Before that my buddy wouldnt carry them. Since we been back he has went and bought both a bino harness and a new small pair of binocs.

Just my 1.5 cents.

Best of luck.

Jaybic


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## barebackjack (Sep 5, 2006)

Whats wrong with the scope on your rifle?


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## Jaybic (Sep 8, 2005)

I cant seem to get both eyes to look into one hole at the same time. I figure i have a better chance of seeing something using two lookers instead of just one. That, and I can move alot less with binos than I can swinging my rifle all over the place. My rifle also stays on my shooting sticks pointed down-wind encase I have a visitor while I am looking around and lastly, safety. I hunt with a buddy alot and I dont want him using his rifle as binos and swinging it past my head and I dont want to do it to him either.

A rifle scope is not an equal substitute for a pair of binos IMHO. Yes, It can be used but it is along way from being equal.

Jaybic


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## Fallguy (Jan 23, 2004)

I carry them from now on after last year when I had a coyote hung up in some cattails and I couldn't see it but my partner could.

I think they are a good tool however I do use them sparingly as I think the extra movement involved could be a cancer to your setups.

You also can't get too attached to them. For example this year I was on stand for a good 35-40 minutes, was doing my final glassing on some far off areas, and when I took my binocs down I had a coyote at about 200 yards in the wide open coming in. It must have popped over the hill RIGHT when I brought my binocs up and was too close for me to see it in them. I almost missed that coyote because of the magnification!


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## nytrapper16 (Jan 9, 2008)

well its better to to see something further then your naked eye. i carry them i have a pair of bushnell 10x42 i use them to hunt everything


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## varmit b gone (Jan 31, 2008)

I use a small pair of leuopolds windriver series (about 8X) :x and they're really nice. They really gather light to. :sniper:


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## johngfoster (Oct 21, 2007)

Yes, use them. Using your scope could be a bit dangerous, pointing your rifle at some things that shouldn't be shot.


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## Sawyerbob (Apr 24, 2004)

johngfoster said:


> Yes, use them. Using your scope could be a bit dangerous, pointing your rifle at some things that shouldn't be shot.


Ditto


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## jerry hunsley (Jan 20, 2006)

Your missing a lot of coyotes if you don't carry a pr. I never go without them.


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## farmerj (Jun 19, 2004)

barebackjack said:


> Whats wrong with the scope on your rifle?


Don't put the rifle up until your ready to shoot. Basic Safety.

Some of us also don't use a scope.


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## Bgunit68 (Dec 26, 2006)

I have the Nikon Monarch 10 X 42 Dream Season (camo). I love them. I looked at a pair of Swarovski. There really isn't that much difference. I had a pair of Barskas and Bushnell before I bought these. Big difference. I was in Dick's one night just killing time while the girlfriend shops the rest of the mall. I just picked them up and bought them on the spot. Really reliable and sharp. Worth the extra money.


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## Hair Trigger Gun Dogs (May 5, 2007)

What do you guys think.... worth the extra money for Nikon Monarchs in Camo?


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## nytrapper16 (Jan 9, 2008)

well if you hunt out west then yes it would be best to get a good set of binos but for me because the places i hunt i can only see up to 350 yards i dont need to have the top of the line in binos


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## morel_greg (Apr 16, 2007)

I carry my binoculars for almost whatever I hunt whether it be coyote, deer, antelope, turkey and ocaisionally for upland game in case I see something at a distance I want to view. Mine are Leupold 10x42 Cascades, and I love them.


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## the professor (Oct 13, 2006)

Hair Trigger Gun Dogs said:


> What do you guys think.... worth the extra money for Nikon Monarchs in Camo?


paint em white...then they'll be custom. let me know how they worked out on the calling sets.

mitch


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## Bgunit68 (Dec 26, 2006)

Absolutely. Like I said that's the pair I have. They are awesome and they are very durable. I also got the bino system. It's the harness that keeps them from hanging. You can get them from Wal-Mart for around $15. But definitely get them. If you are hunting in snow and want to snow camo them. Go to the dollar store and get a little roll of gauze. Wrap them and use a small piece of tape to adhere it.


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## neb_bo (Feb 3, 2007)

i had 2 incidents so far this season where i wouldnt have gotten a coyote if i didnt have my binos.

one, i was heading out at sunup, and i thought a particular patch of grass looked fishy, about 150 yds out. i stopped, was going to continue, and decided to take a closer look. there was a coyote sitting right in the open.

two, i was calling, had one come in, dissapear in some brush, and never show. when i got ready to leave, i scanned the area. there he was, sitting 300 yds away, in the wide open watching me. wouldve never seen him otherwise.

another time, i called and shot one, spooked another that was coming in, and as i watched him run away, i saw two more about 600 yds away, one of which i killed. i have also killed coyotes that i whatched from 1/2 mile plus away while glassing, because i knew exactly where they were when i started calling.

yes, carry them, always.


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## varmintz (Apr 25, 2006)

First of all do not use your rifle scope, unless you want to wave a flag telling the predator where you are, unless you live in an area that has some really stupid coyotes - which I dought!

Second, spend some money on some decent binos, remember you will be using them in low light conditions, I use a set of Leupold Olympic 12x. Yes they are expensive but remember these are your long range eyes! Try to get the type of binos that have less reflective angles, the type that look like a straight tube because they require less light to see more.

If you need any more information feel free to drop me a line.


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