VORTEX DOUBLER??

[AZ_SAWBUCK]

I HAVE THE VORTEX 15X50 HD BINOS AND LOVE THEM. THE REASON I WENT WITH THEM OVER THE KIABABS AND THE SWAROS IS PRICE AND WEIGHT. WITH THAT SAID.....I HAVE LOCATED DEER SEVERAL TIMES IN THE PAST FEW YEARS AND NEEDED A BETTER LOOK BEFORE COMMITING TO HIKE CLOSER. I DONT REALLY WANT TO PACK AROUND A SPOTTING SCOPE IN COUES DEER COUNTRY SO WHATS LEFT? IM THINKING A DOUBLER. HAS ANY ONE HAD ANY EXPERIENCE WITH THEM? OR WHAT DO YOU USE IN THIS SITUATION? THANKS JS

[azslim]

have no experience with doublers, all I can say is I see a bunch of them for sale

[firstcoueswas80]

Try the Jim white trippler, i believe it is universal and have seen far fewer of then you're sake then the doubler.

[cactusjack]

Friends don't let friends buy doublers.

[CWpredator]

Friends don't let friends buy doublers.

haha +1!!!!!

[112coues]

the vortex double is pretty universal and works fairly well.....that being said i tryed the same thing with the 15x50's and you lose a lot of field of view and it is poor image. i dont suggest getting a doubler for that particular set of binos. i gave the doubler to my brother and he uses it with leica 10x42's and he says its ok.

[rcdinaz]

Had a Swarovski one and sold it. Kind of like focusing a kaleidoscope. I have heard some people do well using 2 and it working slightly better.

[Coach]

I sold my Swaro doubler a while back. My buddy has the JW and doesn't find it useful either.

[CouesRanger]

The best option is the pair of boots walk a little!!

[cactusjack]

my anti double comment is based on $ I have spent on them. I had the Zeiss tripler for my 10x56s, then the Swarovski doubler for my 15x56s then a Jim White thinking it would be useful cause I could switch it without unscrewing the eyepiece. I wish I would have done more research before I spent $ on them. I sold the 3x with the Zeiss 10's when I bought the 15s, but they never worked well. I chalked it up to how they attached to the eyepiece, it was pressed into the cup. I figured that since Swaro made such awesome optics their 2x would be the same and it attached more securely. Wrong again. Then I opted for the JW, it wasn't terrible, but it still has the same problems of a 2x. On birder/optic websites you can find good reviews also.

 

Here is one off of opticstalk

 

As you probably already know, optics manufacturers have been making doublers/triplers, called barlow lenses, for telescopes for many years.

That is my "only" experience with them, and based upon that experience, as you might already suspect, 2x & 3x gives a degraded image & a much smaller FOV.

On top of that, you will be losing alot of available light & the increased magnification will really magnify the "shakes".

If it has "any" value in a binocular, it certainly must be extremely limited, based upon the above consequences.

I almost forgot, I also experienced 2x doublers when I was into 35mm photography, many years ago. For example, if you have a f8 aperture in a lens, it now becomes a f16, reducing the light transmission significantly.

PERHAPS, in a 7x or an 8x binocular, (which is really quite a "low" power to start with), there is greater flexibility at these lower magnifications.