Best 18s for the money?

[Jason277]

Hello All, I have been looking for a good set of 18 binos for a little bit. I'm curious about what people tend to gravitate to on here? The are a few options Vortex, Leupold, Maven? Thank you in advance. Jason

 

[pc3]

I would like it if Swarovski would make some NL Pure 18x68's...similar twilight factor to 15x56 etc.

As for your question, the maven's would be hard to beat for 18x from what I have 'read"

 

[Zman99]

I agree mavens for the money

 

[700MtnMan]

I have the Vortex 18x56 Razor UHDs and love them. I have not had an opportunity to compare to any other brands.

 

[Jason277]

copy, seems like its either Mavens or Vortex

 

[WI in the west]

I know someone wrote up an indepth vortex maven camparison on here. I went the maven route and was not disappointed one bit. The spotter stayed in the truck a lot for that reason

 

[Jason277]

I know someone wrote up an indepth vortex maven camparison on here. I went the maven route and was not disappointed one bit. The spotter stayed in the truck a lot for that reason

I'm hoping to use 18s instead of a spotter for a couple of reasons. How is the weight on those Mavens?

 

[DooleyVT]

Picked up a pair of slightly used Vortex UHD 18s last season for a mule deer hunt and ended up leaving my spotter back at the truck for most of the week and sold it a few weeks after I got back. The binos are much more comfortable to use for longer periods of time and great clarity for picking up animals.

 

[WI in the west]

I'm hoping to use 18s instead of a spotter for a couple of reasons. How is the weight on those Mavens?

Im not a big time weight counter but i definatly didnt mind carrying them all the time. Where a spotter id usually decide riggt before walking in if its coming or not. Or id stash it under some brush to not carry it further. But id say the 18’s were my mvp of optics last season. Followed bu my maven b2’s and then the 85mm spotter

 

[PredatorSlayer]

I found the FOV on the 15’s is way better than the 18’s, so that is what I have been running. Anybody go from 15’s to 18’s? If so, any regrets?

 

[willfrye027]

I compared maven 15s and 18s side by side glassing mule deer. I preferred the 15s by a good margin. FOV and depth of field were much better on the 15s…18s we’re a bit finicky to use. But I’m almost always carrying a spotter, so if you were trying to ditch the spotting scope then the 18s do have noticeably higher resolution

 

[Sierra Hunter]

I moved from 15s vultures to 20s kaibabs and then to 18x mavens which I much prefer but they’re a little finicky. Nothing is perfect but I’d like to compare to swaro or zeiss 15s. Just over here splitting hairs. Sometimes I feel like sometimes we/I forget it’s about which one finds you more animals and those vultures did a damn good job at it.

 

[MaraviaDave]

If I was going to get the best 18’s for the money, I’d buy a Swarovski 15x56 and a Sharpie marker, then cross out the 5 and write 8. Everyone would think I was cool ‘cause I have a prototype Swarovski 18x56

 

[mp12]

For the Swaro 15x56 HD vs Maven 18x56 comparison - I've compared both and the Maven gets you ~95% of clarity of the Swaros, especially in the center of the image the clarity is very close. So, for the money, the Mavens are excellent.

I agree that the 18s are more finicky to use though. I find I have to get the diopter adjustment precisely dialed in and then adjust the focus more as I use them. The eye relief on them also adds to this.