Thoughts on Minox APO HG Binocs?

Joined
Aug 22, 2012
Messages
3,498
I stumbled on what looks to be a very good price on these, i dont see to many reviews from the hunting sites on these, the birders seems to like them. Anyone have any experience with them? I currently have the viper HD's and have an itch to try something different.
 
I've been running the non-APO original HG's since they came out and they are pretty damn good for the price. I didnt see much difference in image quality against the SLC neu to my eyes and are about as light as you will find in a 42mm class bino. The one downfall to them is a fairly narrow field of view.
 
I'm running the German HG's 10x42 and the glass is about as good as it gets and light. I notice close to no CA and very little pincushion. Color is very true. I've been using them while birding and they have been better than any of the glass that anyone has had to compare with except for the EL's I had the chance to look through and compare side by side. My only real complaint has nothing to do with a flaw but since they're 10's I have a hard time stabilizing them freehand when in hiking and the heart rate is up. The APO's should be better but it would be hard to tell because the plain HG's are so good. I don't find the field of view narrow at all for 10x . They spec at 355' @ 1000 yards for the 10x which is 25' wider than the SLC WB 10×42. The 8x42 spec at 394' @ 1000 yards which is 13' less than 8x42 SLC's.

BTW , the German HG's have a wider field of view than the old Japanese made HG's.
 
I had a set of the Made in Germany non-APO HG's. I found construction to be top notch. Smooth controls and easy focus. Large sweet spot. Quality feel. However the the CA in my copy was very distracting (and I'm not easily affected by it), so I eventually traded them off. APO's glass should be better in every way.

I wouldn't pay full retail for them, but for a good price they should be a big jump up from Vipers. Another note. Not sure if they corrected it by now, but I found mine to be several oz heavier than published specs.

Yk
 
The weight on my pair is very close if I take the covers off both ends. Off hand I think they came in at 25oz. I haven't noticed the CA in mine but I'm not terribly sensitive to it either. I do notice the CA in all the Monarchs everyone I meet birding seem to have. They're all so proud of their Monarchs right up to the point they look through my HG's.
 
Funny. A set of $300 Monarchs was what I was comparing them too. The Minox were better in nearly every way, but under high contrast viewing (snow patches on rock) I would get "lines of fire" worse than any other bino I've used. Either way, the APO would make that mostly a non issue

I don't recall what the wt spec on mine were, but they were some of the first sets off the German line, and they were pretty far off. Still light, but not as light as the catalog said. I suspect they just adjusted the spec since.
 
Great info thanks guys, this is a deal on a used pair locally, supposed to be in very good condition. Anyone know if the warranty would be honored by Minox as I am not the original owner?

Thoughts on how they would compare to Razors or Conquests, they are on my list as well.
 
I found the Minox warranty to be excellent. Had to use it twice with a spotting scope. That's actually how I ended up with the Binos. After I expressed my dissatisfaction with the spotter, they offered to swap it for anything they made in the same price range.
 
Unfortunately looks like the warranty is non-transferable through Minox, probably not a deal breaker but something to consider. As I have only read reviews online and cant seem to find the APO's in person, anybody have any comparison to say Razor's or Conquests, I have looked through them.

Thanks Fellas
 
I compared them to rayzors, kowas, and a few others in the "2nd tier" of optics, and ended up with the minox. Haven't looked back since. Eagle optics has a great return policy if you want to try them out...
 
Well after a long, and i mean freakin long decision process i decided to pass on Minox and ended up with a pair of Conquest Hd's for an excellent price, thanks everyone for your input.
 
Back
Top