Older Zeiss Glass?

[sageadvice]

Couple days ago i bought a pair of Carl Zeiss Jena "Silvarem" 6x30 binoculars. I have yet to receive them but they were described as, and looked from the pic's to be, in super clean, like new condition, with case and unused strap but they were made in 1953. They are as old as i am!

Not sure why i bought these other than i get compulsive from time to time and have long thought i could use a wider field of view, 150m @ 1000m, when hunting our very thick covered country local here about. Plus, they came at what i thought a reasonable auction price of near $100.

Any thoughts or info on quality of this glass would be appreciated. Thanks!!

Joey

 

[eelgrass]

Back in the early 80s (1980s for those of you who think it might be the 1880s) I was helping a friend on his Kali antelope hunt in Modoc Co. We were crawling through the sage brush sneaking up on three bedded bucks. (the hunt is another story) Underneath a sage brush plant I spied a pair of binoculars. They were buried in the sand about 1/2 inch, which tells me they had laid there for a long time.

After I got them home I cleaned them up and they were a pair of Zeiss 6X30. It says "Signal Corp US Army" with a serial number, and "Zeiss Prism Stereo", and some other stuff I can't read. They are mostly brass. Each eye focuses independently, and they function great. They are very clear with no scratches on the lenses. I'm still totally amazed at how clear they are.

Joey, I think you bought very well indeed!

I keep mine in the glove box in case I see a duck, or maybe a pretty girl.

Eel

 

[RELH]

I was given a pair of the same military issue by my captain while working narcotics. The clarity and light gathering at night with street lights were excellant for night time surveillance work while on stakeouts.

Joey, you will like them and they beat any other new 100 bucks binocs you can find by a long shot.

Eel, I will not tell you about the woman in the window one night while I was on surveillance of a dope dealers house trying to gather enough information for a search warrant. You might have a heart attack.

RELH

 

[sageadvice]

Thanks Guys!!

Eel, Nice find! You guys built close to the ground are always great for finding stuff!

RELH, You can tell me?? lol

Joey

 

[RELH]

NO I CAN NOT on a family hunting web site. All I can say she was beautiful, built like the proverbal brick outhouse and I am not going to say what she was doing to the dope dealer that I was trying to gather information on.

RELH

 

[kilowatt]

That there was enough to gather the interest of lots of MM'ers who see this post....LOL

Brian
http://i25.tinypic.com/fxbjgy.jpg[/IMG]

 

[sageadvice]

Duck Call?? Yeah that was probably it, she was blowing on a Duck Call!!

}> }>

Joey

 

[RELH]

Darn you Joey, you would have made a good cop with your gut feelings. You hit it on the nailhead.

RELH

 

[B_BOP_A_LU_LU]

So RELH?

Did you decide imediatley that this case was gonna take a while to crack?

God is Great!
Life is Good!
And People are Crazy!

I love not acting my age,
Damn I love my NASCAR race,
And Hell yes I love my Truck!

 

[1911]

....it may have taken awhile to crack the case but not because he did not see a whole bunch of crack....and not the cocaine type.

 

[RELH]

We had to take another two weeks before gathering enough information for a warrant. She was not the cause for the delay, in fact we never saw her again.

Guys, it was meth that we got, not crack cocaine, we will forego the other crack.

Yea Joey, those were darn good binocs, excellant clarity.

RELH

 

[mtAl]

I have a very old pair of 8 x 30 Zeiss binos. They're great, especially for the price. Mine were about $100 15 years ago. I've since upgraded to some Leica's but I keep the old Zeiss. Side by side the new glass is way better, but the old ones are well worth the price.

 

[nickman]

I have an old pair also. 12x50's. All the writing is in Austrian......I think they were on the Bismark.

Anybody got link to where they might be reconned?

 

[sageadvice]

Thanks Guys!! Nickman, you didn't say but i'm guessing you like yours? I'll bet they're heavy!

25-30 years ago, a girlfriends father offered for me to take his 7x50's on a out of state muley hunt. At the time, i'd just that year bought a set of smaller sized Nikon 10x glasses but wasn't convinced that they'd do the job for me. I used both sets on that trip but what i remember most was glassing up a good buck close to a mile up on a steep brushy north slope with the zeiss. He positioned himself bedded behind brush yet with the zeiss glass, i could make him and his racks frame out clear as can be. i tried the Nikon glass to see if i could get a better look, i couldn't even make out for sure that there was a buck there.

Those 7x50's were awesome set of glass but boy were they heavy!

Joey

 

[eelgrass]

"Eel, Nice find! You guys built close to the ground are always great for finding stuff!"

Joey, here is the Zeiss I found. Pretty weather worn but still very clear. They are pretty heavy for their size.

I think you will really like yours. Especially when you and larrbo go to the Chester Opera House arm in arm.

Eel

 

[sageadvice]

Thanks for sharing Eel. Mine have the center focus wheel, shorter eye pieces and maybe bigger front lenses. Yours, i'm guessing are a older(no snide remarks this time as you seem to get even) model. I'd post up pic's but i can't seem to be able to download off the auction pictures!

...and ah...ok, ok, turnaround is fair play.

Joey

 

[nickman]

I guess they aren't as old as I thought...They say DDR on the side. I would still like to get them refurbished, though...

 

[sageadvice]

Nickman, Yes i can understand why you'd want to refurbish these. They probably would make fantastic "in the truck" glasses!!

Guys, I never have been able to feel comfortable spending a lot of money on field glasses. The set i have now are Leopold's and they cost about $450., the most i've ever paid. They're pretty decent but not Zeiss quality and that is fairly evident. I believe though, that a guy could spend $100-300 on some of these older but little used Zeiss glasses available and really have some fine glass at pennies on the dollar of what a guy would pay for high quality New stuff.

I looked on E-bay and did a search last week before i bought mine. There were some fine, like new, 8x30's that went for a little over $200. Yes, the New stuff has better lenses coating and they weigh less i guess but i don't know that the actual lenses, workmanship, and optical quality, are any if at all, better quality than the top dollar stuff put out 30-40-50 years ago.

For some out there like me that would rather have good glass and be able to go hunting than have awesome glass and don't have the coin to go, maybe check out what is available. I think there is VALUE to be had here!

Joey

 

[nickman]

I am going to have the Zeiss redone, but I have Swaros. I was 62 years old before I would justify the cost....dumb!

I said for years, that they were an investment you would never see my dumb azz making.....until I used a loaned pair for a season. They cost the same as 2 trips to Colorado.

Nothing, and I mean nothing, outside of the comparably priced Zeiss, is even in the ball park.

My issue now; once they are outside of my safe, I am so worried about them getting stolen, that I wear them to dinner, inside my shirt, on my hunting trips. I leave rifles in my gun rack overnight....I got extra rifles.

I NEVER take them out of the case and not strap them on, for fear of dropping them.

I keep a Leupold Acadia set in the truck......and take the Swaros in and out of the safe as I need them.

 

[Model_70_Guy]

Nickman - Did you buy the Sawrovision EL's?

I looked at a pair of 10x42's and I have to admit these old eyes have not looked through a better pair of bino's.

Some a$$hole stole my Leupold 10x42's that I loved but it will be a longtime before I can afford to buy the Swaro's but they are as good as it gets. So for now it's back to the old whatever binos I have out there in the garage.

 

[nickman]

Yes. EL version.

I hate to keep beating this dead horse, but they are absolutely incredible in the field.

You just simply cannot test them in the store and get the full picture.

1 out of every 3 days a year, I am looking at SOMETHING thru binos or spotting scopes and there is no explaining the difference they have made for me.

I may actually find Sasquatch any day now!

 

[eelgrass]

nickman, I like your beverage better than mine.

A good long time friend of mine went hunting in Idaho this year. He's a real tight wad. He finally broke down and bought a $600 spotting scope (Leupold). He was all proud of it as you might expect. His grown up son had a new Swarovski. (He's not a tight wad). Deer that his son could plainly see, my friend couldn't even pick out with his Leupold. Same distance, same power. My friend is now bummed.

Eel

 

[REDDOG]

I'll be the fly in the ointment..I have an old pair of Zeiss, I think they suck. They are clear, provided its a banner day out.

I keep them in the old crummy Toyota, if it hits +20F today I might go out and get them, to report on what I have..I think they are 7x30's.

 

[slamdunk]

Although my Zeiss Classics 10?40's are not "vintage", they are the best binos I have ever used. I keep my Swaro's as my backup set. However....Ian not a fan of the newer Zeiss at all.

http://i764.photobucket.com/albums/xx290/slamdunk_04/E1x1BWINV1-2.jpg[/IMG]

 

[sageadvice]

Dog, thanks for your opinion! I wouldn't even care to compare these with the newer high dollar glass but i'm not a high dollar glass guy to begin with. No matter what, for $100., near mint in case with unused strap, they kinda got the "cool" factor going in my book. I like well made old hunting and fishing stuff and these are now paid for, kind of my Christmas present to myself.

Slam, You and my hunting partner! He has the same old glass you're talking about and though he has a brand new pair of 10x swaro's in his safe, there they stay, he loves his old Classics and refuses to consider using anything else!

Hopefully these will come in soon so i can see how they'll work for me, if at all.

Joey