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Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Well, though drier than your locale, the weather here isn't magical, either. Gusty, dusty, warm, and thinly overcast. Cooler weather has set in now, though, and I am hoping for a clear, calm day tomorrow. I would like to survey the heavens and the earth. -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Here is a cool link to an optical glossary: http://jeff.medkeff.com/astro/optics/optical_definitions.htm It mayprove useful in some of the discussions here. (Speaking of, should this stuff be moved off the Swift history thread?) I like these definitions: "ED: short for "extra low... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
I noticed something in Ingraham's otherwise fine article on color fringing: "Recently a third alternative has become available to optical designers. FL glass, a special optical glass which is enhanced with fluorine ions, has the advantages of both ED and Fluorite, but without the drawbacks of... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Steve Ingraham was such a good reviewer because he came from humble beginnings. He didn't start out with the top-of-the-line Euro-optics. He carried an inexpensive Nikon compact around his neck for a long time. Then he graduated to the Swift Audubon 804s. He was a school teacher with a pretty... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
What's up, Doc? The FMC HR/5 Type 4b(2) was what I owned, and I would settle for nothing less. I'll bore you with the story of how I bought them. I saw them in an Astromart classified ad and it turned out the owner lived in my city. So I contacted him, went over to his house and had a look at... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Yeah, sorry for the threadjack, Mr. Air Spaced...Mr. Ed? It seems like having a cemented doublet kind of defeats the purpose of adding ED glass. Cheaper to manufacture, though, I'm sure. I am thinking of buying another 804 again at some point -- eye relief be damned. If I only get a 360... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Yes, I was forgetting about the binocular users you mentioned, and if anything, they deserve better optics than a hobbyist. On the other hand, night-vision technology is something very useful to many of the kinds of binocular users you mentioned above, but is of little use to your average... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Ed, I hope you don't mind me butting in on this subject. If you look at the history of optical design, there have not been any major developments since early in the 20th century -- at least as far as can be incorporated in a binocular. The last major development was phase coating, which really... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
The Zeiss FL, even though it sounds extremely well corrected (for a lowly binocular), is nevertheless a roof-prism design. The 804 (ED or not) is a porro-prism. Would that make some difference in the quality of image that Ed is seeing in his 804ED? I love roof-prism binoculars for their... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Point taken, ED. In birdwatching, color representation in the image is paramount. Both for enjoyment of the view and identification. Most birds are colorful. Even birds that look brown or grey in the distance, show subtle color variations with even cheap binoculars. I never realized how many... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
I'm not sure. I have to defer to Henry. I just found the website. My Orion Short Tube 80 telescope has an F5 focal ratio (400mm focal length divided by 80mm objective diameter). It has an achromatic air-spaced doublet. It still has all kinds of chromatic abberation at high powers, though... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
You're welcome, ED. Thanks really should go to Mr. Ceragioli, who created this fine website. -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
The air-spaced doublet objective has two more lens-to-air surfaces than a cemented doublet, making for more reflections. Before multicoating, that was more opportunity for light loss through the objective. Also, cemented doublets are cheaper to make and to mount in binoculars. The cemented lens... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Hmm, comparing the ED experience to the analog audio experience. What sort of audio equipment were you using? It's an interesting comparison to make. There is a lot of argument about whether analog is an improvement over digital -- or what the nature of the "improvement" is. As far as the ED... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
Hi Ed, I scanned through your fine history, and I can tell you with some certainty that I had the 804 4b2. It was definitely fully-multicoated. Maybe it technically had 14mm of eyerelief, but it still cut off a good 20% of the FOV for me. As Steve Ingrahm pointed out, this still leaves an... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
I will look at the article -- which I want to do anyway when I get the time -- and try to see if I remember which model it was. There is an astronomy shop here in my city that sells a lot of used binoculars. I remember seeing the HR4 as well as the newer 804s. I do remember that the older... -
Historical Review of Swift 804 Audubon Binoculars
I owned a pair of the old Swift Audubon 804s for awhile. I wish I could tell you more but it was several years ago. My only experience with top-notch optics has been taking a look through others' binoculars, but I would say the Audubon 804s had the best center-field resolution and overall...