Brocknroller,
What do you mean by "veiling glare"? I have read where there were a few early quality control issues with glare off unpainted parts. Is that glare all the time, when the sun is near your FOV where you are looking, or when the sun is behind you and the glare is out of the gaps between your eyes and the eyepieces? Just teying to know what to look for so I can make it happen on purpose, if I have a faulty pair.
As someone who has recently bought the M7 8x30, I also went through the same thought process even though I was able to try a demo out for two days before purchase (see thread on M7 eye relief). I eventually concluded that it was somewhat pointless to do any testing for the reason that there were simply too many variables e.g. other peoples subjective views under generally described circumstances, their levels of expectations of a binocular especially a relative low cost model (in my case £210), whether or not other posters wore glasses (often unspecified), even if they wore glasses (as I do) what about the adequacy of their prescription for their current lenses and the quality of the lenses themselves etc etc. Finally what would represent a reasonable benchmark at this price point in any event.
My solution – a check through the objective lens (in the store with a bright torch brought along for the purpose), it seemed very well finished to my eye and with no ‘bright’ parts, a general inspection overall and quick view out on the street – admittedly very scenic looking up at the mountains above Innsbruck – and then simply relying on use in the field to see if they are fit for purpose – in my case to supplement my main binoculars and for casual go anywhere any time use whilst travelling or a late stroll around my local patch.
All I can say is that I have used them constantly over the past two weeks to check them out, this in varied weather conditions and in a variety of settings e.g. woodland, high moorland, farmland and coastal (all within 30 minutes of where I live in Northumberland) and they have proved excellent and beyond expectation given the bargain price. Whilst there are occasional glare issues (no more than I experience with my ‘serious’ bins) the small size and lightness of the M7 makes it very easy to shade the objective lens with one hand, and still hold them steady and focus with the other or simply to adjust eye positioning, again easy to do even with glasses. This has only been necessary on very few occasions when looking almost directly towards the sun low on the horizon. I have not experienced any noticeable loss of contrast due to so called veiling, but then again I have not gone out specifically looking for it – resonant of the comments elsewhere of not going looking for CA on purpose.
I find that they are now my preferred binocular for woodland as the wider fov and agility in use due to their ultra light weight means I miss fewer warblers and the like. My record of goldcrest sightings has suddenly gone up, I am sure more to do with the new binoculars than a coincidence of a sudden influx. They really are a delight to use and as mentioned before, for me at least, a bargain at the price point and emphatically fit for my purpose. I can only conclude that the earlier problems have been fixed. For the record the serial number of mine is 0006663.
Barrie
