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Binos - Do you use? Why/How?

DB4x4

DB4x4

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2018
Messages
1,870
The bino advice thread got me wondering...

I used to carry a small, low quality pair of binos when bowhunting. This was mainly to count points on bucks to make sure they were legal when antler restrictions in my state were first instituted. However, I don't carry binos anymore when hunting. If I can't tell if it is legal with the naked eye at 30 yds, then I just don't shoot. (No more barely legal scrub bucks for me)

That said, SHOULD I be carrying a pair? If you carry a pair, either while hunting and/or scouting, can you explain why? Specifically, how do you use them? Am I missing out on something that I could strategically improve upon, woodsmanship or otherwise?
 
I like being able to look 'through' brush and trees to be able to see what I normally would not. Also hunt some open field areas and its nice to be able to look across the field and see where they came out or went back in. When taking kids, I like having glass on the deer when they take a shot. I guess I've carried them so long I cannot go w/o. I carry Swarovski that are a little big and heavy. Would like to find something smaller and more convenient w/that quality of glass.
 
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Easier for me to see deer when I'm walking in, going on sneaks with my gun, in the tree through the thick stuff. When I bring people out that don't have binos is when it's apparent how much I use them. I am looking 100-200 yards out, they are focused on the brush in front of them. I look at trees to set up in from a distance instead of wandering around so much when I get to a new spot. Well worth bringing along.
 
I usually don't. When I do it is typically for entertainment as much as anything, just something to pass the time looking at squirrels and birds. I can pick deer out of brush or get a better look at deer far off, but I can't say that has ever really helped me kill anything.
 
I always take them, I don't always use them. I like to watch other wildlife while I sit. I take care to remember why I'm out there so I'm not moving all over the place but I like to identify birds, and have the face of that bobcat up close and personal. I use binos to count points on far off deer, and to generally watch body movements, ears, head movement, that kind of stuff. It's super informative to be able to watch deer body language from a distance. When I'm out on the ground hunting or scouting I like to glass anything that I will be exposing myself to. Side hills, ridges,etc. So any where having super duper eyesight would be helpful. It's surprising how well a deer can blend in to a blow down. I was taught by a friend that any time the view on the distant horizon changes it should be glassed before exposing yourself to that vantage point. (Hill popping) Looking into the edges of thick areas, before approaching. Deer will move,stand and or bed just inside the edges of cover so they can use the security of the cover and still have good fields of view. It's an advantage to be able to look into those edges before exposing yourself to them.
 
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I used to not carry them because they’re bulky and I kindve subscribed to the idea that if they’re close enough to shoot with a bow I don’t need binos. Then I got a bino harness... or bino bra as my uncles call it (just the harness, not the case/harness). Now it doesn’t matter if I am hunting, scouting or just exploring a new area, I take them every single time I am in the woods. I think you could miss out on some valuable information going without. Glassing a far off deer in some brush and getting a glimpse of a nice rack might just be the intel you need to make a move on him. Without that info you’d probably just write it off as “saw a deer but couldn’t tell what it was”

So if you do want to carry them, get a harness, it makes a world of difference.
 
I wear mine on a bino harness and it has become part of my hunting clothes. I force myself to use them and remind myself to scan sloooooowly, focus on any dark spots or if I think I see movement or hear something but am not able to identify what made the noise I force myself to keep looking until I figure out what it was. It has helped me to look well before walking. It also helps me to not shoot button bucks. If I see something without them then I can use them to get a really good look before it gets close to see if I am just gonna watch it or prepare to shoot it. I found that I spot deer a lot further away with them than I used to. I always told myself the stuff I hunt is to think for a long shot but since I have started using them I realized I can see so much further into the thick stuff. Luv mine but they are pretty nice binos that I got for free.
 
When I'm hunting, I'm actually scouting at the same time. Even sitting in a tree, I'm scanning further out. Am I really in the right spot? Is there a better trail they are using more often right now? What was that movement that I think I saw? And don't even get me started about low light conditions.

Without binos, you'll always be wondering instead of actually hunting. You won't realize what you're missing until you use your binos alot.

Using my binos is what is pushing me into saddle hunting, for more mobility.
 
It helps me see and identify if a buck is a shooter before it gets in shooting range. If it’s not, then my focus is to not get detected and just watch it. If it is a shooter then I get my bow and mind ready to shoot. I think identifying a buck as early as possible helps to have a few extra moments to get ready to take the shot
 
I use them for everything. Checking oaks for acorns, checking trails and water edges for tracks from farther away, seeing exactly where that deer came out on observation sits, burning through brush, etc... The biggest advantage for me is their light gathering ability. I can see significantly better at last light through my binos than I can without. On a clear night and some moon I can see pretty well through glass.
 
DB4x4 said:
The bino advice thread got me wondering...

I used to carry a small, low quality pair of binos when bowhunting. This was mainly to count points on bucks to make sure they were legal when antler restrictions in my state were first instituted. However, I don't carry binos anymore when hunting. If I can't tell if it is legal with the naked eye at 30 yds, then I just don't shoot. (No more barely legal scrub bucks for me)

That said, SHOULD I be carrying a pair? If you carry a pair, either while hunting and/or scouting, can you explain why? Specifically, how do you use them? Am I missing out on something that I could strategically improve upon, woodsmanship or otherwise?
Click to expand...

If I’m scouting or hunting from the ground I bring them. Hanging in the tree I use my 4x range finder.

Now if I don’t win the antlerless draw and I’m shotgun hunting I really do need them. I can tell if a deer has spikes or not without archery range.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Binocs are mandatory.
A couple points not already mentioned...
After the shot. One of the hardest things for me is to force myself to wait an hour or so before blood trailing. I'm so anxious to get down and look for blood. Binocs can help locate blood before I even get down. Or I can look look for my arrow, or a number of other clues.
When blood trailing, always look out ahead. Can you see the deer? Is he still breathing? Binocs could be the difference between backing out or jumping a wounded deer and never finding it.
Another thing...at times (peak rut), I think its as valuable to analyze tarsal glands as much as it is to look for antlers. Mature bucks usually have a much larger stained area of hocks than does or younger bucks do. How often do we see only "parts" of deer in brush? Guys get hell bent on looking for antlers. Meanwhile, a heavily stain tarsal is right there to observe and they never even look for it. They end up watching where a fawn is going and the think they are watching the buck. Meanwhile, the buck does something that might be valuable to watch. Binoculars help us monitor those things that some guys think are insignificant. IMO, no deer pattern should ever be considered insignificant. We should be learning something on every hunt. Binocs help us observe and learn.

Other things to observe...
Leaves blowing in the distance helps us determine wind patterns.
Rubs and scrapes can be determined from a greater distance with less disturbance.
Acorns and other mast still attached to the tree can be seen better.
Trespassers/ license plates can be seen better.
There's more reasons why binocs are required gear.
I feel naked in the woods without them.
 
One more use...shed hunting.
I save a ton of energy if I can glass for antlers. Is that an antler, or just a stick?
I'm much more productive, and preserve more energy for a longer day searching, if I'm not running wild goose chases checking out every stick that looks like an antler.
 
So I generally haven't been a big binos guy. Most of the places I'm hunting in Arkansas have low visibility. However, I changed my mind once I was in Kansas. I needed binos to start glassing field edges that were a half mile away. I bought binos and a spotting scope for that very reason. For this past Christmas I got a bino harness, so now I can keep my rangefinder and binos together in a small scouting kit. If I'm gun hunting, I don't carry binos because I have my rifle scope. But bowhunting now, if I need better visibility I'll carry binos. I'm not buying/using 800-1000 sets of binos. I usually shop around, look at reviews, and then bite on an affordable pair.
 
I didn’t carry them early archery season this year and missed them every hunt. Even in areas with limited visibility they can come in handy. If it’s open enough to have an ethical shot to 25 yards you’ll have small gaps and lanes to see at least 75 yards. Binoculars can turn a flash of movement into an ear or deer or non target animal. While it doesn’t benefit you greatly today to know a nice buck is 75 yards away headed the opposite direction it may effect where you hunt tomorrow.
 
Always bring them, hate it if I forget. It's important to note that there is a world of difference between entry level binocs and a pair that runs at least three bills. I suspect some that discount them as just extra weight might never have used a really decent pair. As with any optics, you can drop a mortgage payment on a pair easy, but I think you get diminishing returns at some point after around $400-500.

If you can still find them, Bushnell's Legend Ultra-HD M Series have been discontinued, originally went for $400 but can be found for half that. A lot of glass for the money. Vortex Diamondback or Viper line are very good for the $$ (skip the Crossfire line).
 
I use them when hunting slow and focused. Don’t when spaced out, hurried and breaking sticks.
 
I’ve tried to leave mine at home only twice. Both times I had deer moving with only 5-10 min of legal light left. Could not tell what they were. Really wished for those binos. So really 90% of the time I’m only using them in those super low light situations. Oddly enough 90% of my deer are killed during those low light minutes too. So I’d say: pretty dang important.
 
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