I have an exciting new post for your today! Our Video Producer Devin recently went on a camping trip in Mt. Rainier National Park in Washington State and he was kind enough to tell me a bit about his trip so I could share with all of you! You may remember Devin from his previous GearExpert post on Dog Sledding trip in Minnesota. He knows a thing or two about hiking and camping, and he’s going to share his thoughts on the Vanguard Endeavor ED 8×42 Binocular.
Today’s post is just part one of three, so be sure to stay tuned for more on his trip!
I really enjoyed field testing the Vanguard Endeavor ED 8x42mm binocular during a couple day hikes I went on at Mt. Rainier National Park. Since I’ve started working at OpticsPlanet I’ve had the opportunity to try out many makes and models of binoculars and while that doesn’t exactly give me a doctorate in sport optics I’ve seen enough from the high end and low end to tell the basic differences. The 8×42 Endeavor ED is a really fantastic mid range binocular.
The Endeavor Binoculars fit nicely in your hands for a comfortable grip.
Right out of the box you’ll see they are an ergonomically shaped roof prism design with a rubberized armor coating. Holding these in my hands I noticed my fingers fell naturally over the focus wheel making glassing a hillside feel very fluid and steady. The Endeavor ED has a really nice wide field of view and the clarity of the glass is crisp and gorgeous with no noticeable color bleeding or weird distortion of long range objects. The diopter ring of this binocular has a smart locking feature which keeps it out of any danger of being knocked out of whack after you have adjusted it.
The rubber lens caps are easy to remove and attach to the strap.
The ocular and objective lens covers are made from relatively soft rubber and are easy to attach to the binocular strap and body so that you won’t lose them. The 8×42 Vanguard Endeavor ED also comes with a really nice neck strap and carrying case. The neck strap installs easily and has a neoprene padding which is very soft on your neck. It also offers some relief so if I ever got a jolt from slipping while I was hiking the binocular strap wouldn’t slam on the back of my neck. The carrying case is compact and fairly well padded. The material feels very durable not cheap like some cases you typically find with some other brands. It had a single belt loop on the back if you wanted to thread your belt through it or even perhaps attach it to the waist strap of a hiking pack. The shoulder strap leaves a little to be desired since Vanguard really set the bar high with the neck strap but to be honest once I had this bino out of the case it never went back in because I was having a lot of fun using them. Aesthetically it is also a pretty cool looking binocular as well. The Vanguard Endeavor line itself really stands apart from the competition with their gun metal open bridge design, neon green stripes around the eye cups and matching stitching on the neck strap. I also noticed that the eye cups have an interesting design as well. When adjusting the eye relief, each eyepiece seems to extend past each setting before falling back slightly to seat itself in each position instead of simply stopping abruptly at each point. This didn’t affect the operation of the binocular but was just a slick, stylish touch like an automatic seatbelt arm in a 335i BMW Coupe. All in all I was really impressed with the Vanguard Endeavor ED 8x42mm binocular. It’s an incredibly well-designed binocular with fantastic clarity and it’s quality exceeds its modest price point.
Devin Viewing Mt Rainier with Vanguard Endeavor Binoculars
Can I just say I’m jealous? Look at the views in those photos! Devin also took along a flashlight and GPS unit, so come back here to GearExpert in the coming days to read more about his trip to Mt. Rainier!
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« Gun Safety – What to Do, What to Think Hiking Mt. Rainier Part 2 – The SureFire AZ2 LED Flashlight Impresses! »
I WOULD PURCHASE THIS IF IT ALSO HAD A RAIL SYSTEM SO i COULD ADD OTHER LIGHTS, OR A LASER TARGETING LIGHT.
Ok what is new Surefire has been making replacement forearms with lights for year for both Remington and Mossberg, problem is the cost low in being 300.00. You can get a replacement forearm with a rail and attach a 1 inch mount with a tac light a do the same thing. I set up 3 shotguns for what one would cost if I did a surefire replacement forearm.