Minox 7 x 42 Compass Monocular

[Gweedo]

For some time now I’ve been interested in getting some binos that had an in-built compass to assist me with navigation. With a compass in your binoculars you are able to take bearings on distant objects and then use them to accurately plot re-sections to determine your position.

Most binos that come with in-built compasses have a mils reticule as well and this can be used to determine the height or length of the object (if you know its range) or, the distance of the object (if you know its height or length).

Having done some research on the web the Steiner 7 x 50 commander/navigator seems to be the one that gets lots of plaudits, but the price at over £500 was well over my budget so it was back to searching.

Looking on ebay there are a number of generically branded 7 x 50s that fit the bill, either shipped in from China, or within the UK and selling around the £130 mark. They all look externally similar, but are branded differently, and I was a bit concerned about the optical/build quality. Moreover, these binoculars appear to have individually focussing eyepieces, which to my mind is a big disadvantage – I’d rather have centralised focussing.

So, I faced the choice of either waiting for the lottery to come up and by some Stieners, Leicas, Swarovski etc or take a chance on a Chinese version.

However, whilst searching the web I came across the Minox 7 x 42 monocular. Whilst not what
I originally had in mind it did seem worth looking into. Selling at around the £95 mark they were cheaper than the Chinese 7 x 50s and with the Minox brand name I was a bit more confident about the build and optical quality. After a bit of umming and ahh-ing and sleeping on it, I purchased one from Amazon and within 2 days it arrived.

What’s in the box:

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The unit comes in a study cardboard box. Packed within you get the monocular, semi-hard zip case, lens cleaning cloth, instruction manual and vinyl palm grip.

The monocular seems to be a cast aluminium body with the compass mounted on the top in a plastic housing. The compass is illuminated (by daylight) via a translucent plastic window on the top of its housing. The front lens cap is captive mounted on the body, but the rear cap comes off completely. Focus is via a rotary control on the eyepiece and it is clearly marked with a white line, but there are no reference marks on the body. Eye relief is adjusted by a rotary control on the back of the eyepiece which moves the collar in and out.

The semi-hard case protects it against knocks and scratches and the monocular is a tight fit within. There is an elastic to hold the monocular, but it’s not really needed and it’s a bit of a faff to use it. On the back of the case there’s a fitted belt loop.

Optics:

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Working a monocular is not rocket science – you look through it! I was very pleasantly surprised with the optical quality. Bear in mind that I don’t have some Steiners to compare it to, so this is subjective; The image was very clear and in focus in the wider central section with focus softening around the edges. Colour was good with very little chromatic aberration. Looking at the lenses they have been coated, but there is no deep purple/green coating that you see on expensive lenses. Looking into the body it doesn’t look as though there are any light baffles that would improve depth of field at the expense of aperture.

Compass and Graticule:

The graticule extends up to 80 mil vertically and 80 mils horizontally and is very clear and in focus. There are marks every 5 mils and labelled every 10 mils. The compass settles quickly, but you need to hold the monocular horizontally to ensure that it rotates freely. The compass is clearly subdivided into 1 deg increments and marked every 10 degrees.

Handling:

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As it’s not heavy, and you haven’t got the two eyepieces to lodge in to your eye sockets, the monocular is not as steady as binos. That said, I’ve found that holding it in the manner of a telescope helps or bracing both elbows to your chest holds it securely. Lying prone and supporting it via body and elbows on the ground offers the best stability. Eye relief is a bit tricky (but not excessively so), and you need to experiment to ensure that the focus, parallax, eye relief, and compass view all work as you’d like. It’s early days with it so far and I’m sure that with practice it will become easier.

The grip needs to be carefully adjusted, and unlike binos, there’s no way supplied to enable you to carry them around your neck to prevent them from falling from your hand. That said, there are two slots for passing the grip attachment through and I’ll improvise some form of neck sling in due course. The front objective cover is a bit loose when placed over the lens and as the rear eyepiece cover is not captive mounted it is a pain. I’ve drilled a small hole in mine and used some thin line to fashion a tether to the grip mount.

Also, holding the monocular in the natural manner using the palm grip I find that my index finger naturally rests on the compass illumination screen, and of course the compass window becomes blank! You have to adjust your grip to avoid this. However, I’ve found that shining a small micro led torch on the screen illuminates the compass nicely if you want to use it at night.

The palm grip for the monocular is on the right hand side and there’s no way to put it on the left, so you’re forced (if you want to use the palm grip) to hold it with your right hand.

Conclusions:

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I’m really very pleased with it. It suits my needs perfectly – the optics are clear and bright, the compass is accurate, and doing map-re-sections is a breeze. Using the graticule requires a bit of mental arithmetic, but it works really well. The case is a great addition to protect your investment, and the monocular itself is sturdy and looks to be well up to the job. I’m very glad that I bought it.

Specifications:

Lens – 42mm od
Magnification x7
Exit pupil - 6mm
FOV @ 1000m 113.4 m (6.5 deg) – as stated in the manual
Waterproof to (not tested) 5 mtrs
Weight (complete with lens caps and grip) 381g
Weight (complete in case) 463 g

Pros:

Lighter weight/smaller pack size compared to binoculars.
Cost.
Good quality optics for the price (subjective).
Compass as a navigation aid.
Mils graticule for height/distance estimation.
Complete with case.

Cons:

No captive fitting for rear lens cap to hold it in place.
Narrow exit pupil compared to 7 x 50s.
Less light gathering power compared to 7 x 50’s.
No compass light.
Not as easy to hold steady as binos.

 

[Granite Head]

Very in depth review, thanks for sharing