Leupold Acadia Roof Prism Binoculars

My career is in ornithology and I need a good set of glass to see everything I need to with wild birds. I had an old pair of Bushnell binos that eventually gave up on me. They were great, but I needed something more for what I do. The Acadias are awesome. The image is clear and the focus is quick and firm. My only issue is with the objective lens covers. They are rubber, attached and designed to pop into the body for convenience. Doing what I do, I have to fight my way through some thick forests to get to certain areas. The objective covers continually come off and climbing through dense vegetation puts them in danger of scratching. What happens when they tear off or relax to the point where they won't stay on at all? Am I going to have to send them to Leupold just to replace such a simple part? It's just silly to me. As for the weight from some reviews, yes they are a little heavy, but you're welcome to invest in some Zeiss if you want something air-weight. I have a bino system harness and that transfers the load to my shoulders and back. Being such a small item for that, I don't even notice them.In short, Leupold makes amazing things, but they comfort features need to be a bit tougher for the biologists out there.

These things are really nice and transmit a very sharp, clear image. Best binoculars I've ever owned. I've used them around the neighborhood etc birdwatching and also took them on a trip out West to Glacier and Yellowstone. They stayed out on the dash of the rental for 10 days (when they weren't in my back pack) for ready access and I can't tell you how many bears, wolves, various birds, large game, etc I watched through them. Can't imagine not having had a nice set of binoculars and really glad I settled on this pair. As I said, they're crisp and clear and seem well made. Only issue I experienced is that when focusing there is a slight rubbery binding or friction noise as the lenses move in and out. Was thinking of sending them back for a replacement pair but got used to this minor hiccup and haven't noticed any performance issues.

At this time of my life, along with my wife, I am exploring Northern California in my pickup. I keep these binoculars in my truck and use them to explore a new valley we discover, or scan a desert floor, or get close to an eagle or other wildlife we come upon. The 10x power is great and the size makes them easy to handle. Also, I have eyes that are set wide apart on my face and these binoculars adjust for me just fine. The clarity is amazing and when I look at what other binoculars cost, these were a reasonable buy. Totally satisfied.

I bought these for the Leopold name expecting a quality product. Objects viewed were covered and surrounded by a heavy rainbow halo effect (chromatic aberration?). I don't know if it was typical of this model or just a damaged exception but I returned them and will try something else. Everything else about them seemed like a good quality product unfortunately Binoculars are kind of about the image.

I sent the following in an email to Leupold customer service over 3 weeks ago and got no response.I've always had a positive experience with Leupold, and I didn't hesitate to buy a pair of Acadia 10x42 binoculars that were on sale in September of 2011 for my girlfriend to use on our frequent trips around the country. At $169, they were a great deal. On a recent fly & drive trip from Seattle and down the coast to San Francisco, we took her Leupold Acadia's and my old Nikon 10x50's along. I became so impressed with the quality, size and weight of the Acadia's that I decided to buy a pair when we got home.As luck would have it, (or so I thought) Bass Pro was running a one day sale on Leupold Acadia BX-2 10x42's for $149.00. ($20 less than I'd paid for hers in September of 2011) I drove 50 miles over to the Bossier City, LA store to pick up a pair. They had sold out, but offered a rain check and said that they'd call when they came in.As promised, the store called a couple of weeks later to let me know they were in, and I made the trip to pick them up. I hadn't opened the box until I went to the hunting club one afternoon to do some scouting. I opened the package, attached the strap and started adjusting them. Let's just say that I was underwhelmed. I didn't have my girlfriend's Acadia's with me for a direct comparison, but my pair just didn't seem smooth, light or compact as I'd remembered of hers. I used them for the afternoon, and showed them to a friend. He's also one of the Leupold faithful, but like me, he wasn't impressed. I didn't think much more about it until I pulled out my girlfriend's Leupold Acadia's and put them beside the Leupold Acadia BX-2's that I'd gotten from Bass Pro. It's then that I realized that the Acadia has undergone a complete redesign, and not for the better. Her pair are more compact, substantially lighter and came with a durable padded cordura case as opposed to the cheap-ish neoprene case that's included the 2012 Acadia. The new pair felt substantially heavier, so I put each pair, in turn, onto my digital kitchen scale. With strap and no lens covers, hers weigh in at 22oz. The new pair, 28.2oz. That's a 28% increase in weight or an extra 6.2oz that I'd have to hold while scouting and a big factor in fatigue. (Note that the specs on both the Leupold Acadia and Leupold Acadia BX-2 boxes list the weight at an identical 23.5 oz and the Leupold site list also lists the weight of the BX-2 at 23.5oz.) Her 2011 Acadia's feel light in your hands, but with the smoothness of a refined instrument. Adjustment of the new BX-2 is stiff and clunky and they feel heavy and cheap.I would have gladly paid the extra $20 that I'd paid for my girlfriend's last year to get the same quality binocular. Had I known of the downgrade in quality of the Acadia line, I would have passed on them completely.I called Leupold customer service and explained all of the above, but all I got was a very unsatisfying, "I'm sorry that you're unhappy. You're welcome to return them to the store to see if they'll offer a refund." Now I'm stuck with a pair of Binoculars that I"m unhappy with. I honestly feel duped by Leupold, a company that, until this experience, I'd trusted completely and I'm left with a bad taste and the unsavory choice of keeping them or making a third 100 mile round-trip to Bass Pro to return this inferior product.I'll be making the drive and will be looking to other manufacturer's lines, likely Nikon Monarch, for my sporting optics.

I am taking the blame here for not paying as much attention to the overall size of these before ordering. I was ordering these for my fiance as a Christmas gift. She wanted something same and compact but powerful. They are extremely clear and will be perfect for hutning outings this year.

I have reviewed and researched for 6 months before buying a new pair of binoculars to hunt with this Fall. After looking through many different brands and models in the stores, this pair by Leupold upholds all the company tradition of clear, crisp images with more light-gathering performance than any other brand. The Acadia BX-2 was well within my budget and didn't break the bank. I am excited to use these binos this Fall.