Old binoculars

I was using my astronomy binocular, the other night, and it felt good to be observing, again, after an unusually long spell of cloudy and rainy weather. When I pulled the Nikon 10x70 Astroluxe out of its leather case, I instantly noticed the smell of leather and that old style leatherette covering that was once common on binoculars, but that is now a rarity. For a moment, my mind wandered back to the days of my first giant binocular, an old 11x80 astronomy binocular from the 1980s and even to some of my first binocular from back in the 60s.

Yes, there was a time when nearly all binoculars used these old materials, but only a few binoculars, like the Nikon 10x70 Astroluxe or the Leica 10x25 BL (which I also own) use these materials, anymore. Nearly everything else in the binocular world uses rubber armoring and nylon for the cases. Nothing wrong with that, of course, since armoring does have many uses on a binocular and nylon is probably more durable as a material for binocular cases, but, for me, rubber and nylon simply don't have that same ambience. Call me an old fogey, but I can’t quite convince myself that newer is necessarily better. For me, those older style binocular coverings and leather binocular cases will always be something I equate with quality and many, many fond memories.