Pentax 10x43 DCF SP binoculars

"I was very pleasantly surprised when I first looked through them. I had forgotten I was looking through a mid-price range pair of binoculars."

Review by Andy Birch (surfbirds At surfbirds.com)

At first handling, these are impressive binoculars. They are compact, ligtweight (25oz.) and easy to handle. The dark green armor provides a good grip and I found the thumb notches added to the ease of use. The focus control is well placed, large, covered with grooved, soft rubber for a good grip, and turns very easily. The rain guard is a pair of loose-fitting plastic cups joined by a flexible bridge. The nifty lens caps are soft rubber caps that fit into the armored ends of the barrels and swing down out of the way of the field of view (see the video below)

The DCF SPs are waterproof and nitrogen purged for weather resistance. Pentax also says the external glass surfaces are coated with a hydrophobic compound to prevent fogging (which I wasn't able to test).

In terms of the optics, I was also very pleasantly surprised when I first looked through them. I had forgotten I was looking through a mid-price range pair of binoculars. I spent some time looking at Willets and Heerman's Gulls along the beach and was impressed both by the clarity and brightness. Feather patterns of the Willets 20 ft away were as clear and crisp as you could hope. I had heard that the DCF SPs were not as bright as the Zeiss Victorys (which I wasn't able to compare to) but they held up very well against the Leica 10x42 BA (perhaps brighter even). However, I did detect some color fringing. The close focus is also about 6.6 feet (less than the Leica 10x42BA).

All of this sums up a pretty impressive performance, especially when you consider that the DCF SPs are often available for several hundred dollars less than some of the top of the line models.

Some Data

Field of view at 1000 yards 105m/315 ft

Real Field of view 6.0

Eye pupil aperture 4.3mm

Minimum Close Focus 6.6 ft

waterproof 1m depth of water

Dimensions (in inches) 5.7 x 5.0

Weight 25.0 oz. (710g)

Price midrange - various internet deals in mid $600s (see below)

See Brian's Review of the Leica 8x42 Ultravid BR Binoculars