Zeiss Victory SF 8×42

Specifications:

Objective diameter: 42 mm
Magnification: 8 x
Exit pupil: 5.25 mm
Eye relief (acc. to spec): 18 mm
Usable eye relief (measured from rim of eyecup): 16 mm
IPD: 55 – 76 mm
RFOV: 8.5 degrees = 148 m
AFOV: 64 degrees
Minimal focus distance (measured): 1.5 m
Focus type: CF (direction of rotation from close to infinity: > clockwise)
Degrees of rotation of focus wheel from 3m to infinity (measured): 280 degrees
Range of diopter adjustment (acc. to spec.): +/- 4 dpt*
Excess travel of focus wheel beyond infinity position (estimate): 5.5 dpt*
Prism system: Schmidt-Pechan
Waterproof: yes
Weight (measured, with eyepiece cover and strap): 857 g
Made in: Germany
*range of diopter adjustment not affected by position of focus wheel

Remarks:

When the Victory SF, the “crème de la crème” of Zeiss binoculars, was introduced in 2014, it featured a light grey rubber armour with unusual haptics, not the “normal” black. The market response by the apparently quite conservative birding, hunting and nature observation community seems not to have been what Zeiss expected, and Zeiss quickly updated the SF with a traditional black armour (the PINACOLLECTION keeps a grey 8×42 and a black 10×42). This episode shows how tricky it can be to bring out new products with features “beside the beaten path”. These minutiae aside, the Victory SF is a superb instrument that combines one of he best ergonomics in the premium sector with widefield, edge-sharp optics in a surprisingly light-weight body. This is no doubt one of the top six 8×42 binoculars today, the other five being the Swarovski NL Pure, Swarovski EL SV, the Leica Noctivid, the Leica Ultravid HD+ and the Nikon EDG (for all of those, see separate posts in this collection). Which one of these “Fabulous Six” you prefer depends much more on personal preferences than on any significant performance differences.

Ratings: