There are still a lot of 11* extra wide's out there. So if you want a Super Wide at an affordable price that is in about excellent vintage condition then it would be hard to beat this hefty beauty!

Made in the mid-1970s, there is a 1976 magazine advertisement here on eBay for sale that shows this exact set for $80.00. That is the equivalent of $450.00+ today. And we opine that since our government lies about EVERYTHING, and has long ago been caught fiddling with the inflation figures, the true cost of such an amazing optic back then could easily be much higher. Perhaps double what they now are claiming. Back then, one man with a good job - my own father - raised six children while his wife, our mother, stayed home!

That said, what would such a super wide set be worth today? Well, consider that they were pretty rare back then. Yes, readily available, but few wished to pay the steep price when less expensive optics at a still astonishing eleven degrees wide were also an option. As a comparison, the standard width of view for the 7x,35 was a decent 7.1 degrees. We've seen sets made in Japan circa 1955 as narrow as six degrees. So this set is twice as wide as some and nearly that compared to the more common standard for the size and power.

And now consider that nothing like this set is made ANYWHERE ON THE PLANET!!! So every year as more become broken, ruined from abuse, and/or just thrown away because old grease has made focusing difficult and/or fungus and film on prisms long ago dulled views, it becomes more and more difficult to find specimens as nice as this one.

Ocular and objective lenses are near pristine. Inner surfaces of all four BK-7 prisms were wiped clean of haze causing film. As was the interior of the bino and the inner surfaces of the objective lenses. The same was done to the ocular lenses. Views are as crisp and clear as the day they left the factory in Nippon. Their width is mind blowing, of course. Few have had the pleasure, actually the astonishment, to peer through such an optic. Invariably when they do the usual reaction is, "Oh my God," or a simple "WOW!"

For birding or any other reason to use a binocular one certainly sees far more with wide angle binos. Their ease of use is beguiling and addictive. Once you've put one up to your own orbs and experienced the world suddenly widen and leap forward seven times closer you won't want to use any other binocular of standard field of view (FoV).  No less a Roofer that lacks such width and the typical Porro prism 3D views.

Super Wides in this size and power are considered anything over eleven degrees wide. Made by a number of firms, they were sold under even more such as Sears, Wards, Bushnell, Empire, Le Gran, Sans & Streiffe amongst others. Most used higher index, and even pricier, Bak-4 prisms that are usually considered slightly brighter. However, there are so many variables when it comes to optics that quite often BK-7 prisms were considered just fine and performed/perform amazingly well. This is just such an example. In bright daylight one would be hard pressed to see any difference with a similar optic loaded with Bak-4s.

At twelve degrees wide you get nearly the same width of views of the 12.5* models, such as the famous Tasco 110, without having to fork over $300.00+ that they now command. Most would be hard pressed to notice the half degree difference truth be told. Though the iconic Tasco does have the best chassis we ever held! While not exactly huge, this bino is a handful for my medium sized hands. Yet my wife with smaller hands and really thin fingers still found them manageable. Such wide optics are also her favorites and she says they remind her of standing in front of a huge diorama. Especially the ones found in the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan.

Satisfaction or request a return and cheerful refund within three days of receipt,please.