Looking for decent 50 or 56mm binos

[skysurfer]

As I recently broke my TS 15x70 binos and made a small handheld scope from one of the barrels (http://skysurfer.eu/70mm-scope.php), I am now looking for *good* binos.
Good 70mm binos are too heavy (2.5kg) the oned I had were only 1.4kg due to plastic barrels. The TS15x70 (http://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p1420_15x70-Porro-Binoculars---LE-Series---for-low-light-conditions.html) were good in the center of the image, particularly for the only $119 price tag, they are the same as the Celestron Skymaster or Oberwerk 15x70, rather portable.
But they have weaknesses which I experienced.

- poor image quality and color errors at the edges
- weak eyepiece bridge which results in different focus for both eyes at each use
- prisms not firmly attached which results in frequent decollimation
- plastic barrels can break easily

What I need is:

- At least 50mm objectives
- Collimation should retain
- Focusing of both barrels should remain equal (once adjusted)
- at leaast 10x power
- preferably sharp to the edges but at least no visible color errors
- not heavier than 1.2kg
- preferably a compact roof prism design
- obviously astronomical use
- nature and field use (birds, game)
- near focus not more than 5m

The best option can be these from the same supplier (http://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/language/en/info/p6887_Swarovski-Fernglas-SLC-15x56-WB---SwaroClean.html) but the $2300 price tag is a bit too steep for me. For that money I can buy a nice 11cm APO or a 30cm travel Dob.

But there are intermediate options for about $500 such as the:

- Eden XP from Kato 10x56
- Vortex Vulture 10x56

Does anybody have ideas ?

[dannat]

to be honest the TS 10x50 (or andrews ultra equivalent) are what you're after for astro use -indiv focused ep are much better for stars.

i am a bit more of a porro fan -you tend to get better optics for your buck i reckon-you prob won't find one but a secondhand nikon SE 10x42 would be excellent. another option is the swift 8.5x44 (ED or non-ED)

do you require waterproof?

in roof's the zeiss terra 8x might be just in your price range. I have a now older pentax dcf 8x56 which is excellent (I find 8-9x preferable over 10x for a steadier hand held view)

vortex viper HD gets good reviews -but is a bit above your ask price, nikon monarch is another to look for as well as the zen-ray range, also vanguard ED is keenly priced (some complain about sample variation/edge sharpness)

[skysurfer]

Finally I got the Vortex Vulture 10x56 which is very good for its price. Sharp image, smooth focusing, pinpoint stars till 2/3 of the field and edge performance is not too bad.