On our farm/ranch we have a wide variety of butterflies/insects and a very few of our visitors have an interest in viewing them (most come to see the birds or foxes). I aquired 4 sets of specialty 7x50 binoculars that have an unusual focus range of .5 meters to 40 meters (max). The very few people who used them (mostly to watch the dances of the fireflies in early evening all summer) have commented that they are the sharpest WFOV 7x50s they have ever used. But I have too many pairs and I need suggestions on what to say trying to sell them on ebay, or how/where to sell them on other forums (not sure if other internet insect forums have selling areas for binoculars for up close viewing).
The binoculars in question were developed by the US/UK governments to view flat screens that were 10/20/and/40 meters away from the viewer. The company contracted to supply the bins to both governments was CAE Invertron UK, so that''s what the bins are labelled. Since they are fully multicoated, super sharp and designed to view wide flat screens like movie screens, the quality is amazing. The binoculars were contracted to be built in Japan. On one of the pairs there seems to be a brand label called Atlantic, but I've never heard of this badge/brand and so I don't think it's a "real" brand. There is a measuring reticle in the left eye view of each of these binoculars but it doesn't seem to interfere with general viewing.
The major caveat for normal birding is that the infinity position on the center focus wheel and the collimation are both set so that at the normal max/infinity focus position the furthest distance the bins will focus is 44 meters. I had one visitor so impresssed with the views from a blind/hide only 20 meters from some feeders that he bought a pair and tried to have them redone to focus at infinity. This modification cost 3x as much as the price he paid us for the bins, so I don't consider this modification cost effective since so many excellent binoculars for birding are available on ebay for less money.
These bins are extremely well made and solid (but I don't think they are waterproof because they have a standard center focus that moves the eyepieces). I'd like to sell a few pairs of these binoculars and I don't know if there are insect/butterfly forums with selling pages (recommendations would be appreciated). Selling on ebay seems like another option but there isn't a special area on ebay for up-close insect/butterfly bins. How would anyone attract attention to a specialty item like this? Any sugestions would be greatly appreciated.
Would those be swift foxes? By the way, i am a prairie fanatic.
E-bay is your best bet, because it offers the greatest exposure.
I would title them:
"close focus/close-up insect binoculars 7x50 porro prism", and provide the technical description in the text. There are sections for insect lovers on several internet forums.
Actually, most birders watch birds in their yards, and 44 m is adequate for that.
How much?
[QUOTE=Luca]Would those be swift foxes? By the way, i am a prairie fanatic.
E-bay is your best bet, because it offers the greatest exposure.
I would title them:
"close focus/close-up insect binoculars 7x50 porro prism", and provide the technical description in the text. There are sections for insect lovers on several internet forums.
Actually, most birders watch birds in their yards, and 44 m is adequate for that.
How much?[/QUOTE]
It is 99% certain that the foxes that breed in a forested area of downed trees are red foxes. They have the right color and long limbs. Swift foxes are much smaller and would probably not do well in a territorial battle with the large red foxes we have on our ranch. If there were swifties here, we would also have a flood of visitors. It's already very difficult to get a photo of the foxes here because they are so stealthy, even while hunting. Luckily our flat ranch land slopes gradually to a creek in the back pasture and the horses eat allot of the vegatation between the foxes' den, the places they hunt and our observation areas but we do get to see them as they traverse the open areas. We are hoping for good photos this year.