Impressions of the Pentax SP 10×50 WP binoculars

Binoculars with a formula of 10×50 are among the most popular. Such binoculars are suitable for both terrestrial and astronomical observations. In my opinion, 10x is the limit for comfortable observation without using a tripod.The Pentax Russia” company kindly provided me with an interesting Pentax SP 10×50 WP binoculars for testing. The binoculars are quite new, the announcement took place in January 2015.
Pentax SP 10x50 WP
Pentax SP 10×50 WP

Specifications are stated:

Type Binoculars with central focusing and “porro” prisms
Lens 2 elements in 1 group
Eyepiece 3 elements in 2 groups (aspherical element declared)
Magnification 10x
Real front lens diameter 50 mm
Field of view from 1000 m 87 m
Exit pupil diameter 5 mm
Eye relief 20 mm
Field of view
5 degrees
Diopter adjustment range +/- 2 D
Focus range From 5.5 m to infinity
Eyecups Retractable with fixation
Height 79 mm
Width 183 mm
Depth 178 mm
Weight
1 kg
Wateroproof
Waterproof when immersed to a depth of 1 m (JIS protection class 6, is not suitable for use under water), nitrogen content of the housing.
Accessories “Tripod adapter N” (69553)
Prism material BaK4
Coating Fully multicoating of all optical elements. Hydrophobic lens coating.
Closest focusing distance 5.5 m
Twilight factor 22.4
Interpupilary distance 57 – 72 mm

Looks tempting, right? Well, let’s get down to testing.
Packing.
Binoculars Pentax SP 10×50 WP comes in a large light cardboard box. No screaming advertising stickers and inscriptions – elegant and ascetic. The set includes protective covers for lenses, a wide cover for eyepieces (“rainguard”), a bag and a belt. Lens caps are held tightly, but for tight fixation of the eyepiece caps, you need to increase the interpupillary distance. There is no belt on the bag itself – it is supposed to carry binoculars with a neck strap. The bag is large, soft, high-quality, with a “Pentax” patch. Made binoculars in China.

Pentax SP 10x50 WP binoculars packaging
Pentax SP 10×50 WP binoculars packaging
Bag
Bag


Housing.

The binoculars are quite dimensional both in width (due to the stereobase) and in length (due to the long lens tubes), but at the level of similar binoculars with the same formula and scheme. Weight – 1 kg, you can watch for a long time with the hands, but still weighs considerable weight. Grip is convenient, it is pleasant to hold binoculars in hand, rubberized matte finish. The quality of materials no complaints. In the front of the binoculars under the lid hidden thread for tripod adapter. Adjustment screws on the case are not visible – as far as I know, they are hidden under a rubber coating. If you have problems with collimation, it is better to contact the official service center. Yes, by the way, the term of the brand warranty is 30 years.

Optics:
The lens aperture measured by me was 49.9 mm. The lenses are slightly recessed into the housing, the risk of getting their fingers dirty is minimal. The color of glare from lenses and prisms is dark green. Blackening inside matte. The prisms are coated. There are no traces of glue, dust, chips. Fine!

Right lens binoculars Pentax SP 10x50 WP
Right lens binoculars Pentax SP 10×50 WP
Pentax SP 10x50 WP binoculars left lens
Pentax SP 10×50 WP binoculars left lens

The diameter of the eye lenses is 17.5 mm. The color of the coating – green, blue, colorless (apparently, from the bonding of lenses). The eyepiece lenses are recessed into the housing. The measured field of view of the eyepieces corresponds to the declared – 50 degrees. Near the right eyepiece there is a lever for additional adjustment of diopters. Testing with a flashlight and examining the exit pupils showed good light protection with several small bright areas. Exit pupils are round, barely clipped by a prism.

Eyepieces of the binocular Pentax SP 10x50 WP
Eyepieces of the binocular Pentax SP 10×50 WP
Left eyepiece
Left eyepiece
Right eyepiece
Right eyepiece

Eye relief is large – about 20 mm, with screwed eyecup, you can watch with glasses. The eyecups are large, height adjustable rotation with several intermediate positions. Thanks to the cone-shaped shape, the eyecup fits comfortably into the eye socket. The eyecup is extended by 4 and 11 mm.

The eyecup is screwed
The eyecup is screwed
Intermediate position of the eyecup
Intermediate position of the eyecup
The eyecup is completely unscrewed
The eyecup is completely unscrewed

Focusing.
Focusing is ribbed drum with a rotation range of one and a half turns. Focusing tight. It is possible to fix the point of focus – you need to move the drum away from you. Interestingly, the eyepieces are not held on the bridge, as in most binoculars with a central focus, and are shifted in the tubes inside the binoculars. This has a positive effect on the tightness and dust protection of binoculars, there is also no backlash of the eyepieces when they are pressed. I personally liked this constructive solution. Binoculars with central focusing and full water protection are a unique feature.

Star test.
When testing by the stars, the binoculars showed 2/3 fields in good quality, then the stars blur. There is also a noticeable coma. For such a moderate field of view, image quality could be better. When observing the Moon there are two weak reflections. Collimation is perfect, the eyes do not get tired with a long viewing.

During daytime observations, the image is bright, saturated, contrasting, without distortion of color rendition. In the center chromatic aberration is small, it becomes more noticeable towards the edge. Distortion is almost imperceptible. Vignetting (darkening of the image to the edge) is not detected. After binoculars with roof-prisms, the image is very voluminous due to the extended stereobase.

Summary:
+Excellent build quality and housing
+Dust- moisture- waterproof, impermeability
+Fully multi coating
+Neutral color rendition
+Very small distortion
+Long eye relief
+Excellent blackening of internal surfaces
+30 year warranty.

-Tight focusing drum
-Sharpness across the field could be better.

I recommend this binoculars to people for whom the functionality and all-weather use of binoculars is more important than image quality, namely tourists, travelers, hunters, as well as undemanding observers of the night sky.

17 thoughts on “Impressions of the Pentax SP 10×50 WP binoculars”

  1. Здравствуйте. Какой лучше выбрать бинокль. Который будет обзорный полевой. Выбираю из бпц 7х50 или 7х30? Или может 10х50

      1. Тогда я за 7х35, он полегче будет. У меня был 7х35 (вроде SOTEM Салаватского завода), неплохой бинокль, хоть и не очень удобный по эргономике, с небольшим выносом зрачка, да и показался мне темноватым.

        1. 7х50 будет ярким.. но тяжёлый. Наблюдения в красной зоне

          1. Нет, Tento – это ЗОМЗ (Загорский завод), SOTEM – это СОМЗ (Салаватский завод). Могут кардинально отличаться по оптике, механике и просветлению.

          2. Я заказал Тенто 7х35. Просветление темноватого цвета. Но он ещё не у меня, чтоб судить какой мне достался бинокль. Внешне выглядит хорошо.

    1. Здравствуйте. Для наблюдений с рук я рекомендую использовать бинокли с кратностью не более 8х, ибо тремор рук на 10х уже может быть значительный. Старые советские бинокли плохи низким светопропусканием
      https://www.allbinos.com/176.1-article-Legendary_binoculars_%E2%80%93_the_BPC_Tento_10x50.html
      Лучше взять современный 8х32 или 8х42 бинокль с полным просветлением.
      У меня самого Levenhuk Sherman Pro 6.5×32 https://star-hunter.ru/levenhuk-sherman-pro-6-5×32-review/
      Увы, в продаже именно его нет, но бывают еще версии 8х32 и 8х42
      Да, они подороже, чем советские бинокли с Авито, но они однозначно лучше по качеству картинки, цветопередаче и светопропусканию. Купили один раз и закрыли этот вопрос 🙂

  2. Александр

    Добрый день. Не подскажите стоит ли покупать бинокль PENTAX SD 10×42 WP? Именно roof так как он более компактен, чтобы всегда носить его с собой, в походы и т.п. но и для астрономических наблюдений. Нигде ни в рускоязычной ни зарубежных сайтах нет на него обзора, ни 10х42 ни 8х42. Вот серия ZD…ED , есть, а конкретно SD…WP – нет. Спасибо.

    1. Здравствуйте. Такой бинокль не тестировал. Для наблюдений с рук лично мне больше подходит 8х увеличение, т.к. при 10х тряска уже заметно мешает наблюдениям – как наземным, так и астрономическим.
      Рекомендую проверить бинокль лично.
      Тут нашел немного отзывов https://www.dns-shop.ru/product/f406afe736be3330/binokl-pentax-sd-10×42-wp-cernyj/opinion/

  3. евгений

    А вы имели дело с оптикой компаний carl zeiss и swarovski? Они жутко дорогие, но наверное картинку показывают потрясающую.

  4. Евгений

    А вы имели дело с оптикой таких компаний, как carl zeiss и swarovski? Как впечатления? Они жутко дорогие, но картинка там наверное супер.

    1. Увы, нет. В более дорогих биноклях обычно лучше покрытия, механика, конструктив. Там на этом не экономят, но косяки тоже бывают. Почитайте обзоры на allbinos.com

Leave a Reply to Евгений Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

1 × 2 =

 ДАЮ СОГЛАСИЕ НА ОБРАБОТКУ МОИХ ПЕРСОНАЛЬНЫХ ДАННЫХ, С ПОЛИТИКОЙ КОНФИДЕНЦИАЛЬНОСТИ ОЗНАКОМЛЕН 
Scroll to Top