No other category in the world of hunting and shooting can come close to matching the scores of new products produced by optics makers each year. From mounts to scopes to binoculars, many manufacturers have come up with innovative solutions to vexing problems and refined existing products to elevate them to new performance plateaus. Shooting Times scoured the SHOT Show floor to find the best new optics--big and small, expensive and cheap--for 2008.

Alpen
Alpen Outdoor Corporation has introduced four new binoculars in 2008, extending existing lines. The Models 67 and 68 are compact versions of Alpen's top-shelf Rainier series. They have magnesium bodies for durable and lightweight field performance, and they utilize PXA phase coating and SHR metallic coating on BaK4 glass for bright, clear images. Both binos have twist-up eyepieces for use with or without eyeglasses as well as a locking system on the adjustable diopter to maintain viewer-specific settings. The new Rainiers are waterproof, fog proof, and come with a carrying case and Alpen's lifetime warranty.

The new Teton models use the same magnification system as the Rainier series but have composite bodies and are larger in size. Both new models have 50mm objectives, and all air-to-glass surfaces are multicoated for exceptional low-light performance. The 8.5X Model 85 glasses have a 315-foot field of view (FOV) at 100 yards. The 10X Model 89 Teton binocular improves low-light performance over the 8X42mm Teton but only adds 4 ounces.

BSA Stealth 4x32

BSA
The new Stealth Tactical series from BSA Optics runs the gamut from a 1X reflex with built-in rails for close quarter battle (CQB) accessories to a high-powered, variable optic with fine adjustments.

Seven different scopes make up the Stealth line, ranging from a fixed 4X all the way up to an 8-32X benchrest model. All the models have innovative, all-weather push-pull turrets with 1/8-MOA adjustments, etched-glass mil-dot reticles, and oversized side-focus wheels. There is even a provision to control image brightness in the form of an adjustable aperture on the front of the scope, while others have illuminated reticles. The scopes' glass is fully multicoated.

The four new 1X reflex optics all have built-in mounting systems. Shooters can choose from two plain models with red dots or two models with red, green, and blue dots plus a light and laser sight that mount on integral rails. Image brightness also can be adjusted similarly to the variable-power scopes. The scopes are covered by a lifetime warranty.