Binocular collimation in NSW

[thegableguy]

I've got some Barska Storm 12x60 binoculars which I bought about two years ago. Each side is still wonderfully sharp, but they're pretty out of alignment. Is that still called collimation...?

Is there anywhere that will fix this relatively cheaply, either on the NSW Central Coast (preferable) or in Sydney? Google searches don't come up with much. Probably a simple job for someone who knows what they're doing (ie not me).

I still love these binoculars - I reckon 12x60 is the perfect maximum for handheld, and they go great on a tripod. The night I first unpacked them I saw the Galillean moons, and that right there was the end of any spare cash I had...

[RAJAH235]

Hi Chris,
I used to use this guy but apparently he's gone out-of-business.
Note the message at the top of the page...
viz; "DAW optical is no longer operating. Pls address all enquiries for equipment servicing to: Optomech Services - Dennis Lalor 0416 511 944"

Original site is here...
> http://www.i-optic.com/daw/

or, Why not contact BINTEL & either send an email or ask them?
Message box at the bottom.
> https://www.bintel.com.au/contact-us/


&, as raymo mentioned below, it's really easy to do.
I'd suggest placing them on a solid surface, find a fairly distant object & try it.
The "blink test" is recommended.

[raymo]

It is still called collimation, and unless they are junk quality you should
find the small collimating screws beneath the rubber [or other material]
covering. It's not particularly difficult to do.
raymo

[dannat]

look up roger davis, roger's optics & restoration

you can attempt conditional ALIGNMENT by yourself, collimation will definitily not happen without the proper equipment & technique...

[bojan]

To collimate/align yourself, you need a tripod (to fix the binocular some 1 m above the ground), a Sun (as a light source) and a piece of white paper on the ground with 2 marks (circles, crosses.. distance between them should be the same as distance between centres of eyepieces), onto which you will project the images of Sun through both optical systems.
Simply adjust the collimating screws (or eccentric rings around front lenses) until you have both Sun's projections on marks (couple of mm error will not be the problem).

See here: http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showpost.php?p=197185&postcount=32

[OffGrid]

G'day Chris,

Roger at Roger's Optics & Restoration has restored 2 of my 40 odd year old binoculars.
Very happy with his work. Both pairs had fungal growth, mechanical and collimation issues.
You will find his advert in the Market Place page at rear of the latest Aust Sky & Telescope.

[warpsl]

Hello. It sounds like each barrell is out of alignment.my old Saxon 15x70,s had this problem.I re-drilled the pivot hinge and added some shims to alighn them.I then sold them working perfectly.but I have moved on to better Jap and German glass.unfortunately Chinese bino,s still have a long way to go.