Astro binoculars

[Brendo924]

G'day looking at buying some celestron 25x70 binoculars any thoughts please , cheers Brendan

[OzStarGazer]

I don't know the binoculars, but you will definitely need a tripod...

[OICURMT]

What are you going to be using them for?

I really like my 15x70 and consider 15X to be the higest that you can hold stable for any length of time. Even then, they work better on a tripod, so I agree with Gazer, 25x70 requires a tripod for the average individual.

Celestron Skymaster 25x70
$69.95 at B&H Photo (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/673766-REG/Celestron_71008_SkyMaster_25x70_Bin ocular.html)
$82.00 at OPT (http://www.optcorp.com/ce-71008-skymaster-25x70-binoculars.html)
Not even going to entertain the cost of Celestron in Australia, been done too many times here...

http://www.celestron.com/browse-shop/astronomy/astronomy-binoculars/skymaster-25x70-binocular

http://www.bestbinocularsreviews.com/Celestron25x70SkyMaster-121.htm

[dannat]

read reports on CN -they are a lottery quality wise, & plenty of abberation from the fast obj. & eyepieces

what is your primary aim for them? either the 15x70 or a 20x80 will be beter imo

[Brendo924]

G'day yeah mainly to look at moon planets etc , I might check out the 15x70 thanks for the input cheers guys

[barx1963]

I purchased a pair of 15x70 Orion binos. They give lovely views but really need a parallelogram mount to use them comfortably. Have tried regular tripods and too fiddly with the height adjustments required. I used them a little at Heathcote over the weekend and easily nabbed M33 in them and they easily enabled the entire LMC in one FOV.

Malcolm

[Renato1]

Yes, tripods are fiddly when they are used conventionally, though they give great views of objects not too high in the sky.

I use 15X70s all the time, both hand held for short periods, and hand holding a tripod onto which they are mounted. The extra weight added to the binoculars by the tripod makes them much more useable and you can aim at any part of the sky.

Regards,
Renato

[dannat]

binos are not really a moon/planet instrument -they are for constellation viewing, open clusters etc -you will disappointed at the tiny dot a planet shows as -the moon is also much better thru a scope

[julianh72]

I find a monopod is ideal. I was using a lightweight camera tripod with the legs folded together to make a pseudo-monopod, but then I bought a lightweight telescoping monopod with a pan-tilt head, and it is perfect with my 15x70s.

It will extend tall enough to support the binoculars while I am standing, even for viewing objects near the Zenith (I am 178 cm tall, and the monopod extends to about 1.8 m, plus the height of my binocular bracket when fitted to the pan-tilt head, so it will extend it more than enough for use while standing), or retract it for seated use. (It's also very handy for stabilising my DSLR when I am using it with a long-focus lens, and much more portable then even a lightweight tripod.)

[Renato1]

Thanks. I've got a monopod too, but I've never warmed to it for some reason - possibly because I can't put it and the binoculars down anywhere easily to do something else.

Regardless, used my way or your way will increase the stability and usability of high powered binoculars relative to just hand-holding them.
Cheers,
Renato

[Brendo924]

G'day , I ended up getting the celestron skymaster 25x70 binoculars at first objects were in double I googled how to collimate and now there perfect also have a monopod on order , thanks to everyone for there input cheers