Astronomy binoculars beginner

[IRT]

Hey fellas

Im looking at getting some binouculars for looking at the skies and maybe some land viewing from time to time... can someone recommend me some good binoculars???

looking at minimizing costs best bang for buck is what im after... i was looking at these here any opinions on these ones??

also are 15x70 going to be much better then 10x50

http://www.ozbinoculars.com.au/acuter-skyland-15x70-binocular.html


:thanx:

[BeanerSA]

They are going to be some amount better, but they will be considerably more expensive which is why most stick to 10x50. Also 15x70 are going to be heavier and more susceptible to hand shake, so a tripod may be required.

[brian nordstrom]

:thumbsup: Hi IRT and :welcome: to IIS, on those binoculars the 10x50 pair would be better as you can hold them in your hands and still get awesome views , but ;) the 15x70,s will show a lot more deep sky at the expense of portability, you could hand hold them but they will get heavy fast and every movement. , breath , twitch etc. will be magnified 15x and that gets old fast , yes you can lean against a wall , use a broom , lie down but they will still get heavy after a time.
Goodbye portability. , as you really need a tripod for big binoculars and then cost rears its ugly head and all of a sudden your $159 binoculars end up costing $250 plus , depending on type. , oh yes big binoculars are cool , I have some 80mm ones. Awesome but not very portable .
Others will chime in here for sure. , but in the end it is your call , I find I use my 8x56,s all the time. , hand held.

Brian.

[IRT]

thanks for the info the ones I linked... are they a good price ? also they weigh 1.3kg is that considered amongst the heavier spectrum?? what weight is considered easy and portable?

[BeanerSA]

They are pretty cheap, and may not be the best, but are still better than no binos at all. Manageability is a very personal thing. You just have to try them for yourself.

[IRT]

What about cheaper binoculars on ebay? are these cheap for a reason cheap and nasty or are they actually wroth considering for a beginner?

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Ausriver-sale-Brand-New-Professional-Adjustable-20-180x100-Zoom-Binoculars-/120901123417?hash=item1c2644bd59

[BeanerSA]

I'll tell you what. You tell us what your budget is, and we'll recommend something from a reputable dealer. You're in Aus?

[IRT]

Yes in australia

budget is around $80-$150

[BeanerSA]

Some suggestions
http://www.bintel.com.au/Binoculars/Pentax-Binoculars/Pentax-SP-10x50/1656/productview.aspx
http://www.bintel.com.au/Binoculars/Nikon-Binoculars/Nikon-Aculon-A211-8x42/1625/productview.aspx
http://www.ozscopes.com.au/barska-10x50-wide-angle-escape-binoculars.html
http://www.teds.com.au/nikon-10x50-aculon-a211

[IRT]

Thanks for the suggestions... do you strongly believe that I should go for 10x50 over 15x70?

If I go for 10x50 will it leave me wishing I got the 'more powerful' ones? I understand that they may be a little heavier but thats not a major concern as I will be laying down or comfortable in a chair most of the time

[brian nordstrom]

:question: Power ? ,,, power ? ,, :help: me , this old mis-conseption that many newby's get caught up in , like the old 675x chestnut that sellers of crap telescopes use , POWER , means NOTHING !!! , its the aperture , optical and mechanical quality that matters , :thumbsup: more so in binoculars .

To put it this way , my 'Vuelux' 8x56 binos are very good optically and mechanically , I got these for $40 at a chemist in Napier NZ in about 1990 , these have been with me all over the world and are as good today as the day I got them , they are Japanese quality .
Now I have a friend who receintly spent $1200 , YES !!! :eyepop: $1200 on a pair of 8x32 Leinca's , but these are probably the best binoculars I have ever looked thru , true they are as bright as my 56mm pair ,,, well almost , but they are awesome and ooze quality .
Would I spend that much ? :shrug: , would you ??? , each to his own on this .

I would personally look hard at the pairs BeanerSA has shown here , and if you want POWER :P :rofl: get an 8 inch Dobsonion , then 200x is available m but for now get the best quality you can afford , these will last you many years and give great views when you cant be bothered setting up a scope .

By the way my first astronomical instrument was a pair of 8x40 binos mounted on my sisters painting easel , seen Saturn's rings in those when I was 12 years old ,,, awesome .

I reciently built this awesome set up from the IIS classifieds , 25x100's these gave really good views as they were of high quality , but as you can see very BIG , sadly life dictated that I had to sell this sweet set up , yes binocular astronomy can be lots of fun .

I also have these little 16x32 Bushnell;s these live permanently in my ute for whenever I am out and don't have a scope with me , got these at Rays Camping , and are of quite good quality , show lots more than the naked eyes , for sure .

Brian.

[ZeroID]

As Brian says above aperture rules but 15 x 70 is unmanageable for everyday use and even for astro will require a tripod at least for any longer period use.

The important criteria I find are aperture and a flat field of view. I have an old pair ( well a combo of two pairs actually ) of Zenit 12 x 50 bins. I repaired one with parts from the other and put longer (50mm) lightsheilds on and they are just brilliant. Not too heavy but a wide enough feild of view and enough aperture to collect photons to see M42 nebula dust clouds. They are also quite useable at car events which would not be the case for 15 x 70. Just lugging those around would be a mission so they would get very little use.

At that aperture you would be far better off buying a 70 or 80 mm scope and tripod. I have a 80mm f11 on an AZ tripod as a grab and go. It's only an achromatic but at f11 very little fringing to worry about and it's quite ok for moon, planets and a bit of brighter DSO objects.

As a comment I bought a pair of quite expensive 10 x 50 bins a while ago for 'normal' use but their flat field performance is rubbish. Anything near the edge gets all bent out of shape. My $20 Zenits just shred them despite most of the paint being chipped off and the faux leather worn.

Try before you buy is the best advice, 10 or 12 x 50 is the best general option for useabilty.

Good luck, keep us posted. :thumbsup:

[IRT]

THanks for the help fellas, good forum very active and providing help to questions that you've probably seen posted many times.

I have decided to go the 10x50 route as it sounds like this will offer me the best balance which is what I need starting out.

Now the question is what brand/model should I purchase?? still looking at beaners recommendations but I really dont know whats good whats bad and if things are worth spending extra on so the only factor I have to go on is price... and I heard bak4 is good too

[BeanerSA]

Binos are the one thing you can realistically try in a store. Go to a Teds or a Rays Outdoor, and try a few pairs. At the end of the day, get the best pair you can within your budget.

[dannat]

i think for astronomy you should stick to the 15x70 -tey can be difficult to handhold, i often use mine with a monopod to improve stability
you can get a decent quality 15x70 from andrewscom.com.au (http://www.andrewscom.com.au)for 169, or even the 11x70 for that matter.

i also recommend you look at http://www.telescopes-astronomy.com.au/-they had both a 11x70 & 13x70 within your budget at a good price, the adv of the 11x & 13x power binos is you can hold them steadier than 15x, but you'll still be rewarded with the increased aperture
no disrespect but teds/rays outdoors are not the places to try a bino for astronomy

the other option you might do is lok for a 12x50 japan made older bino on gumtree, their build quality will beexcelent & you can often pick up an old model for 50 or under -good optics last a long time, so don't be scraed about buying older secondhand models -they will often hold alignment better than newer chinese models with more plastic in them.

[sil]

10x50 will be plenty for you, avoid the cheap "craptastic ebay specials". Pay for the quality glass. 1.3kg doesnt sound like much, but pretend to be a pirate and use a full bottle of coke as a telescope, Sit in a chair and see how comfortable and steady you can hold it to your eye for any length of time. Just try it.

I get fantastic views with my Leica 8x20s but they are quality glass, no chromatic problems, comfortable to hold and comfortable on the eyes.

Buy from Bintel, they don't have any craptastic brands, Pentax are great quality (I have a large pair from bintel) Dont get hung up over stupid spec numbers, its the quality of the optics that matter and what you pay for, hence why those cheap "big" binos are worthless, you get chromatic smears instead of pinsharp stars.

[sil]

If you do this see if you can look at trees against the sky. Look for "colour fringing" on the edges of fine details, like twigs/leaves against the bright sky. You will get the same fringing from stars/planets against black. Even garbage binos look ok viewing ducks in the park during day, you need high contrast and fine detail to see how bad the optics really are. Get your eye in and look for the fringing in the middle of the view and all across to the edge, even expensive binos can have distortion at the edges but most of the view should be flat and clear to avoid eye strain.

[IRT]

Wha about some saxon 10x50wa can pick up a pair 2nd hand for $50 is this a good deal ?

[BeanerSA]

That's pretty much chump change these days (for most). I'd give them a go. You'd probably be able to sell them for $50 if you don't like them, or want to upgrade.

[dannat]

be careful of the cheap saxons -many of their models have the ruby coating which is aplied to dim them for bright daylight use; you want the non-ruby coated for astro

check http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/dundas-valley/miscellaneous-goods/tasco-binoculars-12-x-50mm/1077075453 , which state are you in? these look to be in better condition http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/chermside/miscellaneous-goods/daylight-deluxe-binoculars/1088808968

[GrampianStars]

I ended up with these entry Pentax 10x50 XCF
after my 2 sets of 8x42 triplets somehow walked
https://www.dirtcheapcameras.com.au/pentax-10x50-xcf-binoculars-65792.html
which do the job well for scanning :thumbsup:

[IRT]

ok all thanks for the helpful feedback on this topic

I have made the decision to stick with 10x50 as it sounds like a better allrounder and I will probably end up using the binoculars for other things aswell as astronomy viewing.

I have found these 4 binoculars which I think fits in my budget well and I would like to know out of these which one is the best bang for buck and the pros or cons of each if you have the time.

thanks

Saxon L Series 10x50 Porro Prism Binoculars $99
http://www.opticscentral.com.au/index.php/catalog/product/view/_ignore_category/1/id/950/s/saxon-l-series-10x50-porro-prism-binoculars/?gclid=CIKf7diG7scCFUgsvQodJbIHPQ#. VfJMTW6OFv4

National Geographic 10x50 Porro Binoculars $67
http://www.ozscopes.com.au/national-geographic-10x50-porro-binoculars.html

Celestron Professional Binoculars Upclose 10x50 $68
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Celestron-Professional-Binoculars-Upclose-10x50-Perfect-Christmas-Gift-71137-/191002761316?hash=item2c78a6d864

Barska Escape 10x50 Wide Angle Binoculars $94
http://www.ozscopes.com.au/barska-10x50-wide-angle-escape-binoculars.html

[BeanerSA]

They are all going to be very similar, pick whichever ones you can get with the least amount of effort. Time to make a decision, dude.

[IRT]

Yeah making decisions is not my strong point :P

Well all 3 apart from the saxon have bk7 the saxon has bak4
is there going to be any major difference between this?

am going to place a order this weekend so yeah I'm trying to have the decision made before shipping day: monday

[julianh72]

+1 for the Pentax XCF 10x50 (a.k.a. Pentax SP) - they are great value for money, and give a really nice 6.5 degree wide-angle view.

Bintel sell them for AU$139 (branded as Pentax SP), but you can pick them up even cheaper from On-Line retailers from the USA - but the recent collapse of the Aussie dollar may mean the imported price is higher than it was a few months ago. (Don't make the mistake of buying "Pentax Whitetails Unlimited" - these are even cheaper, but they are not as good as the XCF / SP binoculars.)

[BeanerSA]

http://binocularsky.com/binoc_minefield.php

[IRT]

Thanks I wish I could try before I buy but unfortunately that is not possible the only shop around here is BCF and looking on their website they dont seem to stock anything decent.. or do they?

[IRT]

nothing works on that website cant click links or see photos not sure why? I did a quick google but cant seem to find many places stocking this particular model

[BeanerSA]

I wouldn't bother. I recently bought a pair of binos through them. And whilst I eventually got what I paid for, their attitude towards customers leaves a bit to be desired.

[BeanerSA]

http://search.bcf.com.au/search?w=binoculars

Any of their products would be comparable to anything else you looked at.

[Astropic]

BAK4 prisms give you sharper image than the BK7 prisms.

http://www.birding-binoculars.net/buying-guide.html

[IRT]

I can buy these locally http://www.raysoutdoors.com.au/online-store/products/Bushnell-Powerview-10x52-Binoculars.aspx?pid=401394&menuFrom=1021971#Recommendations

anyone think these are good? I wouldnt mind buying them for the weekend and would prefer to buy locally then wait for shipping

[Astropic]

I cant seem to find any related information of the binoculars that Ray's Outdoor is selling. Not even from Bushnell website. It might be good idea to pop in to Ray's outdoor and try out though.

[IRT]

they are these ones here - http://bushnell.com/all-products/binoculars/powerview/10x-50mm


rays made a mistake 10x52 should be 10x50


are they good binoculars or would they be not much better then these - http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Celestron-Professional-Binoculars-Upclose-10x50-Perfect-Christmas-Gift-71137-/191002761316?hash=item2c78a6d864

[Astropic]

My preferably would be Bak-4 binoculars, but, if to choose from one of them, I will go for Bushnell which come has multi-coated lens.

[IRT]

alrighty These are the two options Im left with now, I will be placing one in my cart and clicking order today..... I am going to go with the Saxon L 10x50 however if someone can convince me that $40 more is worth the pentax please let me know before the end of today......

Pentax: http://www.bintel.com.au/Binoculars/Pentax-Binoculars/Pentax-SP-10x50/1656/productview.aspx

saxon: http://www.opticscentral.com.au/saxon-l-series-10x50-porro-prism-binoculars-1135.html#.VfNmo26OFv4

Sorry to muck around so much but I found it really hard to figure out which is best for my dollar... every single website has different recommendations and suggestions and kept throwing me off course. So it is those 2 listed above should I spend $40 more or just be happy and go with the saxon? thanks again guys

[BeanerSA]

Nope. You're on your own. Own that decision.

[IRT]

Good advice BeanerSA,

I decided to go with your suggestion of the Nikon Aculon A211
http://www.teds.com.au/nikon-10x50-aculon-a211

I was about to go for the pentax but with shipping it ended up more expensive.... I found a Freeshipping coupon for Teds and managed to score the nikon for $149 free shipping. So yes I own this decision and I really hope I made the right one.

I decided to buy something at least half decent as I plan to keep them for years to come.

Thanks for the help IIS. :thumbsup:

[BeanerSA]

Good job man, they were the ones I was going to get, until I was able to extend my budget a bit. If they are within your budget, then they will be great.

Let us know how you go!

[IRT]

No worries will let you know how I go!

The saxon ones I was looking at were going to be $115 with shipping, the pentax around $157 and the nikon $149 freeshipping

thanks for the help

[ZeroID]

Buying a 'good 'name' is always best bet in the long run. Nikon, Pentax etc etc have a reputation. Long term you won't regret it and as you say that size can 'multitask', a good option.

[IRT]

they arrived today and the image is crystal clear look really good. I cant compare to any other binoculars as this is my first pair Ive ever owned and the last time I used a pair was 10+ years ago.


I may need to invest in a telescope aswell Ill have a muck around over the next couple of weeks and see how I go thanks IIS

[BeanerSA]

You will learn plenty with a pair of binos. You might not see amazing detail in DSOs, but you will learn where they are for when you get your first telescope. Dark skies and dark adaptation are still important with binos, just bear that in mind.

[IRT]

Thanks for the tip... were can I find a good real-time starmap for Queensland and if you could PM me any other beginner info or links would be awesome..


Also if I was to step up is it worth going a 15x70 bino or skipping all together and using my 10x50 and a decent telescrope like maybe a 130mm one?

[BeanerSA]

Download Stellarium for you PC (free) or your phone/tablet (a couple of bucks). I linked earlier in the thread to The Binocular Sky website, and there is also http://www.skymaps.com/downloads.html



I'd skip a bigger set of binos and go for the scope, but that's me.

[IRT]

also wanted to ask as these arnt water proof binoculars what damage would happen if i accidentally dropped them into a lake or even the sea water?

[BeanerSA]

They would probably fill up with water, and be stuffed.

[IRT]

Thanks... note to self don't drop them in water!

I plan to go whale watching this holiday so the binoculars will come in handy... been using them during the day alot watching kangaroos and birds in the distance open fields etc looks clear... sometimes I wish I could zoom in even further like 15 or 20 times but even at 10x its hard to keep the image still

:thumbsup: