Has anyone got a bintel Large binocular mount?

[h0ughy (David)]

Fantastic Geoff, mine arrived on Firday, along with some other losmandy stuff i ordered from the crew at Bintel. Michael did a damn fine job in packing the mount - a very large box. That brings my tripod tally at home now to 6, LOL wonder if the wife will notice???

[snowyskiesau]

There was a very nice Losmandy mount set up at Bintel, right in front of the counter
where you can't avoid seeing it, and lusting after it

If I wasn't out of work at the end of the week, the walk back to work would have been
a lot harder with a G11 tucked under the arm

[snowyskiesau]

h0ughy,

Does your large binocular mount have 1 or 2 counter weights?

I gave it a quick test on Monday when I picked it up but it wasn't until using it in earnest last night that it was obvious
that it wasn't going to balance even with the counter weight at the end of it's range.

The picture on the Bintel website does show 2 weights so I thought I'd ask someone who has one.

[h0ughy (David)]

Originally Posted by snowyskiesau

h0ughy,

Does your large binocular mount have 1 or 2 counter weights?

I gave it a quick test on Monday when I picked it up but it wasn't until using it in earnest last night that it was obvious
that it wasn't going to balance even with the counter weight at the end of it's range.

The picture on the Bintel website does show 2 weights so I thought I'd ask someone who has one.

havent unwrapped that part yet will do tonight

[snowyskiesau]

Originally Posted by h0ughy

havent unwrapped that part yet will do tonight

Haven't unwrapped it yet! How can you have a new toy for nearly a week and not play with it

No problem, I'll give Bintel a call tomorrow and check.

[h0ughy (David)]

ok there are two weights

[h0ughy (David)]

OK here is a quick appraisal of the system. Its good but no where near good enough to use straight out of the box for the 100mm binos it needs the 5kg weight from the EQ6 to offset the balance. The locking knob for the binos is a tad too long to allow it to freely swing through the fork - that could be a good thing or bad. There is not quite enough clearance to get the binos adjusted for the width of my eyes, it needs a little more on the thread and a washer to allow it to be adjusted. that said, once the weight is right and the binos tinkered with it will be great. they seem very steady system despite the light mount base and for something i couldnt build in a month of sundays its not bad.

[Satchmo]

Houghy

I am interested in your new combination. You should be able to add a 5kg barbell weight above the supplied ones , available from any sports store.

The problem with the over long locking knob hitting the edge of the bottom of the fork looks like a problem with the unit and not to do with the binoculars. Looks like it will prevent you looking up into the sky...

Looks promising anyhow, if this can be fixed.

Mark

[erick (Eric)]

Originally Posted by h0ughy

....There is not quite enough clearance to get the binos adjusted for the width of my eyes, it needs a little more on the thread and a washer to allow it to be adjusted. ....

This seems to be a very common problem. The centre post is not long enough in many of these binoculars for a fork mount arrangement. It does depend how far along the supporting bar that the post is located. When the binoculars are tipped to a high elevation, the post can be moved closer to the eyepieces which provides the space to allow for more adjustment of the IPD without the barrels hitting the post or the mount. But at lower elevations when the post needs to be moved towards the objective lenses (or vice versa of course), the problem is pronounced. I have seen a few places selling a suitable one inch spacer, but I never justifed the postage! I inserted a small block of wood as a spacer into mine for my home made mount - and used a much longer mounting screw. Of course, this does not solve the problem of the barrels hitting the post - that is unavoidable and set by the barrel spacing and the post diameter. All one can do is move the binoculars forward on the mounting post until one can get the IPD right, even if it means the weight distribution isn't right. I'd be looking at the bolts on the fork mount to see if they could be replaced with something where the tightness/friction could be adjusted by hand, to account for elevation and the weight distribution of the binoculars (front/rear) on the post.

Previously I mentioned this spacing problem to AOE who were going to see if they could source a spacer as an accessory. Nothing seen advertised on their site yet.

[h0ughy (David)]

Originally Posted by Satchmo

Houghy

I am interested in your new combination. You should be able to add a 5kg barbell weight above the supplied ones , available from any sports store.

By not enough clearance to get your IPD do you mean that you cannot get the eyepieces close together enough?
Perhaps jsut some large washers to pack between the fork and the bino-mounting stalk?

Looks promising anyhow.

Mark

thats right I cant get them close enough, have to get some washers I havent any at home

[Satchmo]

Will be interested in how long the over- long locking knob ( hitting the fork ) takes to solve by the manufacturer.

In the meantime you could use a standard bolt and spanner, which will be a bit inconvenient but allow you unrestricted sky view :-)

Mark

[snowyskiesau]

Originally Posted by h0ughy

ok there are two weights

Walked up to Bintel at lunchtime and picked up the missing weight.
It's about 1Kg so I should be able to balance the 20x80s.

Of course , I won't have anything to look at unless this rain clears up

[h0ughy (David)]

i sent bintel an email with the pictures

[Satchmo]

I'm sure Mike and Don from Bintel will have your problem sorted in no time

[h0ughy (David)]

Originally Posted by Satchmo

I'm sure Mike and Don from Bintel will have your problem sorted in no time

I think so too

[h0ughy (David)]

ok UPDATE ON THE SITUATION

after some discussion with Mike and Don (constructive discussion that is) they are fixing up the problems with the current mount and will have these changes in place for future purchasers. So Mark, when you get yours it should be OK!!

[snowyskiesau]

I didn't have any problem with the locking knob being too long on the mount I bought this week.
The cradle that the binos sit it, will swing freely without the knob touching any part of the mount.

[h0ughy (David)]

OK an update - Bintel sent me the new knob and adapter for the bino's and a weight from a eq3. I am a happy little camper