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Binoculars for holiday - astro use - advice please

Mark at Beaufort

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Mark at Beaufort

Mark at Beaufort

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I am shortly going to the Canary Islands for a holiday and I want to take some binos that are light but provide a reasonable light grasp for astronomy.

I have some 15x70 and 20x80 binos but they will be too heavy for my 6kg hand luggage with other items that I will be carrying. I will be taking my new Vixen SG2.1X42 binos for checking out some of the lower constellations not visible from the UK.

Because these binos need to be light I was thinking of Roof Prisms rather than Porro Prisms and also having an exit pupil in the 4 to 5 range. My budget is in the range of £100/£150.

I would appreciate some recommendations especially if you have used the product in the past.

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Mark at Beaufort

Mark at Beaufort

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What is wrong with the Vixens?

The Vixen binos are fantastic but the mag is just 2.1x. If you want a huge FOV they are brilliant which is why I will study complete constellations with them. If I find an interesting star cluster for example NGC 2477 or NGC 2451 both in Puppis I might require extra magnification - 8x  or 10x.

This is why I am looking for a pair of light binos 8x/10x in either the 40mm or 50mm range.

I don't have much experience of binos in this range hence looking for opinions.

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Mark at Beaufort

Mark at Beaufort

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Compact + Quality Optics = £££

Those Vixens are the coolest thing out. Very jealous.

Could you hire something out there?

Paul

Paul - yes the Vixens are excellent. Last night I could view the whole of Scorpio which appeared above the horizon and the same with Sagittarius. The good thing about the Vixens is you can see about 2 mags fainter.

I bought these Vixens for star hopping when using the larger scopes - really good to indentify the star patterns over such a large FOV.

I don't know whether I can hire anything in Fuerteventura but I think I fancy getting some smaller binos especially as I will then be able to use them on my canal boat.

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RME1

RME1

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Hi Mark,

I'm also off to the Canary Islands soon and decided I'm going to take my Helios Naturesport plus 8x40 WA's. They're light weight and give nice wide field views. I also have the B&S Savannah 10x56 ED's which are excellent binos, but I'm taking the Helios as they're lighter

Richard.

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pete_gamby

pete_gamby

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Most 10x50 roofs in that price range are going to be about 10cm shorter and 10cm narrower than your 15x70s and, depending on the make, from around 850g to 1.2kg (compared to about 1.3kg for the 15x70s).

I was surprised that I couldn't find more than a handful of (branded) roof prism models in that range - the B&S Sierra and Savannah, Hawke Naturetrek, Opticron Oregon 4, Bresser Condor pop up regularly on web searches but few others - although there are plenty of porros!

HTH

Pete

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Charic

Charic

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......they are nice. Work very well in the Day. I've ust come in from outside, cant see any Stars with naked eye, its just too bright up here (and cloudy) but I spotted Polaris through a cloud gap. So my first Astro target has been Polaris. Might try again later.

I was actually after some water proof 10x50's (if you check my other threads) but when I saw the price flo were charging, I couldn't resist. And totally agree, they might become my most used, instead of my older Bresser 7x50. I still intend to purchase a Marine, Mil-Spec 10x50 to complete my collection, but I've seen another pair of 7x50 water proof marines with compass and distance scales ( no good for astronomy , but I'll check them out this Week hopefully.

These Naturesports would work very well for Mark's holiday. IMHO.

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Charic

Charic

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...........through gaps in the clouds, I can find M31 much easier with the new 8x40 over my 7x50,s, the view is wider, the image is cleaner, as is the only way to explain that, considering the 10mm reduction in the objectives. Must just be better optics and coatings? I'm really happy with my purchase, now I've seen the light, Starlight! Roll on the longer, darker nights.

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MahlerMoonMan

MahlerMoonMan

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Hi guys,

I've got a pair of Visionary V1 8.5x42 porro bins .... They've been wonderful for astro use so far, at least to my untrained eye! They may be a bit over your budget perhaps .... I got mine on special offer a year ago, but they are fully weather-proofed, fully multi-coated and decent wide- field view. Very compact and light-weight too. Just as I type this now on bus to work I don't know what a pair would cost you, but probably more than your £150 budget, £170-180 maybe ...? But they seem very good to me!

All the best! :)

Donaldo

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Crebles

Crebles

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Hi Mark. Some great suggestions above.

I've some Helios Nirvana ED glass 8x42 roofs that I love - very compact, light and pin sharp optics (£220-ish). An absolute joy to use, and just sit there looking at wide views of the heavens.

I've also some Helios Weathermaster III 10x50 porros (£70-ish) that I keep in the car and also love - spec looks very similar to the 8x40WA's mentioned above. Although not as lovely, I sometimes see more with the 10x50's.

Enjoy your kit and enjoy your hols!

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BinocularSky

BinocularSky

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You do get more for your buck with Roofs but Porros are more com pact.

Olly, is that really what you meant to write? :grin:

Mark, I agree with most of the above recommending the 7-8 x 40-42-ish stuff (I've recently gotten acquired a 6.5x32 that is surprisingly good). Remember: Kemble discovered his eponymous cascade with a 7x35. I would just add, get as good quality as you can. You'll probably see more with an excellent 7x35 than you will with an average 8x42.

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Mark at Beaufort

Mark at Beaufort

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Olly, is that really what you meant to write? :grin:

Mark, I agree with most of the above recommending the 7-8 x 40-42-ish stuff (I've recently gotten acquired a 6.5x32 that is surprisingly good). Remember: Kemble discovered his eponymous cascade with a 7x35. I would just add, get as good quality as you can. You'll probably see more with an excellent 7x35 than you will with an average 8x42.

Thanks for that information Steve and everyone else with recommended binos. I have always enjoyed viewing the Kemble Cascade so I think I might increase my budget and purchase something quite nice - well I need to spend my pension somehow.

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ollypenrice

ollypenrice

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Olly, is that really what you meant to write? :grin:

Mark, I agree with most of the above recommending the 7-8 x 40-42-ish stuff (I've recently gotten acquired a 6.5x32 that is surprisingly good). Remember: Kemble discovered his eponymous cascade with a 7x35. I would just add, get as good quality as you can. You'll probably see more with an excellent 7x35 than you will with an average 8x42.

Late nights!!!

Olly

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