Beginners Binoculars

[racshot65]

Hi,

I'm new to astronomy and want to get some binoculars.

I really want to see the moons of Jupiter.

What are the best value binoculars to get ?

Thanks

[cantab]

Well I got a pair of Bresser 10x50s, but they were on end-of-line clearance, they may cost more or be unavailable new. It would, as always, help if you gave an idea of budget.

They give nice images, but have some mechanical issues. However, I'm not sure if 10x50 is the best choice for a beginner. I find myself wishing I had a larger field of view - that I'd get from 7x50s - so that star hopping would be easier. But then, maybe if I had 7x50s I'd be wishing for a bit more magnification?

[racshot65]

Hi,

I'm not really sure how much this stuff costs.

As cheap as possible preferably, maybe £20 ish ? (Or is that too low?)

[JamesM]

Lidle occasionally sell 10x50 binoculars for around £14 (Bresser, mead brand but rebadged) and providing you give them a quick check over (the odd pair will be duff!) you will be able to see Jupiter and its moons. However, the image will be small and you won't be able to see any detail. In fact if it wasn't for the closeness of the moons, you probably wouldn't know it was jupiter you were looking at. Binoculars can range in price from those named above to hundreds if you want coated lenses that are nitrogen purged and high quality prisms etc. I suppose just under a £100 would buy you a good quality pair of binoculars as the recent Sky@Night magazine review recently showed. Binoculars provide excellent wide field views but if you are after detail then a scope would be the direction to head for.

James

[jimmyjamjoejoe]

It's low, but not too low. Most people start with 10x50's. I personally bought some 12x50s from a car boot sale, with rubbish coatings but in good condition, they do fine for me, and cost me £8.

Lidl sometimes do 10x50's, but think they did them a month or so ago so probably won't be there for a while.

Any 10x50 is a good start, be sure they have some kind of coating, preferably bak4 or bak7 (bak4 is better). Ignore things with "ruby coatings" or anything like that. A bak4 10x50 of any make/model/description will be good, just be sure they're correctly alligned when you buy them, there is a guide here to show you how to test them.

10x50 is a good size, they'l be hard to hold still, and stillness makes a BIG difference. I freehanded mine for several weeks before discovering i could hook the bridge over the corner of my washing line and get perfectly still images. It blew my mind. Jupiter went from a "slightly brighter star with what i think might be something next to it", to "somewhere between a star and a disk, with 4 perfect little pinpoints all in a line next to it".

Don't expect overwhelming detail or size, it's more the thought of what you're looking at when using binos. Jupiter is a large star/small disc, andromeda is a fuzzy patch, orion is a slightly brighter lopsided fuzzy patch etc...

That said, i wouldn't give up my binos for the world. Star clusters look amazing through them, you can see andromeda, orion, the double double etc. Add to that you can literally just pick them up and use them straight off, great for peeping between clouds etc.

Wherever you get them, be it ebay, a car boot, lidl, from another member here, or wherever - seriously consider buying even a cheap tripod for a tenner, and a bino mount for about £2. It'l make a massive difference to the views.

[pete_l]

Yes, what JJJJ said. You don't get people hand-holding their telescopes (except in pirate movies) as a mount is a must-have. The same with binoculars. If you intend to point them upwards there's a lot more effort involved than in merely pointing them horizontally.

Personally, I don't think a photographic tripod is a good solution, though I have tried it, as it wobbles when you have it extended to the point where it's above your head.

As a first attempt just a simple stick used to hold the bino's steady makes a huge difference - though you'd need to be able to adjust its height depending on where you want to look.

So don't just think "I can get a pair of binoculars for £X and that's all I'll have to spend". Astronomy is famous as a hobby for " ... but an extra few £££ will make it so much better ...." So I'd suggest you mentally prepare yourself to spend some extra for some sort of mount ot stand for your binoculars - even if they are "only" 10x50's

[jimmyjamjoejoe]

Here is a pic taken from stellarium, which pretty much show jupiter exactly as it looks through my binos, just to give you an idea of what to expect. It's a little underwhelming, but it is still very nice to view. Orion, andromeda, and clusters are my preferred targets with binos, they look much bigger and better Be sure to view it full size, imageshack is doing some wierd things with the compression lately. :/

Not tried the stick thing yet, though i tried all sorts of leaning against walls, elbows on the roof of my car etc, but found all of those were still slightly shakey. Surely a cheap tripod would be ok with such wide fields Pete? Once you find something you can just let go of everything and view, rather than having to adjust every 30secs or so.

[rory]

that stellarium image id say is pretty spot on. i like just lying on the floor looking straight up with my bino's. no wobble, just tons of stars.

10x50 most would say is maximum for handheld as a rule. higher means heavier and youd want something to aid you.

got pentax 10x50's of fleabay for a few quid. but theres some pretty good binoculars for under £40 new.look for bak4 glass and multicoated ,and you should be fine.

clear skies..

[glowjet]

A pair of Strathspey 10x50 bins should reveal the moons of Jupiter, if conditions are good, they are good quality bins at a reasonable price

[onesmallstep]

Hi

Meade 10x50 Binocular Special Offer

[cantab]

If you really are looking as low as £20-30, options will get limited and you will have to compromise on quality. Absolutely avoid red/orange ("ruby") coated lenses, they reflect loads of light and usually have other faults. Don't bother with zoom, at low budget it'll be lousy and anyway you need a mount for high magnification.

The cheaper Praktica binoculars are in this bottom-end price range, as are the Celestron UpClose line. Hopefully someone who's owned these can weigh in on the good/bad/ugly about them, but on paper at least they shouldn't be complete turkeys.

[deebster]

I was in the same position as you racshot65, and as Lidl were all out I picked up some from 7dayshop for £15, plus another £5 for a tripod mount.

The image I had of Jupiter the other night is just as in Jimmy's Stellarium screen shot, plus 4 of its moons.

I've posted elsewhere about them so don't want to flood the forum, but as bargain basement bins go it seems unless you go second hand it's unlikely you'll get anything worth using for less than this.

[KerryAnn23]

I have the celestron 15x70s and they are fab for seeing the moons, i love them but i did have to get a tripod as even if you are strong you cant hold them upwards for that long and you wont get the full experience of them. im glad i got them and would only go higher mag wise. im no expert though but my opinion definately goes to these higher strength bino's :-)

[Veracocha]

Having looked through your bins at PSP I have to agree that whilst on your tripod they did provide very good views of Jupiter and the moons.

[LukeSkywatcher]

Its close enough to Christmas now (yeah i know................shocking). Lidl's should have the Bresser 10X50 bins on sale soon. The last couple of yrs though the bins have been re-branded as Rockwell (or something like that).

Alternatively the Strathspey 10X50 bins (i think they are the maritime/marine model) won best 10X50 bins review in Sky @ Night magazine a couple of yrs ago.

While 10X50 bins in general are very good for general observing, if its planets you want to see then you will have to go LARGE (15x70 is a good starting point). Even with big bins, planets such as Mars,Saturn and Jupiter are still underwhelming.

To see planets at their best a scope is really the way to go. BUT there is so much more out there other then the planets.

Overall i think bins have more pros then cons. Really the only con is the fixed magnification.

[KerryAnn23]

exactly veracocha, dont expect to see it as a massive object tho as it wont be in any bins, i was mesmerised by it but not everyone is because of the size, definately think hard about how much detail you want to see and then you will be able to decide between a scope or bino's :-)

[JonF]

On Amazon you can buy Olympus 10x50 bins for a smidge over £40 delivered. They're outstandingly good.

[Aquila]

I am just getting my first pair of binoculars myself. After reading around, I settled on a pair of Bushnell Falcon 10x50s.

Amazon.com: Bushnell Falcon 10x50 Wide Angle Binoculars (Black): Sports & Outdoors

They're marked down from $50 to just under $30 (<£20). I was considering the 7x35s because it came with a case, but I figure I won't be wishing for better magnification this way and I could always throw together my own case if I really need one. I thought these would be a good pair to start off with, and if I really get into the hobby, I can hope for better ones for Christmas.

I know it may not be much help with the kind of binoculars, as I'm "across the pond" as they say and prices&items are different, but maybe there's some help in how I decided--or maybe it'll help someone else.

Reading what's been said by everyone so far has helped me lots. Thanks. Now I just need to wait for the package to come!

[cantab]

I think 7x vs 10x magnification will make little difference on anything other than the Moon or splitting double stars, though I haven't compared them first-hand. The 50mm objectives, however, will gather twice the light of 35mm ones, which is a good thing.

[Aquila]

I think 7x vs 10x magnification will make little difference on anything other than the Moon or splitting double stars, though I haven't compared them first-hand.

Ah I see. Still, I'd hate to pick up the 7x and then wish for a teeny bit more. Especially with it being only about a $4 difference between them.

The 50mm objectives, however, will gather twice the light of 35mm ones, which is a good thing.

Oh that's right. I remember learning about that. pi * r^2

Thanks for the input, cantab.

[heathenwoods]

Any 10x50 is a good start

aah, but it's worth taking note of...

Absolutely avoid red/orange ("ruby") coated lenses, they reflect loads of light and usually have other faults.

I opted for the cheapest I could find on ebay: these. Bad move. Totally out of collimation (I guess: double images), smell of stale fags and chromatic aberration that borders on the psychedelic. Buy cheap, buy twice.

[ismangil]

Hi,

I'm new to astronomy and want to get some binoculars.

I really want to see the moons of Jupiter.

What are the best value binoculars to get ?

Thanks

The moons of Jupiter appears as pin pricks besides a bright tiny disk. Spectacular considering they're so far away and relying on the Sun for its light!

Why exactly focus on the moons of Jupiter?

My wow factor from binoculars is seeing star clusters, they're quite beautiful.

Double stars also looks strangely eerie :-)

Perry Ismangil

[ismangil]

Well I got a pair of Bresser 10x50s, but they were on end-of-line clearance, they may cost more or be unavailable new. It would, as always, help if you gave an idea of budget.

They give nice images, but have some mechanical issues. However, I'm not sure if 10x50 is the best choice for a beginner. I find myself wishing I had a larger field of view - that I'd get from 7x50s - so that star hopping would be easier. But then, maybe if I had 7x50s I'd be wishing for a bit more magnification?

My 10x50 has 6.5° FOV which is more than most star-hopping charts do. So I have no problems following instructions like "move two-and-half fields to NE"

Perry Ismangil

[cantab]

Similar FOV for mine actually. With a bit more research it seems I'm wrong in assuming that the lower mag will have a much bigger FOV; the design plays a role too.