Newbie dilemma!

[Aaron1996]

Hello everyone,

I am a complete novice. I've always looked up and wondered and now I'm going to get a binocular at the age of 52. At the moment I'm thinking of getting the Helios Weathermaster 111 water/fog proof 10 x 50s but I could be tempted by the Revelation 15 x 70s. From what I've heard, that's a choice between quality and quantity. The 10 x 50s would be useful beside astronomy as well. I don't fancy them fogging up inside either. I will be getting a tripod (Possibly a monopod for the 10 x 50s.) whichever I get. Any suggestions will be gratefully received.

Thank you.

[onesmallstep]

Hi and welcome to SGL

The 10x50 binoculars hit the 'sweet spot' between light grasp and usability. You can use them comfortably without a tripod / monopod but will definitely need one for the 15x70s and larger bins / small scopes.

One tripod I can recommend is the Horizon 8115 2-way heavy duty model. These cost £80 approx and came highly recommended in a Sky At Night magazine reviw a few years back. As well as being extremely stable and robust this tripod has the advantage of extending to over 7 feet tall to allow observing at the zenith. I use this model so can vouch for them. The tripod comes with a baseplate that screws directly into the binocular adapter and is held in place on the tripod head by a tension clip. Spare baseplates are available for £5 each.

HTH!

[estwing]

welcome Aaron..

[drmillrace]

Even 10x50 might be shaky hand held. I have a pair and find my hands shake after a few minutes espcially when they are angled steeply upwards. A tall tripod is definitely a good bet. What also helps is to view lying on a sun lounger. Looks strange but it's dark so no one will see.

[Aaron1996]

Thank you for your welcome and your comments. My questions might come thick and fast the nearer I get to putting my money where my mouth is!

[damnut]

Hi Aaron1996,

Another vote for the 10*50's which are really the max size before your arms drop off from more than 10 mins viewing. Would not really advise a monopod except for casual viewing, treat yourself to a good tripod, your arms & eyes will love you for it!. The binos that seem to be rated at the mo are the strathspey 10*50's and the 10*50s at Lidl which appear to be a rebadged Bresser(meade) set.

Cheers

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

I can hand-hold both 10x50 and 15x70s. Both are excellent astronomical instruments. 10x50 is of course easier to hold still. For the 15x70 I have made this:

http://stargazerslounge.com/diy-astronomer/154871-diy-parallelogram-mount-made-my-15x70s.html

but still use it free-hand in many cases.

Fogging on the inside is something that has yet to happen to me after 33 years of observing. What I have felt after that much experience is that central focusing is a pain, unless you have a VERY expensive rock solid pair of bins. Individual, helical focusers are much better for astronomy.

[pvaz]

The 10x50s can be held reasonably steady. I always need a monopod or tripod for my 15x70s.

Binos are a great way to get started and learn the sky but, personally, I find them to be just a compliment for my scope. You'll get to see some of the largest DSOs, Jupiter and it's moons but it will look small and much less detailed when compared to a scope. This is a personal opinion, but I like to see as much as I can and binos don't cut it for me. They are just a resource to be used when I'm away from home and can't take the scope or when I just want a quick 15 min session.

So my advice is, get some decent but cheap 10x50s and save the rest for your 1st scope. Just recently there was a 8" dobsonian for 100 here on the sales forum and you can usually find a 2nd hand one for under 200.

[Aaron1996]

Thank you for your advice, I think that I'm leaning towards the Revelation 15 x 70. It's that or a slightly better quality(?) 10 x 50 e.g. Helios Weathermaster 111 for £56 or a Strathspey 10 x 50. Would you go for the Revelation or not in that case? I'm hoping to get a tripod as well.

Thanks for your time.

[ronin]

If you have no binoculars and want some for normal use then get the 10x50's, although the more standard 8x42's are as good and there is a bigger selection, and probably lower price therefore. You will pay a "premium" because they are not 8x42's these days.

If you already have something like 8x42's then forget another set of binoculars and get a scope.

By the time you get 15x70 and a trpod that is the cost of an 80mm achro scope which will show a lot more and be more versatile. Agreed you still need a mount of some sort.

15x magnification will not show much of Jupiter and as that is the biggesst thing up there other then the moon everything else, which amounts the Saturn and Mars will be a small dot.

With a scope you have to option to alter the magnification. What you will see at 80x in a scope on say M42 will far exceed what a15x binoculars show.

[Aaron1996]

Hi Ronin, You mention an 80mm achromatic scope; could you suggest the cost of such a beast?

Thanks.

[umadog]

Welcome!

A telescope can nowadays be had for a very reasonable sum indeed. Why not take a look at these sites?

www.firstlightoptics.com/.

Telescope House the UK No.1 for Telescopes and Binoculars since 1785

Binoculars certainly do make a nice complement to a telescope. But a smaller, which can take in wide fields of view, is easy to use and will readily show you a lot more.

[Polar Bear]

Hi Aaron and welcome to the forum.

As someone who has used refractors and reflectors and has ended up using just binoculars I will throw in my tuppence worth.

It is not a case of either or regarding binoculars and scopes as they compliment each other and it is only after using both that you can decide which are better for your own circumstances.

I have owned 15x70's and do not bother with them any more. They are a bit of an odd size requiring a tripod yet without the bonus of the magnification of larger 20x bins.

To start with I would purchase some 8x40's or 10x50's which can be had for very little money. Used sat down with a mono-pod they are a good way to start.

Most 10x50's available for around £30.00 new will be a great introduction for you.

I use some Russian Tento 10x50's that are superb for learning the night sky and give great views of open clusters and the brighter nebulae and galaxies such as Orion and M31. In addition to these I also use a pair of 9x63 Tasco roof prism binoculars that are good for splitting double stars.

What you may struggle to see with inexpensive 10x50's are Jupiter's Moons and Saturn's rings, plus you may get some chromatic aberration to a greater degree than with more expensive models.

Don't bother with the expense of Nitrogen Filled models for stargazing, all the condensation will be on the outside of the optics.

For greater magnification I use a pair of Strathspey 20x90's but even with these Jupiter's banding is only just visible.

What is great about using binoculars is that you are viewing with both eyes which is more natural and gives a sense that the stars, planets and the Moon are floating in space, more so than a telescope will.

Be careful if considering ebay second-hand binoculars as most require 'tweaking' to get the best from them.

Just try an inexpensive pair and if you decide you enjoy sitting in the cold waiting for the clouds to clear then either upgrade the bins or consider a scope.

Have a look here as Steve explains things better than I can....BinocularSky - Home

Paul