Good bins for astronomy ?

[Lenny147]

Hello

Could anyone recommend the best bins for astronomy, recently had a new scope but want to learn the night sky first with a good pair of binoculars

Ive looked at the Celestron 15x70 and 25x70

Any suggestions ?

Many thanks

[E621Keith]

You can find a review of the Celestron 15x70 here

http://stargazerslounge.com/member-equipment-reviews/118759-celestron-skymaster-15x70-binos-review.html

What is your budget? For the 70mm class, Fujinon FMT-SX and Nikon Astrolux are probably the best, but they cost around £1K. Like regular telescope, very good binoculars can cost an astronomical sum.

Do you plan to use it handheld or mounted on a tripod? If you plan to use it handheld, you don't want anything larger than a 10x50. The best 10x50 under £200 is probably the Pentax 10x50 PCF WP II.

[Lenny147]

Hello

Thanks for the reply, i will probably use with a tripod and handheld, i dont really want to pay too much hence im looking at the celestrons 25x70

[symbiosis]

I have the Celestron 15x70 and am happy with them but then i've not really tried anything else. Did try someone's 20-60-60 spotting scope and that was very good as well

[Flyingpig]

I find that Wheelie bins are pretty good as you can fit almost everything in them; oh sorry you mean binoculars....

I'd go with the 15 x 70 they work fine for me and I find they are just about hand holdable if you hold them by the wide end of the binocular barrels, as for the larger ones they are pretty good too; but will require a decent and stable tripod costing about as much as the binoculars themselves... Cheap tripods just wobble too much to be of any good use. Hope that helps.

[Flyingpig]

Oops sorry I just realised these are both essentially the same binocular body with differing magnifications, so there's no difference in weight between the two; instead there is a difference in magnification and field of view so that the 15 x 70 has the largest field of view and so you can see more sky through these binoculars, whilst the 25 x 70 has more magnification but you see a smaller amount of sky through them. For Astronomy there are pro's and con's to each but in general the tendancy in binocular astronomy is for the lower magnification as its then easier to find your way around the sky; reserving higher magnification for telescopes where larger appertures, finder scopes and the choice of a variety of magnifications make locating targets easier.

It's personal choice why not order and try out both and keep the pair you get on with best.

[E621Keith]

Well you can't go wrong with Celestron, they may not be the best, but they will do the job. However, 25x70 is not going to be usable handheld. You may get away with 15x70 for a short period of time.

I would pick the 15x70 over the 25x70. I'd use binocular for wide angles, and use a scope for high magnification. I use a 10x50. If I need more power I switch to my scope, a SV80s, which starts at 20x with a 3.4 deg field.

[Lenny147]

Thanks for all your advice and comments, i will let you know what i decide to buy etc and how i get on, thanks again

[cantab]

Well, you have a scope, so there's higher magnifications taken care of. I suspect a decent pair of 10x50s will probably complement it better. 15x70s will have a significantly lower true field of view, 4.4 degrees for the Celestron ones, while wider angle 10x50s can have 6.5 degree TFOV in the same price-range.

[Lenny147]

Hi guys

I bought a pair of 25x70s celestron in the end and had them 2 days and sent them back, nearly impossible to hold, eventually bought a pair of 10x50 Olympus DPS I and they are much better and easier to use, like cantab already mentioned i have the maginification with the scope, thanks for all your help

[laser_jock99]

25x70 is probably way too much magnification, even the 15x70 is quite high. I'd really recomend a pair of 10x50's for starting out- plenty of light grasp and not so much magnification that you get 'lost' among the stars. I have some 20x80's but find I use the 10x50's a lot more. The 20x80's I can only use on a tripod or when lying down on my back!!

[Lenny147]

Yeah i can see straight away that i will get more use out of these 10x50s, 25x70 like you say deff needs a tripod, these Olympus ones are great to just pick up and go

[182570]

would also recommend 10x50's I have used them for over 40 years and the field of view can't be beaten,plus you don,t have to worry too much about a tripod ,I find them reasonable stable to hold without resorting to a tripod(you DO need a comfy chair though)

[Lenny147]

Next clear night whenever that will be i will be out testing them for sure

[Lenny147]

Just an update, these 10x50 Olympus DPI are excellent for spotting, much easier to use than the Celestron 25x70. I guess I should have known this before hand

[paul schofield]

Love my Revelation 15x70's they are awesome and for £50 I cant complain. Never tried 10x50's but this thread has got me thinking. They do become heavy after 10 mins or so, but I can use them happily in a deck chair for an hour. A tripod is a necessity I think for 15x70 and above.

[Tribal-Wolf]

I have a pair of 16x50s which I've had for years and always thought good for stargazing. Recently I acquired a pair of 10x50s and the difference is amazing, much easier to hold and great fov, far better than the 16x50s. A great size to use if you have a scope too.

[LukeSkywatcher]

I have a pair of 20x90 (SADLY NOT USED OFTEN). With bins the only problem is the limited magnification. At 20X i can see galaxies as faint fuzzies. Impressive, but i just wished i had more magnification. I think 25X70 would be brilliant. OK...........sure the aperture is less but the magnification is higher. Its a comprimise but a worthwhile one i feel.

15x70 and above NEED a tripod. They are not handheld bins.

p.s.~~everyone should always have a trusty pair of 10X50 by their side. I always finish up an observong session with a few mins or relaxing views through 10X50.