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My Very first bins

Lyrated

By Lyrated
in Discussions - Binoculars

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Lyrated

Lyrated

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Hello All

In got my new and might i add my very first pair of binoculars today from amazon. :D

I got the Pentax 10x50 xcf and got them open only to find the weather all misty and trying its best to snow.

Is there a way to focus them without need a distant landmark ? I do understand this could be a silly question lol.

Any help would be appreciated

Thanks

Chris

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Lyrated

Lyrated

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I have had a quick look as the clouds seem to be fine but still not sure if i have the best focus, never had a pair before lol.

Just to add I managed to get out and have a few minutes where the cloud decided to give me a break. I see the moon and i am sure it was the first quarter but then the cloud rolled in.

Looking forward to tomorrow as the weatherman has advised its clear skies in my area :D

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jonathan

jonathan

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Good luck! For ultra-steady views of the moon and pleiades etc you might like to consider a camera tripod and a bracket. FLO sell brackets for large or small binoculars, I bought the large one as it is more substantial and will be good if you get a bigger pair of bins later. Any camera tripod should do really, I have used my bins with a small light-weight tripod before now just resting on a garden table.

First Light Optics - L-Type Binocular Tripod Adapters

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Lyrated

Lyrated

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Good luck! For ultra-steady views of the moon and pleiades etc you might like to consider a camera tripod and a bracket. FLO sell brackets for large or small binoculars, I bought the large one as it is more substantial and will be good if you get a bigger pair of bins later. Any camera tripod should do really, I have used my bins with a small light-weight tripod before now just resting on a garden table.

First Light Optics - L-Type Binocular Tripod Adapters

Thanks for the reply Jonathan :D

I did notice some shaking going on and my misses had trouble getting a good view. I was looking for a tripod and now i know why i couldt find one lol.

Next on my shopping list is a new camera most likely a 1100D so a tripod that fits both is awesome.

Thanks Again

Chris

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Grunthos

Grunthos

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Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but that ebay adapter will probably turn out to be pants. Its plastic and wobbles a fair bit (looks like the dire adapter that is supplied with Celestron 15x70s).

Can you cancel the order and get a decent one from FLO (as previously mentioned) or a metal one from Strathspey?

If you want a "cheap and cheeful" tripod I can suggest a Hama Star 23 (its very cheap and you need to be cheerful;)).

To be honest though if you want a decent tripod (especially if you are going to buy a Canon) then go for something like a Horizon 8115. (A rough rule of thumb in astronomy is that you need to spend at least as much on your mount as on your instrument).

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Lyrated

Lyrated

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Hello Grunthos

People like you is the main reason I am on this forum. Its stops me making some seriously bad finacial decisions lol .

I done some more research and when i get my camera I will be getting a top of the range tripod as I will be seriously p$ss3d off if the camera drops :(.

I still might get one of the tripods as i can use it for my digital camera ( its no cannon lol) and take it back to the shop if its useless

Big thanks again guys for all the help so far and don't worry more pointless questions on the way :D

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ollypenrice

ollypenrice

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Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but that ebay adapter will probably turn out to be pants. Its plastic and wobbles a fair bit (looks like the dire adapter that is supplied with Celestron 15x70s).

QUOTE]

These adapters are indeed dire but can be rectified for peanuts. Find some short lengths of steel (eg small bolts) the right size to lie in the hollow cutout sides. (The adapter is a plastic I-beam in section.)

Lie the bolts in the hollow and fill the hollow with epoxy resin - eg Araldite. I did this nearly ten years ago to my adapter and it marches on. Others have done the same.

Olly

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Lyrated

Lyrated

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Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but that ebay adapter will probably turn out to be pants. Its plastic and wobbles a fair bit (looks like the dire adapter that is supplied with Celestron 15x70s).

QUOTE]

These adapters are indeed dire but can be rectified for peanuts. Find some short lengths of steel (eg small bolts) the right size to lie in the hollow cutout sides. (The adapter is a plastic I-beam in section.)

Lie the bolts in the hollow and fill the hollow with epoxy resin - eg Araldite. I did this nearly ten years ago to my adapter and it marches on. Others have done the same.

Olly

Hi Olly

I will give it a go they should arrive tomorrow :) and will go look for a good tripod so it also last.

Many Thanks

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jonathan

jonathan

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Yes - a good sun lounger is very nice to have for binocular viewing, especially if it has good arms that you can perch your elbows on. When shopping just try them out and pretend that you're holding a pair of binoculars to your eyes (with elbows on the arms), people will think you're mad but what the hell! :)

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BinocularSky

BinocularSky

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I'm not a great fan of tripods for small and medium binoculars -- they are a real pain in the neck (literally!) when you are trying to observe anything above around 45-50 deg elevation. Recliner (or similar) is a must, I think, for anything without angled eyepieces. I find a monopod to be good when I'm observing seated. Some mounting ideas at:

BinocularSky - Mounting Binoculars for Astronomy

Can you cancel the order and get a decent one from FLO (as previously mentioned) or a metal one from Strathspey?
If you get the Strathspey one, get it from his eBay shop (UserName: unixnerd); it works out cheaper than from the Strathspey site. Nice bit of kit, though: I use one with my 15x70.
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Lyrated

Lyrated

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I picked up the Vivitar tripod from argos and yes i am prepared to be ejected from the forum .

I used it for the first time tonight and my area had nearly zero cloud cover let me see the moon , orions belt , betelgeuse, auriga, basically i stuck to the area around the moon.

I did have to lay across my bench in my garden to use it and ended up go in to free mode .

I will add some pictures of my little set up soon with my very own little darkish area

peace out

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jgs001

jgs001

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You can focus them on a range of distances to check them.. but make sure you set them up for you first. I'm gonna assume you've not found out how as yet :), hope that's ok...

First, get the width of the two sides right, look through them and get the position such that you only see a single view (might be blurred but that's ok. Cover the right hand side objective, and focus the binoculars with the centre wheel. At this point you're focusing for your left eye only. Once that's focused, then uncover the right hand side, and cover the left hand side. This time focus for the right eye, but use the eyecup itself (not the main focus wheel in the middle). By focusing like this, you setup the binoculars to account for variances between your eyes. Then when you focus using the centre wheel, both sides will adjust together and bring the view into full focus. You don't need something far away for this, just something far enough away so that you can focus on it.

HTH. Enjoy using them...

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Lyrated

Lyrated

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You can focus them on a range of distances to check them.. but make sure you set them up for you first. I'm gonna assume you've not found out how as yet :D, hope that's ok...

First, get the width of the two sides right, look through them and get the position such that you only see a single view (might be blurred but that's ok. Cover the right hand side objective, and focus the binoculars with the centre wheel. At this point you're focusing for your left eye only. Once that's focused, then uncover the right hand side, and cover the left hand side. This time focus for the right eye, but use the eyecup itself (not the main focus wheel in the middle). By focusing like this, you setup the binoculars to account for variances between your eyes. Then when you focus using the centre wheel, both sides will adjust together and bring the view into full focus. You don't need something far away for this, just something far enough away so that you can focus on it.

HTH. Enjoy using them...

Hi jgs001 Thanks for the tips I have done that and was a bit of a boob at first, couldt work out how to focus the left eye as right eye wouldt shut on its own lol.

I then just put the lens cover back on job done :), I do plan on going to my local club to get editonal help .

Thanks again :)

P.s I dont want to get in trouble by the forum police so here is a link to some pics of the start of my kit ( more to be added next month)

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