Which Binoculars ?

[Moondance]

Help, For general back garden sky watching with binoculars,what is the best 7x50 or 10x50?,or somthing else?I will go with whatever the majority advises..

[Grunthos]

Help, For general back garden sky watching with binoculars,what is the best 7x50 or 10x50?,or somthing else?I will go with whatever the majority advises..

The general concensus (if there is one) is that 10x50 is "better".

The actual model to choose is an open ended debate!

You could do a lot worse than start here.

(Welcome to SGL by the way!)

[ollypenrice]

It depends on how steady your hands are. 10x magnification is widely regarded as the maximum for hand-holding, unstabilized. In the birding world many prefer the more stable image provided by 8x or 7x. When I was younger I found 10x was not a problem but I must be getting old because I now prefer 8x myself. You should be able to try both reasonably easily to see which suit you. In all honesty the extra magnification is not really that important for astronomy because you are not using bins to scrutinze individual objects so much as to see where where they are and enjoy the broader view.

There are plenty of very good, inexpensive binoculars these days. FLO are particularly well-informed on which give the best value.

Olly

[Lenny147]

After being in the same position a little while ago I ended up buying a pair of Olympus DPS 1 10x50s.

Excellent bins and won't break the bank. Had some good reviews on here.

[Tom2012]

Hello mate.

I've just started and went for the 15x70's. I think they're Pena LY the maximum I can hold with a reasonable steady arm.

It's well worth while have a look around shops and trying them out. See which one you can hold steady but gives you the view you want to see.

All the best.

Tom.

[blind pew]

Pentax 10x50 get my vote.I got mine from Microglobe.Great bins at a great price.Treat yourself.

[E621Keith]

Moondance, Welcome to SGL

I prefer 7x or 8x because it's easier to hand hold and usually have a wider field. 10x50 will cut more light pollution and worth it if you have steady hand or have something to brace against. I'd recommend the Pentax 8x40 PCF. Opticron 8x40 WA aspheric is also highly recommended.

What's your budget anyway? If you want the absolute best the Nikon Prostar/Astroluxe are suppose to be the best 7x and 10x you can get. Both retails for over £1K though.

[Bobby1970]

Just recently got some Helios Fieldmaster 10x50 binos. Really happy with them. £46 delivered from Microglobe.

[Jon Sales]

I've got Meade 10x50's.

Very clear and crisp view considering when I got them they were on offer for under £50

[dtr42]

helios nature plus 10x50 were my bin's, found them excellent but a bit dearer than the pentax .

[ollypenrice]

A couple of years ago we were at the Dob when a guest passed me his bins and said 'Can you see M31 in these?' I glanced at them, saw they were about 40mm in aperture and said, 'Sure, easily.' I pointed them at the galaxy. Oh my! In one second I was grinning and saying, 'OK wise guy, what are these?' The core of M31 was a rich golden colour and the stars were like powder, tiny and pinpoint. Incredible. They were Leicas.

Olly

[E621Keith]

A couple of years ago we were at the Dob when a guest passed me his bins and said 'Can you see M31 in these?' I glanced at them, saw they were about 40mm in aperture and said, 'Sure, easily.' I pointed them at the galaxy. Oh my! In one second I was grinning and saying, 'OK wise guy, what are these?' The core of M31 was a rich golden colour and the stars were like powder, tiny and pinpoint. Incredible. They were Leicas.

Olly

So did you buy a set afterwards?

[LeeB]

if you can run to a camera tripod the revelution 15x70 from telescope house are superb, they are only £55 at the moment and the extra objective size makes one hell of a difference.

[ollypenrice]

So did you buy a set afterwards?

Alas not! Too expensive. However, I did buy a pair of their little 25mm Ultravids for birding and wildlife and the colour is again gorgeous. I was watching the wild deer with them at sunset today. It's a real shame that you do get a little more if you pay a lot more!

Olly

[johnboy999]

I have fujinon 10 x 70s which are top quality ,but i will be putting them on eBay this week as have ordered a scope.

Not sure if the advice on binoculars is best before you buy a scope unless you are at a dark site.

[glowjet]

Quite some years ago I was in the market for some decent bins which my Wife wanted to buy me as an Anniversary gift, the authors of The Backyard Astronomers Guide did quite an evaluation of makes and types in their book and Japanese Carton Adlerbliks were highly ranked in the middle to high price range. It seems they are not available in this Country and I finished up sourcing a pair through the distributors in Canada, which amazingly were sent post free. Were they worth it, in a nutshell yes, outstanding clarity and colour, but there again how much more are you going to pay, and how much better will they be as improvements can only be marginal

[peeceeTal2M]

I got a pair of 10x50 from lidl a few years back, a bargain at £9.99 and a good image, very similar if not the same as the meade 10 x 50's, but rebadged.