What bino's for a cruise?

[jayjt29]

Hi all im off on a cruise soon what bino's do people recommend?

Thanks

Jay

[Doug]

Hi Jay

when it comes to binoculars there is a lot of factors to take in considerartion first price then weight and what you are going to use them fore as for being on a criuse you will not fill a thing

Strathspey binoculars do a marine £84.99 7x50 or 10x50 or at the other end of the price scale Canon IS stabilisation binoculars 10x30 starting at £350.00 Amazon

it all depends on how much you wish to spend the IS bins are great for star gazing

[jayjt29]

Thanks for the reply, they will only be used for my holiday and possibly bird watching now and again, i no not wish to spend more than £100

Thanks

Jay

[JamesF]

Might be worth looking back through FLO's clearance thread to see if they have any suitable ones still available?

James

[Cableguy]

Have you cruised before?if not the viewing might not be as good as you would expect. The ship will produce a lot of light,heat,movement and vibration so not great in my experience.

The binos will be worth it for spotting dolphins and whales though!

Sent from my Galaxy S2 via Tapatalk

[JamesF]

My parents were on the QM2 a while back and they actually had a speaker who talked about astronomy and had telescopes set up on deck for people to use. Can't recall the name of the chap at the moment.

However, this could be fun if you're a fellow of the RAS

http://www.ras.org.uk/news-and-press/219-news-2012/2115-astronomy-on-the-high-seas-call-for-lecturers-on-cunard-ships

James

[LukeSkywatcher]

How about a set of Strathspey 10x50 Marine bins?. These bins won the Sky at Night bino review a few (maybe 4) yrs back.

http://www.strathspey.co.uk/

I have a set of their 20x90 bins and can vouch for their quality and performance.

[BinocularSky]

The main reason 7x50 were "favourite" as marine binocs is that they were easier to use (than 10x50) on the heaving deck of a ship. Modern cruise liners tend not to "heave", so you could use a 10x50 unless things were really rough (in which case, you'd probably be under squally skies anyway). IMO the best 10x50 under £100 is the Strathspey Marine (I've had one for years).

[E621Keith]

For a budget of £100, I'd recommend either a Pentax PCF 8x40 (Microglobe) or a Opticron Aspheric WA ZWCF 8x40 (FLO). Both of them are waterproofed and should survived the occasional spray. You lose a bit of magnification compare to a 10x50 but gain a bit of stability.

[mallorcasaint]

My parents were on the QM2 a while back and they actually had a speaker who talked about astronomy and had telescopes set up on deck for people to use. Can't recall the name of the chap at the moment.

However, this could be fun if you're a fellow of the RAS

http://www.ras.org.u...on-cunard-ships

James

I assisted Dr.Francisco Diego of the RAS on the QM2 World Cruise last year. We had several stargazing nights in the South China Sea, Indian Ocean and the Med using the ships 12" Dobs. The lectures are first class and the planetarium is exactly the same as the one in the Museum of Natural History in New York. In case you are wondering, the ship is as stable as a rock and deck 13 is where the stargazing takes place. All the ships external lights (except navigation lights) are turned off and viewing is excellent. I look forward to doing it again soon!

[jayjt29]

Cheers for the info guys, ill look into all the ones mentioned

Thanks

Jay

[JamesF]

I assisted Dr.Francisco Diego of the RAS on the QM2 World Cruise last year. We had several stargazing nights in the South China Sea, Indian Ocean and the Med using the ships 12" Dobs. The lectures are first class and the planetarium is exactly the same as the one in the Museum of Natural History in New York. In case you are wondering, the ship is as stable as a rock and deck 13 is where the stargazing takes place. All the ships external lights (except navigation lights) are turned off and viewing is excellent. I look forward to doing it again soon!

That's him. I knew his name had something to do with cities in the US, but I couldn't put it together I'm fairly sure that would be the same cruise my parents were on -- their "Natural Disaster and Political Destabilisation World Tour 2010/11".

James

[jayjt29]

Keith, im going for the one suggested. Thanks

Jay

[mallorcasaint]

That's him. I knew his name had something to do with cities in the US, but I couldn't put it together I'm fairly sure that would be the same cruise my parents were on -- their "Natural Disaster and Political Destabilisation World Tour 2010/11".

James

Yes indeed,. That was the one! We had an incredible time with earthquakes, tsunamis and Arab Springs!

[JamesF]

FYI, FLO have just posted an offer on some 7x50s that might be worth looking at here:

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/154941-clearence-opticron-7x50-marine-3/

James