Hello

[smoggie89]

Hello all , newbie here, in the last couple of weeks or so ive been getting more interested in stargazing but i dont know much about it , equipment etc... i was just after some advice on what would be half decent to see the stars/planets. Ideally i dont want to spend anymore than £100 and i would prefer binoculaurs so i can put them in the car and have a look whenever im out and about. Any advice/info is much appreciated , cheers Nathan.

[wookie1965]

A warm welcome to SGL, have a look in the binoculars section some great advice there for some decent bins.

[atmenterprises]

Welcome to the forum, Nathan. Lots of knowledgeable folks here.

[smoggie89]

what are bins? lol sorry if i sound like an idiot. ive just had a quick read through the bino page and seen people onabout pentax pcf or something like that? all i want to do is just look at the planets/stars and night sky so i dont want to be breaking the bank cheers for help guys

[Mr Q]

what are bins? lol sorry if i sound like an idiot. ive just had a quick read through the bino page and seen people onabout pentax pcf or something like that? all i want to do is just look at the planets/stars and night sky so i dont want to be breaking the bank cheers for help guys

"Bins" is a nickname for binoculars in the U.K. while in the U.S. the term is "binos". What you want is a pair of 10x50s for all stargazing. This size is the best for hand holding (weight), magnification power (10x) and light grasping power (x50). The bigger the objective lenses, the heavier the bins are.

[smoggie89]

Cheers mate I'm going to have a look on the net now and see what's on offer

[rory]

look for bk4 glass prism rather than bak7. and at least multicoated if you can. fully multicoated even better .

[brantuk]

Bak4 fully multi coated (FMC) porro prisms are what I use. 10x50's are more than enough though 15x70's are within your budget for a spot more light gathering - but they'd need a sturdy tripod for prolonged use.

[smoggie89]

Cheers guys currently looking at the Pentax PFC wp ii , getting good reviews

[Charon]

Welcome to the forum Nathan.

[Velvet]

You can also look at the classifieds here, I think there are some on there

Velvet

[glowjet]

Have a look at Strathspey binoculars, their site has a an explanation of the prisms, lens coatings and such, they also make a very reasonable quality range of binoculars

John.

[glowjet]

You can also look at the classifieds here, I think there are some on there

Velvet

Sorry Velvet but Smoggie won`t be able to access the Classifieds until he has reached 50 posts, I know it seems a shame, but there are reasons as to why this rule is in place

John.

[KenG]

Get a binocular that can be mounted on a tripod (some can't) and get one of those as well. The difference it will make to your viewing experience will be disproportionate to the outlay.

[sologuitarist61]

Welcome to SGL

[smoggie89]

Once again cheers for replies, I mainly want to see planets (Saturn) but I don't think my budget will get me anything to be able to see the rings ! But I would also look at the stars etc ...

[paul schofield]

Hi and welcome along. There are many Bak 4 prism'd binoculars within your budget. I own 2 pairs, both of which were well under £100. I am no bino expert so recommendations would be better coming from someone more experienced than me. The 2 sets I have are really very good for the £'s. But there are many more on the market for your budget. Good luck with your choice.

[smoggie89]

Hello Paul , what bins have you got? I would stretch the budget to 150 very maximum , I want an all round pair basically as Im not dedicated to 1 part of astronomy, if anyone can recommend any pairs cheers

[JamesM]

Nathan, as part of your research on binoculars, you might want to take a look at this helpful site which you might also want to bookmark for when you start observing.

Clear skies

James

[smoggie89]

Thank you James