Binoculars for beginners

[alexcapel]

Hi, I'm new to the forum.
I've recently moved into a new house with a lovely attic room, and have been spending most of my nights gazing up at the night sky. I want to buy a telescope, but I reckon a pair of binoculars would be better suited for a beginner. What specs and makes would you recommend?

Thanks.

[Okeydokey]

http://binocularsky.com/index.php

The guy who runs this site is a regular here, he seems to know his stuff.  The linky is very good on the subject but don't forget to check out the Bino sections of the forums here as well.  These are jam packed with excellenct advice.

[Okeydokey]

This where I meant when I said here   http://stargazerslounge.com/forum/133-discussions-binoculars/

[kev100]

Hiya,

I love my Celestron 20x80s (http://goo.gl/bYLwqZ), though you do need a tripod to keep them steady. They given fantastically clear views of the moon, star clusters, the orion nebula, the Plieades, and Jupiter, Andromeda, etc. 

Kev

[alexcapel]

Thanks for the replies. I'll check the link out. I was thinking of something smaller at first...

[ronin]

I would simply suggest the standard birding binoculars at 8x42.

Could go for 10x50's but really not above that as you start to need a tripod or mono-pod to enable a steady view. Tend to look upon it that the more you spend on a set then the less you have for a scope or the longer you have to wait.

Binoculars compliment a scope, they are not a replacement, they have their own place and do a very good job. Binoculars are great for locating things, M13 is a good example use binoculars to find where it is and an idea of what you will see. To look at it in detail get a scope out with 80x or 100x.

Seems that many times the question or answer is Scope OR Binoculars. I have 4 of one and 3 of the other

[Reeny]

Thanks for the replies. I'll check the link out. I was thinking of something smaller at first...

I use 15x 70 Revolutions to find stuff - then target in with the scope once I know where to look.

http://www.telescopehouse.com/acatalog/Revelation_15x70_Binocular_Special_Offer-1.html

They are OK without a tripod, so if you can stand still, or lean against something to keep them steady (eg sitting in a chair, back to the wall etc)

A smaller maginification will mean smaller aperture = less light / less viewable detail.

For £60 the 15x 70's are good to use as a spotter / finder for the telescope,

Or as a stand alone bit of kit for lunar observations, finding andromeda, or viewing clusters.

There are some good 10x 50's available as well.

[Tonys]

I have Nikon Action VII 8x40's, which are fairly light and comfortable for holding and perform well enough for me. I paid around £70.

[Astro Imp]

I recently bought a pair of Helios 8x42 bins and not having used bins before to observe was amazed at the view I had recently when I only had a short time to observe.

It was a very transparent night with no moon.

I started by scanning around Cygnus then went over to Cassiopeia and couldn't believe the view I was getting of the star fields. 

Having scanned around for some time I thought well this is good let's see what I can find. First target M31, found very easily using Cas as a pointer and it looked not much worse than with the scope on a poor night. Next up the double cluster in Perseus which again was easily found using Cas as a guide. Then went up to Alcor/Mizar, no problem obviously. 

This was the first time I had seriously used bins and it won't be the last.

From my experience of that night I don't think I would want to hand hold any bins much bigger, perhaps 10x50 would be manageable, would like to have a try.

[ronl]

10x50 are a nice comfortable size, they will show you a lot, 

depending on your site, are your sky's dark or do you have

light pollution, you say you intend to get a scope, so learn the

night sky with the bins first, it is a good way to find your way

around, what make of bins depends entirely on your budget,

there are lot's to choose from, but my personal size would be

10x50s; anything bigger you will need a tripod or mono pod.