Sub £100 binoculars

[underthesamesky]

Hi,

 

I am buying a gift for a friend who is pretty into astronomy and already has a couple of telescopes, and would really like a pair of binoculars. They need to be pretty portable and £100 max.

From my research so far these seem pretty highly reccommended http://www.skyatnigh...ios-fieldmaster and I'd appreciate any opinions. Would spending more money get me a better pair?

 

I don't know a great deal about astronomy, which uis why I thought I'd look here! So please go easy on me! 

 

Thanks in advance!

[Alfian]

Hi, have a look at this website:

http://www.binocularsky.com/binoc_choosing.php

This site is run by Steve Tonkin who is a regular contributor to this site and something of a binocular mentor to many of us. On the site you will find lots of good advice to inform your decision as well as some recommendations in the various price bands. Good luck and I hope youtr friend enjoys the binos.

[Crebles]

Helios do make good binoculars. The Fieldmasters are well regarded. I chose some Helios Weathermaster III 10x50 over the Fieldmasters just last week.

£100 is a solid budget - but yes, as with many things, the more you spend the potentially better quality you'll get. However, I reckon you'd need to be spending nearer £200 to start to see any appreciable difference in quality from a £100 pair. ie another £25 isn't going to be the difference between 'meh' and 'wow!'

You could do a lot worse than those Fieldmaster 10x50's. First Light Optics often have best prices and great customer service.

Binoculars are very personal things, so unless it has to be a complete surprise, your friend might prefer to be involved in choosing. I also recommend holding some before buying. Just a thought. 

If your friend is already into astronomy, they'll probably have some idea what they might want. Size can be important. 10x50's are considered the best all round size for astronomy, but 8x42's and 5x70 are also widely used - they all have different weights and give different fields of view. Most people use 15x70's on a tripod, but smaller bins, hand held, can be a really useful adjunct for use alongside the telescope for knowing where you are and planning starhops etc. Depends on what you want them for. I have 10x50s (the Weathermasters) I keep in the car and some £200 8x42's for using alone or with scope, and £275 15x70's for full on binocular-only observing nights.

Coatings on the prisms inside are important for astronomy; it's generally considered better to go for porro prism designs in sub £100 bins. This is because the prisms in porro bins are less sensitive to the quality of the coatings than roof prism binoculars are, ie porros are more tolerant of cheaper, less exotic coatings.

There's  guy called Steve Tonkin who posts on here and he's pretty much an expert on all things binocular. I also recommend you check out his website www.BinocularSkycom. Steve rates highly the Strathspey Marine 10x50's and you can get a pair for about £85 i think. A recommendation from Steve is high praise indeed. Hopefully he'll see this post and post his own reply too.

Hope my two penneth helps a little. If you've time keep posting and reading here.

By the way, I reckon your friend is very lucky to have someone as thoughtful as you. I'm sure they'll love whatever you pick.

[gkec]

Hi,

 

I am buying a gift for a friend who is pretty into astronomy and already has a couple of telescopes, and would really like a pair of binoculars. They need to be pretty portable and £100 max.

From my research so far these seem pretty highly reccommended http://www.skyatnigh...ios-fieldmaster and I'd appreciate any opinions. Would spending more money get me a better pair?

 

I don't know a great deal about astronomy, which uis why I thought I'd look here! So please go easy on me! 

 

Thanks in advance!

An ex colleague of mine who was head of the optics department at the Royal Greenwich Observatory said that 7x50s were perfect for astronomy due to the exit pupil matching the size of the eye's pupil in darkness.  So I got a pair and 20 years later I still use them.  Not too cumbersome and perfect  for carrying around in the car and be ready for the unexpected. Like comet PanSTARRS.

I am sure your friend will appreciate them and even if he does get another pair it is always useful to have others for friends to borrow. 

[BinocularSky]

There's  guy called Steve Tonkin who posts on here and he's pretty much an expert on all things binocular. I also recommend you check out his website www.BinocularSkycom. Steve rates highly the Strathspey Marine 10x50's and you can get a pair for about £85 i think. A recommendation from Steve is high praise indeed. Hopefully he'll see this post and post his own reply too.

I would argue that there are others on here who are more of an expert than I  -- Peter Drew , for example. I am just an ordinary amateur who happens to really enjoy astronomy with binoculars, to the extent that I cold probably bore for England on the subject...

One thing you need to be aware of about the Strath Marines is that they are internally stopped down to an effective aperture of around 41mm. However, they are pretty sharp for a binoc of that price, but you are losing a lot (nearly half a magnitude) of light-gathering.

...7x50s were perfect for astronomy due to the exit pupil matching the size of the eye's pupil in darkness.

It's a match if your pupil opens to a tad over 7mm. Worth measuring your exit pupil before going that way. The 7x50 certainly wins on the steadiness stakes, but it really needs a very good dark sky to really have much advantage over a 10x50: the extra magnification darkens the sky background.

[gkec]

It's a match if your pupil opens to a tad over 7mm. Worth measuring your exit pupil before going that way. The 7x50 certainly wins on the steadiness stakes, but it really needs a very good dark sky to really have much advantage over a 10x50: the extra magnification darkens the sky background.

I am looking forward to the post where the OP describes how he measured his friend's pupils in the dark without giving anything away about his present.

[Charic]

 I would suggest a voucher from a reputable dealership for your friend  As above, they'll  probably have a much better feel  and understanding for their needs, But if you say its for binoculars, I'm sure they'll get them.

I'm a 7x50 Man and their great. I also had some 20 x80s they were good too, but extremely heavy to use. I sold them some Years back, but as you`ll see in my signature, Ive now got some 15x70s. Their ok, do what I was expecting, but more or less the same as my Helios 20x80's prior, although not as well built, as I recall. These 15x70s are in a soft case? optics like these need protecting. They still need steady supporting to see a stable target, They dont have eye cap covers, just a rain guard, to prevent the eyepieces from filling up? ( The guard does fit better if you roll the eye rubbers down!  Ive only had them one Day, but  they are doing what I require of them, that is to see M31 & M42 when I don't have my telescope with me, and hopefully other DSO's. They just make out the 4 Moons of Jupiter, but Jupiter itself was far to bright me me too see any detail tonight!  I can still see M31(Andromeda) with the 7x50's but more there's more light and its a little closer with the 15x70's.

I've now got green milk carton lids from Asda milk cartons as eyecaps for the 15x70's. They fit just perfect inside the eyecup? the Revelations were under £50 but factor in postage and packing for final prices from Telescope House.

[badhex]

Hello all

Thanks so much for your replies and advice - turns out the OP is my girlfriend, she got me the 7x50 Fieldmasters which are exactly the right size. 10x50s would be a tad less portable for my needs so the 7x50s are perfect, and no pupil measuring required!

I will be using them alongside my other kit for star hopping and also when I'm out and about or its not worth getting a scope out. They will complement my Skymax 102 well given the whole kit will pack up pretty neatly.

Thanks again all, looking forward to getting some use out of them!

[Crebles]

Hi Joe. Congratulations on the bins. And the girlfriend.