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what binos for new starter?


colind1949

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Hi I am a new member just retired and I have been encouraged to take up astronomy as a hobby. I live in the Derbyshire peaks. What size and brand of binos should I invest? budget £80-£100?

10x50s or 17x70 with a stand. I have minor hand tremor due to CP

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Either of those will be fine Colin, our sponsor First Light Optics, carry a good range...

An alternative may be to go for image stabilised - but that would certainly blow your budget!

I have a set of Pentax 10x50s and they are perfect for relaxing in the garden and scanning the skies :)

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Check out this web site:

http://binocularsky.com/binoc_choosing.php

Excellent info. I started out with 10x50s, which are easier to hold still and only moved to 15x70s much later. The cheaper bins, and in particular cheap 15x70s can have collimation problems, and do not hesitate to return ones that do.

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The hand tremor 'may' be a problem for hand-holding.  On my recent holiday to Italy, one of the people who came along and asked to take a look through my equipment (and there were many, it seems that looking at the stars is popular with "normal" people too!) was an older gentleman with slightly shaky hands and he couldn't use my binos hand-held at all, even when lying back on a sun-lounger which is how I like to use them (although to be fair my 15x70s are pretty hard to hand hold even without).  He was absolutely fine with them on my Redsnapper tripod with ball head.

I strongly suggest you find someone locally who would let you test some out before buying :-)

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Hi and welcome to SGL - The Binocularsky website is a great place to start, there's loads of info on there. Steve is also on the forum and is very helpful. There's a busy binocular section as well, so if you've not already done so, perhaps go and have a nosey in there.

Look forward to seeing you around :smiley:

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Thanks for all the info. My son searched the net and suggests the 

Strathspey Marines 10x50 BBC sky at night best buy. What do 

people think

Hi and welcome to SGL. Strathspey Marine, yes a good choice. Their web site seems to be playing up at the moment but don't let that put you off just give them a call, they're good peole to deal with. As others have said, I'd also get a monopod and trigger grip at some stage.

Cheers

Neil

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Hi Colin and welcome to SGL a lot of the members are suggesting the 10 X50 and that's a good choice, I was recommended a 20 X 80 with tripod and I have not been disappointed. Living in an area with light pollution the bigger aperture does help but of course you would need a tripod. Best of luck in your choice

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Hi Colin and welcome to SGL, Srathspey Marine do have a good track record, but whether these are better than those offered by our sponsor, really means that you have to try them out first-hand. Possibly a visit to a big City camera shop, to try out various models could be in your best interest :)

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Welcome to SGL. I'm sure living in Derbyshire will help with finding dark skies. Binoculars and associated kit are quite personal pieces of equipment and always 'try before you buy' if you can (but this can be easier said than done). I went down the tripod route to ensure steady views and also recommend if you can find them a combined tripod bracket with led finder. You might not be able to afford one right now but having a led finder makes locating what you want to look at easy. I can recommend http://www.scopesnskies.com/prod/binocular/red-dot/tripod-bracket.html which seem to be back on sale again or you might find them on the Internet elsewhere. Over time I 'upgraded' the led finder for one with a variable intensity red dot. One other thing I would mention is if you wear glasses to observe do check out the eye relief of the binoculars you want to make sure you can properly see through them. I have quite bad eyesight (-7 dioptres) and find I am ok with binoculars having 19mm of eye relief.

Every best wish with your new hobby.

Cheers,

Steve

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My son as lent me his binos he bought as a teenager They are 6NU 12x40 made in the USSR, anyone heard anything about them?

not heard of them but from my limited experience with Russian gear they are probably very well made (ie. Solid, with good optics) but a little cranky in the looks department.

Welcome to SGL. I have a pair of dps1 10x50s which are decent for the money (£50

from amazon).

Probably not in the same league as the pentax but gives you a little left over for a tripod or monopod

Ben

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