My first real Bino session

[DRT]

I have owned a pair of Celestron 25x70 Skymasters for quite a while but never got along wth them because they were just too wobbly. I then read some threads here and realised they are too high powered for hand-held observing so bought a pair of Pentax 8x40 PCF WP IIs - wow! what a difference.

Tonight I spent an hour on a garden recliner looking at some usual suspects: Orion Nebula; The Double Cluster; Pleiades and the Andromeda Galaxy. I also had a look at Comet Lovejoy Q2 and some lovely open clusters in Perseus, which is currently close to the zenith and difficult to get to with some of my scopes.

I was surprised at how much can be seen through such low powered optics but this experience really has opened my eyes and convinced me that I don't have to fill my boot with astro gear every time I go on a weekend trip to the country

[brrttpaul]

Same here im a beginner and tried out my 8x42 birding binos tonight unbelievable what you can see, I think I want to get something a little bit more now though maybe 10x50 

[DRT]

Same here im a beginner and tried out my 8x42 birding binos tonight unbelievable what you can see, I think I want to get something a little bit more now though maybe 10x50 

I was thinking the same thing! This feels like yet another astro slipper slope!

[RT65CB-SWL]

Done much the same targets as above using my 20X80's on a Manfrotto 055 tripod & 234 head in a local park.

Definitely an eye-opener using binoculars instead of a telescope when sky conditions allow and what can be seen. 

[Tot]

Yep, absolutely love my 20 x 80 binos. Perfect grab and go and great views.

[MAN or ASTROMAN]

IMHO it's an oft repeated truism that good bins are an essential bit of kit for any Astronomer,regardless of their experience level.

[BinocularSky]

Same here im a beginner and tried out my 8x42 birding binos tonight unbelievable what you can see, I think I want to get something a little bit more now though maybe 10x50 

I was thinking the same thing! This feels like yet another astro slipper slope!

Put that thought away, guys. Seriously.

Most of what you gain in aperture, you will lose in shake. Unless you are going to at least a decent 70mm and mounting it, the only upgrade worth doing from 8x42 is better glass. Whilst I still think a decent 10x50 is a good all-round astro bino, there really is little advantage over a 8x40-ish of similar quality.

Just my £0.02...

[FenlandPaul]

I love my 20x80 bins even thought they're now competing with a 12" dob. It's so relaxing and satisfying to use them and for some objects I think the views are more impressive (pleiades and double cluster, for example) because of the context they provide. They're also great for showing things to other people through - novices seem to find it easier to observe through binoculars than a scope!

P

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[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Welcome to the Binocular Bunch, the most relaxed group of amateur astronomers!