Worth buying binoculars?

[spaceboy]

Professional Aluminium Camera Monopod inc Footrest/Bag on eBay (end time 17-Jan-11 10:14:54 GMT) Should you need a helping hand. Less than £10 so will hardly break the bank.

[Moonshane]

The monopod recommended by Nick (Spaceboy) really is worth the small investment as although it may not be the most sturdy in the world, it will definitely be an improvement over hand holding. I personally feel that even 10x50s are extremely difficult to hold very steadily when observing stars unless you have some support and this would seem to be ideal if on a small budget.

Personally, I feel if you have a choice of either a scope of some bins and buying one or the other means that you'll have to wait a long time to get the other (if you remain interested you will definitely eventually like using both) then a scope is the best choice initially. Spend most of your money on that and get a really cheap pair of bins for now - charity / second hand is a good way to get a better pair for less money.

If you really just want a pair of bins, I feel that 15x70s are where bins start to get spectacular for astro observing, especially at darker sites. Look at the sword of orion in 8x40s or 10x50s and then compare the view in 15x70s - no comparison. The moon is excellent too, as well as Jupiter's moons, Uranus, and so many galaxies and open clusters. Comets are also often better in binoculars than scopes based on some recent fairly faint ones (Hartley 103P and McNaught).

Even when you have a scope, it will need to cool and this is when you can use your bins. Sometimes as others have said, you just want a quick peek for half an hour - again bins come into their own.

The main reason I bought my 15x70s/monopod is as a holiday 'scope'. No way I'd get my 12" dob through customs.......

As with anything optical, buy the best quality you can afford as the cost will only increase with time generally. Money spent a few years ago on a good piece of optics fades in the memory when you keep getting rewarded with fantastic sights.

[JamesM]

In answer to the question regarding revised editions of "Turn Left at Orion". This spring will see the arrival of a revised edition which will contained up dated tables that appear in the back of the book. Currently the tables of data are currently only valid up to and including this year. As the book is not particularly cheap I think it is important for those starting out to get the maximum value out of this great book including any possible resale value when their experience negates the need to hold on to it.

Clear skies

James