Binoculars

[diamond lil]

My youngest son ( the one with sticky fingers) has "borrowed" the binocs. So we'll never see them again in this lifetime. What's a good kind to get? There seems to be loads of different magnifactions and specs - does anybody know about these things?

[Plymtom]

If at all possible go and try some, no matter what the spec says there's something about binoculars that your own eyes either get on with ....or not, plus ( in my case) spectacle wearers particularly vary-focal are an added problem, I have binoculars which I bought pre - glasses none of which function well with glasses I have to take them off, which isn't always wise or good.
If anyone here has found any that work very well with specs I'd like to know too, what I need is something which will sit in front of my specs and give me the picture I get without them, my cheap ones seem to have bugger all in the way of eye relief in as much as if my eyeballs aren't practically touching the lens then the picture is ruined, in winter at the range I also find the bloody things steam up within a second or two, my eyes are very watery, they always have been but the drug I'm taking makes it worse.

[sethorly]

We use 10x50 Olympus binoculars ("binos"/"bins") but they were bought primarily for showing the kids moon craters, the Andromeda galaxy, Jupiter's moons, and the Milky Way. As such we've spent one and a half times as much as the bins on a decent tripod which is essential for astronomy at that bin weight. The bins have rubber eyepiece bits which are designed to work with glasses - I wear glasses and have sensitive eyes and they work perfectly for me.

The 1st number is the magnification, the 2nd number is the size in mm of the bigger lenses which indicates how much light is collected (-> brightness / clarity of the view). Think about what you want to use the bins for then take a look at a few google pages to see what people suggest. 10x50 is an all rounder. A support is essential for decent viewing, but you could just use a stick or broom if you don't have the space or money for a tripod.

Using a 50mm bin for night vision means that your pupils are effectively 50mm in diameter leading to a huge increase in the light that hits your retina, so you can basically see in the dark as long as there's a small amount of ambient light (from a crescent moon for instance). I learnt about this when at RMAS.

My Olumpus 10x50 cost around 80 quid and the tripod 140 quid. You get what you pay for with bins. Hope this all helps.

[diamond lil]

We just want them to use from the windows - we look out onto hills and there's always hawks floating around or deer or hares, whatever. Thanks everybody

[Plymtom]

We just want them to use from the windows - we look out onto hills and there's always hawks floating around or deer or hares, whatever. Thanks everybody

Go on you just want to see the southerners coming if TSHTF don't you

[diamond lil]

YOU THINK THEY MIGHT??? eeeek!

[sethorly]

http://procular.co.uk/choosing-binocula ... ete-guide/

Looks like 10x is the optimal for your use if you're not going for a tripod.

[Alloneword]

Plymtom is first rate when he says go and try in person it's the only way IMO

I used to have some 10x50 but felt to big and bulky so gave them away via freecycle and bought a smaller pair of 8x24 worst mistake i had made now wish i had my 10x50 back they seem a decent balance between weight and performance but i'd get to a shop and try a few out.

All1

[diamond lil]

Ok will tell husband he needs to move his a$$ and find a shop, then go and look. TY