Binoculars

[minimeeze]

I'm looking for some binoculars but know absolutely nothing about them :shake: Can anyone recommend a decent pair below £100? I don't need something all singing all dancing (although autofocus would be good). I've been looking around the 'net and I'm more confused than before I started :lol:

Thanks

[fracster]

How very odd, I was going to ask the same question............:lol:

I`ll await the answers from people who know.....:)

[grumpybadger]

Hmm. £100 isn't a lot. It's like camera lenses. Good optics cost money. It also depends what you want to use them for. 10x maginification are often used by birders but I prefer a wider field of view to find things and so use some 7x.

The first number in binoculars represents the aperture (it is the diameter of the front optic in mm) and the second the magnification - so 8x25 binoculars are pretty small and 10x50 are huge!

If you want to use them at dawn and dusk (as I do) then light gathering is important. I have a pair of Leicas but they are well over your stated budget. Of the cheaper ranges, the Vikings have a good report and are also sold as "RSPB" binoculars.

I would recommend 7-8 x 42 for general wildlife watching. Maybe 10x if you are a birder or think about 50 front optics for astronomy.

Roof prism binoculars just look like tubes and so are smaller than the porro prism binoculars that look like the "old fashioned" ones with a step out part way along the barrel. Both offer similar optical quality so it is a tradeoff between available size/weight issues and optical performance.

The RSPB 8.5x42 are a good general set but are just over £200 - depends what you want. If you really are on a budget, the RSPB 8x40 porro prism ones are probably a good bet. GreenWitch (www.green-witch.com) have them for £109.

Paul

[minimeeze]

Thanks for that very helpful info GrumpyBadger :) I want them for general use/birdwatching/bear spotting etc when we move over to Canada. I'm hoping they will be alot cheaper over there too.

[idlemonkey]

The best bit of advice i can offer is to make sure you try before you buy ..... just because it is expensive or has a good name doesn't mean it will be right for you.

Porro's and Roof's give a totally different view than each other, with Porro's looking kind of 3D compared to a flat view through Roof's.

[jerry12953]

I don't need something all singing all dancing (although autofocus would be good).



I've not heard of autofocus binoculars ... am almost certain they don't exist.

[minimeeze]

I've not heard of autofocus binoculars ... am almost certain they don't exist.



http://www.4u-binoculars.com/auto-focus-binoculars.html

You can also get binoculars with image stabilisation :)

[Fitzy]

I know Canon have IS binoculars, but I think they are rather expensive. As for autofocus, I am not really sure about that one, but all I will say is that I have never needed to adjust the Bresser Optics pair I have, regardless of the distance or the eyesite of the user.

http://www.bresseroptics.co.uk/details.php?id=64

The 50mm part of these certainly makes the view nice and light and I have been very pleased with them, although the bearing part might be of little use without a boat.

I know these are over budget, but I got mine for half that, although that was about 4 years ago.

[mfwild13]

I think one of the bookshelf birding magazines has a review of over 250 pairs of binoculars this month so that may be a good starting point.

Roof prisms are the way to go for quality with a compact size but you will struggle to get a decent pair for what you are looking to pay. Probably 8x42 is the size to get for general use but try out 10x42 too.

Try looking for deals on Bushnell, Swift, Olympus and maybe even Nikon.

Found these (http://www.bristolcameras.co.uk/p-swift-reliant-8x42-roof-prism-binocular.htm), no idea what they are like but may be worth a look.

[minimeeze]

It seems I may be able to get a decent pair of binoculars when I get to Canada - alot of the ones suggested seem to be half the price they are in the UK :woot: Keep coming up with the suggestions though peeps :)

[hotchef23]

paid 99 for a set of hawke a couple of months ago, 10x50 waterproof i think it was teh blackwatch one.

real easy to use good image quality but as stated you get what you pay for

best i have handled were leicas but at 1400 coouldnt really warrant that for sitting on the marsh and watching sparrows fart!

hope this ehlps

[jerry12953]

http://www.4u-binoculars.com/auto-focus-binoculars.html

You can also get binoculars with image stabilisation :)

I stand corrected but I would avoid them like the plague.

When out birding one is constantly altering the focus to get birds at different distances in focus. I don't see how these fixed focus bins could be any use at all.

I'm aware that you can get IS bins but I've never known serious birders use them. I suppose they must have users , but I know they are very heavy.

general use = 8x
birding = 8x or 10x

NB These are the magnification figures, not the aperture. In his post Mr Grumpy has mixed the two up.

Also look at the field of view. As a general rule the greater the magnification the narrower the field of view.

If you divide the larger number by the magnification you will get a measure of the light gathering capacity - ie the ability of the bins to see in poor light. So in this respect 10x50 is better than 8x30.

I agree that your best bet would be to try to find a comparison test in one of the birding (or magazines).:)

[grumpybadger]

NB These are the magnification figures, not the aperture. In his post Mr Grumpy has mixed the two up.



Oops - well spotted. Mixed them up in writing not in understanding!

Sorry for confusion...

[jgs001]

I have a number of pairs of binoculars I use for Astronomy. Probably the best views is with my pair of Bresser 10x50's that came from Lidl for £12. They can be had for £25 from Telescope House (http://www.telescopehouse.com/acatalog/Bresser_10x50_Binocular_Special_Offer.html). They are quite light, have a resonable FOV and long eye relief (how close you have to get your eye to the exit lenses). I've used these for bird watching at the local nature reserve. I also have a pair of Celestron 12x50's and 15x70's, but they are both much heavier and really need a tripod to mount them on. HTH

[Chuckurbarla]

The versatility of zoom binoculars is very useful. Mine are 7X14 x20 i.e. they zoom between 7x and 14x magnification with an objective lens of 20mm. They were only something like £40 when I bought them but they're getting a bit long in the tooth now (like me). There are drawbacks, you have to re-focus when you zoom for example and the zoom mechanism can get a bit slack over time.

I think I would prefer to look at a bear when zoomed to 14x, I don't run as fast as I used to! :lol:

Just found this site which has some decent prices linky (http://www.the-binoculars-store.co.uk/zoom-binoculars-86-c.asp?gclid=CKGx0JaV75UCFSRWMAodnFNqfg)

[jerry12953]

The versatility of zoom binoculars is very useful. Mine are 7X14 x20 i.e. they zoom between 7x and 14x magnification with an objective lens of 20mm. They were only something like £40 when I bought them but they're getting a bit long in the tooth now (like me). There are drawbacks, you have to re-focus when you zoom for example and the zoom mechanism can get a bit slack over time.

[/URL]

For serious use see my suggestion re autofocus bins!:nono:

[Chuckurbarla]

Zoom bins do have limitations as I said but for the uses Cheryl mentioned (not serious) they could be very useful.

[Nod]

As a rough guide, aim for an aperture figure in the region of 5 x the magnification for use at dusk/dawn and a good, bright image in normal light - 8 x 40 or 10 x 50 should be OK for handholding - 12 x 60 are a bit heavy and are better on support.

[InkZ]

I did loads of research before buying some a couple of months ago.

I opted for the Nikon 8x40 action ex and they are lovely. Great all rounders :)

Loads of good reviews and seem to be great bins at the price point. Microglobe are stupidly cheap for bins:

http://www.microglobe.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?pName=nikon-8x40-action-extreme-ex-waterproof-binoculars

Can't recommend them enough, but it obviously depends what range you want. Anything above 10 and they are going to get shakey, 8x seemed a good balance.

I bought them primarely for airshows :)

[fracster]

Plenty of help and advice.........Thanks.........:thumbs: