Ostara Moon / Skyglow filter video review

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Olivon PC 8×42 binoculars video review

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Visionary Wetland 8×25 binoculars video review

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Skywatcher Panaview eyepiece video review

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Olivon PC3 8×26 binoculars video review

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North Lincs astro meeting 3rd July 2017

19 of the regulars were present at the North Lincs astro society meeting for the July 2017 get together at Far Ings visitor centre. We got there early to get some stunning views of the Sun through the club solar telescope. There was so much activity on the Sun, we was spoilt for choice.

Once inside , Damian kicked things off with his constellation of the month talk. For this month it was a brief look at the Northern Crown , Corona Borealis . This was followed by John updating us with all the latest astronomy and space flight news. One day John will remember his glasses… Last but by no means least, Chris gave an excellent in depth talk about eyepieces. This included types of eyepieces and an explanation on eye relief, exit pupil and field of view.

Thanks as always for Glennys for the excellent teas and refreshments, the Lincolnshire wild life trust for the use of the venue and as always yours truly Northern Optics with some bargains on the night, which included an Olivon 8-24mm HR eyepiece, Ostara Dielectric 2″ 90 degree diagonal and other smaller items.

We finished the night discussing ideas for future meetings and other events hosted by members. If you are thinking of coming along for the first time, remember its free entry for your first meeting

 

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Hawke Premier 12×25 vs Visionary Wetland 8×25 binoculars review

OK, 12×25 vs 8×25 compact binoculars is not an exact like for like comparison, but for different reasons two customers on the same day picked one then the other at the Northern Optics weekend display when we was present with our weekend display at the Waters` Edge country park and visitor centre . Both were at the time of this post under £50 and £40

After trying the two sets, the 1st customer went for the Hawke Premier 12×25, simply due to the greater magnification they offered. The added bonus was that as they were the old model, they was being cleared at just £39.00. This is amazing value for a set of binoculars with multi-coated optics and Bak-4 prisms.

The second customer however chose the Visionary Wetland 8×25 binoculars. The wider field of view and slightly sharper and brighter image was a plus point. But the main selling point was the much better handling and ease of use over the Hawkes.

This just goes to show, what suits one customer does not suit the other, and it is always best to try before you buy

 

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Baader fringe killer #2458370

The Baader Planetarium fringe killer is a low cost solution for reducing colour fringing while retaining colour balance. Can be used for both Planetary and Solar use (with Baader solar filter or film)

  • Offering the brightest image of all colour correcting devices in the industry. The Fringe-Killer is a must for even the smallest of refracting  telescopes that have issues with CA.
  • Removes blue colour fringing as well as RED fringing above 656 nm!
  • `Breaks` the intensity of the frustrating false blue colour in a completely new way, never ever before manufactured as astronomical filter for telescopes.
  • Forms a `plateau` of eff. 50%transmission in the `blue` spectral region from 450nm to 480nm – being much more complex to produce than even the narrowest of all Nebula Filters.
  • Maintains the highest light transmission of all known colour correcting devices – be it filters or lenses – in all important deep sky wavelengths from 486/501 up to 656 nm. LIGHT is `the hottest commodity` for high magnification work.
  • Built-in (IR) Infrared Blocker, ranging from 656nm to 1150nm, makes it the perfect tool for CCD work, as well as afocal projection-photography with digital cameras for Moon & Planets.
  • Subtlest of colour variations remain visible in planetary surface detail, due to the excellent colour balance.
  • Combine with our 31.7mm Red RG-610 color filter, to receive an ultra narrow (70nm) wide H-alpha passband filter of unheared of 95% peak transmission at world‘s lowest price!.
  • Combine with our NEODYMIUM Moon & Skyglow Filter (with Phantom-Group-Multicoatings) for breathtaking contrast on lunar and planetary surface detail!
  • Planoptically polished, means perfect sharpness, even when mounted way in front of a binocular viewer, or during afocal projection (digital imaging).
  • No deterioration of resolution with magnification at 300 times or more – as it would happen with the usual `flame polished` (raw polished) glass, commonly used for all sorts of filters!
  • Coating: Plasma assisted, hardest, scratch proof and water impermeable dielectric coatings of almost 50 coating layers on either side, most carefully designed to extend equal tension onto either side of the substrate – in order to retain a highest quality optical figure.
  • Will make the performance of a simple f/8 economy refractor look like a classic f/15 Fraunhofer-Achromate.
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Visionary Wetland 8×25 binoculars review

For this review Northern Optics took a look at the Visionary Wetland 8×25 compact binoculars. Priced at around £50, they are aimed at the keen beginner.

The outer box is solid, with some images of wildlife and recommended uses. You then find inside a standard medium nylon neck strap and soft case with Visionary on it. First impression of the binoculars is that they are extremely solid and well built. The textured rubber body is very grippy. Eye cups are twist type, but sadly eye relief is not long enough for spectacle wearers. The body itself does not flex on the single hinge, meaning it stays in position once set. This makes for ease of handling and fast set up.

So lets check the optics. OK the colours, brightness and whiteness of the whites is not as vivid as phase coated versions. But saying that, these are £50, not £100+, so it is unfair to compare. What you do get is a very acceptable image with nice colours. On the subject of colours, there is a little purple fringing in the centre, but well within tolerances for optics in this price range. Field of view is very good as with many 8×25 binoculars.

The focus wheel moves freely with no tight spots. I did find the close focus varies from one model to the next. So best check out a set 1st. As I write this review we do have a small number for you to try at our weekend outlet at the Waters` edge visitor centre and Barton Upon Humber.

Spec. Multi-coated optics. BaK-4 prisms. Nitrogen waterproof

Summing up, the optics about par for the price. But the major plus points are the build quality, ease of use and handling, which makes them ideal as a starter set

 

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North Lincs Astro meeting 5th June 2017

Despite the weather, 16 regulars turned up for the North Lincs astro society meeting on Monday 5th June 2017.

The night kicked off with Damian giving a brief talk about the constellation Libra the scales. This included the history of the naming, and some of the stars to look out for. Then John Kindly gave us his monthly  update on the latest news from the world of astronomy and space flight. This was followed by a great talk about the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, which included an in depth description explaining about the brightness / luminosity of stars and the difference between apparent and absolute magnitude. Also there was also a practical lesson for us all, with pencils and work sheets at the ready. This was not as difficult as we feared. Even I got it right !

Thanks as always for Malcolm and Glennys for the teas and refreshments (including doggy bag for me) and the Lincolnshire wildlife trust for the use of the venue.

As always Northern Optics was in attendance with some bargains on the night

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