The North Lincs astro web site now has a page dedicated to members equipment.
This page shows some of the telescopes that may be on display and available to look through at each of the meetings.
This gives you a chance to try different scopes to help you decide which scope is for you.
Northern Optics will be in attendance at each meeting to help give advice
Click here to see the members telescopes page
Setting a binocular dioptre (right eye setting) is very easy to do, and takes less than 10 seconds with practice.
So why do binoculars have a right eye dioptre wheel ?. Not every ones eyes are exactly the same. So one lens on the binoculars needs to be adjusted to compensate.
Firstly either close your right eye, or place the objective lens cover on the right side. Focus as normal on a mid distance objective around 30-50 metres away. Then repeat with the other eye by closing your left eye or covering the left hand side objective lens. But this time , instead of focusing as normal, use the right eye adjustment wheel. You will see this near the right side eyepiece.
Be sure when you are focusing with both methods above, you are focusing on the same object each time. Once you have done this, the binoculars should be set for you.
Note that some zoom binoculars will have the dioptre adjustment on the left hand side.
Once set, you should see small increments next to the dioptre wheel. This is so you can remember your mark, in case some else borrows the binoculars and moves it from your setting.
Had an good evening at the North Lincs Astro club on 3rd Oct 2011. The weather kept us inside for most of the evening. High winds rather than clouds was the problem.
Around 13 turned up, and we had a good chat about the latest astro news. The Northern Optics stall of astro bits got some interest. A couple of people got some bargains, including a traded in pair of Ostara Elinors and an A-grade Celestron Ultima 80 spotter.
Observing tricks and techniques were exchanged bewteen seasoned astronomers and complete novices, who are always welcome.
Raffle prizes were an astro book donated by the club, and a Baader cleaning fluid/cloth provided by Northern Optics
I have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Hawke Optics Premier 42mm binoculars. Nitrogen waterproof , roof prism 10×42 binoculars for just £69.95 ?..Surely they would be poor quality ?..Believe me, you will be knocked back with how good they are for the money.
OK, these are not going to compete with the £100+ binoculars, but by no means are far behind. Optics are quoted as fully coated. T0 me, they seemed as good as many multi-coated optics. So don’t let that stat put you off.
First thing out the box, you will notice how light they are. Only 650g. They feel very well put together and solid. The Premiers do not feel cheap. Twist cups have very small increments when you twist them out, and could hold their position half way with ease.
So what about the view you get. Quoted as just 84m @ 1000m you may think the field of view will appear narrow and user unfriendly. I found much to my relief this does not seem apparent. It seems wider than the specs quote.
One minor set back is the close focus. I found it around 3.5m on testing. Hopefully the 8×42 version will show closer focus.
There is no internal reflection evident. This helps keeps the colours clear and contrast high. Chromatic aberration is evident, but much less than I was fearing. In fact there is less false colour than many binoculars costing more than twice the price.
Handling is superb. The rubber covering gives you confidence. The focus wheel is large , and silky smooth with no tight or loose points throughout the range.
Supplied with a standard soft case and strap. Warranty is 10 years
Priced at just £69.95 at launch, the Hawke Optics Premier 10×42 is sure to be a winner.
Very highly recommended.
**Update on the link below. It now takes you to the Vantage model which has preceded the discontinued Premier range
If starting out in astronomy , you may have heard of cooling down times . So what does this mean, and what are the benefits.
When you first take a telescope outside in to the cool night time air, the scope will remain warm for a while. The warm air off the scope will rise , and cause turbulent air currents. As a result it seem as if you are looking through rippling water. This can make the image very unsteady, and will increase with higher power magnifications.
A way to help reduce this is to let your scope cool down (cooling down time). By having your telescope the same temperature as outside, there will be less warm air rising, and so help reduce the turbulence and make the image more steady.
Cooling down times can vary from one scope to another. For example an enclosed SCT telescope will take longer to cool down when compared to a similar sized open tube reflector for example.
To help combat this issue many scopes come with, or can be fitted with cooling fans.
You will find that once your scope is cooled down, the cold winter evenings will give you the better views compared to the warm Summer evenings
The cooling down technique is not just for astronomical telescopes. Exactly the same applies to binoculars and spotting scopes.
Straight out the box, the Opticron Discovery WP PC 10×50 binoculars look impressive. The Discovery series are one of the most stylish binoculars available. Similar to the 42mm models, but come with drop down 50mm lens covers. I prefer this to the detachable covers that easily fall off the 8×42 and 10×42.
The 50mm lenses give as you expect a very bright image. Colours of leaves and flowers was impressive to say the least. Well up with many 42-3mm ED binoculars. A very flat field gives excellent edge of field sharpness. A little bowing of straight lines on the edge, and noticeable chromatic aberration (even in the centre of view) are minor flaws that will not distract you from how exceptional the image is.
Very wide eyepieces and long eye relief make for very comfortable viewing. In fact the eye relief is so long that I found my self getting the full view with glasses on, even without holding the glasses tight up to the eye pieces.
Despite the weight, I found them easy to hold for long periods. Handling is very good , with a smooth and large focus wheel. There was however a lot of turning needed to change from close focus to infinity. With them being 10x, you will find that almost constant focusing is needed to keep moving object sharp.
Although not as good as the Discovery 8×42 and 8×32 for close up work, I found seeing detail in plants just 2 metres away outstanding. They are the best 10×50 binoculars for close focus work I have ever used.
At just £179 (2011 price) these represent superb value for money. Very highly recommended.
New product news for 2011
Building on the strengths of previous models the Verano BGA HD features a fully revised optical system that delivers outstanding specification elevating them to a new performance class.
Optically the binoculars offer:
Mechanically the binoculars:
Verano BGA HD binoculars are supplied with a 30 year guarantee.
The 8×42 Verano BGA HD is recommended by the British Trust for Ornithology
Verano BGA HD binoculars are supplied complete in soft neoprene case with 31020 rainguard, neoprene lanyard and objective lens caps.
25/9/2011. Got a chance to view Jupiter with my Helios Quantum-4 20×90 binoculars. Considering the Planet was low down and covered by hazy clouds, I got superb views of the Galilean satellites. The disc was a clear circle, with just a hint of the Equatorial belts visible.
Sometimes the wide 3D low power views of Planets can be amazing compared to more expensive equipment.
Just shows what can be achieved without a telescope
Buy Helios Quantum-4 20×90 binoculars online here
After testing Barr and Stroud Sierra 8×32 and 10×50 binoculars, I was looking forwards to trying out the mid sized 8×42. First thing that was brought to my attention was the twist eye cups. The eye relief is long, but I found the twist eye cups came out a few mm to far. This meant to get full view you needed to push your eyes tight up against the cups, and they feel quite solid, so they felt uncomfortable to use when pressing up against your eyes. This was easily remedied by having the twist eye cups on the middle setting.
OK, with that minor issue out the way lets get onto the optics. The view you get is bright and clear. At 129m @ 1000m and small (ish) eye pieces you do not get the picture window wide angle of some of the opposition, but its wide enough to not be an issue.
In the centre of view, chromatic aberration is very minimal and on par with rivals costing £50 more. You do get more false colour towards the edge, and there is also field curvature on the edge of view. Colours and contrast are very good.
Focusing is a bonus. Less than half a turn of the focus wheel gets clear focus from around 8 metres to infinity. This was very useful when I was testing close focus and a low flying plane went by. The plane was centered and in focus in a few seconds.
Just like the 8×32 and 10×32 handling is excellent. They balance very easily in the hands.
The strap and case are very basic but do the job.
Summing up, they don’t have the cutting edge sharpness of the Barr and Stroud Series-4 8×42, but for just £10 less they are still excellent value for money.
Highly recommended
Buy Barr and Stroud binoculars here
The Celestron piggy back mount is the ultimate accessory for wide field astro photography. This mount allows you to attach your camera, with its lens, to the top of the telescope. Its unique design also allows you to fit your NexStar telescope’s Star Pointer on top of the Piggyback so that you can accurately navigate your telescope and conduct astrophotography at the same time.
Celestron item number #93609
Buy the Celestron Nexstar piggy back mount online here