I am in possession of a superb 6" GoTo refractor, but it is a bit of a handful and thus not suitable for use on every single clear night. So I'm looking for binoculars that can fill in on those nights. In other words, not any that require a tripod to hold steady, and with portability, light weight and ease of use at a premium. They won't be needed for dim objects, so just some that will perform well on targets they are suited for.

So, I'm wondering what I should get. 7x50? Any recommends on good (specific) buys more than welcome.

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Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball.

You mention that you want something that does not require a tripod. I don't know about you but I was never able to hold ANY binos still enough to do any meaningful astronomical observing. If you can do it, please send me an instruction manual on how to do it.

As far as specs go, I have 7X50, 10X50 and 20X100 binoculars. The 20X100 is made by Oberwerk and is spectacular. Very bright, very clear, very apochromatic. No spherical aberation, very good tube colomation. VERY HEAVY, you have to have a tripod for the big boy.

Between the 7X50 and 10X50 I prefer the 10X50 as the 7X does not, IMHO, have enough magnification to let you see what you're out there to see. The 10x gets you close enough to the Moon to see creaters and to see what all the fuss is about, you can tell that Jupiter and Saturn are disks not star points and the Andromeda Galaxy is more than a difuse smudge in the sky.

IMHO the 7x is only good for sporting events. It has a wide enough field of veiw (fov) that you can find the players on the field and follow the action.

Hope this helps ya.

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It's just one of those damn things of which there are many few. -- Dan Blocker

If you're wanting to hand-hold, you'll need something fairly light weight. Lower magnification will amplify the shakes less, and you'll need a decent amount of aperture. 7x50 is probably your best bet.

As Russ indicated, ability to keep the things still varies from person to person. You should try them out before buying, if possible. If I hold my breath and lean on something, I can just about keep my 12x60s still for a few seconds, but most of the time they live on a tripod.

Canon makes "image stabilized" binoculars in 15x50 and 18x50. They are not cheap, but if you have the $$$ they may be what you are looking for.

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Any day you wake up on "the right side of the dirt" is a good day.

T. Anderson

Oh boy -- binoculoculoculars...one of my favorite subjects to expound on...don't know why, it just is...

First off -- powers and sizes.
7x35 is considered too small for stargazing, but hey, if you've already got 'em, go for it...learn the sky before blowing any more cash.
That being said, if you're going to buy some, good starters are in the range 7x50, 8x42, 8x56, 10x50, 11x70 -- anything physically larger than that gets heavy fast, and you get the shakes.

Suppliers? Orion Telescopes & Binoculars is an excellent place to start.
Check out their interactive Product Selection Wizard for some assistance.

Big Binoculars and Oberwerk are basically the same place -- the two sites cater to slightly different clienteles. Prices on both sites range from "That's so cheap, gimme two" to "!!!OMG!!! HOW MUCH???!!!"

This particular pair happens to go for about $12,495 if I recall correctly...

You may want to check out Apogee's binoculars with built-in nebula filters. They're going for cheap -- I have it on the authority of the owner that these prices will be good until the end of the year. A set of 12x60's for less than $90? Hmmm...

Note -- whatever ones you buy, it's a plus if they're already set for tripod mounting. Some have a screw mount in the pivot, bigger ones have a captive post on a mount bar. The industry standard thread is 1/4-20, for a tripod. You'll probably have to invest in an L-mount to use the binos on any sort of mount. Stay away from the cheap plastic kind. Invest $10 or so on one of the good solid steel ones. Check carefully -- some manufacturers of larger binos will throw in an L mount (hint hint hint...at least one mfr listed here does that...).

Now, it doesn't matter how big or how small you go, eventually you're going to get a crick in your neck and shaky hands from holding these things over your head. It's time for a mount. You can go expensive (the parallelogram mount, on a tripod -- these are not cheap) or you can go much more inexpensive...


This little gem comes from Helix Manufacturing and while mildly pricey ($40), they are very handy. A quick visit to your local hardware store for a standard-thread utility handle completes the setup -- I found a set of four threaded extension sticks, so I can stick in as many 16" sections as I need depending on what I'm doing. Three sticks for sitting, four for standing, five for overhead viewing (I bought two packs, for a total of eight bucks).
This pic shows my Apogee 12x60's mounted on the Helix holder.

Now, let it be said that I'm not shilling for any particular manufacturer, I'm just a satisfied user of some particular pieces of equipment. These pieces of gear may not be suitable to your tastes -- so be it. Hopefully there's something here to give you an idea that will make your evening's stargazing more pleasant. If that's the case, and our paths ever cross, first root beer's on me...

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"If a tree is cut down in the rainforest, and is used to make paper to print a book, and the book is really bad, and there's nobody that will read it, do you still hear a sucking sound?"
Charlie in Dayton, A.AsC.

Glad to see that someone appreciates my hard work in setting up that nightmare of a wizard. (And I didn't even handle the technical stuff!)

One caveat about binoculars is this: The Japanese still rule. They are expensive, and Chinese sometimes can come close, but the Japanese have the most consistant and well made binos inthe world. Hands down.

There's a lot to be said about a high-end nation-wide optical standard.

I see Charlie In Dayton at the MVAS Apollo Rendezvous every year (except this one, I couldn't go) and he knows his stuff. He also has a reputation around the local astronomy community for knowing his stuff. That kind of reputation you have to earn.

People who are wise, Charlieize!

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It's just one of those damn things of which there are many few. -- Dan Blocker

A 6" refractor Well, that is a cannon! Even with a great set up like that binos are a great astronomical addition. The wide field views and portability give a whole new aspect of viewing. I have a pair of Japanese made Orion Mini Giants 9x63s that I absolutely love. To me they are a great balance between aperature and light weight and hand holdability. While it is true that "meaningful" astronomical observing is difficult due to shaking, meaningful can mean different things to different people. I don't use the binos to try to tease color or structure out of jupiter's bands, that is what my scope is for. I use the binos for wide field views and better understanding of where things are in the night sky. I didn't learn how to star hop very well until I got my binos as sometimes it was difficult to tell where I was in my telescopes narrow field of view. The binos gave me "the big picture". Plus it has increased the number of nights I go out to observe as I can grab and go for 15-20 minutes of observing without the hassel of setting up a tripod and scope.
As far as what to get that is a matter of personal preference and to no small degree amount of financial wherewithal. Get the best pair that you can afford as you will use them alot. I've heard a great pair of all around astro binos are Fujinon Polaris 7x50s.

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"Inconceivable!"
"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

A cheap, simple, adaptable accessory for holding binoculars or cameras steady is a bean bag. I've used one for many years.

A cloth bag half-full of beans, peas, rice, sand, stones, polystyrene balls (or combination of same) -- whatever's handy and does the job. Use it to cradle the binoculars against any solid support -- corner of a wall, pole, fence-post, tree etc. I can't see Jupiters four biggest moons if I hand-hold my 8x binoculars, but a bean bag used properly will hold my binoculars rigid so that I can see them.

Bean bags are excellent for trampers because the empty cloth bag can be carried and temporary stuffed with whatever is available.

It's hard to give precise directions that will suit everyone but some general guidelines are:

1) It's length should about the same as the greatest dimension of the object being held.

2) Width about two-thirds to three-quarters of the length.

3) Corners are best rounded, otherwise they have a habit of getting in the way when the binoculars are pressed into the bag.

4) Use both a natural-fibre material and a filling that are not slippery, and only half- to two-thirds fill the bag. It needs to be pliable enough to mould itself around uneven surfaces, but must hold its position once set. Don't use a plastic lining -- it's too slippery. Polystyrene filler may not be rigid enough.

5) Consider whether you need a simple and effective means of opening the bag -- either velcro or a sturdy zip.

The best way to find the right size and shape is to experiment with different sizes of zip-up plastic bag and different fillings, but keep in mind that their slipperiness will make them nowhere near as effective as a cloth bag.

I'm currently using a denim bag which, at 20 x 12 x 5 cm, is a little too big and doesn't need the 5 cm thickness. If I was to make another I'd try two pieces just over 12 x 15 cm with rounded corners.