Binoculars

[hoppy]

I started with cheap 7x50 with a compass, but they were really not clear and at times i had trouble making out objects.

So i bought the Canon 10x42L IS WP. As a photographer with a collection of Canon's super sharp "L" (professional) i was naturally drawn to these glasses and as they are stabilised and waterproof they are practical on board.

Going from my cheapo's to the Canon is like going from a standard def TV to a 1080p LED

[micah719]

Recently I came across a bargain I couldn't pass up....Hensold 8x30. Not ideal as a night glass but excellent for daytime search, and they were a really good price and condition. I decided to read up a bit on them and came across some related bino stuff that I thought would be useful to someone.

Some collected wisdom from a bino expert (an astrophysics professor so he might know what he's on about) about purchasing binos:
Binocular purchase: Collected wisdoms

A comparison of his pick of the best 7x50 binos:
Review: 7x50 Miyauchi Binon vs. Fujinon FMT-SX vs. Tasco No. 124

And the pincushion distortion effect built into binoculars:
Distortion and globe effect in binoculars

Plenty more intersting bino stuff on his page, worth clicking around. Measure your own visual distortion for instance...

[Andrew Troup]

One beneficial aspect of the superior light gathering qualities of a good 7x50 set is the way colour is intensified. I cannot distinguish starboard nav lights from sternlights at any distance, and I'm not even crash-hot on port lights from a great distance, but as soon as I look through a decent pair of night glasses, the difference is clearly apparent.

This is particularly useful for a significant fraction of males like me who have poor colour vision even during the day.

[Boulter]

Hi:

This may be a dumb question, but I'll ask anyhow...

Is the compass in binoculars optically at the object you have focus on, or is it optically close? I ask because I have a hand bearing compass with a site through aperture (probably a more technical name) that I cannot effectively use to take a bearing because I cannot focus both in the distance, and close at the same time: glasses off, the compass is in focus, glasses on the distant object is in focus. Maybe bifocals would work, but I haven't conceded this point yet.

Boulter

[Teknav]

You may not remember an advice, but you certainly know that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West. With your binoculars/compass at hand, point towards the East (before noon) or the West...then make a note of your compass' rose direction. Do it a few times, at different locations, to stave off magnetic deviation at one of your locations. You'll forever remember where you're heading! Happy holidays!

[Kenomac]

My wife lovers her Bushnell Stableview Binoculars. They're Awesome!

[shorebird]

There has been much discussion about the various abberations within optical systems, but I saw no mention of arguably the most important: chromatic abberation. This is when a lens or lens system begins to break the light spectrum into its individual colours creating a "fringe" effect around objects viewed through the system. A prism is the best known example of this effect. Prisms in binocular systems do not cause this effect because they are designed to reflect light, not refract it, but other lenses in binoculars will cause some abberation. Cheap binoculars will cause more, better binoculars less. Viewing a distant light with the binoculars at night is probably the best way to check for any noticable chromatic abberation, the light should appear as a crisp, sharp image, while a pair of binos with poor control of the abberation will produce a fuzzier image of the light, surrounded by a hazy fringe of bluish or reddish colour. the greater the magnification of the instrument and the shorter the focal length, the more difficult to control this abberation. Thats why prisms are used as mirrors, they allow a much greater focal length within the compact space of a pair of binoculars.

[GaryMayo]

Put a big lens on a Nikon camera and capture what it is you are looking at. Canon works just as well, but the lenses are white!

[avb3]

You may want to look at this site:

The Best Binoculars & Binocular Reviews Website

It is pretty comprehensive, and does have a marine section.

[nes]

One issue with binoc's don't forget someday that they may need repair. I have a fantastic pair of Steiner's but, the cover over the compass needs repair. I have not been able to find anyone in the San Diego area to work on them. So far, the three places I have been sent have all pointed the other way.

If someone knows where you can actually get repair work done, please let me know. I love the quality of these binoc's, and I want to get them fixed, but will probably not recommend them due to repair issues.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Teknav

You may not remember an advice, but you certainly know that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West. With your binoculars/compass at hand, point towards the East (before noon) or the West...then make a note of your compass' rose direction. Do it a few times, at different locations, to stave off magnetic deviation at one of your locations. You'll forever remember where you're heading! Happy holidays!

Umm, this would work only if you are precisely at the equator! Elsewhere the sun rises and sets due E and W only at the equinoxes.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Umm, this would work only if you are precisely at the equator! Elsewhere the sun rises and sets due E and W only at the equinoxes.

Correction: even at the equator, the sun rises in the E and sets in the W only at the equinoxes. Brain f*#t; sorry for the disinformation.

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by nes

One issue with binoc's don't forget someday that they may need repair. I have a fantastic pair of Steiner's but, the cover over the compass needs repair. I have not been able to find anyone in the San Diego area to work on them. So far, the three places I have been sent have all pointed the other way.

If someone knows where you can actually get repair work done, please let me know. I love the quality of these binoc's, and I want to get them fixed, but will probably not recommend them due to repair issues.

You might want to contact Baker Marine which is right in your backyard. We just had them make some repairs to our 28 YO Fujinon Polaris binoculars that are quite satisfactory.

FWIW...

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by Boulter

Hi:

This may be a dumb question, but I'll ask anyhow...

Is the compass in binoculars optically at the object you have focus on, or is it optically close? I ask because I have a hand bearing compass with a site through aperture (probably a more technical name) that I cannot effectively use to take a bearing because I cannot focus both in the distance, and close at the same time: glasses off, the compass is in focus, glasses on the distant object is in focus. Maybe bifocals would work, but I haven't conceded this point yet.

Boulter

Not entirely sure I completely understand your question, but...

On both of our Steiners, the compass and distance objects are in focus at the same time. It also happens both units are individual eyepiece focus, and once adjusted for your eyes (and/or spectacles) both focus from something like 20 ft to infinity. (That's different from various center-focus models on the market.)

We both wear eyeglasses (bifocal, at that), and we simply set the binocs to 0 on the plus/minus scale for each lens -- since the eyeglasses already correct our individual vision.

-Chris

[Bash]

Originally Posted by Boulter

Hi:

This may be a dumb question, but I'll ask anyhow...

Is the compass in binoculars optically at the object you have focus on, or is it optically close? I ask because I have a hand bearing compass with a site through aperture (probably a more technical name) that I cannot effectively use to take a bearing because I cannot focus both in the distance, and close at the same time: glasses off, the compass is in focus, glasses on the distant object is in focus. Maybe bifocals would work, but I haven't conceded this point yet.

Boulter

Yes, switching to binoculars to take bearings should solve this problem, depending on the severity of your need for vision correction. In essence you will want binoculars with higher eye relief (that's a technical term) to allow them to be used with glasses. I recommend at least 18mm of eye relief.

Progressive lenses would work equally well, should you still want to use that hand-bearing compass.