Looking for low light binoculars

[sandsnakes]

Hi all, need your advice chaps.

I am looking for low light binoculars and found these on evilbay. Anybody know if they are any good? I dont want to spend massive amounts of money as I will only be using them half a dozen times a year.

Your sage thoughts would be appreciated.

Sandsnakes

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Osaka-Japanes...kparms=72%3A1300|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1308

 

[Doc]

I've not tried them, but I find that red-coated optics and zoom facilities are often associated with junk binos. Good features (like nitrogen filling, waterproofing, multi-coating on all surfaces) are not mentioned.

Personally for that sort of money I would definitely buy something else.

 

[redandshane]

Haven't got a clue what they are like
but it looks as though the best offer price is £42 so definitely dont pay £50

If its low light binoculars for specific conditions probably best to try some in the conditions you anticipate as I don't think the written word can really do the same as practical testing in the field

 

[Sniper]

Friend of mine bought a set of these fairly recently and is very happy with them, they are not brilliant with low light but for £50 what can you expect. Depending on how low the light have you considered perhaps night vision or is it more for dusk viewing. These binos are quite good for normal use and are ok for light fading, but only up to a point.

 

[Wayland]

Let's just talk numbers for a moment.

The first number given for binoculars is the magnification, in this case 10 - 70 because a zoom gives variable magnification.

The second number is the diameter of the front optic in millimeters.

If you divide the second number by the first you get the size of something called the exit pupil if I recall correctly.

This exit pupil in effect is the diameter of the channel of light passing through the binoculars. In this case between 5mm at 10x magnification to as little as 0.7 mm at 70x

Now, your eye has a variable iris that opens up when it is dark to about 7- 8mm maximum.

If the exit pupil is smaller than your iris, then you are not getting as much light as your eye needs to see well in the dark.

If you want good binoculars for use in the dark then you need something with an exit pupil of about 7 or 8mm

A pair of 7 x 50 binoculars with an exit pupil of 7.1mm would suit your needs much better.

Of course the quality is a different issue, but the numbers always apply.

Ps. The colour of the coating makes very little practical difference, but it is often used as a sales pitch by crummy salesmen.

 

[Barn Owl]

Do a search of binoculars for the forum.
You'll find advice in several.

I wouldn't buy these as you can get much better for a wee bit more.

Also look at www.birdforum.net for lots of opinions,from there you should find links to astronomy sites that review low light optics.

Hunting sites should have low light optic reviews too.

Tom.

P.s Avoid zooms like the plague.

P.p.s As we age our pupils won't dilate to the 7-8mm optimum,4-5 would be average for say over 40 yrs.

 

[sandsnakes]

Starting to get an idea of what to look for. I want to watch game at dusk and at night. any suggestions, other than a pure military night cope?

S

 

[Wayland]

A simple pair of 7x50 or 8x50 bins should be about right.

Anything else is just sales patter or gadgetry.

 

[saddle_tramp]

I use an old 4 x 56 rifle scope, for my nocturnal foraging

But like wayland says 7x50s are good for dusk/dawn and youll be suprised what light they gather when theres a good moon up.


I wouldnt bother with night vision, ive seen a few of those cheap image intensifiers and theyre mostly crap. . . good ones cost thousands

 

[Doc]

A lot depends on how much you want to spend. I have seen 9x63 roof prisms for under a hundred but not tried them.

Good lens coatings do make a difference as poor coatings lose a few percent of light at every air/glass boundary - of which there are quite a few in binoculars.

You could also consider night vison - I revently bought a Yukon Spartan - about £100 and it is quite impressive under partial moonlight or with the built in infra red.

You can also get 10x80 binos, designed for astronomy, but you would need a support or tripod as they are heavy.