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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

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    Needed - easy way to check collimation

    agreed on most of the above. if you're checking collimation with a star and judging not just the merging of the star images but the quality of the diffraction pattern, be sure to place your target star in the center fov. one quick daytime test for vertical collimation is to focus on a...
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    Zeiss Conquest...eye cups still an issue?

    my 15x 56 conquest hd's are stick free. the cups are a slightly softer rubber than my ht's, but not at all tacky. I've never had a pair of the older conquest's in hand to compare though. edit - in going over responses it looks like i misinterpreted the question. eyecup motion is smooth with...
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    What's your most used binocular?

    for me it's the Zeiss 10x 54 HT. granted, a good deal of my use is on the night sky, but one remarkable thing about these binoculars is that they carry like a pair of 10x 50's or even a heavy pair of 10x 42's. they are what i bring with me when 1 size must fit all. the rest of the time, it's...
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    buying binoculars in us from kyoei japan - is us customs easy or complicated?

    i have had several transactions with kyoei osaka. each has been handeled by Tsutomu SAKABE who is the general manager there. my impression is that he handles sales with english speakers. each purchase has been super smooth. in one instance he caught a mistake i made in the order - he is very...
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    What are your priorities in binoculars?

    i have a pair of docter nobilem 8x 56's with a 50ish afov that i absolutely love. narrow? yes, but it's a near perfect fov and wonderful in low light and the night sky. nearly every star is a point of light, if a little skewed towards yellow. i aslo have a pair of astroluxe 18x 70's with an...
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    Help - Best Scope Type and Camera Set-up for Oceanside Bluff Home

    hi compsci, if you are willing to experiment, you might learn quite a bit about your application. i do think that at the distances you're suggesting it becomes difficult to pick out your subjects. the good news is your elevation above the ocean helps, but the angular size of a good size whale...
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    Is there a CL 7x21 Curio in my future?

    i've spent time with the vp, 10x25 cl which swaro sent when my daughter's curios were in for focuser service, as well as her curios. all of them provide superb views imo for such tiny packages. both the vp and the pocket cl felt better in my hand (advantage vp because of the offset focus knob...
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    Athlon Ares G2 UHD 65mm spotter a pleasing surprise

    yes, i had the 80. how odd that svbony uses the same designation for both the 80 and 65. sorry for the confusion. i briefly had the 15x 50 is but could not get along with the diameter of the eyecups. i almost hung on to them - the view was so good, but in the end comfort won out. i have no...
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    Athlon Ares G2 UHD 65mm spotter a pleasing surprise

    agreed! and an even more unfair fight would be with my fluorite kowa highlanders! but they don't go on the road often. for what it does do well, the little ares has its place. and you're so right about the simplicity of sharing the view with it.
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    Athlon Ares G2 UHD 65mm spotter a pleasing surprise

    hi jason, thank you for your feedback. i did not own them at the same time and it's been a while since i looked through the 406P. i do remember being impressed with the glass. i examined a star image on that scope too and found it well collimated. i was not impressed with the focuser - it...
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    Review of Nikon 18X70 Astroluxe

    i can't say that my 18x astroluxe replaced my 15x 56 slc's, but i did sell the slc's in favor of a pair of 10x 56 victory fl's and a pair of 18x astroluxe after finding the the zeiss and nikons at about the same price as the slc's. i find the 10x 56 configuration nicer for hand held use and the...
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    Athlon Ares G2 UHD 65mm spotter a pleasing surprise

    Hi Bird Forum folks, My serious birding days were over about 45 years ago. I’m nibbling on the edges again, having decided to point optics at the earth for the first time in ages after taking up astronomy 30 years ago. With this background I wanted to offer a less than fully informed opinion of...
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    could use some help refining my spotting scope choice

    thank you joachim for that important caveat. the possibility of using 1.25" eyepieces also raises the question of acceptable field stop diameters - which i assume vary with scope. somewhere around 24m for most? this does not seem to be part of spotter documentation from the manufacturer (not...
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    could use some help refining my spotting scope choice

    thank you! i did not realize the kowas could accept 1.25" eyepieces! i've been debating whether i should try the svbony 406p, the altlon ares uhd 65 (which has the barrel focuser which i like in cold weather as well as an absurd 3.7 degree fov at 15x) or go with a more expensive scope and be...
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    could use some help refining my spotting scope choice

    an embarssment of riches!! i don't know if my experience with astro telescopes holds here but for instance the really high quality, relatively inexpensive fpl-53 and the like doublets are astonishing performers for the price. side by side with the same size apo at 3 or 4x the price does reveal...
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    could use some help refining my spotting scope choice

    thank you Bkoh! super interesting thought. we have an 80mm pentax where i work which seems dim and not terribly sharp to me, but it might be that particular scope. it is not well maintained. i once tried a small astronomical apo for terrestrial use and got a first hand lesson in balancing...
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    could use some help refining my spotting scope choice

    ouch! more things to watch out for. thanks for the warning!
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    could use some help refining my spotting scope choice

    thank you felix. i wasn't thinking about the opticron spotters but i guess i should. it is interesting that the MM4 77 GA ED/45 Fieldscope + SDLv3 18-54x Eyepiece weighs the same as the nikon. i just read troubador's review of the scope and the flurry of comments that followed. sounds like i...
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    could use some help refining my spotting scope choice

    thank you henry! i will look into the nikon carefully. i wish i could land all 3 scopes here to compare them! if there is considerable sample variation within a model, that is of concern though. is the issue typically collimation?
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    could use some help refining my spotting scope choice

    hi bird forum folks, i'm searching for wisdom on spotting scope selection. i was an active birder decades ago and have moved to astronomy for some time - so that's my frame of reference. i've become increasingly interested in observing birds at higher magnifications than my 8x and 15x...
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