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  1. J

    Celestron Spotting Scope advice please?

    How did that work out ?
  2. J

    Celestron Spotting Scope advice please?

    I have no experience with svbony products , ive read that its a decent ep but thats as far my knowledge goes on that topic . I own several baader eyepieces ( 1 zoom and 2 fixed) and the quality is worth every bit of the price . My second favorite ep is the baader 24mm fixed ep . It gives a 68...
  3. J

    Celestron Spotting Scope advice please?

    The Baader is the one you want - mark iii or mark iv doesnt matter alot ( i use a mark iv ) you are going to get a larger fov and vastly improved optics compared to the standard eyepiece . ( if you go fb look up “ celestron regal phonescoping “ and you can see examples of what it does —...
  4. J

    Celestron Spotting Scope advice please?

    Buy a baader hyperion zoom eyepiece to replace the standard zoom that comes with the scope and you will increase the performance of the scope alot . The regal is a good mid level scope with a good objective and average eyepiece , ive found that the ability to use a wide variety of astro...
  5. J

    confused about tripod head types for birding scope

    I have for almost two years now . It was highly recommended by b-h and optics4 birding as an entry level scope . Its has good optics right out of the box with an eyepiece the doesnt go soft at high magnification which i found in other mid level scopes . But the Regal really gets much better when...
  6. J

    confused about tripod head types for birding scope

    You will probably want to buy a 4” or 6” balancing plate or find a tripod head that already has one . So that the scope will balance on top of the tripod head properly .
  7. J

    confused about tripod head types for birding scope

    Im one of these —- the sirui VA-5 would be my choice since it appears less bulky than the Manfreddo 500’s —— do not buy the ‘ i footage k5 ‘ which i currently use , its a spring loaded fluid head thats doesnt have very good construction and absolutly no customer support . ……. Hermann - that...
  8. J

    confused about tripod head types for birding scope

    The ball heads ,pan and tilt and pistol grip can lead to serious damage real quick if you forget to lock the head everytime .
  9. J

    confused about tripod head types for birding scope

    You want a “fluid head” and there is alot to choose from . Manfretto and Sirui are considered good ones and there is lots of info in the forum on them .
  10. J

    Nikon Monarch Fieldscope vs Celestron Regal M2 80ED vs Vortex Diamondback - tough choice

    The celestron is $ 849 at b-h photo and a baader hyperion zoom is $309 .. my plan as a beginner was to get a good mid range scope until i was comfortable i wasnt going break it somehow and also to not expensive in case i did . The second part is to buy an alpha scope like the kowa 883 . One...
  11. J

    Nikon Monarch Fieldscope vs Celestron Regal M2 80ED vs Vortex Diamondback - tough choice

    The celestron is better than the Vortex Diamond back , i have compared both theres no contest there . The Regal has a much better objective and comes equipped with a decent zoom ep . The best about the Regal is that you can switch ( upgrade) the eyepiece with any 1.25” astronomical ep . So...
  12. J

    Decent High Powered Binoculars

    I have the nikon action extreme 16 x 50 and it works pretty good and its in your price range .
  13. J

    Older alpha vs newer mid-range scopes

    This is great queistion and i am wondering the same thing . As kinda of a newbi myself ,I would say that older scopes can get haze inside them from mold on the prisms for one thing and the quality of the glass and multi coatings might not be as good as newer models . But i eagerly await to see...
  14. J

    Tripod/head suggestions for Celestron Regal M2 100 ED birding scope

    After you get a new fluid head for your tripod go buy a baader hyperion zoom eyepiece to replace the stock eyepiece that comes with the scope . The eyepiece changes the performance of the scope quite a bit .
  15. J

    What would £500 get me? Lightweight scope with 1.25" removable EP wanted.

    Dated 2009 and is 14 year version of the regal .
  16. J

    What would £500 get me? Lightweight scope with 1.25" removable EP wanted.

    Thats a completly different model from 14 years ago . That test was done in 2009 🙁
  17. J

    What would £500 get me? Lightweight scope with 1.25" removable EP wanted.

    Ty , thats only written in a few places and i didnt have time to go look it again . The Regal is a really good beginner scope and add a baader zoom to it ,it gets alot better .
  18. J

    VPA 2 VARIABLE PHONE ADAPTER

    I have been using phoneskope products for a couple years now , first a i phone x pm and currently a iphone 13 pro max both with otterbox defender cases and have not any issues with the weight of the phone disrupting anything or have had to worry about all those adjustments you got to fool with...
  19. J

    Upgrade to mid-range price binoculars

    The Kowas are built better than the Nikons . I never notice any ca issues with them , just some distortion on the edge because of the extreme afov . The Kowas have not ,and probably will not , have exterior armor that gets black and sticky after prolonged use .
  20. J

    help with mounting plate & head for a circa 1993 85mm Swarovski

    I use photography hardware all the time . Alot of people attach cameras ( or phones) to their spotting scopes and use the brands you mention alot ) adjust for weight) . I use astronomy stuff like fixed eyepieces and solar filters but would never consider an astonomy setup with heavy tripods...
  21. J

    What would £500 get me? Lightweight scope with 1.25" removable EP wanted.

    The 24 mm baader 68 degree works great , with no chopped edges or anything like that . My favorite of the fixed eps i have — also have the baader 8 mm - works great - and celestron excel s - 12 mm and 18 mm - which work great except there is some starring effect on artificial lights at night...
  22. J

    What would £500 get me? Lightweight scope with 1.25" removable EP wanted.

    Celestron Regal 65m2 — florite objective ,magnesium body , comes with good eyepiece that focuses sharp throughout its range( upgrade to the baader hyperion mark 4 zoom ep $300 and it gets really good ) I also use fixed ep’s a 24mm baader (68 afov) is great for moving objects . The...
  23. J

    Baader Hyperion zoom IV vs original zoom eye-piece on Celetsron M2 80

    Ive used the factory supplied regal eyepiece in all conditions and distances and it goes soft at higher magnifications . This same phenomena is written about in alot of articles , reveiws and posts like this and that is what led me to the baader zoom . The reason is its that the factory...
  24. J

    Baader Hyperion zoom IV vs original zoom eye-piece on Celetsron M2 80

    This isnt true . The cheap eyepiece that is supplied with the regal goes soft at higher magnification and wont focus . The baader is sharp throughout its range .
  25. J

    Binomania Kowa TSN-773 video review

    There is an adapter that will allow the scope to accept 1.25 telescope eyepieces . I experimented with a celestron 5 mm and it works but requires a good tripod and good veiwing condition as the mirage can get real bad . I wasnt to impressed.
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