* Astronomy

Edge Sharpness

This is also easy to detect by you and me, the ordinary hunter who does not hold a degree in the physical properties of light. "Sneak" a peek at the outer corners of the view in the glass while holding the glass still (do not pan). Is edge image sharp or fuzzy? Edge sharpness is nice because it brings the entire field of view into a "flat-screen" view, rather than just the centremost section. High quality binoculars show high optical resolution over the entire picture, not just the centre, although the central portion remains most important.
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Collecting and Identifying Antique Binoculars
Many collectors of antique binoculars get started because they have a pair of binoculars that have been handed down from one generation to the next.
There are several places to look for antique binoculars. EBay often has several up for auction. They have been found at estate sales. Antique stores will often have a few pairs. People have been known to find them at flea markets and yard sales.

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Ed ~ A word of caution is needed here. Generally antique binoculars are uncoated, have low light transmission, have narrow fields of view, and probably misaligned; and so are unsuitable for general astronomy work.

10 Tips When Buying a Binocular

The term binocular covers a whole range of optics, binoculars, spotting scopes, night vision goggles, and so on. So before you even think of buying a binocular you need to find out what you need and what you are going to use it for. Binoculars are used by people in operas, while hunting, in war, for bird watching, and in astronomy. For astronomy and bird watching you will need high powered binoculars while for other uses you could even consider compact binoculars which weigh little.

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Ed ~ Generally, for astronomy you will need low powered, large aperture, binoculars.

Cabela's® 20x80 Rubber Armoured Astronomical Binoculars

Our Astronomical Terrestrial Binoculars are perfect to use instead of a spotting scope. These binoculars offer field of view equal to spotting scopes, but cause less eye fatigue because you are able to use both eyes. We recommend you use a rest or tripod for steady viewing. Each is drilled to accept a tripod adapter. You get great viewing power from these 20 x 80 power binoculars, with a field of vision at 1,000 yards of 157 feet. A tripod adapter also is available.
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