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Anonymous
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I have a casual interest in Astronomy, so I recently ordered an Orion Mini Giant 9x63 Binocular and a pair of Solar Filters for it.
Are there any current or past owners of this particular brand of Binocular who could tell me about it's performance and any other info that I should know about it? Thank you.
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Peter Argenziano
Watcher of the Skies
Reged: 11/11/03
Posts: 2813
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I have the 9x63s and really like them. Weighing in at a tad over 2½ pounds, they push the limit of hand-holdability (is that a word?) for me. I like the extra light gathering of 63 mm objectives over 50 mm -- I was also considering 10x50s. I like the 5° FOV. The eye relief (26 mm) is a little longer than what would be ideal for me, as I don't wear glasses, but the folding eyecups make them comfortable to use. They are solidly constructed, and good performers.
I occasionally use them for scanning the sky and I've taken them to the ballpark... but their primary purpose in life is to assist in 'target acquisition' when I'm at a dark site with my Dob (a task they perform quite admirably).
They come with a decent case. The standard issue neckstrap isn't my cup of tea, as I like a little neck padding. The eyelens caps are fine, but the objective caps fall off quite easily... I'm surprised I still have both of them.
Peter
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Peter
14.5" Starmaster
I hail from the explosive jetsam of a multitude of high-mass stars that died more than 5 billion years ago.
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kfred
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/11/03
Posts: 2005
Loc: Dayton, Ohio
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I buy alot or Orion stuff, and I'm sure their 9x63 are good (I have the Orion 7x50 Ultraview and 10x50 Senix myself),
However, you should check out Oberwerk for Binoculars.
Just as good, and alot lower in price. I have the Oerwerk 12x60's ($109) and just love them, they are now my favorite bionculars.
Check out their web site: www.oberwerk.com
Fred
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River Cam - Cambridge England
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Erik D
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/28/03
Posts: 2555
Loc: Central New Jersey, USA
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I also have the Oberwerk 12X60. Purchased about 2 years ago. Bought them to fill the gap between my 10X40 and mounted 20X80 binos. I wanted a pair I can use without a tripod when I am packing for air travel. I think the Oberwerks 12X60s are an excellent value. For me there is no detectable false color even when viewing the full moon. Edge sharpness is good to about 70% from center. Rated FOV is a wide 5.7 deg but I have not measured it myself.
The strap that came with my Obe 12X60 isn't much but nicely paded ones are availbe from Walmart for about $5. The softcase is typical for low cost Chinese giant binos: Offers little protection.
One small complaint is the slow center focuser. I also wanted the Oberwerk 12X as my long range terrestrial binos but the slow/stiff center focuser makes it tough to use as birding binos. They are also a little on the large side to carry around if you are hiking long distance.....
I am thinking of getting a pair smaller 12X50 Roof Prism WP binos next as my dual use astronomy/nature bino on overseas trips.
ERik D
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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Thanks for the replys, I choose the 9x63 Mini Giants after reading some positive reviews on the net and because I wanted a binocular that had good hand holdability, I didn't want to lug around a tripod every time I went out observing. Another reason was that I've ordered a lot from Orion Telescopes and Binoculars in the past, and it was always excellant service.
I've also ordered a pair of solar filters from Thousand Oaks Optical. Although I don't have the Binoculars yet, I got two different people from Orion to measure the outside diameter of the front of the Binoculars so I could get them fitted for the solar filters, they both came up with a measurement of 2.90" hope their right.
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Erik D
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/28/03
Posts: 2555
Loc: Central New Jersey, USA
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Billy,
I get the Orion catalog on regular basis and purchased my first 20X80mm bino from them 3 years ago. Orion does have excellent customer service. Unlike other mail order box houses Orion's tech support people WILL take the time to check out dimensions for you if they don't have the answer. Another thing to keep in mind is that if you like something in the Orion catalog but are not ready to buy yet you should still check the catalog on regular basis. Sooner or later that item will go on sale.....
Do check the Oberwerk web site if you decide to get bigger binos of 70mm and up later. Oberwerk has good quality and excellent value in their 70-100 mm binos. Customer service of Oberwerk is exceptional... you are more than likly to reach Kevin B the owner himself if you call Oberwerk. I called Kevin to find out about the one and only Miyauchii 141mm Giant binos he has imported and he took the time to give me every detail I wanted to know.
Erik D
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BluewaterObserva
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/18/04
Posts: 4763
Loc: Zuni Mtns, NM
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I like the 9x63's because I find consitantly they give a nice flat field of view across nearly the entire field of view especially when directly compared with a fair amount of other similarly sized and powered binos.
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