KennyJ
Reged: 04/27/03
Posts: 12915
Loc: Lancashire UK
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This model has been mentioned several times in recent posts , but since we rarely see any photos of the model and I happen to have come across this one in my files , I thought it would be nice to share it , welcoming any comments on the model from owners .
This specimen , with the red dot finder attached , belongs to my friend Brian Lee ( Medinabrit )
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BobinKy
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/27/07
Posts: 1683
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Kenny...
I thought for minute, you were going to say that you once owned it and sold it in a weak moment. 
Nice photo of the side view.
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Bob
38°N
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EdZ
Professor EdZ
Reged: 02/15/02
Posts: 14732
Loc: Cumberland, R I , USA42N71.4W
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Kenny,
Brian is a lucky man.
I've had Peter's (pcad) on loan for months. I must say, it is one of the finest instruments I've ever look thru.
No other instrument has even come close to the extent of field illumination that I've measured in the Tak. And the pinpoint images it gives are among the finest I've ever seen.
edz
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Teach a kid something today. The feeling you'll get is one of life's greatest rewards.
member#21
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pcad
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/17/05
Posts: 1768
Loc: Connecticut
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Thanks Kenny,
It's a unique looking binocular. Seems obvious that the body was not designed by Takahashi. I think Gordon said they were made by a company whose name starts with K.
William optics adapted their 66mm and 70mm telescope optics to binoculars also, but had a more conventional appearence.
I think the star map motif was first/best used by Questar on their 3.5" Maksutov scopes. Other than the Taks, LOMO used a star map on some of their Maksutov scopes also.
How it looks is one thing. How it performs is another. It's probably the closest thing to an apochromatic binocular you can find without building a binoscope using apo refractors.
Too bad they no longer make them. I wonder how long Kowa will continue to make their Highlander Prominar 83mm binocular?
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Peter
Telescopes 25 - 318 mm
Binoculars 15 - 88 mm
Microscope 50x - 1000x
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edwincjones
Postmaster
Reged: 04/10/04
Posts: 5671
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Quote:
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I wonder how long Kowa will continue to make their Highlander Prominar 83mm binocular?
Only as long as enough people buy them.
edj
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n w arkansas
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Wes James
Post Laureate
Reged: 04/12/06
Posts: 3460
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I, too treasure my TAK's. I was very disappointed with the W/O bino's that many hoped would be a replacement for the TAKs'... I had the prototype from NEAF, and apparently the production models were better than mine, as I'm not the only one who was not very impressed... A friend of mine- Prof. Mike Reynolds, author of "Binocular Stargazing" looked through them and agreed with my comments I had made. The TAK's are a bino I'll never part with! They are, indeed, a jewel. Certainly more affordable than the Highlanders... would love to even just be able to look through a pair!
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Wes
Atlantic Beach, FL
Some bino’s from Miyauchi 5x32 Binon's up through Garrett 20x110 Signature's,
Some telescopes from a Stellarvue 80mm NHNG up through a couple of 8” reflectors…
And a wonderful 4.25" Delmarva Shiefspiegler!
Some good friends, made here on C/N.
Oh- several cats and a wonderful wife!
Anyone want a cat???? :-O
"When your work speaks for itself- Don't Interrupt" -Gamble Rogers
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DJB
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 02/23/05
Posts: 1590
Loc: Lisle NY
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That's right pcad,
The very first ones that I can remember were the Questars! I particularly liked the Questar design of the shield.
Best regards,
Dave.
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Gordon Rayner
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 03/24/07
Posts: 971
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That K company is Katsuma. The same basic body was for the Tasco USMC 7 x 50, the Swift 7 x 50 for marine use, the Tamaya, the post-Rochester "Bausch&Lomb", and for whomever else wanted to buy enough to have their name on them. There was a similar, if not identical, body in the offerings by CO-OMIST K.K.(?), the Cooperative of Optical Makers in South Tokyo.
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Robert A.
sage
Reged: 01/21/05
Posts: 294
Loc: Milwaukee, WI Northern USA
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There is a Takahashi 22x60 available from a seller over in Europe, if anybody is interested.
The original buyer did not follow through--- Astromart webpage.
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medinabrit
professor emeritus
Reged: 10/27/04
Posts: 648
Loc: medina ohio USA.
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Nice of you to show the pic of my Tak astronomers Kenny.
They are along with the Swaro 15x56 & the Miyauchis things ill keep till i cant see anymore.
Jupiter looks really nice thru them tonight.
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CESDewar
GorillAstronomer
Reged: 01/16/05
Posts: 2069
Loc: Morganton, GA, USA
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After missing one pair on A-Mart, the next time a pair appeared, I think I put a bid in just minutes after the post!
As others have indicated, the views are just remarkable. Yes, my Miyauchi 30x77's with 45-degree EP's are more "ergonomic" and provide a wider AFOV but even the high quality Miya optics can't match the "Tak-sharp" view of these binos.
My favorite time to take them out is the full moon. At that time, there's often little to look at, but the sight of the full moon with the extraordinary contrast of the Tak's never fails to elicit a "Wow". There is no other piece of equipment I've looked through that matches the impact of the full moon through these binos.
Like the Miya's these are definitely on the "never sell" list!
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medinabrit
professor emeritus
Reged: 10/27/04
Posts: 648
Loc: medina ohio USA.
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Ive been looking for the Exceeds for a couple of years with no luck.
I have the Saturn 2 & the pleides .
Seems like i,ll never get the Exceeds.
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Tony Flanders
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/18/06
Posts: 3469
Loc: Cambridge, MA, USA
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How fickle this group is!
Just last week, I posted about how exit pupil per se doesn't really matter, and people jumped all over me, saying that binos with small exit pupils aren't worth considering for astronomy.
And now we have this thread singing the praises of small-exit-pupil binos to the high heavens.
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Tony Flanders
First and foremost observing love: naked eye.
Second, binoculars.
Last but not least, telescopes.
And I sometimes dabble with cameras.
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Man in a Tub
Not Retired!, But a little cranky!!!
Reged: 10/28/08
Posts: 2062
Loc: San Francisco, CA
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Quote:
How fickle this group is!
Just last week, I posted about how exit pupil per se doesn't really matter, and people jumped all over me, saying that binos with small exit pupils aren't worth considering for astronomy.
And now we have this thread singing the praises of small-exit-pupil binos to the high heavens.
I find it difficult to keep track of who says exactly what from week to week. If you can, so be it. There are likely a few who have short-term memories along with inconsistencies and others who are fairly consistent about binocular features, specs, etc.
Best Regards,
Todd 
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Todd
Brunton Eterna 15x51 ° Garrett Optical Signature Series 15x70
Nikon Action EX 12x50 ° Oberwerk 15x60 and 20x80 Standard
Orion Paragon Plus Mount and Paragon XHD Tripod
Garrett Optical Series 2000 Grip-Action Monopod
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EdZ
Professor EdZ
Reged: 02/15/02
Posts: 14732
Loc: Cumberland, R I , USA42N71.4W
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Quote:
How fickle this group is!
Just last week, I posted about how exit pupil per se doesn't really matter, and people jumped all over me, saying that binos with small exit pupils aren't worth considering for astronomy.
And now we have this thread singing the praises of small-exit-pupil binos to the high heavens.
We are talking about a binocular here that fully illuminates the exit pupil across the entire field from more than 80% of the entire objective diameter. I've never seen any other binocular that does that. That's more than TWICE the norm for a typical binocular and in fact is 5x to 8x some binoculars. Other "best" binoculars fully illuminate the exit pupil from 50% of the objective diameter. Typical 10x50s and 8x40s fully illuminate the exit pupil from about 20-30% of the objective diameter. Roof prism binoculars fully illuminate the exit pupil from only about 10-20% of the objective diameter.
When you look at all the light entering across the field of view from a typical binocular, beyond about 30%-35% of the central area, light diminishes from 100%to perhaps less than 25% by the edge of view. When you look at all the light gathered across the field of view in the Takahshi 22x60, nearly every photon is delivered across nearly the entire exit pupil.
No other binocular I have ever seen does so much with so small an exit pupil. I have no doubt in my mind the illumination, and therefore brightness, of the Tak22x60 results in it performing well above its exit pupil size class. In fact it may even perform as if it were 1/3 to 1/2 again larger.
Tony, sometimes you have to look at the qualities that contribute to performance rather than look at a simple number that doesn't tell the whole story to argue a point. I've been saying for a long time that comparing exit pupils is not a "complete" indicator of the brightness of a binocular and there is more to it than that. The Tak22x60 is the finest example to illustrate that concept.
edz
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Teach a kid something today. The feeling you'll get is one of life's greatest rewards.
member#21
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BobinKy
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/27/07
Posts: 1683
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EdZ...
Well said.
. . .
Now, if you can just find a stash of Tak 22x60s for your Cloudy Nights following. 
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Bob
38°N
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Les
professor emeritus
Reged: 04/22/06
Posts: 731
Loc: Maryland
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Question: The term "fluorite" when applied to the Tak 22x60, does that imply that there are crystal calcium fluorite elements or only that fluoro- chemicals have been admixed to the normal glass elements? Are there binoculars with true fluorite elements? The advertising is usually ambiguous on this.
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Les
Canon 10x42L IS
Oberwerks BT80/45, Helix Hercules mount on Oberwerks Standard Tripod
Swift 8x44ED Ultralite
Questar 50th Anniversary Model, 501 head on Manfrotto 475 tripod
Stellarvue SV90T 90mm Fluorite refractor Bogen 3236/Televue Tele-Pod Head
Questar 7 Astro
Vixen GP-DX on Baader Surveyor Tripod
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Sgt
sage
Reged: 12/17/05
Posts: 487
Loc: Under the southern horn of the...
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Calcium fluorite crystal elements. I think these were the same objective elements as used in the Tak FC60 mini refractors.
I think the Prominar version of the Kowa Highlander 82mm binoculars also have true CaF2 crystal elements.
These 2 are the only ones AFAIK.
Edited by Sgt (09/13/09 10:57 AM)
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StarStuff1
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 04/01/07
Posts: 990
Loc: South of the Mason-Dixon Line
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What is the weight and the fov of the 22x60s?
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Tools that make objects very far away appear much closer than they actually are.
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EdZ
Professor EdZ
Reged: 02/15/02
Posts: 14732
Loc: Cumberland, R I , USA42N71.4W
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See my review of the Tak22x60 for specifics
Comparing GO22x85, WO22x70, Tak22x60
edz
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Teach a kid something today. The feeling you'll get is one of life's greatest rewards.
member#21
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