92 replies to this topic

[Ptkacik]

I'm considering purchasing something like the Oberwerks Ultra 28 x 110mm binoculars.  Has anybody used these?  Do you have any comments?  If you haven't, do you have comments about the color correction, ability to focus, or other usability issues of an optical system like this.

 

Thanks,

Peter

[Peterson Engineering]

Hi Peter,

 

You'll find a review at http://www.petersone...sky/garrett.htm

 

These things are so good and so unique that we carried them for a year or so.

 

Pete

[Rich V.]

I'm not too sure who sells these larger BA8 binos anymore; Oberwerk only sells up to the 70mm size presently, AFAIK.  They can be found in England under the Helios Apollo brand.  TS in Germany sells up to the 85mm versions.

 

Be aware that the eye relief of the 28x110 and 22x85 and 15x70 siblings are all quite short at around 9-10mm.  These will likely be inadequate for eyeglass wearers.  The 20x110/15x85/10.5x70 use a longer eye relief eyepiece with a smaller 55° AFOV rather than the 64° AFOV of the higher mag. models in each size.  These lower mag. variants will be better suited for eyeglasses.

 

I have the limited production William Optics 22x70 ED version of these BA8 binos which use the same eyepieces as the 28x110 and I find the eye relief is about the same as my Fujinon 16x70s-- around 9mm.  This is totally inadequate for my strong + eyeglasses.  The IF focuser range is a bit broader than the Fujis; I can focus to around +9 diopters with the WOs but only to about +7 with the Fujis.  I'd assume the minus side of the IF focuser range would be about the same.

 

The sliding adjustable mounting foot on these binos makes them relatively easy to balance.  Of course, because these are straight-through design binos, to prevent neck pain at high viewing angles, they do best on a parallelogram or other cantilevered mount that allows reclined viewing with the tripod to the side.

 

Rich

[hallelujah]

I'm not too sure who sells these larger BA8 binos anymore; Oberwerk only sells up to the 70mm size presently, AFAIK. 

 

 

Rich

http://www.bigbinocu...om/ultra110.htm

 

Stan

[Rich V.]

 

I'm not too sure who sells these larger BA8 binos anymore; Oberwerk only sells up to the 70mm size presently, AFAIK. 

 

 

Rich

http://www.bigbinocu...om/ultra110.htm

 

Stan

 

 

Good to see them listed, Stan; I was looking at the BigBinoculars.com site map and they're not shown there...  

 

Rich

[Ptkacik]

Wow thanks. I really liked the Garrett review. Not 'big' binocs, but 'humongous' binocs! Very funny. I also liked the picture that compared the 20x100, little 7x50, and my now relatively tiny 15x70's to the 28x110. Puts it into perspective. 

 

The review also points out the advantage of the 28x110 over the 20x110. I am a bit curious about chromatic aberration and sharpness of focus but maybe that is part of the review I've not been through. I'm expecting issues with mounting but that part of why I'm here.

 

This is all part of a plan to build a giant parallelogram system that I hope to report on in the future.

 

Thanks,

Peter

[Jawaid I. Abbasi]

Both 20x110 and 28x110 are good optically. I have had 28x110 for 6 month or so and I had to sell because it was too heavy for the mount that I had.

with an exit pupil of 3.92 plus a big objective lens; it gives you bright and wonderful image but you really need to have a beefy tripod and mount. Mount must be atleast 20# capacity to use its full potantial.

 

As you mentioned that P-mount to be built and I think that is the right path. After I sold it; I built a very heavy duty P-mount which can hold about 40# instrument on it and that is a good guess.

 

Take it to dark site and you will be amaze!! all in all a wonderful binocular but be aware of its size.

Thank you

Edited by Jawaid I. Abbasi, 30 September 2014 - 12:19 AM.

[SMark]

I own the 22x85 BA8, and it is also quite heavy. Easily as heavy, if not heavier than either of the two 25x100 binoculars I have recently owned. And while mine was defective as delivered from the manufacturer due to an imperfect objective lens, when masked down to 73mm or less it performs very well with sharp star images and minimal flare, and very good contrast. But I will also say to be very careful not to underestimate the size of your mount and tripod. For my 10.5 lb. binocular, I mount it on a 22 lb. capacity head attached to a 26 lb. capacity tripod. I'm a firm believer that your mount and tripod should be rated for at least double the weight of your binocular. Skimping will only cause disappointment. I've been there myself on more than one occasion.

[Mark9473]

TS in Germany sells up to the 85mm versions.

 

 

http://www.teleskop-...gen-filled.html

 

http://www.teleskop-...gen-filled.html

 

and also from APM:

 

http://www.apm-teles...-hd-20x110.html

 

http://www.apm-teles...-hd-28x110.html

[galazie]

I've got the 28x110 for 5 years. I bought it from Garrett when it was $650. I also bought the Garrett tripod for it. It is a fantastic set up and worth every dollars.

 

I only use it for galaxies and comets. So I never cared about false colours.

 

It is heavy, it needs dark skies. So overall it needs commitment to put it in regular use. Focusing is a bit difficult (to find a definite focus point) but it works. It is also sensitive to eye placement.

 

It is very well built, holds collimation well and can stand some rough handling.

 

Overall fantastic. I recommend the 28x110 to anyone that is addicted to binoculars. (I moved up from 20x80).

[Mr. Bill]

Anybody do an effective aperture check on either of the 110s?

 

[Rich V.]

Hi, Bill, the 70mm and 85mm BA8s have been measured by EdZ to be within 1mm of the claimed aperture; I'd expect the 110s would be in the same ballpark.     

 

Rich

[Mr. Bill]

I'd like to see it measured......inquiring minds.

[Rich V.]

Of course that would be best...

 

I'd really be surprised if there were significant aperture reduction, though. 

 

Rich

[Ptkacik]

So I ordered a pair and although there was a miscolimation in shipment and a second pair is on the way, (thanks Kevin), I can check the aperature.  How is it determined? I assume that measuring the glass out front doesn't cut it as the prisms and eyepieces can cause vignetting.  I'd like to know this out of curiosity.

 

28 x 110's are massive and my tripod isn't going to cut it as when they look up, you are on your knees with neck strain.  I assume a large refractor is this way.  I'm working on a large research grade parallelogram mount and will report on that once I've finished.

 

Regards,

Peter

[Man in a Tub]

The original 19 September 2009 post by Glenn LeDrew:

 

True aperture? A Quick Way to Measure!

 

An improved, second post on 28 August 2013:

 

The flashlight Test for Aperture - Illustrated

 

The first way is adequate.

Edited by Man in a Tub, 12 October 2014 - 05:44 PM.

[MartinPond]

I have a strong preference for Glenn's 2nd post, given the wildly varying divergence and source size of flashlights.

[Ptkacik]

The replacement Ultra 28 x 110 binoculars came and they too had collimation problems. Kevin at Oberwerks said maybe it was just my eyes and offered to refund my money; however, he also sent me a collimation procedure from Garrett for the same ones and suggested that if I was willing, I could try adjusting them myself.

I ended up collimating both pairs to where I'm not sure which pair to send back.

The views are spectacular. I was looking at the Pleides and it will take your breath away.

[Ptkacik]

Oberwerks Ultra 28 x 110 Clear aperture of 107mm.

While preparing for the evening of collimation mentioned previously, I set up and measured the clear aperture. I had two pairs of 28 x 110's and measured 107mm on all four lenses.

FWIW, I used a small white LED flashlight at about 12" from the eyepiece and measured with a clear ruler at the objective lenses. There may have been a 0.5mm variation in my measurement but they were close enough together that I feel confident with the numbers. 107mm is off about 2% of the aperture so I am a happy customer.

[SMark]

The replacement Ultra 28 x 110 binoculars came and they too had collimation problems. Kevin at Oberwerks said maybe it was just my eyes and offered to refund my money; however, he also sent me a collimation procedure from Garrett for the same ones and suggested that if I was willing, I could try adjusting them myself.

I ended up collimating both pairs to where I'm not sure which pair to send back.

The views are spectacular. I was looking at the Pleides and it will take your breath away.

 

I have come to realize that my eyes are naturally out of alignment. Of course, I've been correcting it all my life so it doesn't typically cause much of a problem, but I have found that I can make a binocular more comfortable for myself if I tweak the alignment a bit. However, if it's already properly collimated, I typically won't mess with it. A few months ago I purchased a binocular that I knew was out of alignment when I bought it. However when it arrived I found it to be very comfortable to use. Turns out that it is actually closer to what my natural alignment really is.

 

I now wonder how much my natural misalignment plays into my chronic migraine headaches...

[JustaBoy]

Mark,

 

Your headaches... I would try not beating my head against the wall for a starter:-)

 

 

:-)

[SMark]

Mark,

 

Your headaches... I would try not beating my head against the wall for a starter:-)

 

 

:-)

 

Yeah... I have found it therapeutic at times...

[hallelujah]

 

Mark,

 

Your headaches... I would try not beating my head against the wall for a starter:-)

 

 

:-)

 

Yeah... I have found it therapeutic at times...

 

A Chiropractor is much better than a brick wall.

 

Stan

[Mr. Bill]

Oberwerks Ultra 28 x 110 Clear aperture of 107mm.

While preparing for the evening of collimation mentioned previously, I set up and measured the clear aperture. I had two pairs of 28 x 110's and measured 107mm on all four lenses.

FWIW, I used a small white LED flashlight at about 12" from the eyepiece and measured with a clear ruler at the objective lenses. There may have been a 0.5mm variation in my measurement but they were close enough together that I feel confident with the numbers. 107mm is off about 2% of the aperture so I am a happy customer.

 

107mm effective aperture is excellent....thanks for the info.

 

How would you evaluate the edge of field illumination and distortions (coma)?

[Ptkacik]

Mr. Bill:

If it's clear tonight, I'll look for edge of field and coma. I'm curious about this and it seems that as I focus coma comes down from one side and then the star starts to blur. Best focus is the minimum error of those two but although tiny, definately not a pin point.

Is it my eyes or the optics? I'll try swapping eyes and see if it stays with the lens or the eyeball.

Regarding edge of field, that is tricky too. Although it looks clear and perfect to the edge, if I look at the edge, it disappears due to my eye falling out of the light cone. I'll try moving my head around to maintain a view and report back.

Regards,
Peter