Opticron SR.GA 10x50 binoculars review

With a traditional look, the Opticron SR.GA binoculars are rubber armoured for better protection and grip.

They have plastic front caps and both have individual caps and a single cover for the eyepieces.

They also have soft rubber eyecups.

Although these weren’t an impediment, we would have preferred to see the twist-up variety, although spectacle wearers could still fold them down for a more comfortable view.

Overall they are the most compact of the Porro prism binoculars on test, and while the tripod bush allows for more stable views when attached to a tripod, we found we were able to hold them for long periods of time with no discomfort.

Interpupillary adjustment was a bit stiff but dioptre adjustment was smooth, with a graduated scale on the side.

Centre focusing worked reasonably well but was a little coarse.

The multicoatings reduced ghosting and it was only evident on the brightest stars.

Altair was sharp through the inner 65 per cent of the 5° view, with slight trailing out to 75 per cent before any significant distortion became apparent.

Albireo could just be split and was a good sight when the binoculars were tripod mounted. Jupiter’s Galilean moons also stood out well.

Our test galaxies also included M81 and M82 in Ursa Major and the edge-on smudge of M82 was unmistakable.

Sweeping down the nebulae and clusters of the Milky Way was a treat with good views of M27, the Dumbbell Nebula and the open cluster M11.

All in all, we were impressed with the views of deep-space these bins delivered.

This review appeared in the October 2010 issue of Sky at Night Magazine