I have recently added to my 'Birding Toolkit' as I like to call it with the new Opticron Universal Telescope Adapter (UTA). This is a small 2x magnifying tube ('monocular') that can be attached to Binoculars or Telescopes to double the power of the magnification. I tried it out with my Swarovski SLC 8x42 Binoculars and could pick out and ID two female-type Goldeneyes on Newchurch Common which were too far out using my bins alone. Popping them onto my wife's SDL eyepiece on her Opticron GS52 also made a great difference, giving a zoom range of 24-72x instead of the 12-36x that she normally had. The eight connection rings are obviously made for specific Opticron models of scopes and bins, but as I found they can be fitted to other makes & models too. The UTA with connection ring attached is only 11cm high and 4cm diameter, so I will be taking this out in my pocket rather than lug a scope every time. I will post a review soon which will also be available on the Opticron website in the near future.
Below is a description from the Opticron Website, edited slightly for these forums:
"The Opticron 40951 UTA enables you to increase the magnification of your Opticron binocular or telescope+eyepiece combination by a factor of 2.
Fitted to a binocular, the 40951 UTA converts one half into a higher powered long eye relief monocular. It also connects to Opticron SDL, HDF, HR and IS eyepieces.
Featuring a long eye relief eyepiece and fitted with a twist type retractable eyecup, the UTA 2x is compatible with a wide range of different eyepieces as it is supplied as two separate components:
40951 2x body only. Price inc. VAT £109.00
A connection ring
How to choose the correct connection ring To find the correct connection ring to match your eyepiece measure the diameter of your eyepiece lens to see if one of the connection rings suits your instrument. The measurements below are the internal diameters of each connection ring in mm from the Opticron website. If you unable to locate the correct connection ring please give us a call on the usual number."
40941 42.5~41.3 £10.00
40942 42~41.3 £10.00
40943 44.3 £10.00
40944 40 £10.00
DBA VHD BGA Classic C/man BGA HD Oregon 4 LE WP Savanna WP
Imagic TGA WP
Imagic BGA SE Verano BGA HD Natura BGA ED Explorer WA T3 Trailfinder HDF T 40810 HDF T 40831 HR2 40933
HR WP Traveller BGA Mg Savanna R IS 40916S IS 40918S HR2 40930 HR2 40931