What are the main benefits of the Milky Way Lounge binocular chair?
Milky Way Lounge bino-chairs provide full 360° x 90° viewing of the night sky with comfort and stability. No need to shift equipment around to view a different portion of the sky. Great for viewing the clear dark zenith area, which is also where there are fewer obstructions from trees and buildings. More functionality than traditional viewing methods.
Which binoculars are suitable for this bino-chair?
Milky Way Lounge bino-chairs work well with binoculars in the range from 8×42 to 20×80 and beyond. Here are some other binocular considerations.
How long does the nighttime setup take?
Once the components are outside, it takes 5 to 10 minutes to set them up. The rotating base components will simply stack together. The other components will be clamped to the chair. Normally the binocular holder (called the teeter) is permanently attached to the collapsible chair. For successive viewing nights, one can use a tarp to cover the bino-chair.
What are the best kind of outdoor chairs to use for a bino-chair?
Zero gravity chairs work the best. Using other outdoor chair styles may result in some limited functionality. Here is an explanation.
How is a Milky Way Lounge binocular chair typically used for observing?
With one hand, turn the drive wheel to rotate the chair, while with the other hand, fine-tune the viewing elevation. When the hands are released the binoculars remain steady. At any time the binoculars can be pushed up out the way, for example to look at a star chart app. It is especially suited for cruising leisurely through starfields in the upper reaches of the Milky Way. Great for building star-hopping skills and gaining knowledge of the night sky.
What is involved in building this bino-chair?
Using the downloadable plans, anyone with modest “wood and hardware” skills and basic power tools can build this bino-chair. The recommended materials cost about $300 USD, and the plans are relatively inexpensive. After ordering in the materials, it may take a week or two to build the components, depending on your schedule. The plans provide clear step-by-step pictorial instructions for building, fitting and testing the components that will fit on your chair. Technical support is available. Here are some reviews from those who have started building. There are also free sample plans pages, which are based on the introductory sections of the full plans.
Would this binocular chair make a good gift?
Since it’s a completely unique project, and built by you, it can be a very meaningful gift, when given to someone that loves stargazing.
How are Milky Way Lounge bino-chairs perceived by the stargazing community?
An early version won awards at the 2023 Stellafane astronomy convention. Facebook public group posts have attracted many hundreds of likes, shares and comments; here’s one example. Our YouTube channel continues to attract subscribers. It is quite a popular attraction at star parties! The July 2026 issue of Sky & Telescope will be featuring a full write-up of the Milky Way Lounge bino-chair in the Astronomer’s Workbench column!
Who is the Milky Way Lounge binocular chair designer?
Dave Selinger is a retired engineer, avid stargazer, Stellafane awards winner and Cloudy Nights contributor/vendor, residing in Vermont. Here’s a quote from him, taken from the upcoming S&T article that was mentioned just above:
“Real DIY means the eventual achievement of an optimal result, done at relatively low cost. A store-bought bino-chair, even if one were readily available, would undoubtedly have been full of performance compromises.”
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