Hands On Optics

I stopped in to purchase a pair of binoculars. Gary was great and was kind enough to spend time explaining things to a beginner (me!). His customer service was wonderful. They have a great selection of stuff, and I’ll certainly be returning when my comfort level grows and want to branch out to equipment that is more complicated.
It’s a shame to see the 1 star review by someone that seems to have done no research on starting in the hobby. The first thing I saw mentioned, and this was fairly universal on all of the astronomy sites, is that you never buy a cheap telescope — it will ruin the enjoyment and deter you from further exploring the hobby. When I was in the store I didn’t experience any pushy «salesman» behavior, just a nice guy trying to give good advice. People nowadays seem to be hyper sensitive and look for bad/​negative in anything said.
Also, for those heading here for the first time, the store is on the back side of the dominos that is next to the McDonald’s. They had telescopes out in the parking lot when I was looking for it, which made it much easier to spot.

I am an amateur astronomer who has bought numerous new and used items from Hands On Optics over the past decade. Hands On is a family run optical shop in Damascus, MD specializing in astronomical telescopes and accessories at all price points. The owners are amateur astronomers who are extremely knowledgeable about the hobby and are well qualified to recommend equipment for all skill and age levels. They are also well regarded by the local amateur astronomy community, and regularly help sponsor local astronomy events. Hands On is an authorized retailer of high quality, moderately priced telescopes from Celestron telescopes as well as other quality name brands. All of the equipment at their store will deliver great views of sky objects with the proper handling. I believe they also carry birding scopes, but you may want to double check on that. My customer service experience with the Hands and their employees has always been exemplary, and I’ve learned a fair amount about the hobby through my interactions with them and by simply perusing their showroom and website. Hands On Optics is one of those unique retail hobby shops that many of us grew up with but that have become rare in the age of Amazon and Walmart. I’m pretty sure this business is basically a labor of love for the owners at this point. I encourage anyone in the DC area who is interested in amateur astronomy to drop by this hidden gem in Damascus and support a local business. Pro tip: check out the «fun list» on their website for great deals on gently used equipment.

Very knowledgeable people. Large variety of stocked items.
They will get you the right equipment for what you need at a price you can afford.

There are few telescope stores that have a knowledgable staff. This is not so with Hands on Optics. They know what they are talking about and will connect you with the right product for your needs.

Mr hand is very knowledgeable about telescopes and tries to match the right scope to the user. If every company put out as much effort there would be less junk sold.

A hidden gem in Maryland, many choices of new and used (in good condition) Telescopes, binacolours. filters, books etc.
The owner & staff are knowledgeable.
Even though I was not ready to buy yet. But I shall return.

Having actually been here and received excellent service from the friendly staff; I can certainly say that these folks go the distance to further the Amateur Astronomer field. Skip helped me and my 3yo son buy our first telescope — a 6″ Orion StarBlast and we couldn’t be happier. He loves looking at the moon and Saturn. Skip was helpful in guiding me to a sub-​$ 300 model that perfectly fit our needs. Thanks so much :-)

Amazing amazing! I love this place! I drove all the way from Arlington, VA after a 10 minute phone conversation with the owner who by the way is incredibly knowledgeable regarding his wares and not cocky at all, very happy to share his experience with you. I cant remember the owners name now but, for sure I did not feel any pressure to buy anything and he was so guiding and helpful to me that I am sure I bought the perfect scope for my sky conditions and a few accessories to help me out. To be honest I have always had a love of astronomy since i was young and have read multiple books and even took a class for it but I am still definitively a beginner in the telescope arena. With this in mind the feel of this place is very comfortable, laid back, feel free to browse is the vibe i received. You can really feel the establishments affinity for their niche. When I first arrived I was even able to look threw a scope set up outside for a nice view of the sun (saw my first real-​time prominence). I swear this store is so awesome! If you have a serious interest in pursuing the hobby, which in all honesty is not cheap (the prices here I find to be fair and accurate), then it is my suggestion that this place would be a wonderful resource to you.

Called to see if I could find a telescope for under $ 100. I’m a beginner and was hoping to get a better view of the super moon. The associate that I spoke with was an arrogant a**hole. He said that they didn’t have anything around that price range and informed me that they were real astronomers. I guess because I didn’t want to spend $ 500 on a telescope I wasn’t worth wasting time on. Sounds like he forgot what astronomy is really about!