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Vixen LV / (N)LV vs TeleVue Plössl

Naemeth

By Naemeth
in Discussions - Eyepieces

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Naemeth

Naemeth

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Here's the situation.

Quite a while ago I picked up a Vixen LV 2nd hand and it's truly superb optically (although I sometimes wish it wasn't such a high magnification so I could test it more!) and it offers plenty of eye relief (20mm) so I can use it with my glasses. However, the TeleVue Plössls are also superb optically, and because my astigmatism isn't that severe (-0.75 dioptre in left eye), I can get away with no glasses for exit pupils of 3mm or less, which means all Plössls are covered up to 15mm without glasses, and 20mm / 25mm / 32mm are covered with glasses. So the question is, do I keep going for LVs / NLVs when I can afford them second hand, or do I just get a complete set of TeleVue Plössls (second hand of course)?

If I don't need eye relief at high powers, why have it?

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Naemeth

Naemeth

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I'd go for the tele vue set. I had some high power vixen plossl and didn't like them. Very uncomfortable to use and views where very dim.

I should add that I'm talking about the eyepieces here:

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/vixen-eyepieces/vixen-nlv-eyepieces.html

They're not Plössls, but have a FOV similar to one.

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Naemeth

Naemeth

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I have not used the NLVs but maybe a mix of both would be good as TVPs 'only' exist in 8, 11, 15, 20, 25, 32 and 40mm. I won't bother posting my own views on TVP's - you may well have guessed it :grin:

I wish they had made a 3.2mm and a 7mm, they would have been perfect additions for planetary viewing with my scope.

[i know about diminishing returns on upgrading eyepieces instead of my scope]

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Moonshane

Moonshane

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actually if you are happy with your scope, there's nothing wrong in upgrading eyepieces at all. those eyepieces look very well spec'd and again if they work for you........eyepieces of decent quality (which these seem to be) can be used in any scope pretty much so it's not like the money is wasted, especially as you are buying used.

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andrew63

andrew63

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I have used the Vxen Lanthamum and the NLV - even though i have no reason for needing long eye relief. A 6 to 8mm version will be much more comfortable than say a 8mm TV plossl or 6 ortho. as you need your eye right against the glass.

All the Vixens i've used including the earlier Japanese plossl and the LVW 65 deg have all been excellent - much under rated i feel.

andrew

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Naemeth

Naemeth

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I've done a bit of searching to try and find the weight of them (as my focuser really isn't that sturdy) so I can compare, the longer FL Plössls are slightly heavier than the LVs, but the LVs are fine in the focuser so things should be fine.

Weight of LVs:

2.5mm (157g), 4mm (152g), 5mm and 6mm (149g), 9mm (158g), 10mm (153g), 12mm (152g), 15mm (140g), 20mm (131g), 25mm (128g)

TV Plössls:

32mm (170g), 25mm (121.9g), 20mm (85g), 15mm (73.7g), 11mm (62.4g), 8mm (51g)

Courtesy of TeleVue and FLO's listings, thanks :D.

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Naemeth

Naemeth

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Not tempted by the Radian then?

:evil:

that's actually not a bad call. same eye relief, about £100 used and really excellent. I have two (10mm and 8mm) and have previously had another two (14mm and 18mm) and they are all superb.

Trouble is, they've been discontinued now haven't they? They'd be difficult to find now, and in several months (when I may be able to get one) they may be even rarer, never mind finishing the set. Isn't the Delos their replacement?

I have used the Vxen Lanthamum and the NLV - even though i have no reason for needing long eye relief. A 6 to 8mm version will be much more comfortable than say a 8mm TV plossl or 6 ortho. as you need your eye right against the glass.

All the Vixens i've used including the earlier Japanese plossl and the LVW 65 deg have all been excellent - much under rated i feel.

andrew

Thanks for your input Andrew, I had thought of the short eye relief of an 8mm Plössl, but I'm not sure if it would put me off. I've used my 10mm MA with no problems (even with my glasses), but I think these have closer to 12mm eye relief. Do you think LVs / NLVs or LVWs would be a good alternative in shorter focal lengths?

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andrew63

andrew63

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I think they make a great alternative. I love TV plossls but I've never used a 8mm for the reason the eye relief is around 5mm and your eye is virtually touching the lens - it's not great for long periods of viewing - to others it's fine though. But either the NLV, or Radians as suggested could be a good mix - see what comes up used?

andrew

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Mr Spock

Mr Spock

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I use NLVs and find them very good. Having a 10mm NLV and a 10mm Radian I can tell you they are very similar - the NLV has a cleaner image quality and the Radian a larger field and is more solidly built, so, take your pick ;)

Out of all my eyepieces the LVW is my favourite. They are just so comfortable and unfatiguing to use. Expensive and heavy though.

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Naemeth

Naemeth

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I use NLVs and find them very good. Having a 10mm NLV and a 10mm Radian I can tell you they are very similar - the NLV has a cleaner image quality and the Radian a larger field and is more solidly built, so, take your pick ;)

Out of all my eyepieces the LVW is my favourite. They are just so comfortable and unfatiguing to use. Expensive and heavy though.

I looked at the LVW, and to be honest I doubt the Heritage focuser would be able to stand the weight without serious reinforcement - it's only plastic! Of course, the sharpness may be slightly different at F/5 from F/7.5, but the only way I could tell would be to compare side by side

TV plossls are excellent. I still own a 32mm and only recently sold several others. I have replaced these for wide view TeleVues' . The views are just as sharp with TV plossls', a class act.

Good to know, your scope is F/4.8 isn't it? Anything that can perform with a sharp view at below F/5 will make a great eyepiece (especially for F/5).

I think I've decided:

I will patiently wait for TeleVue Plössls to come on the used market when I can afford them, and I will gradually fill in the gaps with the Vixen LVs.

Thanks for all the help everyone :).

To be honest, at around 12 oz (~340g) the Radians look too heavy. I'm not sure I want to trust that much weight on the focuser, I could always try but I wouldn't want to risk it, what with the price of a Radian. That probably also rules out the Delos too, at least for this scope without modification.

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