Eyepieces/Filters & Thoughts

[EclipseDF]

Hi everyone & hope the viewing has been good to everyone lately!

I have a celestron nexstar 8se scope im using with a tele vue Everbrite 1.25" diagonal; when I purchased it about a yr ago it came with this lense set:

http://www.hayneedle.com/product/eyepieceandfilterkit125inchformat.cfm

I have been searching/looking at upgrading 1 or 2 of my eyepieces at a time over the next few yrs.

I know this is discussed everywhere & no one eyepiece is 'the best'; but what are peoples thoughts on the following things:

1.) what are the 2 best eyepiece manufacturers for viewing nebula/deep sky objects,etc.. 

Tele Vue, lumicon, meade, others?

2.) what mm to go with any possibly why?, what ones do you find your using the most? 17mm, 25mm, or 32mm?

awhile back I was using the 17mm to view pleiades star cluster and I noticed I was zoomed in almost to far,

at the time I wasn't able to put in the larger mm eyepiece; but was thinking maybe 25mm or higher would be

better for full viewing? thoughts?

3.) Been looking at buying a new UHC filter & other like filters for deep sky/nebula. 

Any particular filter brands/manufactures you feel confident in?; believe are the best?; top 2 picks?

Look forward to hearing peoples thoughts & feedback. 

Thank you!

Dave

[rwilkey]

Hi Dave, TeleVue are generally regarded as top notch for ep's, but at a top notch price, I would go for a 20mm and a 32mm plossl, they are the safe cheaper bet.  Second choice manufacturer, Explore Scientific, their 82 degree series are close to TV in performance but at half the price. 

Lumicon filters are the best in my opinion, but TeleVue and Astronomik are also highly recommended, I would go for a UHC to start with, and follow it up later with an OIII. 

[bingevader]

Budget?

As Robin has said, if you have the money, then TV are probably the way to go, but you can get some very decent eye pieces for considerably less and the second hand market, in the UK at least, is fab and reliable if you're careful.

That's a decision only you can make.

As for what focal length do I use the most? That depends on what I am viewing.

I don't think I have a most used eyepiece, although I do tend to use my 32mm initially on difficult to locate objects after getting in roughly the right area with the finder, so that's quite useful.

After that, as I said, it depends on what I'm observing.

[swamp thing]

Hi Dave

Your *SCT is considered quite a slow scope and can get away without needing the best corrected eyepieces. This means you can afford to use cheaper options than Televue or Pentax. 

That said buying TV or Pentax does future proof your eyepiece collection, as they will work equally well in any scope regardless of speed.  The TV plossls as suggested are a good option IMO. 

Filters. again you can buy the premium brands like Astronomik & Lumicon but for occasional use there are budget alternatives. I've used the skywatcher 2" O-III and it worked rather well I thought.

[Dave In Vermont]

I won't weigh in on what eyepieces are best here, nor on the best manufacturer for filters. Filters are not cut & dried in quality really. If one maker's filter works better for such and such, the other one may be better on so and so. I'm a Filter-Nut and have a vast collection - and I love them all! But here is a link for very good data on filters and what they are good for:

http://www.prairieastronomyclub.org/?s=Filter

Have fun out there,

Dave

[John]

You can't go far wrong with a couple of Tele Vue plossls and a Lumicon or Astronomik UHC filter. David Knisely (who wrote the article linked to above) also rates the DGM Optics NPB filter highly but those are hard to get on this side of the pond. I've also found the Orion Ultrablock a very decent UHC-type filter which is priced somewhat lower than the Lumicon and Astronomik offerings.

In the same breath as Tele Vue, Pentax also deserve a mention as their eyepieces are also of the highest order.

I had my best ever views of Saturn using a Celestron C8 SCT and an 8mm Tele Vue plossl - exquisite !