John

I'm not sure what that white ring is in the Omni The lens edges are suppose to be blackened according to the spec. Anyway, see how they perform - what you see will be the real test. I tend to agree with Ricochet regarding the max useful magnification with a 90mm scope. 160x is probably around the top (useful) whack.

I've used a few Omni plossls and they worked pretty well. The one that did not was the 4mm - uncomfortable to use and poor optically. I dismantled it and found that the cemented lens elements were not properly aligned - they must have moved during manufacture, before the cement hardened. I got a bad one there ! The others seemed OK though. Those 2 barlows look very similar in some ways - might be the same optical elements in a nicer body with the Omni perhaps ? Hope you get a performance boost over the basic kit eyepieces

Thats my problem then - I only have 17 eyepieces .......

I guess the above two posts can apply to any high end astro equipment - Tele Vue, Takahashi, Leica, Zeiss, Pentax, etc, etc. It's all pretty expensive and there are other much less costly alternatives that will deliver a large % of the performance. Same in other hobbies as well of course. I'm sure the same questions get asked on cycling, hi fi, photography, fishing, guitars and other forums where equipment is an important part of the proceedings. My brother has just sold one of his bikes for about twice as much as all my eyepieces cost me. He still has a couple more in the garage though ....

Thats a thoughtful post Iain I know what you mean about enjoying the characteristics of the eyepieces - they all have their little quirks and all are very good in their own way In the past, when I've sold a nice one, there is that awful empty impression still left in the foam lining of the eyepiece case ...... mustn't get emotional about them though

This is one of the factors that has put me off trying one of these eyepieces, until now. I will be looking for this as I'm using it and comparing it with other eyepieces. I had a couple of hours under dark skies with the zoom and the VIP barlow in my ED120 F/7.5 refractor and observed a wide range of targets from Saturn through to galaxies with very interesting results Much more testing and comparing to be done though, before any decisions are made.

Exellent report Mark It seemed a really dark clear night last night and DSO's were showing very well while the clouds kept off. After a bit of scoping I dug my 11x70 binoculars out and just sat in the garden for an hour sweeping about. Very invigorating !

Thats useful Garry Knowing the true field of view that the eyepiece / scope combinations generate is also useful as is the exit pupil that the combination generates so you could add some further columns to your table. The former can be found using the formula: True Field = Apparent Field of Eyepiece ÷ Magnification and the latter: Exit Pupil = Focal Length of Eyepiece ÷ Focal Ratio of scope

Well, I'd certainly like to look through one, one day

My tatty but optically sound Habicht Tirol 8x30's cost under a tenner !. Now that was a bargain We have some of the Helios Naturesport Plus 8x40's and 10x50's and those are very nice as well.

Fair points Piero. My earlier post was probably a bit of a "knee jerk" reaction which I should have qualified more. Sorry about that. I agree that it is interesting to read about, and if possible, try out other quality optics as well as the "well known faces". In all honesty I'd have never have known about the Baader VIP barlow unless I'd read about it on a forum.

Oh, lets not have a Tele Vue bashing thread - so dull and predictable If you don't like the products / prices, don't buy them ! Plenty of other options around today

I have an older pair that I found in a charity shop a couple of years back. Rather tatty exterior but superb optically, really sharp and bright, and lightweight as well. My favourite birding / travel binoculars Sharp when used for astronomy but I tend to prefer a little more aperture for that.

Sounds like you have even more EP's than I do Gavin

Perhaps old stock has run out and new stocks have arrived at higher prices ?