Louis D

From 25585's reports on CN, the Orion LHD line sounds pretty similar to the Nagler T4 line in that both lines have 30mm eye lenses, some minor SAEP, and a need to push in tight with eyeglasses to see the entire field. I had forgot about the APM 84. I'd be tempted to get one if I wasn't so pleased with the 12mm ES-92. The Meade MWA line is actually more of an 82 to 84 degree line with prominent SAEP, so they're also an option in some of the focal lengths having longer eye relief.

The only 82 degree eyepieces that I've found I can use comfortably with eyeglasses are the 22mm Nagler T4 and the original 30mm ES-82 with the mushroom top. It was identical to the 30mm Meade 5000 UWA and 31mm Celestron Axiom LX if you can find them used. Alternatively, the Morpheus have 78 degree measured AFOVs, so very close to 82/84 degrees. Many of the affordable "82 degree" eyepieces are actually 78 to 81 degrees once measured, so take marketing claims with a grain of salt. The ES-92 line is very comfortable with eyeglasses, but big and expensive.

I have the Surplus Shed version, and I've measured the usable eye relief to be between 9mm and 11mm. It is not really usable at all with eyeglasses unless you have a tracking mount to keep small objects centered. However, if you Barlow it, the exit pupil may become small enough that you won't need eyeglasses to correct your eye's astigmatism. The eye lens is very small (16mm diameter on mine) and recessed, so don't expect big eye relief. I like the Celestron (Olivon) Regal zoom which I've measured to have 13mm to 16mm of usable eye relief, although it certainly feels longer than that in use, especially with the eye cup screwed all the way off. The only problem is locating these zooms. They are generally only sold with spotting scopes. It does not have filter threads, so there is that.

Not really following your line of reasoning on why you'd want to put the scope on a table. You might want a table to put your star charts and eyepieces on, but not the telescope. You will probably want to buy a stool or observing chair, though: Standing to observe is not comfortable in the long term: Here's the proper use of a table for astronomy: There are plenty of fold-up/roll-up tables for camping if bulkiness is a concern: And if the scope is still too low, put it on a stand of some sort:

I went with a large and deep Pelican-style case so I could store my eyepieces upright. It allows many more eyepieces in a single case. One downside is I have to have the layout memorized since many eyepieces look the same from the top in the dark. Another is it allows for the weight to creep as I've added more heavy eyepieces. The case is over 20 pounds now.

Look for an older, long Barlow. They usually require a fair amount of out focus rather than in focus. My favorite very long Barlow is the 1.25" Orion Fully Baffled 2x made in Japan in the 90s. Side by side testing on the Trapezium showed it is slightly sharper than my Tele Vue 1.25" 2x and Meade 140 2x, both of which are phenomenally sharp and mid-length Barlows. The Orion is about 6 inches long and focuses about 2 inches out, IIRC. I just don't insert it all the way into the focuser rather than crank the focuser that far out.

Why cellphone cameras are so handy to have today. Someone is always snapping an image of a whiteboard in a conference room after a productive brainstorming session at work.

Guess I never caught that difference relative to the 8" and the Sky Watcher version.

I've read it's optically the same, but heavier due to a stainless steel instead of aluminum barrel.

When did that happen? Didn't the Orion 6" used to have a 2" focuser just like the Synta made Sky Watchers?

Assuming you're in the US, check the classifieds on cloudynights.com as well as Craigslist for your local area for used deals. Big Dobs don't ship well (expensive and bulky), so checking locally helps a great deal. Check nearby cities as well if you're willing to meet half-way. As far as scopes go, it's hard to beat the 6" floor standing Dob for all around versatility and image quality for around $300 new. Expect to pay no more than $200 for a used one in good condition. Right now, the new ones are all on back order everywhere, so you have time to save up. Get on a waiting list until then. I recommend Astronomics, Agena Astro, OPT, HPS, and Orion. They are all knowledgeable and can help you make informed decisions and stand behind their products. As Mike at Astronomics recently said in his mailing list as pertains to constrained product supply: Due to unexpected demand in astronomy products from a stay at home pandemic, rocket launches, and a very bright comet all manufacturers are stuck in an awkward position that nobody could have predicted. We appreciate your interest and your understanding in the matter as we are filling orders as fast as products can come in. Astronomy is a hobby about patience, so please have a little with us currently. Thank you.

As long as they get progressively worse from center to edge as you move a bright star from center to edge, it's the eyepiece causing these issues. The eyepieces are probably simple designs from the past intended for f/10 to f/15 or slower scopes.

Fairly often for mid-high power. I compare it to my 10mm Delos sometimes to see which is giving the better view. They're very close. You won't be disappointed with the 9mm Morpheus.

It really depends on the quality of the Barlow. Those in the list below consistently get high praise for "getting out of the way": 1.6x 1.25" Nikon EIC Barlow 3.0x 1.25" Televue Barlow 2.4x 2.0" Vernonscope Dakin Barlow 2.0x 2.0" AP BARCON (BARADV) Barlow 2.5x 2.0" Siebert Telecentric 2.0x 1.25" Carl Zeiss Abbe Barlow 2.0x 1.25" & 2" Baader VIP Barlow If you can use a longer focal length more comfortably than a shorter focal length for a longer period of time by using it with a high quality Barlow, you're more likely to tease out fine details by being more relaxed.

The eye relief for eyeglass wearers is also better on the Morpheus than the Starguiders. Contrast is better in the Morpheus as well. I have the 9mm and 14mm Morpheus and the 5mm to 25mm Paradigms/Starguiders. The Morpheus fit in well with the TV Delos and Pentax XWs while the Starguiders fit in well with the Meade HD-60s (of which I have the complete set). Of the latter two, I prefer the HD-60s due to much better eye relief.

Was the flexure in the focuser or the mounting rings?

Definitely keep your rig light and learn the skies so you can move the scope around to dodge trees and other obstructions. That's what I've had to do since the trees I planted 26 years ago in my backyard have since matured. I didn't really consider the consequences related to astro observing when I planted them. I was just thinking in terms of having shade from the intense Texas sun for my kids.

I've read that the Takahashi TOE and Vixen HR lines also do well at faster f-ratios. They have decent eye relief, but somewhat narrow fields of view. However, they are rated among the best planetary eyepieces ever made including the ZAOs, TMB monos, and Pentax SMCs, XPs, and XOs. If you want the Vixen HRs, you'd better hurry as existing stock is quickly being depleted since Vixen hasn't made a new production run in a while and may not again.

What is it about your current 15x70s that you want to improve upon?

I have seen no evidence that there is any variance whatsoever. They all seem to come from the same factory. I seriously doubt that unless you were to order an entire production run of thousands of units that your could specify any of the build parameters.

Clearly, multiple Chinese factories have made their own clones of the TMB planetaries as evidenced in this thread: I have seen no such evidence in the case of the BST Starguiders/Paradigms/Dual EDs/NED/etc. That's why I tend to recommend them over the TMB Planetaries, their consistency across rebrandings.

You can pick up a 1.25" to 0.965 adapter off ebay for cheap if you want to give them a try. I've found that some of the cheap Kellners (K) packaged with beginner scopes can actually be pretty decent performers.

Their TS branded ED and APO refractor prices seem to be much lower than their UK and US equivalents.

They're also known as Astro Tech Paradigm and Agena Starguider Dual ED in the US. Basically, if you order at least 300 of them at once (at least that's the number I've heard), the Chinese factory will screen print whatever name you want on them. Even then, you may not get them branded correctly every time. Some of FLO's BST Starguiders have come in labeled Astro Essentials. Rest assured, they're all identical.

FLO also offers discount pricing at the levels of 2, 4, and 7 at once.