Kef9

I've got the 5-8mm series 1 zoom and I love it. I have worried for years about the gap in the side though and bits and dust getting in but it hasn't seemed to ever be a problem

The 8mm TV plossl is an outstanding eyepiece. I like the warm tone it gives which help features stand out by providing contrast.

So Steve what eyepieces have you got in there?

Loads of great collections on here. Love the wooden case!

Joking aside how does the Vixen perform. I know it's the widest fov possible in a 2" barrel but whats it like in an f5 scope at the edge. I've always been mildly tempted!

3 hours ago, michael.h.f.wilkinson said:

Very subtle update of mine: the Morpheus 14mm has been replaced by a Delos 14mm.

Top row: Vixen LVW 42mm, Nagler 31T5 "Panzerfaust", Nagler 22T4, H-beta and moon filter, Orion 2" 90° Amici prism

Second row: Nagler 17T4, Delos 14mm, Nagler 12T4.

Third row: Pentax XW 10mm, Delos 8mm, Pentax XW 7mm, MaxVision 24mm 68°

Bottom row: Pentax XW 5mm, Denkmeier Filter-Switch diagonal with UHC and O-III filters.

You wouldn't wear glasses by any chance :)

20 minutes ago, DRT said:

I have been reliably informed that my astro cases are taking up too much room in the lounge

I could argue that the dog's toy box sticks out further than my cases but I am not sure that will help my cause

 

Wow! What have you got in all of those. I manage with 1 case!

I have the 24mm panoptic and here are the reasons I think make it a worthwhile eyepiece to own.

1) comfortable to use with long eye relief although I can live with virtually zero eye relief

2) Biggest possible field in a 1.25" format. Hence good for binoviewers, small maks or travelscopes limited to the format.

3) nice and compact so again relating to the point above it's good for travel.

On a completely separate note I just like the way it feels although thats just personal opinion

2 hours ago, John said:

I wondered if I would keep both the N31 and the E21 when I got the latter. There is no doubt in my mind now though that the N31 does things a little differently from the E21 and I would miss it if I didn't have it, even though the big Nagler only gets out occasionally.

I definitely don't need anything in between the two though and likewise between the E21 and the E13. I had the E17 for a short while and it was great but it would not have seen much use in my scopes.

I agree with this but I use my Nagler 31 more than the Ethos 21. I think I just prefer the wider field of view it offers but it's definitely worth owning both.

Here is my little collection.

Nice set.

There are so many great collections on show!

RIP - your legend will live forever!

Antares Speers Waler 5-8mm Zoom/variable lens -

As good if not better than all the reviews say. Quoted as between 84-89 Afov. Big eyelens and good eye relief. Surprisingly sharp and contasty. If you ever see one of these for sale, buy it. You will not be dissapointed. I've heard these may have been finally discontinued The threaded adapter next to it, screws between the body and bottom lens. It converts the 5-8 focal length into a 3-4.8 .

I agree with this 100%

I wonder if I wont have the same dilemma with my 40mm Paragon you had with the Ethos 21 versus the Nagler 31T5. The Paragon has just a shade more FOV at a lower magnification than the 31T5. Might still be of use in public outreach, so no kids gets his dirty fingerprints on the 31T5 (or no woman gets her mascara on it ).

I was thinking that when I looked at your case. You will have to let me know what you think because I still wonder to myself if I should buy a 41mm panoptic.

With regards to the 31mm nag vs 21mm ethos, most of time I find myself going for the 31mm nag. Even though its only 82 deg it feels like an ethos.

Last night was great for stargazing and I was thinking to myself what would I keep if I had to trim it down to 3. For those interested the result was 31mm nag, 13mm ethos and 5mm XO.

Mine hasn't changed for over a year either and I can't see it it changing unless I bow to 4.7mm ethos fever

yep it sure does. Have you not tried this out?

Thanks Kef, you really helped me out in an eyepiece thread I started with what seems like years ago! I have recently got a 2x barlow and 35mm panoptic, can't see things changing soon.

Then again... Maybe the 13mm + barlow will wipe the floor over all my high mag EP's. What do you reckon?

Thanks Adz - nice words and very much appreciated.

Regarding the nag + barlow combo - for me this would be great and give a nice wider field than the BGO but not the clarity. What might be an idea would be to try to swap the 6mm BGO for a 5mm. Then when combined with your barlow and availiable eyepieces would give you 13mm, 8mm, 6.5mm, 5mm, 4mm and 2.5mm which pretty much covers the whole spectrum. Just a thought!!!!

Yeah I can admit to getting a little tired of having to wait up so late for not very dark skies. Kind of makes me consider the money I have spent on eyepieces sometimes...

I know exactly what you mean!!!

Nice set you have as shown above and a good set of focal lengths.

Yes very nice john! Its interesting to see how big the 3.7 with the 2" adaptor is compared to the others.

I have the 5mm XO which is excellent. I have no idea what the XP is like but I can bet it's quality.

Also...note the observing chair with it's wooden block feet I added so it won't sink in the ground.

Classic!

Thank You ....

It looks very neat but what if you buy another one!!!

My latest addition Baader Hyperions,including another case from Malpins.............

Very nice indeed!!!

There are some really sweet sets being posted on here!

What a great set

Interesting that you still have a place for the 2 TV plossl's in there - but they are really great eyepieces as are the Nagler zooms.

When I move away from the "black and green" it will be towards Pentax XW's - the only EP's I've tried which surpassed (only by a tiny bit mind) my TV's

Yes the 2 TV plossls are great but I might chop them but for what its worth I might keep them. I can't make my mind up.

What did you make of the pentax XW's then. I would love to look through one of these 1 day. Are they really better than TV? You used to have some I recall so how come you got rid?

Arrrr well if you look closely you will see that I haven't placed the smaller eps in the case yet until I finalise them. Hence there will be room for the 2.5XO should the need arise.