Eyepiece suggestions for Celestron C6-SGT XLT

[appalachik]

Having spent over a month deciding that the scope I will get the most use from is a Celestron C6-SGT XLT on a CG5 mount. I am at a loss to decide on additional EPs to buy.

The scope will arrive on Tuesday, with it's included 25mm EP and conventional wisdom seems to say I should be looking at EPs of 7.5, 12.5, 20 and 30mm, based on its 1500mm focal length and 6" aperture (F10).

The arguments as to FOV, magnification, coatings etc are a bit beyond me at the level of knowledge I currently have. As such, I feel I'm prepared to buy fewer better EPs than a kit which may include several that I'll never be able to use.

Assuming I can afford an absolute max of £180 for either 2 0r 3 eyepieces... what should be on the shortlist?

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Jenna

[swamp thing]

Hi Jenna

I would suggest that you join your local astro society and go along to their viewing nights.

Or have a look at the social groups at the top of this page. Community link. There is bound to be some one near you.

That way you will get to try various different types and focal lengths of eyepieces.

You can't beat hands on knowledge.

Regards Steve

[Capricorn]

My choice would be:

7.5mm = 200x

10mm = 150x

12.5mm = 120x

32mm = ~47x

The 25mm giving 60x

Reason, if the 7.5 is too much then you have the 10mm which isn't too big a drop as 7.5mm to 12.5mm for magnification.

The 32m is simply for some width.

Have always found that I tend to find something in a wide view (32), zoom in a bit (25), then shove the magnification up, so I use more small ones then wide ones.

Personally would prefer 20mm to 25mm but they are donating the 25mm.

As to which ones, wouldn't like to say. Everyone has their view. Plossl's should be fine at f/10. Skysthelimit do TMB planetary's at £39 a piece but on holiday until Sept 1st. Assuming £40 an eyepiece that means about 4 for the budget.

[Pete Presland]

the f10 should not be too fussy about eyepieces unlike faster scopes, the meade 4000 super plossls go for around £20-£25 2nd hand.

a nice barlow would be usefull as well, which effectively doubles your eyepiece collection by doubling any eyepiece it is used with

[appalachik]

Hi Bunnygod,

Are you saying that because the scope is F10, it cannot especially benefit from higher quality eyepieces, therefore I am as well to look for super plossls rather than anything more exotic?

Jenna

[CGolder]

Hello Jenna,

it will benefit from eyepeices in terms of field of view, but will not suffer to much on the quality of that view compared to faster f5 telescopes

i have the c6 xlt and its a cracking scope

[Pete Presland]

Hi Bunnygod,

Are you saying that because the scope is F10, it cannot especially benefit from higher quality eyepieces, therefore I am as well to look for super plossls rather than anything more exotic?

Jenna

absolutely not! i am sure an ethos (£300+) would provide absolutely stunning views through your scope

no just that faster scopes do need better quality eypieces to get the best out of the scope.i use baader hyperion eyepieces which are a good compromise between the cheaper plosssls and ones like the ethos.i paid around £70 each for the hyperions and i am very happy with there performance.

if you can get to a club somewhere and try some it would be usefull.

[appalachik]

Thanks for the clarification Bunnygod. I see that Hyperions are available in the near-optimal sizes for me of 8mm, 10mm and 13mm - although the price at FLO is a fair bit higher than £70.00 each (they are asking £92.00). Maybe there has been a general price rise. I might be able to run to a couple of them though. I'd still need to find something around 32mm to give me approx 45x as well... seems that the Hyperions only run up to 24mm.

[appalachik]

I agree that it would be good to find a local club to visit. I am aware of Sherwood observatory about 12 miles away, but I don't drive and I don't think it's easy at all on public transport. Maybe there is another Nottingham based club that I've not yet come across. I did google it but only got a broken web link to a club in Nottingham

[tyler_jrb]

I would suggest gso/revelation super plossl eyepieces, they are basically as good as a televue plossl in a slow scope which yours is. I own the 12mm version and it is very good as your scope is 1500 length i would suggest around a 15-20mm with x2 barlow for planets. They are also pretty cheap at 30 pounds each. Maybe try a local astro club to see what eyepieces suit you. All depends what budget you have for them, if you have the money buy the best. the forsale section is a great way to get second hand eyepieces for cheaper and you can trust people on sgl. Equipment is looked after.

[John]

.... I'd still need to find something around 32mm to give me approx 45x as well... seems that the Hyperions only run up to 24mm.

A 24mm Hyperion will show the same amount of sky as a 32mm 1.25" eyepiece of any type. The higher magnification that the 24mm gives will make the background sky darker which helps bring out faint deep sky objects.

[Pete Presland]

Thanks for the clarification Bunnygod. I see that Hyperions are available in the near-optimal sizes for me of 8mm, 10mm and 13mm - although the price at FLO is a fair bit higher than £70.00 each (they are asking £92.00). Maybe there has been a general price rise. I might be able to run to a couple of them though. I'd still need to find something around 32mm to give me approx 45x as well... seems that the Hyperions only run up to 24mm.

they do a 36mm as well,the televue plossls are very good as well they normally have a 2nd hand value of £40-£50 depending on focal length and they barlow very well so if you did get similar to these

7.5mm = 200x

10mm = 150x

12.5mm = 120x

32mm = ~47x

the barlow would give 16mm,6.5mm,5mm,3.7mm as well, not that you would use the last 2 much.

choices,choices,choices

[appalachik]

Thanks so much for all the advice and suggestions, I'm a lot clearer in my understanding

Jenna

[brantuk]

Hi Jena - if you're looking for a local group we have a very nice bunch of folks over at East Mids Stargazers (all from here) and a couple of dark observing sites in the Notts area.

Click the link in my signature if you're interested and leave an intro thread. The folks will say hi and give you more details

[Nexus 6]

Hi Jenna, maybe a zoom could be useful in this case, for your budget of around £180.00 perhaps this... Baader Planetarium Hyperion Zoom Eyepiece.

I did have a Celestron 6se as my first scope and did splash out on a few decent quality eyepieces from Televue which do give outstanding results even with an f10, would also agree with the comments above regarding getting to a local astro society, did the same when I first got started, had a warm reception from a very friendly bunch of people...

thanks again East Riding Astronomers

Alan

[Plantins]

The good thing about purchasing quality eyepieces is the fact that they will perform well in any scope. In our hobby/passion/obsession you'll find that many people have a few different scopes.

The point I'm trying to make is if you can afford to purchase quality eyepieces, they will serve you well and give you many years of service with any scope you have. The scope your getting will perform well with moderate eyepieces, only you can decide if now is the right time to purchase the quality eyepieces.

One thing is for sure (it happens to all of us) you'll anchor for a piece of Televue sooner or later!