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Xmas Present

west

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west

west

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Hi All,

As Xmas creeps up on us once again, I am constantly asked by my better half what I would like.

Now as I have just started on my astronomy road, I have only 1 14mm meade ep. I have been looking at this to suggest for a present.

Could you please let me know if it is worth getting and also explain alittle about the filters and there purpose?

ScopeTeknix 10 part eyepiece and accessory kit

Thanks in advance

Also I would like to buy a DSLR camera, not just for astro stuff but for general purpose use as well. Could you please point me at some that would be a good investment with astrophotography in mind for certain at some point. I know budget will be a aspect here but any general guidiance is appreciated.

West

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rwilkey

rwilkey

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I would recommend buying the individual kit you require according to your preferences in viewing, if you just have that one ep then I would suggest a low power, a good 32mm plossl is highly recommended if you are on a budget, or a 2" 32mm Panaview I could highly recommend. I have never got on with colour filters, but if you want to see DSO nebulas, then the UHC and OIII filters are recommended, but then you will be in a dilema, do you get the 1.25" or the 2" fitting, nebula will be better seen with the 2" 32mm Panaview (to get all the nebula in view). Some thoughts on this from other SGL members would helpful!

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pvaz

pvaz

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Sound advice so far. If you're into DSOs a 2" widefield EP will spend lots of time in the focuser.

You don't mention what scope you got on the sig, or what's your xmas budget so it's hard to make more specific suggestions.

Regarding the camera, if you can stretch it the Canon 600D is the most versatile entry level one. It haves excellent stills and video quality, a very practical swivel screen and so on. If you're looking for the best bang for buck then get the 1100D, it's a really great camera at an excellent price for it's functionality.

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damnut

damnut

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Hi West,

Good advice above, I would also consider the BST range of ep's, they are excellent value at c£35 ea, a couple of those and a decent barlow and you will be sorted. Check out te sticky in the ep section also. You have not told us what scope you have so it is difficult to recommend further.

Also always worth checking the sale section for goodies!..

Cheers

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JamesM

JamesM

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I wouldn't buy the kit to be honest. When you work out what you don't use and subtract that from the cost - the kit won't seem like such a good deal to be honest. I believe its always better to buy items like this separately to maximise the benefits. As you mention astrophotography as a possible future objective, can I recommend Steve Richards "Making Every Photon Count" (First Light Optics £19.95). Its a comprehensive guide to what you need and why you need it to get good images be it widefield (camera & tripod) Webcam (planets & moon as no need for tracking) or a full imaging rig (deep sky objects such as galaxies & nebula). Well put together and a very interesting read if observing is more your thing.

As its a 'cheaper' present, you might be able to squeeze another prezzie on to your wanted list?

Clear skies

James

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rwilkey

rwilkey

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I agree, the BST Explorers are great ep's, would suit your scope very well, I have the 25mm, 18mm and the 15mm, which suit my viewing preferences, I have other ep's that cover the higher mags (Axiom LX's), but it is very personal. The good thing about the BST Explorers is they don't break the bank. Excellent ep's for the price.

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twotter

twotter

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I think an eyepiece kit makes good sense. Whilst I couldn't afford to buy one when I started observing, over time I bought a selection of plossls that effectively comprise a kit. My mix of GSO Revelations and Meade 4000s (32/26/20/15/12/9/6.4) gave me an eyepiece for every target I wanted to view. After a while I decided to upgrade to wider fields of view so upgraded the focal lengths I used the most.

Looking at the kit in the link I would expect you'll see plenty of use from the eyepieces, torch and case itself. The coloured filters may not be much use to you but they're hardly expensive.

:)

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great_bear

great_bear

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Yes I agree.

When people say "you'll never use most of the eyepieces in a kit" I'm left wondering what on earth they're talking about. It's clearly not true for myself or the many other observers that have bought such kits and continue to enjoy them.

GSO Plossls sell for £20 second hand. They are good eyepieces - no doubt about it, and an aluminium case costs about £20 - so there's £100 of value right there anyway! - and that kit only costs £85.

Over time I have bought more expensive eyepieces but my Eyepiece Kit eyepieces continue to see active service. Note however that if you have a scope faster than F12, you should get a good Barlow if the kit does not come with one.

If you have an undriven telescope like a large dob, you might want to consider eyepieces with a wider field of view instead - but ones that work well in a fast dob will not be cheap.

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pvaz

pvaz

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That kit doesn't sound so bad: "the eyepieces each have four optical elements".

I read the ones on the celestron kit are single lens EPs.

Anyway I can't really advise on one as I went for the single EPs route and upgrade a few times, so I don't know what to expect from the kit quality.

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LukeSkywatcher

LukeSkywatcher

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Yes I agree.

When people say "you'll never use most of the eyepieces in a kit" I'm left wondering what on earth they're talking about. It's clearly not true for myself or the many other observers that have bought such kits and continue to enjoy them.

GSO Plossls sell for £20 second hand. They are good eyepieces - no doubt about it, and an aluminium case costs about £20 - so there's £100 of value right there anyway! - and that kit only costs £85.

Over time I have bought more expensive eyepieces but my Eyepiece Kit eyepieces continue to see active service. Note however that if you have a scope faster than F12, you should get a good Barlow if the kit does not come with one.

If you have an undriven telescope like a large dob, you might want to consider eyepieces with a wider field of view instead - but ones that work well in a fast dob will not be cheap.

I have to agree. I bought a kit a few yrs back and i still use most of the EP's regularly. I have also added a few more expensive EP's to my collection, but the cheaper ones still get used.

If you go for the kit, you may find the barlow isnt that good so might need upgrading. The Tal 2x,3x are very good and rather cheap for the quality of them.

P.S.~~~The 32mm GSO EP that comes with the kit you linked to is the same as the 32mm i got in my kit and it was my favourite EP. Sadly it got damaged and i had to replace it.

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fbassett

fbassett

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Hi West

I'm still new at this but I do have some some experience with DSLR's. Most of the advice I have read on the forums seems to be to avoid EP kits and to buy what you need. What you need can be a difficult question to answer though. At present I have the kit EP's that came with my scope and I had assumed I would want lots of magnification, I was quite surprised to find the EP I use most then is the 25mm and I have started looking for a 32mm. As for the DSLR, go to a camera shop and try a few see how they feel, DSLR are really down to the lenses that want to use, unless its strictly for AP. I chose canon as I like the canon glass and have a number of canon lenses and bear in mind that you can get last years entry level for a good bit less than the current model, in most cases the difference is usually minor and you can sometimes save yourself hundreds of pounds. Hope this helps.

Tony

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LukeSkywatcher

LukeSkywatcher

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For total newbies (we are all newbies at one stage) to the hobby i can not praise EP kits enough. They give you a wide range of EP's to try out and see what works for you. The standard GSO ep's that come in these kits really ARE NOT THAT BAD.

Ok a 2mm-4mm EP is gonna be pretty useless almost all of the time in the UK.

The colour filters included in kits really are only there to fill space in the nice cases.

Having said all that..................i really like these kits because they are a relatively cheap introduction to the world of astronomy.............when you really have no idea about more expensive EP's and the views they give.

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onesmallstep

onesmallstep

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Hi

Obviously this is a personal choice but I use an EPF kit and the eyepieces (super plossls) are fine for general use. The colour filters are used to bring out planetary detail but for DSOs you would need the ultra high contrast (UHC) and Oxygen III filters as mentioned above. There are several eyepiece threads in the relevant sub-forums and also the primers so plenty of info to hand on SGL. It depends what sort of observing you are interested in, Baader Hyperions are popular as eyepiece upgrades but as always the balance is cost versus kit!

An 'ideal' balance would be three eyepieces of high, medium and low power (typically 5-8mm, 14-18mm, and 25-32mm respectively). Add to this a Barlow lens and a moon filter as a basic setup and add either planetary or DSO filters depending on the observing. Add photo and/or imaging kit as required.

HTH!

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gary1968

gary1968

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I have a Antares EP Kit, and wont be without it. It does everything I want..... except for the 15mm SWA I bought at Kielder a couple of years ago. It has a 40mm, 15mm, 10mm, 6mm & a x2 Barlow. They are all great performes, in fact until I got my 8" F4 newt the 40mm was my fav EP.

If you have your eye on a kit and are unsure what you actually want to look at or what EP's will work best with you scope then i say go for it, its a good value way to get a selection of EP's.

HTH,

Gary

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