meade polaris 114eq-d?

[Jnook86]

Hello everyone, im new to this site and new to astronomy in general, but oh boy what an amazing and spectacular hobby ive discovered...anyway...big time newb here, who was extremly limited on funds and ended up getting a meade polaris 114eq-d, which i was told is a great scope for beginners..well ive had sum good luck and bad luck with this scope, the good news is that ive seen some breath taking views of our moon, and jupiter and several of its moons. The bad news is i really looked forward to getting a good view of venus and mars, but i was solely disapointed, because mars looked like nuthing more then a red grain of salt, and venus was no more then a big yellow blob?..does anyone know why this is?..the scope only came with one eyepiece which i cant recall what kind,i think its a A 24.5 mm.anyways, my next target is saturn, and this one i have looked forward to the most, so will i yet again be heart broken with the results this scope gives me as it did with venus and mars?...or is it a good enough scope to give me a decent view like i got with jupiter?.. sorry if i sound like a newb, im trying hahaha...any help would be greatly appreciated.

Edited January 4, 2012 by Jnook86

[Jnook86]

Product Identifiers

Brand Meade

Model Polaris 114EQ-D

MPN B00005BZ3R

UPC 709942043068

Key Features

Lens Size 4.5 in. (114 mm)

Focal Length 35.4 in. (900 mm)

Optical Diameter 4.5 in. (114 mm)

Optical Design Refractor

Mount Equatorial

Technical Details

Max. Magnification x 36

Finderscope Optical

Motorized No

Dimensions

Measurement 36 x 114 mm

[John]

Saturn and Jupiter are usually much more satisfying than Venus and Mars to observe. Mars is currently a long way off and will grow to about twice it's current size (so 2 grains of salt !) by March. It does get nearer and larger on other occasions but not this one. Venus is so bright that most scopes struggle to see much although it does get a little easier when it's phase reaches a large, thin crescent.

The max magnification in the spec you posted is not right though. With the correct eyepiece the scope should be capable of around 150x on a night of good seeing - that would need a 6mm eyepiece.

Edited January 4, 2012 by John

[Jnook86]

greatly appreciate the advice, do you think ill be able to see saturns rings decently with this scope?..i was able to see jupiters cloudbelts quite well with it..hmmm 6mm eyepiece ha?..i was told that this particular model wasnt compatable with other eyepieces other then the one, or ones it came with.

[John]

If the scope will accept 1.25" diameter eyepieces (thats the chrome barrel) then practically any 1.25" eyepiece can be used with it. Not all will give a great view though !.

You may have had some misinformation there !

My old 60mm refractor could show Saturns main ring system and it's brightest moon Titan quite easily at 60x so it should be no problem in your scope. Saturn will be a little smaller than Jupiter is but I reckon it may well be one of the most wonderful things you have seen through the scope !. Saturn is an absolute gem

Edited January 4, 2012 by John

[Jnook86]

fantastic!...ive been waiting to give saturn a view, unfortunatly it rises over the treeline around 4am, which is a lil late/ early 4 me..but from what ive learned from stelarium, it will slowly rise earlier as the next few months go by...im not sure what type of eyepiece i have, ill check when i gt home and post what it is when i gt the chance, i bought it used and i have a hard time believing that it only came with one eyepiece, also another problem im having is keeping the telescope steady!..everytiime i get a good view of jupiter i gotta hold on 2 the scope 4 dear life or else jupiter or watever im looking at dances out of view....another question...is this model of telescope i have any good?..decent?

[John]

Funny thing is the specs say refractor but I'm pretty sure it's a reflector (newtonian) from the pics that google throws up.

Check all the screws on the tripod and mount are tight to reduce the wobbles and adding some extra weight like a sandbag hung from the centre of the tripod helps too.

With the wind we have had lately, high magnification views are going to wobble with the wind gusts. Reducing the magnification, say from 150x to 100x can make things a little better.

I've never used that particular scope but from what I've read it seems like a decent scope to start out with. If the astronomy bug "bites" you will no doubt want to upgrade but thats not unusual !.

[Jnook86]

Ok, so i checked my eyepiece and it says 25mm, is this not any good?..its the only one it came with, i tried to view saturn the other night but all i could manage to see is a gold dot, no rings whatsoever, soley dissapointed!

[Tinker1947]

The 25mm is like a wide angle camera lens, as the size goes down the magnification goes up, but there are limits how clear the air (seeing) is and how high in the sky, the higher the less smoggy air to look through, then there's the quality of the optics push them to far and it all gets a bit blurry..somebody will post the figures for your type of Scope....

[Jnook86]

So do you think that the scope i have with a 25mm eyepiece is capable of seeing saturns rings?..or possibly some cloud belts on saturn?

[IanTendy]

Hi Jnook,

It'd be pretty tough to see the rings of Saturn with such a large piece, you'd be better off getting a 12.5mm or a 5/4mm scope. It sounds odd though, I'm looking at a 114EQ-D and it comes with these lens...

Not a big deal though, these almost universally take a 1.25 lens, which is easy to find in higher zooms.

Make sure, if it's a reflector telescope to collimate it, it's easy (check youtube) and it'll make viewing all the better!

[phobos]

This model just fell into my lap.  Did some searching and came across this place.  Cool.  Thanks for the info.  Will be checking back, probably with questions.  HAVE FUN!

[Jazzedman]

My grandson got one of these for his birthday (little young yet, 3 yrs old, but I like the idea of getting him interested now). 

Jnook86, I'm curious how this scope worked out for you? Are you still using it or did you upgrade shortly after? 

[Cornelius Varley]

1 hour ago, Jazzedman said:

My grandson got one of these for his birthday (little young yet, 3 yrs old, but I like the idea of getting him interested now). 

Jnook86, I'm curious how this scope worked out for you? Are you still using it or did you upgrade shortly after? 

jnook86 hasn't visited SGL since Jan 2013 so you might not get a reply.

[Jeff Slone]

I have the same model telescope a Meade Polaris 114EQ-D.  My problem is, I've lost my eye pieces during a move. Does anyone know if the 1.25 eye pieces are universal and fit my telescope as replacements? Or do I need to look for other sized eye pieces? Are there a basic set of eye pieces, sizes I should look for? Any help would be appreciated.

[Cornelius Varley]

4 hours ago, Jeff Slone said:

I have the same model telescope a Meade Polaris 114EQ-D.  My problem is, I've lost my eye pieces during a move. Does anyone know if the 1.25 eye pieces are universal and fit my telescope as replacements? Or do I need to look for other sized eye pieces? Are there a basic set of eye pieces, sizes I should look for? Any help would be appreciated.

If the focuser accepts 1.25" eyepieces then any brand of 1.25" eyepiece can be used, it doesn't have to a Meade eyepiece. I wouldn't look at eyepiece sets, these tend to be cheap and you might only use some of the eyepieces in the set once or twice.

[Ricochet]

4 hours ago, Jeff Slone said:

Does anyone know if the 1.25 eye pieces are universal and fit my telescope as replacements?

1.25" is a standard size. If your telescope takes 1.25" eyepieces then any 1.25" eyepiece will work.

4 hours ago, Jeff Slone said:

Are there a basic set of eye pieces, sizes I should look for?

What sort of budget do you have for buying new eyepieces? With a focal ratio of 8.8 your telescope will be quite forgiving and almost all eyepieces should work well. Plossl eyepieces will work well, or if you would like a slightly wider field of view the eyepieces sold in the UK as BST Starguiders are a good and popular choice.

In terms of focal lengths I would start with something in the region of 2 - 2.5X the focal ratio, so about 18mm. Normally I would say to double this for your widest field but a 1.25" barrel will limit you to a 32mm Plossl. Eyepieces with a wider field of view will have to be even shorter, for example with the BSTs a 25mm is the maximum in the range. 

For higher powers, the 8 and 12mm Starguiders would work well, or equivalents in Plossls. However, with the classic eyepiece designs, eye relief starts getting very tight with short focal length eyepieces so you may wish to either use a longer eyepiece and a barlow, or a more modern design with consistent eye relief (i.e the BSTs, or the eyepieces sold as "Planetaries").

If you really want a "set" then the Baader BCO set would work nicely, but beware the short eye relief in the shorter focal lengths.

[Guest]

My friend has an earlier version of that same scope, which she bought second hand. It came with 9mm, 25mm and 2x Barlow. These are available from many vendors at very reasonable prices. As others have said, you don't need to pay a fortune and I'd go with their recommendations of Plossls, instead of the supplied Modified Acromatics or MA, as it's written on the eyepiece.

Edited March 22, 2020 by Guest
typo...

[joe aguiar]

On 04/01/2012 at 11:26, Jnook86 said:

greatly appreciate the advice, do you think ill be able to see saturns rings decently with this scope?..i was able to see jupiters cloudbelts quite well with it..hmmm 6mm eyepiece ha?..i was told that this particular model wasnt compatable with other eyepieces other then the one, or ones it came with.

Whoever told u that was incorrect as John says u need I would say least 2 more eps maybe even 3

A 32mm ep for lower power a d easier to locate items

I'm thinking the 24 altho that's not a common number may need to be replaced but if u can send a pic

Then something like a 12mm to 14mm for medium power u cant just go from low to max powers.

Then a higher power like a 10mm to 6mm ep maybe even a 2x Barlow

Using a moon filter will cut down on venus's glare and of course use it on moon

Dont bother with bars for now it's too far wait till it gets bigger. Jupiter and Saturn are pretty much gone so u gotta wait till fall

Once u get better and few more ep and a Barlow then u will see things better

Also a decent ep would be a plossls or super plossls which are fine for that scope and dont cost alot

joejaguar 

[joe aguiar]

Just noticed this is an old thread

Joejaguar 

[Jeff Slone]

On 22/03/2020 at 05:30, Ricochet said:

1.25" is a standard size. If your telescope takes 1.25" eyepieces then any 1.25" eyepiece will work.

What sort of budget do you have for buying new eyepieces? With a focal ratio of 8.8 your telescope will be quite forgiving and almost all eyepieces should work well. Plossl eyepieces will work well, or if you would like a slightly wider field of view the eyepieces sold in the UK as BST Starguiders are a good and popular choice.

In terms of focal lengths I would start with something in the region of 2 - 2.5X the focal ratio, so about 18mm. Normally I would say to double this for your widest field but a 1.25" barrel will limit you to a 32mm Plossl. Eyepieces with a wider field of view will have to be even shorter, for example with the BSTs a 25mm is the maximum in the range. 

For higher powers, the 8 and 12mm Starguiders would work well, or equivalents in Plossls. However, with the classic eyepiece designs, eye relief starts getting very tight with short focal length eyepieces so you may wish to either use a longer eyepiece and a barlow, or a more modern design with consistent eye relief (i.e the BSTs, or the eyepieces sold as "Planetaries").

If you really want a "set" then the Baader BCO set would work nicely, but beware the short eye relief in the shorter focal lengths.

First of all, thank you for the response, as well as Peter and everybody responding.  I am on an extremely tight budget.  At the moment, to get my telescope functional, I would need to spend in the range of maybe 50-60 dollars.  I don't know if that's enough to get more than one eyepiece, or if it's even enough to get one good eyepiece. But I need to do something, right now my telescope is just a large, heavy paper weight:)

[Guest]

I'm sure you could maybe pick up some second hand eyepieces for $50-$60, if you shop around?

[Ricochet]

9 hours ago, Jeff Slone said:

First of all, thank you for the response, as well as Peter and everybody responding.  I am on an extremely tight budget.  At the moment, to get my telescope functional, I would need to spend in the range of maybe 50-60 dollars.  I don't know if that's enough to get more than one eyepiece, or if it's even enough to get one good eyepiece. But I need to do something, right now my telescope is just a large, heavy paper weight:)

The cheapest option would be the 10 and 23mm "aspheric" eyepieces available on eBay direct from China. Alternatively, you can get a Meade branded set (I'm assuming you're in the US as you used $) more quickly. The 4mm, however, is reportedly not up the the optical standard of the other two. 

Plossls are the other cheap reasonable option. They should be better mechanically than the aspherics (which are plastic), but may not be so optically.