Eyepiece Suggestions

[mikev1]

I know there are probably a ton of threads about this and I know in this section there is even a sticky. But I want to hear directly from you SGL members and from your experience what my next eyepiece purchase should be. I have an Orion Starblast 6i and currently have:

10mm Orion Sirius Plossl

25mm Orion Sirius Plossl

32mm Orion Highlight Plossl

Orion Shorty 2x Barlow

Orion 13% Transmission moon filter.

I like to look at everything in the sky. I may hunt galaxies one night and planets the next. So I am not very picky about what I want to see. I am looking for recommendations on both mm size and series. I have had great luck with all of my current eyepieces. I have also seen the Orion Epic II series and noticed one or two people on here talking about them. I want a good quality eyepiece that I can enjoy but also do not want to break the bank at the same time. Thanks in advance

[magic612]

I like the Zhumell and Astro-tech planetary eyepieces that offer the 20mm eye relief, and run about $60 or so each. They don't break the bank, give nice views, easier on the eyes than the shorter focal length Plossls, and don't weigh so much that they cause the scope to become horribly unbalanced like some of the premium glass can. I'd think with your scope, a 6mm option ought to be a good place to start, and if it helps any, I use my 9mm Zhumell planetary eyepiece far more than my 10mm Plossl.

You could go the other direction of course, and fill in the spot between the 10 and 25 with something like a 16mm Plossl. That will give you effectively an 8mm EP with the barlow, plus using the barlow will give you better eye relief at a higher magnification than the 10.

[mikev1]

So the Astro-Tech Paradigm eyepieces look exactly like the Orion Epic II series. Are these made by the same manufacturer with a different name? Lots of money saved with the Astro-Tech eyepieces!

[Tribal-Wolf]

I had a 10mm sirius plossl which was actually not as good as my stock skywatcher 10mm super plossl so I sold it. The Celestron X-Cel LX seem like nice EPs and get rave reports too.

[mikev1]

Anybody use Astro Tech eyepieces?

[Dunkster]

The Astro Tech Paradigm eyepieces are branded as BST Explorer / Starguider in the UK and are well regarded for the price. However, the Celestron Xcel LX are more highly regarded but are around 2x the price in the UK. In the US I believe the difference is only a few $$.

The BST Explorer was one of the first accessories I bought for my Mak - I have the 15mm and really enjoy it - but the Xcel LX sounds like more bang for a few extra $$, but it's your decision and $$

[stevetynant]

I have a few BSTs and a 25mm Xcel LX - although the Xcel is twice the price it is a big personal decision on whether you perceive its value to be twice the worth of the BST - in my opinion its not and for the price of 1 Xcel you could have two different size BSTs which I personally would go for.

[mikev1]

I am looking at their High Grade Plossl eyepieces. They look pretty nice. Debating picking up a 17mm

[Tribal-Wolf]

I like the BSTs, I have only got the 8mm but love it. I would like to try the X-Cel LX to compare them.

[Qualia]

I was using a couple of Ortho Baader (6mm & 9mm) with my refractor for planetary viewing. They gave decent, no, excellent views of Saturn, Venus, Jupiter, the Moon & a vague and hazy Mars.

The Orthos gave that wow moment but I found that I was having to chase these celestial objects just a little too much for my liking, so figured I needed a wider field-view.

Anyway, I read about and decided to purchase a couple of eyepieces from Celestron's X-Cel LX series. I bought the 7mm and 12mm.

What can I tell you?

They're like small grenades. The 7mm measures about 90mm in length, the 12mm about 80mm. They're pretty heavy, housed in thick, grooved rubber for easy-grip, and they feel and look the business. Each have 16mm eye relief and 60-degree apparent field of view, and of those views?

Spectacular.

Crisp and sharp and sweet and so much brighter then the Plossls and Orthos I had been using. Due to wide angle view there is also the benefit of a more relaxed sit-back, less-of-a-chase experience which has lent itself to being able to sketch some of the sites I'm seeing.

Needless to say, I'd seriously recommend the X-Cel LX for planet and general celestial viewing.

[The Warthog]

A logical step would be to buy a 7.5mm eyepiece, which combined with your Barlow would give you 200x. I often use this power exploring the Moon. As for the brand, get the highest quality you can afford. You seem to be at a point where you are ready to slowly accumulate a few top quality eps, rather than quickly accumulate a handful of standard quality ones.