New EP's but got carried away

[bomberbaz]

Well I needed some better EP's and I did consider cheaper options but my astigmatism didnt help. However I got some secondhand so that kept costs down plus I have just had some unexpected cash land with me so here is what I ended up with:

Celestron X-Cel LX 25 & 18mm

Baader Hyperion 13 & 10mm

Celestron X-Cel LX 3x Barlow

Based on my Telescope focal length, this gives me 25mm =26 magnfication, 18 = 36, 13 = 50, 10 = 65. Barlowed the same sizes give 78,108,151 & 195 mag.

Thats probably more than I need I know, but the Baader 13 was too good an offer to let it go.

One thing I figured is that when I eventualy upgrade my scope, which I know I probably will do, the 4 lens will still be fine and the barlow can be sold on.

Anyway, also had scope correctly collimated and so now just need a clear sky to have a real good play around with them all...

Steve.

[Mr Q]

Nice buy Steve. Yea, keep the barlow (unless its of poor quality) - using it with the 10mm will result in a 5mm view, which is about the mag. power limits under moderately good sky conditions. Even if you end up with a fast scope (f5 or less), those should work nicely. Any more mag. power would mostly be used for planetary viewing under real steady skies.

As for the collimation, try a star test to be sure once the scope has cooled down on your next outing.

[Spec-Chum]

Nice

I've always wanted to compare an x-cel to a BST but never got the chance.

I'm always up for a bargain lol

[Astro Imp]

Nice one!! all set to go when we get those clear crisp skies of winter that everybody keeps talking about

[John]

Thats a good selection Steve

It's good to have some choices so you can find something that suits the conditions and object being viewed "just right".

What scope do you have, by the way ?

[bomberbaz]

Yeah the scope is an Astromaster 130EQ John. I took some advice about EP's fom a chap at a local observatory and the choice is based upon information I got from him.

If I do upgrade to a higher powered scope at some point the theory being, I could either sell the Barlow and get another EP to bridge any gap or maybe go for a lower powered Barlow.

But whatever I know the EP's bought should hold thier value pretty well.

Steve.

[paul schofield]

Very nice. Let us know what you think when you get a chance to try them out.

[Qualia]

You're going to have a lot of fun with those EPs, Steve. In my forgiving f/10 the X-Cel LX 25mm and 18mm are just stupendous instrumements of quality and sharpness. The Baader will be fun as well (I was presented the 5mm) and it would be nice to hear a little summary of comparison of the two types if you get the chance.

[leelee970]

Buying Astro kit means bad weather – it goes hand in hand.

In that case there have been lots of people buying stuff around the Salisbury area, and it’s NOT me.

[twotter]

For another £15 or so you could buy the Baader 14mm & 28mm fine tuning rings for your Hyperions. Very handy for getting the maximum observing from the viewing conditions

[bomberbaz]

Yes I looked at those twotter and did a lot of working out and if I upgrade my scope will definately be a consideration, thnaks for the heads up though

[haitch]

For another £15 or so you could buy the Baader 14mm & 28mm fine tuning rings for your Hyperions. Very handy for getting the maximum observing from the viewing conditions

I've often wondered about those - do people actually go around dismantling their EPs in the field to adjust the magnification?

I get annoyed at the distraction of having to switch between 2" & 1.25" EPs... or putting a barlow in... or changing a filter so I reckon that would drive me mad.

[Spanishfly]

For another £15 or so you could buy the Baader 14mm & 28mm fine tuning rings for your Hyperions. Very handy for getting the maximum observing from the viewing conditions

I find them very handy

[bomberbaz]

I've often wondered about those - do people actually go around dismantling their EPs in the field to adjust the magnification?

I get annoyed at the distraction of having to switch between 2" & 1.25" EPs... or putting a barlow in... or changing a filter so I reckon that would drive me mad.

Thats what I thought Haitch. Which is why I opted for the Barlow. Still fiddly I know but much less so.

Also I read on here though somewhere its more a case of deciding what you intend vewing at on the night and setting it up as per and thats it rather than fiddling around in near dark trying to adjust your EP. So although they add another dimension to the EP they are less flexible than a barlow in that respect.

[bomberbaz]

Also I read on here though somewhere its more a case of deciding what you intend vewing at on the night and setting it up as per and thats it rather than fiddling around in near dark trying to adjust your EP. So although they add another dimension to the EP they are less flexible than a barlow in that respect.

I should add that as I haven't got the rings, I dont know if this is the case but just what someone commented

[haitch]

Thats what I thought Haitch. Which is why I opted for the Barlow. Still fiddly I know but much less so.

Also I read on here though somewhere its more a case of deciding what you intend vewing at on the night and setting it up as per and thats it rather than fiddling around in near dark trying to adjust your EP. So although they add another dimension to the EP they are less flexible than a barlow in that respect.

Ooh crikey - deciding before I go out? Far too organised for me. I tend to just drag the scope out to cool and then note a few targets to view and then, when I've done those, I just browse a while, usually just staring in awe at the vast number of stars in the Milky Way or something like that. On any one night I'll go from planets to planetary nebulas to clusters to galaxies. All varying sizes requiring different magnifications so I just like to have a set of EPs meeting my needs without worrying about barlowing (tbh I've never really got on with barlows - they seem to make it even harder to find my eye placement). I'm still building my ideal set and am currently shuffling my EPs about. Once done it will include the following focal lengths in mm 7,9,12, 18 or 20 and 28 or 30 all in 80^o+ fov. I've already got 7 & 12mm Nags and am in the process of selling my superwide EPs (68^o & 72^o) to make way for the rest. My scopes are a 1600mm f/l 14" dob and a 2000m f/l Celestron C8 so you can work out the magnifications they'll give me. You'll see there is more in the shorter end and that's to work around the seeing conditions - on some nights the 7mm gives sharp images of Jupiter in the dob but on others even the 12mm struggles.

[haitch]

Incidentally I had a Celestron X-Cel (not the LX) in a 10mm and, whilst it gave good views, I struggled with eye placement with it and suffered badly from kidney beaning.

Probably the sharpest planetary EP I've owned was a 5mm Vixen LV but it was really just OTT magnification wise for my scopes and the narrower fov meant too much nudging.

[M4lcs67]

I have 3 Hyperions of differing sizes and was sold on the fact that they are modular and with the addition of the fine tuning rings you can effectively get several eyepieces in one. As the ftr's are so cheap when you compare them to buying a whole new eyepiece they are a no brainer. I do have both ftr's and they are a welcome addition to my rig. Yeah you do need to unscrew the eyepiece to attach the ftr (and some would say that it is a bit of a faf), but I do like the versitility. I was told however not to swap them over indoors as the risk of getting dust trapped inside is high. Do the swapover outdoors (difficult I know, trying to do it in the dark, but I have managed it by using my redlight head torch).

I have the Celestron Ultima 2x barlow and with the addition of the better quality 25mm ep that came with my C9.25/CG5 combo, I am reasonably well sorted for all different situations now.

Steve. As you have a very good selection of eyepieces now, maybe look at getting a better scope with a bit more apeture???

[bomberbaz]

.

Steve. As you have a very good selection of eyepieces now, maybe look at getting a better scope with a bit more apeture???

haha, I wish. only recently got this and if I started shelling out for a new scope now, the Mrs would go ape. The reason i bought decent EP's at outset is to make most of what I have and also be comforatable that when I eventually do trade up, they will be up to the job.

Nice thought though Malc, lol

[twotter]

I use FTRs with my Hyperions on most observing nights. Never had any problems using them outside and it's no more difficult than adding a filter. I've had some memorable nights observing Jupiter and Mars where the FTRs have allowed me to push the mag to the max for the viewing conditions. My 2x barlow has been relegated to my old eyepiece case, as the 14mm and 28mm rings just give me more options.

[M4lcs67]

You are bang right, twotter. Sometimes it is nice having the versitility of the ftr's, so you can get an ep size that is perfect for the object you are observing without having to pay for a whole new one.

[Eastridge]

+1 on the usability of the FTR's. FTR's + barlow though not instead. 10mm Hyp + both FTR's + barlow gives me every usable mm I can think of for planets with my scope.

[M4lcs67]

I did read somewhere that you were not supposed to barlow Hyperions, but I don't know why. In any case I have done it with mine. It isn't going to damage them and I did it purely to see what happened and it was ok as far as I am concerned.

[bomberbaz]

Well I finally managed to give them a proper try last night and I have to say I was very impressed. Viewing conditions were not brilliant with the Moon being almost full, some patches of high cloud and a lot of aviation about but I managed to do ok.

Only managed to push the mag up to 108 as any higher went fuzzy but what i did manage to view, Jupiter, the Moon, some bright stars (the bright stuff in general really) and a few other fainter ones was very good.

I did get a bit of flaring of the 18mm + barlow on the brighter stars but I still think my mirror is slightly out and that will be my next job.

Overall the quality feel of both the pieces is excellent and I am more than happy with what I have had so far. (Pity the barlow never came in any kind of protective case or bag, the EP's did)

Only real problem of the night was my mrs whinging because I was outside, leaving her all alone

Clear skies all

Steve

[twotter]

Only real problem of the night was my mrs whinging because I was outside, leaving her all alone

Ask Mrs Baz to come outside with you so she can hold your FTRs