Calling All 200P-DS Owners, Which EP's Do You Use?

[Davestate]

Rather than buy the Revelation EP kit I thought I'd ask other 200P-DS owners which EP's they use in this particular scope.

Also experiences with other kit, good or bad, when using the 200P-DS would be beneficial.

TIA.

[rwilkey]

Hi Dave, it would help to know what budget you have as there are so many choices.

[scuffer]

I got the 200p , not the DS version , I have collected a few eps of various makes and sizes to see which I prefer , only been doing this 12mths and its rained for most of that so I ain't no expert and I can't really say any make is visually any better than any other even the supplied eps , I do like my 15mm bst explorer (now a star guider) though . . . Think it's purely down to its chunkiness, try getting some 2nd hand and if you can't get used to them flog them on , I have only gone for recommended makes on here and plan to keep all of them . . Tmb planetary , swan , vixen , is it a dob or on a tripod

[Davestate]

Hi Dave, it would help to know what budget you have as there are so many choices.

Budget is xxx, I want proven results from experienced owners.

I have been reading up on the Baader Hyperion so may just suck it and see...

[rwilkey]

Hi Dave, the Baader Hyperion are a bit soft in fast scopes, better in f/6 or slower to be honest. I would recommend BST Explorers/StarGuiders as these work well in the 200P, and are a reasonable price at £47 a pop. Some of the best value ep's on the market from Sky's the Limit here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=bst+explorers&_sacat=0&_odkw=bt+explorers&_osacat=0&_from=R40

[Pete Presland]

i did have baader hyperions, which at 2nd costs are on average £20+ more but there performance was pretty poor in such a fast scope, so i would say its a definite no to those.

i finally settled with televue plossl's as the best value for money eyepiece i have used and can afford.their perfomance is very good in such a fast scope.

[Davestate]

Any more owners out there with quality EP's?

[Davestate]

_{Just to add I'm swinging towards the Nirvana's (all four of them) but if there are better for similar money then...}

_{I would also fork out for TV's, but only if the extra £130+ is worth it...}

[Stargazer_00]

I use celestron Luminos' and they're awesome, bigger scope but as mine as faster its mre demanding these should be even better in a 200p

[jimbooz]

I've had my 200P for a couple of weeks and I've invested in a BST starguider 18mm which gives a clear wide fov almost to the edges.

Clear skies

Jim

[Astro_Baby]

What I use........

Widefield-ish....Pentax XW in 5 and 10mm, possibly the finest glass on the planet, supremely comfy to use, no vices apart from the fact that after using these all other EPs appear to have been made at the muddy glass factory.

Widefield II....Explore Sientific 30mm 82'....wow man its soooooooo big it gave me a hernia lifting it out of the box . I so wish I xould tell you how good this E P is but the clouds just wont go away. By reputation its awesome.

Widefield so wide its scary...Explore Scientific 14mm 100'...as good as an ethos at a bargain price. Only the Pentax XWs can match it for clarity but its so heavy you really do need a focuser upgrade to most scopes go cope with it. Would. Buy again ? Nope but thats cos I would buy another Pentax XW knowing what I know now.

Baader Genuine Orthos...kind of a gold standard. You have to pa a lt more toget something as good. The low cost comes with narrow field of view but the contrast and crispness is so good you probably wont care. Eye relief gets right for most folks below 9mm...sadly now no longer around except at ludicrous secondhand prices.

University Optics Volcano Top Orthos....maybe the mos beautiful eyepiece ever made to look at. A classic. The revious gold standard to the Baader GO above. Some people ( me for instance ) prefer them. Available until recently at riduclously cheap prices, now like the BGOs starting to go up in price ....used to sell for £25 to £30 secondhand ...if you see one at that price then the seller is a plank and you should buy it even if you hate it you'll get your money back on resale.

What I have owned but not got anymore......just a small selecetion....

baader Hyperions....13mm was nice, 5mm not nice, bit soft at f5

Skyawtcher Panaview...nice budget widefield, suffers a bit at the edge but i never bothered me

Vixen NPL plossls...good bang for the buck, bit plasticky but Vixen glass at a sensible price makes up for it.

Celestron Plossls...not bad shaded a bit by the NPLs in contrast

tMb planetary 2 ....comfy but a bit soft and suffers a bit from a coffee like tone to views.

[Astro_Baby]

Scuse typos...am sure you will work it put but am mobile....

[Naemeth]

_{Just to add I'm swinging towards the Nirvana's (all four of them) but if there are better for similar money then...}

_{I would also fork out for TV's, but only if the extra £130+ is worth it...}

People define "worth it" differently with eyepieces. For me, it would be worth it mainly because TeleVue eyepieces work at pretty much any focal ratio. They are tested down to F/4, and have been used below that I believe. In this regard, they are very future proof, and easy to sell on. It would be a good idea to try and look second hand, therefore you would be able to sell them on at the price you paid for them if you found the money was too much.

HTH .

[Davestate]

Scuse typos...am sure you will work it put but am mobile....

For such a good reply a typo or two is excusable.

[Davestate]

I bit the bullet and ordered Williams UWANs in 4, 7 & 16mm, plus a Nirvana 28mm as I couldn't find a UK supplier for the big 2". Will report back with my findings once tried and tested...

[John]

I bit the bullet and ordered Williams UWANs in 4, 7 & 16mm, plus a Nirvana 28mm as I couldn't find a UK supplier for the big 2". Will report back with my findings once tried and tested...

Congratulations - they are excellent eyepieces. I've owned / used all but the 7mm but I'm sure thats just as good

[Lorne]

I bit the bullet and ordered Williams UWANs in 4, 7 & 16mm, plus a Nirvana 28mm as I couldn't find a UK supplier for the big 2". Will report back with my findings once tried and tested...

I'd be very interested in your findings when you try the 4mm in your scope, that should give you X250 magnification, I had a 5mm BST EP in my case last year which gave me X240 in my scope. I found I didn't use it much due to conditions but on the odd occasions when the seeing allowed, it gave great views. I think if I used the 4mm UWAN/ Nirvana in my scope it would just be pushing the mag (X300) too far but I'm willing to be proved wrong and complete my set if the reports are positive

[Davestate]

Used all new WO UWANs and the 28mm 2" Nirvana tonight, Jupiter and its moons were a pleasure with all EPs across the full AFOV, no distortion whatsoever. Only problem I found, not relating to the EPs, was the 200P-DS vibrating way too much for my liking when fine focusing, very strange!

I ticked off my first nebula, M43 using the SW ED80 Pro, I'm sure I was using the 7mm at the time and the nebula showed up remarkably well. Bleddy cold thought, fingers were chilled to the bone and numb as a numb thing, must buy a pair of goves me thinks.

This was only my second outing with both scopes and to be very honest I much preferred scouring the skies with the 80 sat a top of an AZ4, still haven't used the HEQ5 goto facility in anger, doubt I will at this stage as I'm thinking about looking for a heavy duty AZ or manual EQ mount...