good eye pieces

[kipstar]

hello just wanted to ask about a good eyepiese i have a skywatcher its a d=150mm f=750 i have a x2 barlow lens with a super 10mm and super 25mm wide field view eyepiese just need some help on an upgread eyepiese 15 to 20 pounds dont mined getting a second hand one of ebay i know you can get some good dells but its the problem with damage you take a chance some times if anyone can help with what would be a good eyepiese something in the 8mm to 6mm range or any info really cant beat a bit of knowledge hahaha thank you

[Andy_E]

£15 - £20 won't really get much in terms of improvement. Your best bet is to go for something like the BST explorer/Starguider range. They're available from Skies the Limit (ebay shop) and are an excellent first dip in to the eyepiece market at around £47 delivered. You also might be able to pick one up second hand, try http://www.astrobuysell.com/uk/index.php . Much better to buy second hand here than on ebay.

[LukeSkywatcher]

As Andy said, £15-20 for eyepieces wont get you much for your money unless you go for something like the BST range. The Skywatchers are fine to begin with but there are better.

My personal choice are the Vixen NPL range (£30-40 a pop) which i find fantastic, but people in the know say the BST's which also cost about £30 a pop offer better eye relief and are the ones to go for.

[kipstar]

thanks for the replays i wish i could get one of them but money is short at the moment always the way with me hobbies cost me to much hahahaha cant help what you love to do a second hand one will have to do if i can find one thanks once again for your help

[nightfisher]

If money is short, wait a little while and save a bit for a better eyepiece

[Lorne]

Try to get involved in a local astro group to see what other types of EPs are out there, most, if not all people at an observing meet will be happy to let you try them in your own scope.

Remember too that the lighter nights are coming in - you may find the scope gets less use for a couple of months, that will give you time to save for the right upgrade.

[Moonshane]

you can buy plossls really quite cheap from http://www.astrobuysell.com/uk/propview.php and sometimes within your budget. you'd need to be quick though, perhaps a 15mm and a barlow might be a good buy. e.g. http://www.astrobuysell.com/uk/propview_archive.php?view=55721 - these are sold now but would have been a great buy.

[Naemeth]

I agree with Jules. If money is tight, save for another eyepiece and enjoy the ones you have while you do so. Far better to save and get good eyepieces that you don't need to upgrade than to get cheap ones which you will have to upgrade and won't be able to sell on for much.

HTH

[kipstar]

<p>yer it was just something to keep me busy throgh the summer months looking at saturn and the moon i am saveing up for a better scope i got this of my brother just wanted to get a bit more magnification see the cassini division better i have been looking at some plossls eyepiese so think for now i will go with one of them try find a make one not one from china haha but yes thank you for all your help everyone and you can be shore once i have my new scope the

[Moonshane]

almost everything is made in China, even Televues.

[kipstar]

im going foe the

<h4>

[kipstar]

sorry dont know what happend then ive found this one vixen 1.25 npl plossl 8mm and its only £30 so may as well thanks for your help everyone

[LukeSkywatcher]

sorry dont know what happend then ive found this one vixen 1.25 npl plossl 8mm and its only £30 so may as well thanks for your help everyone

The Vixen npl 8mm (1.25") is a great EP. Its the one i use for observing planets with my 130 Heritage and my 200mm SCT.

[Qualia]

a second hand one will have to do if i can find one

All the advice on this page has been sound and reasoned, so I can't add anything but to say if I were you I'd not jump and start purchasing eyepieces or other accessories just yet. Take your time. Read a lot. Within reason, read everything you can on the given topic of interest be it on eyepieces, planets, telescopes, star formation, or what have you. A lot of the stuff here at SGL, for example, is succinct morsels of wisdom which if absorbed and thought about will save you a lifetime or two of headache, heartache, expense and grief.

It's a very normal and understandable desire to want to buy new gear for our toys and interests but for now, you will be better served over these summer weeks to just get out there, under the dark skies with you scope. During the following weeks as you are learning about yourself, your skies, your scope and astronomy in general you'll have a better idea of what kind of things you like looking at and how you might be able to augment that pleasure. Amalgamating this knowledge with your reading and you'll be a well-armed tropper with bright ideas and the bravest information ready for battle in the bewildering world of astro-gear.

Along the way you can do yourself a big favour by downloading Stellarium, frequenting SGL and checking out sketches of the kind of thing you may want to observe from a telescope of similar aperture to your own. Away from the world of eyepieces, you may also want to think about and do some research on red dot finders, ironing chairs or drum stools, star atlases, and Turn Left at Orion.

Finally, I second what Nightfisher and Naemeth have already opinioned, Indeed, Naemeth sums it up rather perfectly, "Far better to save and get good eyepieces that you don't need to upgrade than to get cheap ones which you will have to upgrade and won't be able to sell on for much." That is great advice and the answer to making the right decission is to acquire some grounding knowledge and understanding so that you can make a proper valued judgement. Those of us who are tight on money can't really afford to make mistakes, or buy purchases that we regret making six months down the line.

[Naemeth]

+1 for Qualia's advice.

Money is tight for a lot of people, myself included. However, I do think that the money I have spent on cheaper eyepieces could have gone elsewhere for much greater effect. It would have meant no need for upgrading. I'm not kidding when I say I have about £100 pounds worth of eyepieces that I do not use (and, more importantly), will never use. Once you've used quality eyepieces (such as Pentax, Nikon, TeleVue, BGO / Baader Hutech Orthoscopics etc.) you often don't want to go back to the cheaper eyepieces because when you look through them you can tell the difference.

With hindsight I would have been much better off with a 15mm TV Plössl and 25mm TV Plössl, costing me roughly £110 2nd hand.

I wish I had saved, but it has at least taught me a valuable lesson - one that took almost a year to learn.