Which (BST) eyepiece next?

[bingevader]

If we're now talking 15mm to 18mm range then you're into 16mm Maxvision territory for £50.

Cheers

[stevend]

If we're now talking 15mm to 18mm range then you're into 16mm Maxvision territory for £50.

Cheers

As the OP already has a BST he is happy with, why change ? Plus the BSTs are parfocal.

[rory]

As the OP already has a BST he is happy with, why change ? Plus the BSTs are parfocal.

I think he waspointing out that the maxvision is within a similar budget,with added fov.   as for the parafocal side of things ,well I was lead to believe this with a few makes ,but all the ones ive used ive had to refocus when swapping ?  perhaps just me I don't know ?

[Charic]

JulianFR.........I`m loving my 8mm and looks like I`ll be ordering the 12mm and 18mm BST`s next. that will give me 4mm(Barlowed) 6mm(Barlowed) 8mm, 9mm(Barlowed) 12mm and 18mm. The BST 5mm would probably get the least use if purchased, as the 8mm & 2XBarlow gets me down to 4mm @ 300xPower, and if the 5mm was Barlowed I think 2.5mm @ 480xPower will be too much, for my needs. I wont consider the 15mm or the 25mm? The 15mm will pay for my Barlow, and I`m happy with the SW `Super`25mm already supplied for now, I may opt for a wider angle in 2" barrel some time in the future, but the three BST`s ( 8,12 & 18 + 2xBarlow) seems right for my needs.
A well known JavaScript-driven calculator tells me that a 3mm EP @400xPower is the maximum I should be using, A 34mm @34xPower is the minimum, and optimally somewhere between 50x - 100x Power which are lenses between 12mm & 24mm, so mid way, I`ll choose 18mm.There are other calculations that are similar to work with, but I like these figures, and they help my decisions on next purchase.

We all know, therory and practicality dont always mix, but I`m within the extremes of this telescope, will have generous eye relief on all the lenses, and they have 60` AFOV and at £49 each, they wont empty my bank just yet.

[Space Beagle]

Looking back over my evolving eyepiece collection over the last few years, I do think that the BST Explorers/Starguiders have been the best performing for the cost. I have had the whole set and they have all worked really well for me in my f5 200P. I still have the 8 and 12 versions as I think they are too good to move on. I think I will happily recommend the range to anyone looking to upgrade.

Ah, but......

Then came along the 'pesky' Maxvisions, wow, these have to be the best bargains around at the moment! For me, they are just 'better all round' than the BSTs they have replaced in my ep case. For the prices they are, while you can get them, just get them if you can! Some of the range (when they were badged as Meade 5000 SWAs) have been compared, favourably, to really top end eyepieces (just search for reviews etc), you can see why when you use them!

Doc

[Charic]

How you getting on JulianFR with your BSTs............its been suggested to me that TAL 2xBarlow is available here. http://www.talteleoptics.com/barlowlens.html  The basic price $ equates to a new BST here, plus the possibility of any import taxes, postage. The fact that more glass and coatings in the optical train  may  cause slight losses,  should we still stick with just the primary lenses?   I've acquired a 25mm cheaply today, and have the 8mm and the 18mm. If I Barlow , I`ll  still save about £98 and will only need the 12mm to sort my collection. that said if I go all the way, then a 12mm is next followed by a 5mm.  I think the 15mm will  still be omitted . And likewise, maybe a big fat 2" 30-40mm wide field to top it all off.

[rowan46]

I am not sure how much the eye relief would change if you barlowed it. it depends on your barlow  but some can leave you hovering over the end of the eyepiece trying to keep the eye steady

[Charic]

rowan46................spooky, I was just studying that fact about to much eye relief?

[AlexB67]

The eye relief will be  bit longer usually I think, but it depends what you get, you could probably calculate it you know the focal length but usually that is not given, a short barlow will increase it more compared to a longer one. Something like a powermate will not alter eye relief at all.

interestingly, for those interested in barlows and the BST range, Alan @ STL started selling a BST starguider barlow recently. It is a 3 piece so that is perhaps a good sign it will be of reasonable quality.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BST-Starguider-1-25-Short-2x-Apochromatic-3-element-Barlow-lens-/161144188314?refid=store

You would think it may well be optimised to work well with the BST starguiders ( but that is not a guarantee or a given I suppose). It comes in at 69 pounds though, a good 20 quid more compared to the eyepiece.  FWIW, I have used on the BST 8mm with the skywatcher 2x barlow a rare few times and did not really notice that the increased eyerelief was an issue to make it hard to use, but then I wear specs most of the time.

[Paul73]

I'm in the same boat as Julian. Stock eyepieces - wanting to get the best out of my scope.

8mm to 18mm seems to be the BST range sweet spot.

For a longer option - I got thoroughly over excited by a rave review of the MaxVison 24mm 68deg and bought one with no real thought to overall strategy. I am delighted with it. The extra field and sharp images create a 3D feeling that you could almost fall into.

I'm not sure if 2" is the way to go for us newbies. I'm looking to buy 3 or 4 filters which would mean that I would need to buy another set for the 2". Does that extra 0.75 of an inch make that much difference?

The BST 8mm and 18mm are on the list. I'll have a look at Bingevadar's Celestron ideas. Any others out there?

Paul

[Charic]

.........I've finally  just decided (for this moment in time) my intention now, is to get the 12mm BST and a 2xBarlow. The Barlow will give me 6mm and 4mm if / when needed, and I can also use the Barlow to collimate with my laser? If at a later stage, should a 5mm appear at a reduced rate, then maybe I`ll add that to my collection. I`m still not wanting a 15mm for some reason, unless a used one comes by, like my 25mm?  Ive had the 18mm for two Days now and no first light, but with gusts  tonight of 50mph  may have till wait till Friday to test.

[AlexB67]

I love the 15mm BST, I use it a lot, same focal length as you.  Really nice FOV for many smaller open clusters in my 10 inch, not that it helps, but often I think would the 12mm be nice too on occasion. Eyepieces, you can't have enough of them   Well within reason, I doubt I'll ever collect a 9,10,11,12mm  of something :0) though a zoom sometimes seems tempting, but for some reason always been put off by them with the thought, for the same price I would by a better single eyepiece. Never tried  a decent zoom eyepiece mind you.

[ronin]

The BST eyepieces are made by Barsta, a Chinese manufacurer as are others. I suspect that BST is simply an abbreviation of BarSTa. As Barsta also appear to produce the Skywatcher 70 degree eyepiece and also others, I suspect that the barlow is simply another barlow that is not necessarily match to any eyepiece of their production. Looking at the site Barsta make 5 different barlows lines.

They could have as easily made the barlow based on the newer 70 degree range they have, not the 60 degree ED's we refer to as BST's.

If the barlow from Alan is a Barsta which I expect it is then it could be fairly good as Astro-Tech also gets their accessories from Barsta and I read that the Astro-Tech barlow is good a few months back on CN. Barsta also make a 3x barlow and are to produce a 5x version of what looks like the 2x from Alan/StL.

[Caldwell14]

what do you feel you are missing? you have a half decent 25mm, a decent 15mm and a good 8mm. are there any targets that don't fit in the field you have available? although not available as a BST, maybe a 32mm Plossl would be a good next buy as this gives the widest field in a 1.25" eyepiece.

BUT don't buy to fill gaps, buy to suit purpose. think about what you cannot see well enough currently and then suit that.

if you don't have a Telrad or right angle corrected image finder, I'd recommend them before another eyepiece personally., 36, 

This is good advise indeed

Al Nagler (TelelVue) suggested once that 3 eyepieces is the most of use will ever need, this is very good advise, and from a man who knows. 

[Caldwell14]

Buy 3 and buy well. My 32mm TeleVue Plossil is possibly the best piece of astro gear I ever bought, easily picked up for 70-85 quid second hand

[Caldwell14]

The longer I am in this game the less I need

[Charic]

.......managed to test my 18mm BST  (just in as the temp dropped to -4` Brrrrrrrr!) Its another wow! for the 18mm, although with the Moon  in my Zenith  it clearly allowed me to read the writing on the lenses, far to bright , and i think the neighbour heard  me swearing when their secuity lights came on (Ooops!) Ive been trying to locate  M101 tonight, but no joy.  M106 & M31 ok, and some weird lights in the sky?  One big flash followed by the release of 4 satellites ( that's how it appeared ? ) The 25mm should be here shortly. Looks like I might be getting the BST 2xBarlow apochromatic with the 12mm  BST next.

[Waldemar]

On 6-10-2013 at 20:21, JulianFR said:

I'm going to search forums next for advice on condensation as it was pretty cold outside... And when I brought the OTA back inside my house everything was wet and the mirror was fogged. I'm concerned the liquid might stain or otherwise damage the mirror.

Since you mentioned this in your own thread, I don't feel like I highjacked it.

The condensation is caused by the huge temperature difference between in- and outside. Best way to deal with this is to find an intermediate place for your equipment like a shed or garage, where the temperature difference will be a lot smaller. Another option may be to use an airtight casing and put your stuff in there before you go into the house.