New Maxvision 68 degrees 20mm, size 'n' weight 'n' all that.

[AlexB67]

So my new toy arrived this lunchtime, the maxvision 20mm.  In a nicely well packaged big box from Germany. Certainly looks the part and the finish seems to express a certain amount of quality about the whole thing, with a nice twist cup you can adjust, at only 10 pounds more I felt this would be a good one to try over a BST for a change. 

Just to give an idea of size and weight however, this is probably the limit I'd want to put on my smaller scope like the heritage, even compared to a BST  it is big and heavy.  See attached picture, all eyepieces scaled to give a reasonable idea of what you would be getting.

Maxvision 20mm weight: 266 grams

BST starguider 25mm weight: 188 grams 

Stock SW 25mm plossl, weight: I don't know but nothing to worry about.

To be honest, in my hands it feels as if the difference is more than that between a BST and the MV, but that is more likely my imagination    The 2 inch versions in this range must be like  houses :0)

Hoping for clear skies and see what this brings coupled with a new UHC.  This should be the best eyepiece I own  to date, so will the initial impression be,

Now I see, I'll never want to go back to anything else as happened when getting a BST over a stock.

or will it be more

muh, good but perhaps, not as much as expected . 

Then of course it is now debatable for me to buy the last cheaper eyepiece in the 10 - 12mm range, it could wait and be of the more expensive type, possibly contemplating a Delos.

will I then go

Now I see, I'll never want to go back to anything else as happened when getting a MV over a BST.

Time will tell.

Enjoy the comparison  .. or not,  as the case may be.

[Reeny]

The view should be the very similar to the 25mm BST 60 degree.

25mm : 20mm = 20% more magnification, with a 13% wider view from the 68 degrees.

I would be interested to know what the optical quality is like compared to the BST.

I bought the 24mm and 16mm.

The optical quality is good on the 16mm, but with the 24mm the stars really sparkle.

Eventually I will need an 11-12mm, and/or a 5-6mm  to fill the gaps.

The barlowed 16mm is struggling at 150x mag - So I am planning on going up market for the higher magnifications around 200x.

If the BST is the same quality as the MaxVision, it provides a low cost option for a 12mm or 5mm eyepiece to complete the set.

[YKSE]

Maxvision 20mm weight: 266 grams

BST starguider 25mm weight: 188 grams 

Stock SW 25mm plossl, weight: I don't know but nothing to worry about.

To be honest, in my hands it feels as if the difference is more than that between a BST and the MV, but that is more likely my imagination    The 2 inch versions in this range must be like  houses :0)

With 266g, MV 20mm will be in middle-weight 1.25" class at most, I'm afraid.

MV 24mm weighs about 400g, all Delos about that weight too together with many other 82 deg EPs, and the new Skywatcher SWAs weigh around 600grams  These 1.25" EP weigh more than Baader's 2" aspheric 31mm (385g).

[AlexB67]

The view should be the very similar to the 25mm BST 60 degree.

25mm : 20mm = 20% more magnification, with a 13% wider view from the 68 degrees.

I would be interested to know what the optical quality is like compared to the BST.

I bought the 24mm and 16mm.

The optical quality is good on the 16mm, but with the 24mm the stars really sparkle.

Eventually I will need an 11-12mm, and/or a 5-6mm  to fill the gaps.

The barlowed 16mm is struggling at 150x mag - So I am planning on going up market for the higher magnifications around 200x.

If the BST is the same quality as the MaxVision, it provides a low cost option for a 12mm or 5mm eyepiece to complete the set.

It's true there is no big difference in FOV, according to field stop the MV will give me 1.089 degrees, whereas the BST 1.25 degrees, but the exit pupil is quite a bit smaller for the MV 4.23mm versus 5.29mm. In this case The FOV was not so much my concern, Ideally in terms of fit you could say the 18 BST would have made a bit more sense, but these differences across different brands don't always work out as ideally as one might like, but I feel it is sill a good fit for exit pupil jump and a good addition.

Yong.  yeah the weight does not actually bother me for the bigger Dob, but I guess it goes to show, on smaller scopes you have to really consider this like the heritage for example. I am ready for any heavy weights in future, I have a collection magnets in my shed :0)

[AlexB67]

With 266g, MV 20mm will be in middle-weight 1.25" class at most, I'm afraid.

MV 24mm weighs about 400g, all Delos about that weight too together with many other 82 deg EPs, and the new Skywatcher SWAs weigh around 600grams  These 1.25" EP weigh more than Baader's 2" aspheric 31mm (385g).

Instead of digging out my magnets I'll just fill my eyepieces with Helium, problem solved, or at least  for while 'till it has all escaped :0)

[AlexB67]

After a brief first light with the MV with the Heritage ( if skies hold up the 10 inch will be tested later and over weekend) I was probably a bit overly concerned, testing indoors the other day it seemed perhaps a little heavy, but the Heritage small Dob holds the MV no bother at all, balance was as solid as a rock, a tiny tightening of the tension knob. I suspect the heritage can take quite a bit more load on top of that if I wanted, the tube can be moved  on the Dovetail to alter the balance as well.

Great eyepiece by the way is my initial impression. that coupled with the new UHC from Sky's the limit and a slight moon, the ideal test bed for the UHC, some marvellous views of M27 just now, under not great skies and earlier in the evening with fair amount of LP in there, it does the job very well indeed and enhanced it very nicely

[Naemeth]

After a brief first light with the MV with the Heritage ( if skies hold up the 10 inch will be tested later and over weekend) I was probably a bit overly concerned, testing indoors the other day it seemed perhaps a little heavy, but the Heritage small Dob holds the MV no bother at all, balance was as solid as a rock, a tiny tightening of the tension knob. I suspect the heritage can take quite a bit more load on top of that if I wanted, the tube can be moved  on the Dovetail to alter the balance as well.

Great eyepiece by the way is my initial impression. that coupled with the new UHC from Sky's the limit and a slight moon, the ideal test bed for the UHC, some marvellous views of M27 just now, under not great skies and earlier in the evening with fair amount of LP in there, it does the job very well indeed and enhanced it very nicely

I'd personally not trust the Heritage with more than 160g, but I was probably being a bit pessimistic .