Advice on new eyepiece

[F1Bird]

I'm ready to buy a new eyepiece for my Celestron 114 EQ after 12 months with the supplied 20mm and 10mm eyepieces. I have about £70 to spend. The limitations of the scope and the light pollution where I live mean that I have been predominantly looking at planets and the moon but I would like to be able to look at what I can in the way of clusters and nebulae if possible. I also take my scope away to (slightly) darker skies from time to time. I was looking at maybe an 8mm and had been recommended the Vixen NPL series of eyepieces for around £35. However, before I take the plunge I would be grateful for a bit of advice. Would I be any better spending upto my limit on maybe a Celestron X-Cel eyepiece or something in that price bracket? What I don't want to do is spend more than I need on something that outperforms my scope. For the £70 I would spend on a more expensive eyepiece I could have 2 Vixens! Quality or quantity!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

For wider field views and DSOs I would point you towards the MaxVision 24mm 68 deg EPs. OUTSTANDING value for money. You get a re-badged, Meade 24mm SWA EP (retailing close to 200 quid) for around 70. Awesome deal. These EPs provide widest possible views in 1.25" format with a quality close to the (justly) famous Panoptic 24mm.

For planets: note that the Vixen NPL is just a very decent Plossl design. I have had Vixen Plossls before, and they are fine, but suffer the drawbacks of all similar designs of short eye relief at short focal lengths. X-Cel LX series has much better eye relief (16mm). Much more pleasant for those with glasses, and just nicer for those without.

[Ally8446]

Hi there F1bird. I can definitely recommend the BST Starguider available in various focal lengths. I think they are 8,12,18 and 25mm. They get excellent reviews all round and come in at £49 delivered. The Vixen npl at the shorter focal lengths are quite tight on eye relief. That's my honest opinion but I'm sure you'll get more than enough info from the rest of the guys and lasses on SGL.

Ally

[bingevader]

I understand your comment about not buying eyepieces that outperform the 'scope.

Unless you are planning to upgrade your 'scope at some point in the future then 2 vixen plossls would be great, bearing in mind that the eye relief on the 8mm might be a bit tight.

If you intend upgrading at some point in the future then investing in the 8mm BST (it would provide a more comfortable viewing experience, I've not seen them get a bad review on SGL), or the 16mm or 24mm MaxVisions might be the better option.

Cheers

[F1Bird]

I understand your comment about not buying eyepieces that outperform the 'scope.

Unless you are planning to upgrade your 'scope at some point in the future then 2 vixen plossls would be great, bearing in mind that the eye relief on the 8mm might be a bit tight.

If you intend upgrading at some point in the future then investing in the 8mm BST (it would provide a more comfortable viewing experience, I've not seen them get a bad review on SGL), or the 16mm or 24mm MaxVisions might be the better option.

Cheers

Thanks for the advice all. I am hoping to eventually upgrade my scope but that is likely to be a year or 2 away yet. I still need to get to grips with the basics before I branch out but I figured an eyepiece would be a good first upgrade! I'll have a look at the suggestions you've given. In terms of the focal length of the eyepiece which would you think is the best for my needs given that I haven't got the best skies or scope? I was thinking 8mm as I'm not sure the supplied 10mm is great and I thought a higher power might be the best option for views of the planets and details on the moon. My 20mm is ok but is an erecting eyepiece for terrestrial viewing so I'm not sure if that makes much difference? A wider field of view would actually be great for me as I am really bad at star hopping!

[bingevader]

You'll have to chose! 

But yes, as you've said, 8mm would be good for planets, 24mm for the wider view.

Cheers

[Reeny]

Thanks for the advice all. I am hoping to eventually upgrade my scope but that is likely to be a year or 2 away yet. ..........................................

I was out last night using Revelation Plossls to view Jupiter - and they worked fine.

Eventually I might upgrade to an 11mm or 4.7mm Explore Scientific 82 degree when the time is right.

But I need to see a big difference before shelling out £100-£250 on something which might only have a 10% improvement.

In the meantime the Plossls do what they say on the tin.

Note: I am using a 9mm and 12mm barlowed to give 210x and 280x magnifications.

I would try before you buy if possible.

Maybe borrow some EP's at a local club meeting to see what the difference is in quality.

The main difference I noticed was better light capture.

The Maxvision 68 degree EP's are much brighter on faint objects - but very similar to Plossls on the moon, and Jupiter.

By similar I mean both of them focus in OK for a pin sharp image, and show me what I wanted to see.

[Charic]

I'm ready to buy a new eyepiece for my Celestron 114 EQ after 12 months with the supplied 20mm and 10mm eyepieces. I have about £70 to spend. The limitations of the scope and the light pollution where I live mean that I have been predominantly looking at planets and the moon but I would like to be able to look at what I can in the way of clusters and nebulae if possible. I also take my scope away to (slightly) darker skies from time to time. I was looking at maybe an 8mm and had been recommended the Vixen NPL series of eyepieces for around £35. However, before I take the plunge I would be grateful for a bit of advice. Would I be any better spending upto my limit on maybe a Celestron X-Cel eyepiece or something in that price bracket? What I don't want to do is spend more than I need on something that outperforms my scope. For the £70 I would spend on a more expensive eyepiece I could have 2 Vixens! Quality or quantity!

F1Bird.........Hi after 12 Months, could you possibly wait a couple more and put that £70 towards a better telescope. The supplied basic lenses  on a 200P (if that were your choice) will  blow the 114EQ out of the sky. The New lenses you invest in for the 114  will be hindered by the quality of the scope (I too, have the 127EQ, same problems?) the newer lenses will have a better build quality and light transmission (appear brighter) but needs a better/greater focal image from a better scope (IMHO) Espcially for your Nebulaes ect. The Maxvisions are Meades? the BSTs are one of 5 Branded names for the same lenses. All very good.

[bingevader]

Yes, absolutely, but if he's waiting a year or two, then any of the 8, 16 or 24 would still be a good investment. 

Cheers

[Charic]

Yes, absolutely, but if he's waiting a year or two, then any of the 8, 16 or 24 would still be a good investment. 

Cheers

bingevader......Too true ( It could just be me being an old grump?) but investments aside, its the quality of the view that matters. All lenses from £26 - £560 will work with this telescope but the quality of the resulting image given the type of telescope, wont be optimal ( asperical mirror, Bird-Jones,corrector barlow, collimation issues?).  Put a 6" Exhaust on a Clio and it dont go any faster unless the front end is better. I know its harsh, but having bought a 127EQ myself, to see what its about, I knew straight away, I needed better, even before I tried any new lenses. Had I purchased a new lens before the 200P arrived, sure, initially, there is an improvement over the lens quality and build compared to the two lenses supplied. (A 3xBarlow and 4mm lens on my 127EQ ? ) But the 8mm BST image is far superior on the newer scope. I wrote earlier to Markstar this evening testing my 127 (check http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/199323-eyepiece-selection-query-for-beginner-telescopes/page-2 ) I would only buy one lens and save for a better telescope for this post. An 8mm or 12mm for the planets ( maybe the cheapo 3xBarlow will work with the 12mm giving a high mag and medium magnification. I recently offered my Celestron for £50ish( ono) for someone just getting into the hobby. The telescope has the 20mm corrector lens so ok for daytime terrestrial, and ok to browse the Moon, but I highly reccommended they buy a 200P.

[Big_Daz]

F1bird I tested a very cheap seben zoom eyepiece yesterday and I was very impressed with its quality and views read here.

[JulianFR]

I just wanted to agree with Ally8446 that the BSTs are excellent eye-pieces. I've just upgraded with the 8, 12 and 18mm BSTs and can vouch for their quality. I'm very much a novice and wouldn't / couldn't comment on the other EPs mentioned (I'm sure they are superb) but wanted to pass on my experience of using the BST's).

[F1Bird]

F1Bird.........Hi after 12 Months, could you possibly wait a couple more and put that £70 towards a better telescope. The supplied basic lenses  on a 200P (if that were your choice) will  blow the 114EQ out of the sky. The New lenses you invest in for the 114  will be hindered by the quality of the scope (I too, have the 127EQ, same problems?) the newer lenses will have a better build quality and light transmission (appear brighter) but needs a better/greater focal image from a better scope (IMHO) Espcially for your Nebulaes ect. The Maxvisions are Meades? the BSTs are one of 5 Branded names for the same lenses. All very good.

Hi, I totally hear you regarding saving the money and putting it towards a better scope. However  , the scope has sentimental value and so I cant bring myself to replace it so soon! If my head was in charge I would do just as you suggest but my heart is ruling at the moment and so I'll wait! I also feel that I need to find my feet a bit more before I decide which scope to upgrade to. I've only recently been able to find anything in the sky intentionally after having fitted a Rigel quickfinder! My hope with eyepieces was that I could find something that would give me a little better performance and range with my existing scope but would be of sufficiently good quality to be able to use with any new scope that I buy in the future. Thanks for all the input.

[Charic]

............ for your clusters and nebulae, Id go  12mm - 25mm to give you the wider field and some better light grasp. Those lenses can still be used with a 2xBarlow to get (half the focal length - Higher magnification) so a 12mm would still get you down to a 6MM or the 18mm could give you 9mm for closeup work. The lenses supplied with telescopes will work, but you will be better to upgrade as soon as possible. And on that one Day that your emotions fail and your strings are torn   UPGRADE the telescope Take care!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

I find upgrading EPs well worthwhile, because you can always use the EPs in a later scope, and upgrading the EPs can make a big difference. I once got a 4.5" F=500 scope (Konus-branded) on an EQ1 mount, supplied with H-9 and H-20 EPs. I stuck my Vixen LV9 and Celestron 26mm Plossl in the focuser and the view was radically different. The mirror of that scope now serves as the primary of our mini-Dob for the kids. A 114mm scope has quite a bit of aperture to show nice stuff, and the F=900 versions have a small central obstruction that makes them work very well on planets and the moon. They are also quite tolerant with respect to small collimation errors.  The F=500mm versions are better for wide field, but have pretty decent planetary performance if properly collimated.

[lestergibson]

No opinion on whether to upgrade the scope or not but I can vouch for the MV 24mm 68. Mad ep for the money.

[dark_marc]

I am using the Vixen NPLs since 3+ months now. Great quality for the price. Do own a 30mm, 20mm, 15mm and 6mm EP with 10mm on their way.

Personal favourite are the 20mm and 15mm - did compare them to Skywatcher kit EPs last week, the NPLs do deliver a flawless, crisp picture. EPs >20mm do come with a twist-up eyecup which is very handy.

[Naemeth]

I'd go for BST / Starguider EDs personally, and probably 2nd hand. That way you can get two for your budget, and they will serve you well with a scope upgrade .