3x Barlow

[TheWelshMagician]

I'm looking for a good 3x Barlow, if you could post names and links if possible please?

I'm new to barlows so if there's a 4x, 5x etc links would be great aswell thanks

[John]

Is this for imaging or visual use ?

A 3x or higher barlow lens usually gives too much magnification for visual use.

[TheWelshMagician]

As I am new to barlows I just assume they can get me further into space so it would be for that reason

[YKSE]

You can try your 2x barlow together with 5mm BST, just to check if you can see anything clear than any other eyepieces (with or without barlow).

[John]

Not really - all you will get is a dim and fuzzier image. 

Your Starguider 5mm eyepiece will give you a good quality 200x. The 8mm Starguider with a 2x barlow will give you 250x which will most often be the max magnification that you can usefully use on anything really.

A 3x barlow will take things way beyond that but the image quality is going to be really poor simply because there is too much magnification.

[TheWelshMagician]

So, what would I need to see Mars, Jupiter & Saturn?

[John]

So, what would I need to see Mars, Jupiter & Saturn?

200x - 250x will show them well. 150x does a nice Job on Jupiter in fact - it does not seem to benefit from high magnifications as much as Saturn does and Mars is so small it needs high magnifications to show much !

[stolenfeather]

Is this for imaging or visual use ?

A 3x or higher barlow lens usually gives too much magnification for visual use.

  Thank you for this John!  I always wondered if I should get one but since I do not take pictures, it would be money lost.

[TheWelshMagician]

Thanks everyone

[Pete Presland]

its the assumption that a lot of the lesser regarded retailers prey on  "the more maginifcation the better the views"  "x575 mag, see the universe" aperture is more important and you already have a good range of eyepieces from 5mm to 25mm + your x2 barlow so you should be pretty well covered

[ronin]

To see Jupiter you can get away with 60-80x, 100-120x may be better if the image is sharp. Jupiter has detail to be observed so a sharp image is worthwhile at the cost of straight magnification.

Saturn is smaller and further away for that you really need to start at 120x, if 150-180x is obtainable then more detail may become apparent. Again you want a reasonably sharp image, you want to be able to easily see the rings and any detail (bands) in them and on Saturn itself. So again a large ill defined image is best avoided.

Mars, I would expect this one to be the difficult one. Some people see features at 200x, seems that 250x is often better, however look at images of Mars and these features are very rarely defined well. Possibly that makes it easier, there is little chance of detail in any great amount. A white cap and a brown/red surface with darker brown features is usually the best many get to. But seeing Opportunity and Curiosity waiting at Martian traffic lights is not going to happen. Have read that an IR filter is useful when observing Mars, so one of them may be worthwhile considering.

That is the range that you likely need, quite a bit overall. If your scope is the f/6 then slightly better, you have to opportunity for a 5mm giving 240x.

Quality of eyepiece becomes a significant factor, would you pay out for a Pentax or TV for a couple of views of Mars. Equally if you went for a barlow are you looking at a TV Powermate or a Celestron Shorty.

The scope you ahve and the eyepieces you have should have no problem in showing Jupiter and Saturn at this time. The Question is Mars. Try the 8mm BST and the 2x barlow that you have, depending on the scope that gives 250x or 300x, and greater then that will likely prove futile in many of the UK instances.

[bomberbaz]

If your eager to buy something, get your self a 32mm plossl for wide field views. Or as your scopes an F6 a revelation widefield ep for those space walking views of the sky, pleiades, Coathanger, Hyades, Andromeda etc

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/celestron-eyepieces/celestron-omni-plossl-eyepiece.html

http://www.harrisontelescopes.co.uk/acatalog/Revelation_Eyepieces.html

The 42mm Revelation would take you right to the limit of what is comfortable for your eye pupil but will give you some fantastic views at nearly 2.5 degrees. Only a thought (I have both and they are both crackers for the price) although tbh any of the larger revelations would work in your scope and are inexpensive.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

I tend not to use Barlows for visual work. I find swapping a Barlow in and out of the optical train a bit of a pain, so I opted for the more expensive route of getting more EPs. I do use a 2x TeleXtender in my solar set-up, which means the MaxVision 24 and 20mm EPs combined with the TeleXtender and Pentax XF8.5mm give me 24, 20, 12, 10 and 8.5mm EPs effectively (I never Barlow the 8.5 to 4.25, that would be silly in an F/11.4 solar scope), in a light package that I can take to work on a bike.