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I am looking to buy a 2 inch OIII filter and looking for advice on which to get.

I am wondering if I should go with the Lumicon, Astronomic, or a cheaper one say Orion or Skywatcher.

I own a 8 inch dob and usually observe from a suburban area. Would the lumicon or astronomic be worth the extra cash for observation from a suburb?

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Tough call this.

Now without rambling too much :D reckon I'd look at getting an UHC for urban locations. It's very tough to get good enough dark adaption for an O-III filter to really give good returns from urban skies.

If you can't get good enough dark adaption the full benefit of the filter will be lost. The UHC is an easier filter to work with IMO.

I would only spend big money on a filter IF you intend on doing a large amount of nebula observing. If not a budget one would suffice, again this is just my opinion. Others mileage may differ.

If you already have an UHC ignore my ramblings :D but I would still think very carefully before shelling out on a filter that really works best from dark sky locations.

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As Steve says, an OIII is only really useful from a dark location so if you are not planning to use it on a good dark sky it will be a waste of money.  Having said that, if you are going to a dark location, then the Lumicon and the Astronomik are the best.  If you are not sure then the more budget ones are OK such as the Sky Watcher, I have used both and they do what it says on the tin.  I would avoid Baader as the bandpass is very tight in my opinion.

EDIT: btw, I buy my Lumicon from AgenaAstro in the US, very good prices and fast delivery (about 8 days!), VAT on top when they arrive in UK.

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I don't view nebulae that much and I do have some light pollution but my Astronomik 2" O-III earns it's place in my kit because it works brilliantly with all my scopes from 4" - 12" when it does get used  :grin:

I really can't overstate the difference this filter makes on certain objects - almost like night and day.

The only other deep sky filter I have is the Lumicon H-Beta which will hopefully one day show me the Horsehead Nebula with my 12" dob. So far I've seen nothing at all with it though, at least no H-Beta targets  :undecided:

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I don't view nebulae that much and I do have some light pollution but my Astronomik 2" O-III earns it's place in my kit because it works brilliantly with all my scopes from 4" - 12" when it does get used  :grin:

I did say others mileage may differ :grin:

Filters, it would seem are as personal as eyepieces ;):grin:

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These filters work in LP and without great dark adaptation IMHO.Not only is this a line filter,but it darkens the sky background by about 2 magnitudes, adding contrast.The OIII shows the Veil with moon up 3/4 and very bright lights intruding my back yard.The view goes from easily seen at home to stunning in dark skies.With no moon and 19.0 mag skies the large Veil features are seen,but no fine detail is visible in my 10" from my house.I use a hoodie to help my dark adaptation when at home.

I love Johns use of "brilliantly" in his experience of his OIII's use

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I did say others mileage may differ :grin:

Filters, it would seem are as personal as eyepieces ;):grin:

Yes indeed Steve  :smiley:

Generally I prefer not to use filters but there are some objects where the difference is so marked it seems daft to ignore them.

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I was recently reading another thread on the subject, that called into question the quality/toughness (when cleaning) of the coatings on some of the cheaper filters. This may be something to bear in mind when making your choice.

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Thank you for the quick replies. With all the good information that I have received you would think that I would have decided what to buy, but alas decisiveness was never my strong suit.

I do own a Skywatcher UHC. However my experiences with it make me believe that it is pants. On the objects I have observed with it, I seem to have more luck without the filter attached, I guess I just got unlucky. I will try it out one more time when the moon goes to make sure what I remember is correct. If it is Better than I remember I guess I would get the Astronomik OIII as John and Jetstream hold high opinions of it.

On the opt telescope website the Lumicon OIII filter says the best exit pupil ranges are 2-5mm under light polluted skies and 3-7mm from dark skies. 2-5mm does not seem to high unless they are exaggerating a bit.

Thx again for the advice.

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Rustysplit, great post. Sounds like you have a very good Orion filter.

As you stated though QC can be hit and miss with the lower end filters as is reflected by Si's castell and my Skywatcher. I guess since the Lumicon and Astronomik are very high quality filters they should last for years to come and the chances of getting a dud are very unlikely indeed.

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try and get a lumicon 2" in the uk, everyone is sold out and they have been for the last 2 months, nightmare

The Astronomik is as good IMO. I've used them both alongside one another, both in identical eyepieces so quick changing was possible. Nothing in it that I could see.

Again others mileage may vary :rolleyes::grin:

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I get mine from AgenaAstro in the US, very competitive, VAT charged when they arrive in the UK, but still very good, average 8 days delivery.

That's good to know as I have just placed an order through this company, factoring in potential VAT etc probably still worth it, especially when items are not so readily available here in UK. As has been mentioned OPT, in which I have also ordered items from are good to.  

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I have a question about opt

In the checkout section where you get a quote it says estimate shipping and tax and I get a quote of $51 for shipping and handling. Is this the cost of the shipping and vat together or just shipping. If it is it will be cheaper to buy from America.

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This thread has just reminded me that I wanted one of these!

Depending on responses here, I am intending to go for the Explore Scientific OIII on the basis that I have their UHC and have been really impressed by the results.

Would this be regarded as having a good £ / Quality ratio??

Paul

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I have a question about opt

In the checkout section where you get a quote it says estimate shipping and tax and I get a quote of $51 for shipping and handling. Is this the cost of the shipping and vat together or just shipping. If it is it will be cheaper to buy from America.

No what you need to do is keep the items in your basket and send them an email explaining that you require the shipping cost for UK, they will then email you these items via a specific order form, which will include the actual shipping cost in the total cost.

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No what you need to do is keep the items in your basket and send them an email explaining that you require the shipping cost for UK, they will then email you these items via a specific order form, which will include the actual shipping cost in the total cost.

Thank you very much. Will get on that right away

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Would seem after VAT I would be better off buying the Astronomik in the uk. If I was to get the UHC in the future sometime would I be better off with 2 of the same brand or would that not make a difference. Is there much difference between the Astronomic and Lumicon UHC filters?

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woodmeister,lots of good advice coming here for you,loads of experience.I paid over $140.00USD for my Ultrablock,and most are happy with them,but like has been said QC issues are floating about.I won't even sell it knowing its bad,so I may as well have splashed out on an Astronomik or Lumicon right off the bat for only $50.00 more....

You have enough aperture to use either "good" brands discussed here,the Astronomik may be less aperture sensitive though.

Dark skies,nice scope, and a quality filter.....you're gonna have fun ! :grin:

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Filters are not aperture sensitive.

Surface brightness of nebulae is finite. Aperture makes no difference to surface brightness. What matters is exit pupil.

The more aggressive the filter, the larger the exit pupil recommended.

If an object is of sufficient size to use a large exit pupil in even a small scope the filter will work fine.

The problem is smaller scopes have less targets with large exit pupils than larger scopes, hence they don't recommend agresive line filters with small scopes, but on the right target, and with a large exit pupil they work very well indeed.

Try the North American nebula with an O-III held over the eyepiece of your finder if you don't believe me. I've observed it many times with just a line filter held over my naked eye, it's relatively easy if the site is dark enough.

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