Complete eyepiece collection?

[Andrew*]

Famous last words? Probably.

I've been juggling eyepieces constantly since I started with astronomy. Most of the changing has been more due to a need to spend some money, or the excitement of having something new on my kit list, rather than actually being disappointed with the performance that the eyepieces give.

But in recent observing sessions I've found that I am actually really content with my current list and don't really have a desire to upgrade anything. This statement is PROVEN by the fact that I have had the same four eyepieces for a total of FORTY DAYS :shock:. Okay, not very long, but here they are:

3-6mm Nagler zoom. What can I say? For me this is the ultimate high power solution. The focal lengths, coupled with the convenience of the zoom, and the excellent sharpness and brightness, make it an excellent eyepiece for the smaller targets. It's expensive (although I picked one up for just £160) but if you consider that it is four eyepieces in one, IMHO the cost is easily justified. In my newt I use it to test the seeing. I can crank the power up to 333x if seeing is good, and if not, I can view at 166x, 200x or 250x. In the ED80, I use it to get the most out of the scopes optics at 200x, and as a general use med-high power eyepiece at 100x.

8-24mm Hyperion zoom. Strangely the least used of all my eyepieces, at present. Convenient for centering a medium-sized object and zooming in. At 8-16 the FOV is very good for DSO viewing.

20mm Meade SWA. Becoming a real favourite for me. Extremely comfortable when the eyeguard is correctly set, and a very decent FOV for the larger DSOs. I find it performs very well in fast scopes (although coma is still present at the edge of the FOV and its FOV is ideal.

32mm Meade plossl This is a really pleasing eyepiece - really sharp, perfect for finding and widefield viewing. A little field curvature but corrects coma very effectively indeed.

I have really grown fond of this bunch, and if I would change it I think it would be for Naglers... we'll see what I've got in another 2 months, shall we!

AFOVs with the ED80

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AFOVs with the 8" newt. Correction: The 24mm zoom is the same as the 20mm SP (no longer owned), and the 20mm SWA is slightly larger.

(click to enlarge)

Over to you - what have you got, and are you (ever) satisfied?

Andrew

[GazOC]

I've got a set (nearly! ) of Hyperions and orthos that I'm very happy with, like you Andrew if I upgraded I think it would have to be to Naglers to make it worth the money/ effort.

[John]

I've now got a set that I have (almost !) convinced myself that delivers the goods in my scopes:

- KK Widescan III 30mm, 84 degrees FoV - it's my only 2 inch eyepiece.

- TV Panoptic 24mm, 68 deg Fov - superb !

- William Optics UWAN 16mm, 82 deg FoV - impressive and very Nagler-like.

- TV Nagler T6 13mm, 82 deg FoV - along with the 24 Pan, my favourite.

- TV Nagler T6 9mm, 82 deg FoV

- TV Nagler T1 7mm, 82 deg FoV

- TV Nagler T1 4.8mm, 82 deg Fov

- Celestron Ultima 2x Barlow

If I had the spare dosh I would swap the T1 Naglers for their T6 equivilents but the improvement would be unlikely to justify the outlay IMHO. I guess I'd also like a 31mm T5 Nagler instead of the Widescan III in an ideal world

TBH the UWAN is probably superfluous but I do like it

I've been wondering about getting a 3.5mm EP recently but the Naglers barlow pretty well so it might not be worth it

I know using Naglers as high power EP's is not everybodies preference but the big FoV is a decided advantage in my undriven, Alt-Az mounted scopes.

John

[Macavity]

:hello1: I do think these TFoV (circle) diagrams are an EXCELLENT (often revealing!) aid to common sense.

For the Hyperions (in MAK 127) ...

[SteelRat]

Most used are;

UO 4mm ortho

UO 12.5mm ortho

TeleVue 15mm PL

Tal 25mm PL (Old type - konig?)

Tal 42mm kellner

Tal x2 and x3 barlows

Pretty much everything I could need for my Tal1.

Got some others in the box too - might find a use for them sometime

Cheers

Matthew(SR)

[geoff_k]

I would like to have expensive eyepieces but just can't afford them. The ones I use most are:

Good old standard 25mm Plossl (of course)

5mm LER - can't remember what make it is but it gives excellent views of things like Saturn.

Celestron 2x Ultima Barlow

4x ImageAmplifier.

I do also have a couple of moderately priced, but good Sirius Plossls which I use from time to time for eyepiece projection with my ATIK camera.

I have more, some of which are legacy eps from old scopes, but I can't say I use any of them a great deal. They all look good in the eyepeiece case, though.

If I ever get rich, all those Naglers and Orthos sound very tempting!

[StarMan1701]

Currently in my eyepiece case:

4mm Vixen Lanthanum

7mm Vixen Lanthanum

12mm Vixen Lanthanum

18mm Vixen Lanthanum

25mm Vixen Lanthanum

30mm Vixen Lanthanum (2") - 20x magnification and a 3 degree TFOV in my 80ED.

5mm Vixen Lanthanum Widefield

13mm Vixen Lanthanum Widefield

TeleVue 2.5x Powermate

I also have:

Antares 7mm HD Orthoscopic

Antares 9mm HD Orthoscopic

Plus a few Meade / Tal / Fullerscopes Plossls.

As you can see, I do like my Lanths...

Lee.

[barkis]

Wouldn't anyone like a TV 13mm Ethos, for that panoramic view.?

Ron.

[John]

Wouldn't anyone like a TV 13mm Ethos, for that panoramic view.?

Ron.

I'd like to have a look though one Ron but I'm not sure I'm ready to invest that much in a single eyepiece

Although they do say that it's spec means that it can take the place of a number of other eyepieces which might offset the cost a bit - I'll have to try that line of reasoning on my other half

John

[iancandler]

Currently mine stand at:

Celestron E-Lux 2" 40mm

Celestron old black top 26mm

Televue Panoptic 19mm

Meade 5000 SWA 16mm

Televue Radian 14mm

BO/TMB 9mm

BO/TMB 6mm

GSO 2" ED 2x barlow

SA 1.25" 2.5x apo barlow

The meade 16mm swa,40mm celestron, GSo barlow will probably go/be replaced at some point.

Target eyepieces are:

The above plus:

16mm Radian

24mm Panoptic

Nagler 3-5mm zoom

2" powermate

1.25" powermate

I would happlily settle for that lot as it will suit my scopes and I doubt I will be able to afford naglers.

[Andrew*]

That's a nice collection, Ian

The meade 16mm swa,40mm celestron, GSo barlow will probably go/be replaced at some point.

Don't you like the Meade? I personally enjoy it a lot...?

GSO 2" ED 2x barlow

what do you think of this? Tried to use it with the SLR the other day and got horrible ghosting :?

Wouldn't anyone like a TV 13mm Ethos, for that panoramic view.?

Ron.

But of course! Why, have you got one going?

Andrew

[James]

I shouldn't (and won't) complain about my line up:

24mm Panoptic

21mm Hyperion (out on loan)

20mm Pentax XW

16mm Nagler T5

15mm Panoptic (also out on loan)

10mm Pentax XW (currently in Japan being fixed... )

8mm Baader Hyperion

7mm Pentax XW

6mm Baader Genuine Ortho

Baader Hyperion Zoom

Orion 2X Shorty Plus Barlow

Tele Vue 2.5x Powermate

All of them perform very nicely but as there's a little duplication at certain focal lengths I'll need to do some rearranging.

Am I happy with them? Absolutely, I've been pretty lucky to have been able to build up such a collection. Am I satisfied... almost... Financial belt tightening will restrict me but I want something in the 30mm range (really hopeful that the 30mm Paragons are good) for the widest field of view I can get from my scopes. I have a real problem letting eyepieces go so we'll have to see what happens!

James

[iancandler]

what do you think of this? Tried to use it with the SLR the other day and got horrible ghosting

Did you try undoing the nosepiece from the barlow and screwing it directly to the filter threads on the nosepiece on the camera?? thats assuming you have a 2" nose piece for yours Andrew..

[John]

.... I want something in the 30mm range (really hopeful that the 30mm Paragons are good) for the widest field of view I can get from my scopes....

That's a very nice collection James

I was in the same position as you regarding the 30mm range. Not currently having the budget for a 31mm T5 Nagler I'm using a Widescan III 30mm which is a Japanese made 2 inch EP with an 84 degree FoV. It's not sharp to the edges in my F/6.5 and F/6 scopes but it's pretty good for 80% of the field and the light transmission is wonderful . Trouble is I think the lack of edge sharpness might be significantly worse at F4.7 so it might not suit your newt

It would work superbly with your ED100 though - I'll have to pop down to Taunton sometime so we can try it !.

John

[Whippy]

Lets see now...

3.5, 5, 8, 13, 17mm Hyperions (got a 21mm on a loaner)

TAL 25mm plossl

Revalation 30mm 2" superview

2X Ultima Barlow

Really wanted to get the 24mm while it was on offer but this imaging thing has taken over financially... I can see myself keeping the Hyperions for a fair while as the only way upwards would be Nagler/Pentax territory and I don't think I can justify that outlay yet!

L'Missus has got the 2 plossls (25mm and 15mm I think) and the 3x barlow you get with a TAL1, a Celestron 8-24mm zoom and a knight owl 40mm plossl so between us, we've got one or two .

Tony..

[GazOC]

Thats my thinking Tony, Pans are the next step up but they are pretty expensive. I did consider buying a 24mm Pan instead of the Hyperion yesterday but £250 v £60 is a lot to pay.

[Whippy]

Thats my thinking Tony, Pans are the next step up but they are pretty expensive. I did consider buying a 24mm Pan instead of the Hyperion yesterday but £250 v £60 is a lot to pay.

And then you add the law of diminishing returns and voila, no contest.

Tony..

[SteelRat]

An 11mm WA recently landed here Looking forward to having a go. The cloud started drifting this way moments before the postie arrived... and from the same direction the EP had come :shock: (sigh)

[jgs001]

I have a collection of

32, 20, 17, 10, 9 and 6.5 mm plossls and a 5 mm Ortho

They don't really get used much now I have a 17mm and a 5mm Hyperion. I had a feeling that was going to happen when I snapped up the 17mm from Steve after Christmas. I also have a Tal 2x barlow. I'd like to get either the 21 or 24mm Hyperion and the Hyperion tuning rings.

[BG]

.

[Astronut]

Pentax 30 XW

planning to get:

Televue 13 Ethos OR Pentax 10 XW

Televue 3-6 Zoom

don't think I'll need a barlow but the above will do me plus a nice case to put them in

[John]

Pentax 30 XW

planning to get:

Televue 13 Ethos OR Pentax 10 XW

Televue 3-6 Zoom

don't think I'll need a barlow but the above will do me plus a nice case to put them in

Wow :shock: I bet something like M13 will look fabulous through an Ethos and a Skyliner 12 inch

John

[Astronut]

Wow :shock: I bet something like M13 will look fabulous through an Ethos and a Skyliner 12 inch

John

Something like this. I'm really torn between the Pentax 10 and the Ethos. On the one hand the Pentax 10 is the 'sweet spot' for my 'scope and cheaper and on the other hand the Ethos is way expensive and will reduce the mid-power mag from x150 to x115 but look at the AFOV it will give me. Considering the difference in magnification it's not much less than the Pentax 30 which gives a low mag of x50.

(click to enlarge)

[Andrew*]

I have a real problem letting eyepieces go so we'll have to see what happens!

You've got a cracking selection there, James! As you say, you have a lot of duplication not only of focal lengths but actual FOVs too. Is there a reason for this? For example both of the Hyperions are nicely covered by those wonderful XWs...

what do you think of this? Tried to use it with the SLR the other day and got horrible ghosting

Did you try undoing the nosepiece from the barlow and screwing it directly to the filter threads on the nosepiece on the camera?? thats assuming you have a 2" nose piece for yours Andrew..

I did indeed, indeed, I do indeed too.... (who wants to try saying that after a few?)

Pentax 30 XW

planning to get:

Televue 13 Ethos OR Pentax 10 XW

Televue 3-6 Zoom

don't think I'll need a barlow but the above will do me plus a nice case to put them in

That sounds like a wonderful, and yet simple collection. From the FOV indicators - I would say get them both.... I do have a question regarding the zoom with your 1500mm f/l dob though. This will give 250x-500x magnification - that's what I call optimism! Both from the seeing, and from the stiff movements of your dob...

I wouldn't want to sound patronising, but if I may make a suggestion, how about getting the Ethos, the 10mm XW and a 2x Ultima barlow. The Ethos would likely be your most used eyepiece (medium power). Your 10mm would be relatively high power, and the 13mm barlowed would give you your proper high power, with a lot of FOV to let your target drift

Andrew

[Astronut]

Pentax 30 XW

planning to get:

Televue 13 Ethos OR Pentax 10 XW

Televue 3-6 Zoom

don't think I'll need a barlow but the above will do me plus a nice case to put them in

That sounds like a wonderful, and yet simple collection. From the FOV indicators - I would say get them both.... I do have a question regarding the zoom with your 1500mm f/l dob though. This will give 250x-500x magnification - that's what I call optimism! Both from the seeing, and from the stiff movements of your dob...

I wouldn't want to sound patronising, but if I may make a suggestion, how about getting the Ethos, the 10mm XW and a 2x Ultima barlow. The Ethos would likely be your most used eyepiece (medium power). Your 10mm would be relatively high power, and the 13mm barlowed would give you your proper high power, with a lot of FOV to let your target drift

Andrew

mmmmmmm.......that's given me something to think about, thanks. I could use a barlow on the 10mm too.

The zoom only has an AFOV of 50 degrees which at 5mm would give me a FOV of 10' whereas the Pentax 10mm XW (AFOV 70 degrees) x2 barlowed would give me a FOV of 14' (almost 50% increase) and a high mag of x300 is probably, like you say, a more realistic high power to aim for. I'd probably never get a chance to use the Televue zoom at the shorter FL's.

Even better the Ethos x2 barlowed would give me an FOV of 26' (almost half a degree) at x230! 8)

This has given me a good alternative - thanks again. I quite like the look of those Televue Powermates instead of a barlow though. The x2 Powermate seems quite versatile as it has a removable 2"/1.25" adaptor for eyepieces (which means I could use the Pentax 30mm XW with it if the need arises) and takes 2" filters.

I'll do some more research and try to find some reviews from dob dudes.