Celestron 24-8mm Zoom Eyepiece fits T-ring...

[Andonyx]

I have a standard Celestron 24-8mm eyepiece. It's nothing special, but it's a nice workhorse eye-piece for locking on and deciding what fixed eye-piece I want to use when taking photos, etc. I just got a t-ring adapter for my a6000, and I noticed something:

The zoom eyepiece is far too wide and too long to fit in the t-ring / t-ring adapter setup for my camera, but if you pop off the eye-cup, it has threads that perfectly fit the t-ring. You don't need a Barlow or anything else for this afocal setup. 

Is this common on zoom eyepieces? 

[nicoscy]

Most basic zoom eyepieces are threaded under the eye cup for this specific reason.

Enjoy the zoom. Even though I am overflowing with eyepieces, I actually ordered one myself as it is great for outreach and for when I want to just grab the scope with one eyepiece and head out of my home for a quickie...

[Andonyx]

I have a Baader Hyperion zoom on order. Hope it has the threads as well!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

I understand it is meant for EP projection rather than afocal. It could be used for both, I suppose

[baggywrinkle]

I have both the Celestron and Baader zoom. Both are good visually.

I have tested the Baader for afocal photography connected to my Canin 650D. At 24mm it is a bit soft from 50% out, at 8mm it is soft from about 70% out.

I must test the Celestron. I have two zooms as I was given the Celestron.

[Andonyx]

Is the Baader better than the Celestron, I mean for the money? It's not too late for me to cancel. But, I eagerly await your comparo.

[nicoscy]

The Baader has a larger field of view than the Celestron and better coatings (I have tried both).

You can also take advantage of many accessories for the Baader and connect it in various ways to your equipment.

However it is both heavier and bulkier than the Celestron Zoom. If you intend for serious use of this eyepiece as opposed to using fixed focal length eyepieces and just "having a zoom", then get the Baader, otherwise the Celestron will serve you well.

[baggywrinkle]

I must admit, I use the Baader more than theCcelestron becuase of the overall better field of view, 68 Deg at 8mm and 50 Deg at 24mm, plus the range of extras and adpaters is very very good.

I am going to buy some of the fixed shorter focal length ep's for planetary work.

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/user/baader_hyperion_imaging.pdf Shows the ways the ep's can be used.

[Pig]

The Celestron zoom was one of my first eyepieces and I found it very useful    The views through it were also very good.

[nicoscy]

The zoom is actually 70 degrees to 42 degrees according to Edz on Cloudynights and I concur after using it side by side with a Celestron zoom.

http://www.cloudynights.com/topic/287534-hyperion-zoom-mark-iii-tested-afov/

As I mentioned, I actually ordered (again) the Celestron Zoom as I preferred less weight and I was willing to sacrifice a little optical performance for the weight / size saving.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

One problem with many zooms is lack of eye relief. The Hyperion is too tight for me for use with glasses. The Celestron might be OK(ish), at 15-18mm eye relief. I got a WO Zoom-II for its 18-19 mm eye relief.

BTW, if you attach a DSLR to the zoom like this:

that is eyepiece projection, not afocal imaging. Afocal imaging would involve using the camera lens (e.g. a standard lens) as well

[nicoscy]

There is a Baader Zoom for sale right here on SGL classifieds BTW.

[Andonyx]

Thanks, Michael, I have been mis-using the term. I will not make that mistake in the future.

Nicos, unfortunately, it seems I cannot view classifieds yet, due to my low post count. But thanks for the tip!

[Hiran]

Hi everyone . I have celestron 7-21 zoom eyepiece . I tried to connenceted to camera t ring and found the tread are different. T adapter got 42mm and zoom lense got 38mm. How did it fit ststaightaway to sony t adaptor ? Has it got 38mm thread ? it would be realy helpfull If anyone can tell how to attach these two 🙏🙏

 

[Louis D]

1 hour ago, Hiran said:

Hi everyone . I have celestron 7-21 zoom eyepiece . I tried to connenceted to camera t ring and found the tread are different. T adapter got 42mm and zoom lense got 38mm. How did it fit ststaightaway to sony t adaptor ? Has it got 38mm thread ? it would be realy helpfull If anyone can tell how to attach these two 🙏🙏

 

That's a different Celestron zoom.  I'm sure it's an M37 thread since M38 is not an industry standard.  You could look for a T-thread (M42) to M37 adapter or step-down ring.  Make sure it has a 42x0.75 thread (T-mount) and not a 42x1.0 thread (Universal mount).