Xt8 dob additional eyepiece tips

[Erik1988]

Hi do you guys recommend a 5mm eyepiece or 4.5 mm for slightly higher mag viewing ? I already have a 6mm eyepiece that gives me 200xmag

[ronin]

Well the 4.5mm would jump the magnification by 33%, which is not really a slight increase over the 6mm.

Sort of "Yes officer I know the limit is 70 but I was just a bit over at 93" is the sort of comparison.

At the short end of eyepieces 1mm can make a fair difference.

Real answer is get the 5mm then get the 4.5mm.

The reality is you will want a shorter eyepiece until they just fail to work.

If you get the 5mm and it works you get the 4.5mm to find if that is usable.

If you get the 4.5mm and it does not work you get the 5mm to find out if that is usable.

[rwilkey]

Hi Erik, to be honest I think 200x is your most comfortable max.  Doing the calculations (f/length = 1200mm) that's quite long for a dob, and at greater mags would give quite a narrow field, and almost unuseable most of the time.  Also, the 1mm separations in the ep focal lengths are much too close for you to see any noticeable improvement (dependant on AFoV of the ep), in my opinion it would be better to stick with the 6mm and improve/practice your viewing skills. At the end of the day it is the quality of the view that counts, not its apparent magnification.