TeleVue Nagler VS Celestron Luminos

[Pleiades M45]

This one is for you people with a large eyepiece collection, maybe you own these two!

 

I was recommenced the TeleVue Nagler that has an 82º apparent field of view which was said to be worth buying even though it has a ridiculous cost. I did a little research and came across the Celestron Luminos which also has an 82º field of view.

 

So I ask... Does TeleVue enjoy making their products overpriced or is there something I am missing here. Both products seems exactly the same (minus the focal lengths) I can easily save a good $200 avoiding TeleVue and get the same thing just with a different label by choosing Celestron.

 

Anyone?

[Dinosour23]

The Nagler will be better at the edge but not 400$ better... Some people are observing 200 nights a year so they dont care about price, its something they do regularly... Me, I use Luminos and Meade UWA and enjoy them.

If your scope isn't an expensive Apo or a large reflector don't bother with expensive eyepieces. Milking a dead cow

[alan potts]

I don't know the speed of your scope off hand but I would have thought it was below F10. If so at these speeds there is not a great deal of point in having TeleVue, though I started my pile even when I only had an F10 Meade SC. The other make I would consider closely is the Explore Sc ranges of 82 degrees eyepieces and 68 degree ep's, I have had most of the Meade range of these and the elements are the same apart from maybe the 18mm 82 and of course the 11mm 82 which Meade didn't carry.

I have never used a Celestron eyepiece though many on this site do.

Alan.

[Adrian Condon]

Hi,

Decisions, decisions and money, a great combination!

What make are your current eyepieces?

I have a number of Televue eyepieces, they are superb quality and would not change them.

I have a Televue Nagler type 6 7mm which is 82 fov as already stated, I use it often and am very happy with it.

On the other hand I also own an Explore Scientific (ES) 82 fog 24mm eyepiece, I use it when not using the Nagler.

It is a well made eyepiece, heavy and could be used as a grenade.....

I am currently looking at a Televue Ethos 13 and the ES 100 fov 14mm.

Here in the UK there is a £215 difference, the Televue being more expensive, so I could purchase nearly two ES eyepieces for the price of one Televue. There is not twice the difference in quality, plus everybody has their favourite eyepiece and scope combination, so I would be inclined to get the best quality available for the combination.

If there is a star party in your area, it may give you the chance to try out various eyepieces and more importantly get the views of their owners.

Sorry I cannot be more helpful.

Good luck with your purchase.

Cheers

Adrian

[Mr Spock]

If you are working at f10 then there isn't going to be much between them. F5 is less forgiving and the Televue will be sharper right to the edges.

The other good thing about Televue eyepieces is the hold a lot of their value if you decide to sell. Other makes tend to be less sought after on the second hand market.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

The situation with these different brands of EPs is similar to that in photography. On my old SLRs I had a 135mm F/2.8 Yashica ML lens. Very nice and sharp cheap telephoto lens. I later spotted a Carl Zeiss Sonnar 135mm F/2.8 T* lens. Second-hand, this was 8 times the price of the Yashica (also bought second-hand). As an experienced photographer, I could really see the edge the Zeiss lenses had over the (very good) Yashica, especially when working at full aperture.

[John]

In your F/10 mak-cassegrain the differences between Tele Vue and other brand 82 degree eyepieces would be minimal at most or maybe not discernable at all. There are some other brand 82 degree eyepieces as well as the Celestron Luminos which might be worth considering:

- William Optics UWAN range

- Orion Megaview Range (they are the same as the above)

- Skywatcher Nirvana Range (again the same as the above)

- Explore Scientific 82 degree range

- Meade UWA range

- Maxvision 82 degree eyepieces

Any of the above would provide you with 95% or more of Tele Vue Nagler performance and at least Luminos performance for a lot less outlay than a Nagler so hunt around and find the best priced option.

[Saganite]

How many times is it  said that eyepieces are a personal choice, but it is true.I had an Explore Scientific 11mm 82 deg eyepiece for several months, great piece of kit, sharp to the edge, robust, and with a lifetime guarantee, but I seldom used it, because I simply did not find it comfortable to use, so I sold it on.

Within a month or so, a Televue Delos 12mm came up on this forum, and I decided to try it. Apart from TV plossls it was my first big

purchase. It cost twice as much as the Ex 11mm but it felt right straight away and I use it constantly.

I am not a disciple of Televue and I have a very mixed eyepiece box, but all my TV eyepieces are a joy, they hold their value as well

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

My first 82 deg EP was the Meade Series 5K 14mm UWA. Excellent EP which could hold its own against my later Nagler 22T4 and 17T4. I only replaced it with a Nagler 12T4 due to issues of eye relief. The 14mm had an eye relief of 14-15mm which is just a touch short for me (I wear glasses when observing). If this hadn't been the case, the 14mm Meade would still be in my EP case

[Highburymark]

Echo everyone's comments - not as important to have expensive EPs with F/10 scopes, but nonetheless, I've been surprised by the difference in quality between TVs and other eyepieces with my SCT. Yes, they are a lot of money, but I intend to keep them forever - and whatever new scopes I buy in the future, I won't have to keep updating my EPs.