ES Eyepiece question?

[hadyn42]

Hello All

I am about to purchase a wide field of view eyepice for my SW 250px 10", F4.7 Dob.  (Christmas present to myself)

I know folk have asked these sort of questions before, but to be honest there are too many answers for me to get my head round guys!

Please could someone advise me, I am looking to either buying the ES 28mm, 68deg  or the  ES 30mm, 82deg eyepiece in the next couple of days. I already have a range of eyepieces ranging from 5mm up to 26mm of various brands, but I feel I could do with a descent one for  viewing the the dso's ?

I am also thinking of buying a O111 filter to enchance my viewing of the nebulae etc, so advice there too please?  We really do have good dark skies over here on the island when we are not getting clouded over and pouring down with rain.

I would like to wish you all a Happy Christmas and A Happy New Year and of course it wont be long before I meet up with some of you folk at SGLXI.

Best wishes and thanks in advance for any advise given!

Hadyn - Isle of Man

[Paul73]

100° get an OIII. I have 1.25" & 2" lumicons. Certainly not cheap. Lots of people are happy with the standard SkyWatcher ones. So you don't have to spend a fortune.

You know my thoughts on the eyepieces. If you are looking at the 68° 28mm but can run to the 24mm 82°, I would take the 82° with the greater magnification, contrast and FOV.

Sorry to complicate matters.

Paul

[estwing]

with your skies a filter will tease extra detail but don't go nuts until you're sure its what you want...some prefer un-filtered views...a uhc is a great all rounder but a OIII will show things that you cannot see...

[hadyn42]

Hello Guys

Thank you for the information from you both!

Paul:- Its not too hard to complicate an old chap like me, ha, ha. I have already got the ES 24mm, 68deg eyepiece, so I wasn't thinking of getting another 24mm although it would be a 82deg one. At the moment I am thinking of getting a ES 30mm, 82deg eyepiece, but if you think I am being silly please let me know and try to talk me out of it. From what you mention Paul, you have good views of dso's with your 10" Dob using your 24mm, and 30mm ES 82deg eyepiece.

Best regards,

Hadyn

[John]

Hi Haydn

If the skies you observe under are really nice and dark then the 30mm 82 degree ES will provide you with very nice views and a true field of 2 degrees.

If your skies were more like mine I'd probably suggest a slightly shorter focal length eyepiece with your F/4.7 scope to keep the exit pupil to a more effective size and the magnification higher which helps darken the background sky. 

On the filter, I found an O-III, through slightly less versatile than a UHC, really made a marked difference on a number of objects that were otherwise barely seen even with 10" of aperture.

Under dark skies the view of the Veil Nebula though a 10" scope, an O-III filter and a 30mm 82 degree eyepiece will make your heart skip a beat and is worth the price of such accessories on it's own in my opinion

[Owmuchonomy]

I wanted the 30mm 82' for my f4.9 Dob but decided against it at my age. The exit pupil was just too tight so I bought the 24mm which is really my limit. Also, I have the Baader 2" OIII filter which works very well but it's not cheap!

[hadyn42]

Hello John

Thank you very much for your input.

I will have a good look around the forum etc tomorrow on what you have mentioned. We are doing a Star Gazing Live in conjunction with the BBC in January, so I am hoping to get a good, reasonably piced eyepiece for the budget that I have at the moment to use on my dob.

Looking forward to meeting you again in March next year!

Best regards,

Hadyn - IOM

[niallk]

Hi & snap! I've a 250px too - great scope. I can't advise on EPs (I use a 68* 24mm), but I can only echo that an OIII would be a great investment. I eventually said I'd take a chance on one, and the first night I looked for the Veil I was blown away - a real wow! moment. Works really well on many objects. FWIW I bought a 1.25mm Astronomiks one.

I became so impressed, I also bought a UHC, ...and then after a while the cheapest filter wheel from TS. It is pretty much permanently in my 250px focusser, and I can flick between no filter, OIII, UHC, neutral density, and a green filter. Finding the right target area with the vacant slot before flicking in the OIII is really handy and convenient.

Best of luck with your purchase(s)!!

[Paul73]

Like wot the guys above say!!

My 30mm is only in the case for dark skys. It barely gets a look in when observing from home ( my home skys are similar to John's in terms of light pollution).

Think that I may have to investigate filter wheels. I do sometimes use threaded adapters / extenders so that I can swap eyepieces without the need to unscrew/rescrew the filter every change.

Paul

[jetstream]

Lots of good advice above, I too might skip the 30mm from less than the darkest skies and if the 24mm EP was close in price to a 100 deg 20mm ES I would seriously consider it. Eye relief should be checked to make sure it is comfortable for you.

One of these eyepieces with an OIII ( I prefer Astronomik or Lumicon) will give fantastic views of some nebs, particularly from dark skies. The newest Astronomiks might be a bit tighter than the older ones which is nice.

[bingevader]

It must be fairly dark on the IOW though, mustn't it?

Or at least pretty easy to find somewhere that is?

I never consider my back garden to be very dark.

However, I have a 32mm Panaview that is still a joy.

But still, I must admit to coveting the ES 82° 30mm EP!

[John]

It must be fairly dark on the IOW though, mustn't it?...

Haydn lives on the IOM Ben

Darker than the IOW I'd have thought ?

[rwilkey]

Hi Hadyn, I have both the 28mm and the 30mm 82 degree series and have to say the 30mm outshines the 28mm.  A heavy beast but a most comfortable ep to view through.  I bought my 30mm from AgenaAstro in the US as it turned out a bit cheaper, only took one and half weeks to come.  Dead pleased, esp. with the results.  On the filter, I would go for the Lumicon OIII 2" filter, a great filter, also bought from AgenaAstro.

[F15Rules]

I had the 28mm 68 and now have the 34mm 68..with the exception of my Meade UWA14mm 84 deg the ES34mm 68 is my favourite ep.

Its also available cheaper as a Maxvision version, same optics, different build, no argon purging etc. Stunning views.

Dave

[bingevader]

Haydn lives on the IOM Ben

Darker than the IOW I'd have thought ?

Oh yeah, silly me!

[hadyn42]

Thank you all for your input regarding the eyepiece and filter.

Just to say that the ES 30mm, 82deg eyepiece and the Baader 2" O111  filter are on their way. I found a Baader 1.25" UHC-S filter in my bits and pieces box, which has never been used since I bought it about 4 years ago.  It has  "L - Booster" (2458275) on the case and I think it could be the filter that John mentioned in one of his replies.

Anyway thanks again Guys!

All the Very Best to you All, Have a Happy Christmas and A Happy New Year and of course "Clear Skies!

Best wishes,

Hadyn - IOM