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Yet another Zoom question.


Alfian

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I'm pondering the idea of acquiring a zoom to either replace my 9mm-20mm or  maybe if I can  afford to have both,  just serve as convenient option. The Baader Hyperion seems to have the best all round regard (short of going mega£) but  I have also come across these two which I can find little about.

 http://www.365astronomy.com/365Astronomy-Deluxe-Aspheric-Zoom-Eyepiece-8-24mm-1.25-and-2-compatible.html

It doesn't look like the usual 7-21/8-24 clones.

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/skywatcher-eyepieces/skywatcher-hyperflex-9-27mm-zoom.html

This looks like the 8-24mm but I  can't find  any other zoom with this range that might be comparable.

Like I say, just an idea at the moment but would appreciate any comments.

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My affordable favorite is the Celestron Zoom Eyepiece for Regal M2 Spotting Scopes.  They come up used over here on CN for around $50.  I have two that I use in my binoviewers.  The top doesn't rotate, so you can use winged eyeguards with them once you unscrew the supplied eyeguard.  The field of view varies from 44 degrees at 24mm to 63 degrees at 8mm.  It is pretty sharp to the edge over the field at f/6 and pin sharp at f/12 or above.  The field stop is sharp in the center of the zoom range and blurs slightly at either end.  Again, at f/12 and above, it's sharp at every focal length.  The zoom action is smooth and fluid and it is only slightly non-parfocal across the zoom range.  Eye relief is a usable 13mm to 16mm across the range (measured with the supplied eyepiece removed).

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16 minutes ago, Louis D said:

My affordable favorite is the Celestron Zoom Eyepiece for Regal M2 Spotting Scopes.  They come up used over here on CN for around $50.  I have two that I use in my binoviewers.  The top doesn't rotate, so you can use winged eyeguards with them once you unscrew the supplied eyeguard.  The field of view varies from 44 degrees at 24mm to 63 degrees at 8mm.  It is pretty sharp to the edge over the field at f/6 and pin sharp at f/12 or above.  The field stop is sharp in the center of the zoom range and blurs slightly at either end.  Again, at f/12 and above, it's sharp at every focal length.  The zoom action is smooth and fluid and it is only slightly non-parfocal across the zoom range.  Eye relief is a usable 13mm to 16mm across the range (measured with the supplied eyepiece removed).

Thats an interesting alternative Louis. Looked that one up over  here and they can be had for about £85. Food for thought.

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Not sure what your budget is, but I got myself one of these:-

http://shop.seben.com/sms/shop/index.php?p=b3JnYT1zZWJlbiZncm91cD0yJmxhbmc9MiZjdXJyPTE=&jump=33&return=1

while a lot of Seben stuff does not receive favourable reviews, this zoom eyepiece does. 

I got mine second hand, don't think I paid more than £20. Lives in my ST80 pretty much permanently. Great for grab and go sessions. 

 

 

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I have the Bader Hyperion 8-24mm zoom on my grab an go ST102.  I love this eyepiece and it is attached to the ST102 pretty much permanently.

I also have the Seben 8-24mm mentioned by @Bobby1970 which I use with a Skywatcher 130P that I keep at my folks place for when I visit, and I am constantly surprised at how good this eyepiece is for the small outlay, it really is a nice zoom eyepiece.

I can't help with the two that you linked to though. 

Ade

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6 minutes ago, michael.h.f.wilkinson said:

It almost looks like that Seben 8-24 is a clone of the old Vixen LV 8-24mm. That was just a touch below the performance of the (much more recent) Hyperion zoom in a comparison I once read

This is a funny coincidence, but over the last couple of days I'd spotted a Vixen LV 8-24 for sale on ABS. By the time I'd looked into how good it was, which seems to be not bad at all, the seller had withdrawn it! Now when I see the word Seben I tend to perhaps unfairly take a step back, but in this instance it does seem that it has some happy users. At the current price it might be worth a punt.

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The Seben is different from the Vixen although they do look similar. There are Skywatcher 8-24 and Celestron 8-24 zooms and also one branded Vite which are the same thing as the Seben though and for £30-£40 they are good eyepieces for quick sessions, solar and outreach. The 7-21 zooms under the same brands are nowhere near as good so don't be tempted by those.

I found the Hyperion to be better edge corrected in my faster scopes than the Seben / Skywatcher / Celestron / Vite type 8-24's but it does cost around 3-4x as much.

 

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Thanks for that John, I'm under no illusion that the Seben etc are of the same quality as the Baader, but it's interesting that zooms, once a no no, are now gaining a place. The scopes I have in mind will be over f7.5 so I should be on safe ground.

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Just as final thought on this, I've decided as and when funds permit and assuming something else hasn't taken priority, if I'm still up for a zoom it will be the Baader Mk IV. (or maybe a Mkiii if a one comes along s/h)

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