Eyepieces for fast telescopes?

[Eren]

On ‎16‎/‎08‎/‎2017 at 19:47, Richard Hather said:

I haven't tried any Skywatcher eps but i bet there's a wealth of reviews online.

Thats the first place I check if I'm interested in any eyepiece or piece of astronomy equipment, second is SGL ?

Are you near any astronomy club or a shop you can try out eps?

Yes I've read some reviews, will probably go with the ES, I don't know of any astronomy clubs but will have a look, telescope house was a short drive (was where i ordered my telescope from) but I think they've moved to edenbridge

[Eren]

5 hours ago, Paz said:

Regarding the original query explore scientific 82 degree eyepieces are good eyepieces. I've got a couple which I have used (18mm and 6.7mm). The 6.7mm in particular was my most used eyepiece until I moved to different ones with longer eye relief so I can view easily with glasses. If you don't need to wear glasses then the es82 are great. 

As some others have said try and establish if you are impressed or not by wide field views. I realised I'm not so I settled on eyepieces with smaller fields if view.

Don't wear glasses so I'll get one eventually, I've never used a wide field EP but using my current ones I would like a larger FOV

[Dave In Vermont]

I bought a so-called 'cheap' Barlow just to take the lens assembly out of. I use this to screw into other eyepieces to give me 1.5X (or 1.6X?). I also have TeleVue 2X and 3X Barlows.

I'm of the opinion that a Barlow isn't the place to be frugal. This as a Barlow magnifies any faults in the optical-pathway, including faults with the Barlow itself. So on this issue, I feel it's worth taking one's time and waiting to be able to afford the top-tier model(s) out there. Fortunately TV-Barlows aren't that much more £$'s than their lower-cost alternatives.

That's my story - and I'm stickin' to it!

Dave

[Charic]

On 09/08/2017 at 02:50, Eren said:

I have a skywatcher 10" dobsonian, f/4.7, and am looking for some good quality (but not too expensive) eyepieces

For my Skywatcher 10"? I went down the Tele Vue route with their Delos range, all second hand!
The EPs are tested down to f/4, their eye-relief of 20mm was ample for spectacle wearers (though I choose not to wear mine) and there is the Dioptrx attachment eyepieces for when/if my eyes get worse. They also pose a 72° afov, so all-in-all my method to future proof some eyepieces for this scope.

However, my plans changed considerably, I don't have the scope, never found the one I desired at the time, and made a decision to keep the 8" Skyliner. The Delois were sold, and I have no regrets, unless I get to look through the 10" or 12" telescopes in London in a few Days time?

On my medium paced f/6, the Delos only appeared to provide my eyes with a wider field of view, and image wise, they were no better than my Starguiders! There are folk using the BST's on the faster scopes, they do work, but as you mentioned your budget, buying second hand may be the way to go. A new single Tele Vue  Delos at todays prices could cost more than a full set of Starguiders?

You'll only know whats right after acquiring some eyepieces and looking at them and through them yourself, only you can be the judge!

[Louis D]

16 hours ago, Moonshane said:

Don't get me wrong my eyepiece case is full of only Televue as I feel that the additional cost can be justified given this slight edge which  is always expensive with optics.

I'll agree TV makes very good eyepieces, but Nikon, Leica, Zeiss, Pentax, Docter, Vernonscope, and a few others make or have made eyepieces at least as good and shouldn't be overlooked when searching out the best eyepieces available on the new and used markets.

[alan potts]

7 hours ago, Louis D said:

I'll agree TV makes very good eyepieces, but Nikon, Leica, Zeiss, Pentax, Docter, Vernonscope, and a few others make or have made eyepieces at least as good and shouldn't be overlooked when searching out the best eyepieces available on the new and used markets.

I don't feel they get overlooked Louis D, especially Pentax, it is just the others are so rare and offer no where near the range TV do. I know for a good while the only way to get a Nikon was to go to Japan, maybe the situation is better where you are.

Alan

[Moonshane]

I agree with the point made by Louis but to be clear I was only using Televue as an example of what is not necessarily required and that even the worst eyepieces these days can show objects well enough. I wasnt promoting them as the best overall just my preference as best for me. E.g. if I want pairs of plossls for my binoviewers with excellent build quality and sharpness thete are not that many options. If I reduce my criteria slightly and it has to be said without that much loss in image quality, there are countless ootions.

[John]

The Vernonscope Brandon's are seldom seen here although I did have a play with a set recently at an astro show. They seem to provoke very mixed reactions when discussed on another forum either being adored or dismissed as mediocre at best 

Until I try some I don't know which camp I'll be in. I didn't feel inclined to splash out £1,000+ (for the set) at the astro show to find out though

When my Leica ASPH zoom comes back from being cleaned in Portugal I'll be able to better asses how it stacks up against Pentax and Tele Vue rivals

I think the OP has said that they wanted a wider field than their current eyepieces but that they did not want to spend too much. This eliminates the premium priced brands but I think there are some good  alternative and less costly suggestions within this thread 

[alan potts]

As I have said in thread there are some lovely eyepieces from ExSc and Meade that often come up S/H that can be picked up one here one there over a period of time. Both offer a 68 and 82 degree range and I feel are withing the grasp of most people, differences between these and those costing much more are subtle to say the least in a F4.7 and to take one 40mm SWA 68 degree eyepiece I still think I prefer this to my 41mm Panoptic.

Alan

[Piero]

6 hours ago, alan potts said:

I don't feel they get overlooked Louis D, especially Pentax, it is just the others are so rare and offer no where near the range TV do. I know for a good while the only way to get a Nikon was to go to Japan, maybe the situation is better where you are.

Alan

Just a short off-topic reply. 

I think the situation is changing. I found my Nikon zoom from WexPhotographic (Norwich) and it can be found in other shops here in the UK. Same thing for the Zeiss zoom. For the Leica, there is APM-telescope, although I think I found a shop selling it here in the UK too.. can't remember now. The Docter can be found from Okularum.eu in Denmark. The Baader VIP barlow can also be found in the UK (e.g. 365Astronomy and microglobe).

The combination of a zoom + barlow can cover sub 25mm focal lengths of many TV sets with the exception of Ethos (for the fov) and Naglers (although the Leica comes close in terms of fov).

One downside of these other brands is that they (very) rarely come up in the s/h market. Therefore, one might not feel comfortable to splash out 600 quid on a new zoom. On the other hand that's the cost for 3 s/h Delos eps nowadays, and it is rather uncommon to see an eyepiece case with only those three eps in it!   

Another downside for some users is the limited afov. For 100deg aficionados, these zooms might not be very exciting.

 

Advantages: ...well if I start this, my short off topic reply becomes long..  

[Eren]

On ‎17‎/‎08‎/‎2017 at 23:59, Dave In Vermont said:

I bought a so-called 'cheap' Barlow just to take the lens assembly out of. I use this to screw into other eyepieces to give me 1.5X (or 1.6X?). I also have TeleVue 2X and 3X Barlows.

I'm of the opinion that a Barlow isn't the place to be frugal. This as a Barlow magnifies any faults in the optical-pathway, including faults with the Barlow itself. So on this issue, I feel it's worth taking one's time and waiting to be able to afford the top-tier model(s) out there. Fortunately TV-Barlows aren't that much more £$'s than their lower-cost alternatives.

That's my story - and I'm stickin' to it!

Dave

Yes I get what you mean, the cheap barlow was meant to be a temporary thing to see what focal lengths I enjoy using whilst saving for EPs, although, I'm really itching for some better EPs as I was struggling to get the 10mm that came with the scope to focus tonight, stars seemed 'soft'

[Eren]

On ‎18‎/‎08‎/‎2017 at 00:05, Charic said:

For my Skywatcher 10"? I went down the Tele Vue route with their Delos range, all second hand!
The EPs are tested down to f/4, their eye-relief of 20mm was ample for spectacle wearers (though I choose not to wear mine) and there is the Dioptrx attachment eyepieces for when/if my eyes get worse. They also pose a 72° afov, so all-in-all my method to future proof some eyepieces for this scope.

However, my plans changed considerably, I don't have the scope, never found the one I desired at the time, and made a decision to keep the 8" Skyliner. The Delois were sold, and I have no regrets, unless I get to look through the 10" or 12" telescopes in London in a few Days time?

On my medium paced f/6, the Delos only appeared to provide my eyes with a wider field of view, and image wise, they were no better than my Starguiders! There are folk using the BST's on the faster scopes, they do work, but as you mentioned your budget, buying second hand may be the way to go. A new single Tele Vue  Delos at todays prices could cost more than a full set of Starguiders?

You'll only know whats right after acquiring some eyepieces and looking at them and through them yourself, only you can be the judge!

How much were the second hand teleVue EPs you bought?

[Charic]

6 hours ago, Eren said:

How much were the second hand teleVue EPs you bought?

A little cheaper than they sold for ( to cover postage and insurance - theres a lot of  Glass in these EP's! ) I sold three of them recently, delivered at  160/165/200. 
In my book, the cheaper you can get them,the better, but I, in all honesty expected a massive jump in performance!
A £300+ EP vs. £49 EP you'd expect something special in return, I know I did, but had to try them alone to find out for my self. Not only that, it was my want to have a faster scope, and possibly the need for better corrected lenses,  but  the EP's came first, in-fact, I missed one EP going for  150 in the same town, on Gumtree! It would have cost less without the postage ?
Their good lenses, and they can sell and  sell again, based on their merit, but I'm more than happy with the EP's that remain in my collection after comparison test's. 

Remember, TV prices are up again, the second hand market will follow suit, just how much are you prepared to spend?
If I bought again and wanted wider views, the Ethos. If I could  stomach the  lesser view at 72°, back to the Delos (its based/built on the Ethos pedigree, just a smaller fov) If you needed slightly less, the DeLite!  

The only way to find out whats best is to try an eyepiece for your self, under real-world conditions, then make your decision to purchase more of the same, or try something else.
On axis, I'm sure my Starguiders will be fine on a 12" scope, and I'm hoping to test this theory in a few days time, using my 12mm and one other EP

[John]

8 hours ago, Eren said:

How much were the second hand teleVue EPs you bought?

The usual used price of astro equipment in good clean and fully working condition is between 60% and 70% of the new price as a guideline. Tele Vue stuff tends to be towards the upper end of this because it's in demand and sells fast.

I've bought practically all the eyepieces that I've owned on the used market over the years. Astronomers tend to look after their stuff although you still need to take sensible steps such as seeing photos and asking questions.

If you get something that does not quite suit you (and eyepiece choice is rather personal) then you can often re-sell the item at little or no financial loss.

 

 

[Eren]

9 hours ago, Charic said:

A little cheaper than they sold for ( to cover postage and insurance - theres a lot of  Glass in these EP's! ) I sold three of them recently, delivered at  160/165/200. 
In my book, the cheaper you can get them,the better, but I, in all honesty expected a massive jump in performance!
A £300+ EP vs. £49 EP you'd expect something special in return, I know I did, but had to try them alone to find out for my self. Not only that, it was my want to have a faster scope, and possibly the need for better corrected lenses,  but  the EP's came first, in-fact, I missed one EP going for  150 in the same town, on Gumtree! It would have cost less without the postage ?
Their good lenses, and they can sell and  sell again, based on their merit, but I'm more than happy with the EP's that remain in my collection after comparison test's. 

Remember, TV prices are up again, the second hand market will follow suit, just how much are you prepared to spend?
If I bought again and wanted wider views, the Ethos. If I could  stomach the  lesser view at 72°, back to the Delos (its based/built on the Ethos pedigree, just a smaller fov) If you needed slightly less, the DeLite!  

The only way to find out whats best is to try an eyepiece for your self, under real-world conditions, then make your decision to purchase more of the same, or try something else.
On axis, I'm sure my Starguiders will be fine on a 12" scope, and I'm hoping to test this theory in a few days time, using my 12mm and one other EP

I'd like to stay under 200, I saw a 5mm nagler for 175, someones selling a skywatcher nirvana 28mm for 100 and 3 ES 100 degree eps ( 9mm - 170, 14mm - 190 and 20mm - 240) if these don't sell too quickly I might be able to get one, the reviews on the es 100s seem good

[Eren]

6 hours ago, John said:

The usual used price of astro equipment in good clean and fully working condition is between 60% and 70% of the new price as a guideline. Tele Vue stuff tends to be towards the upper end of this because it's in demand and sells fast.

I've bought practically all the eyepieces that I've owned on the used market over the years. Astronomers tend to look after their stuff although you still need to take sensible steps such as seeing photos and asking questions.

If you get something that does not quite suit you (and eyepiece choice is rather personal) then you can often re-sell the item at little or no financial loss.

 

 

i'm going to go for used, do the higher priced eps tend to hold there value more when it comes to reselling?

[John]

2 hours ago, Eren said:

i'm going to go for used, do the higher priced eps tend to hold there value more when it comes to reselling?

They hold their value a little better because they are in demand but I think 70% of the new price is about the upper limit. There will be exceptions though from time to time especially if the item rarely comes onto the used market.

 

[Eren]

On ‎20‎/‎08‎/‎2017 at 19:04, John said:

They hold their value a little better because they are in demand but I think 70% of the new price is about the upper limit. There will be exceptions though from time to time especially if the item rarely comes onto the used market.

 

Ok, thanks John

[Louis D]

On 8/20/2017 at 13:04, John said:

They hold their value a little better because they are in demand but I think 70% of the new price is about the upper limit. There will be exceptions though from time to time especially if the item rarely comes onto the used market.

 

Yes, I'm thinking of the ZAO I and II lines and the Pentax 30mm and 40mm eyepieces in particular as commanding much higher prices on the used market than their original new cost.  The TMB monocentrics are close.  Then there are the unobtanium amateur Zeiss monocentrics that pretty much never come up used.  I've even read about the super premium observatory class Zeiss monocentrics of which only a tiny number were ever made for observatories.  Since they don't come up on the used market at all, I have no idea what they would cost.

[John]

I had a TMB Supermonocentric 5mm for a few months. It was a superb eyepiece but it's ~30 degree AFoV and tiny eye lens were a challenge. This was before the price skyrocketed so I bought and sold the eyepiece for around £100 pre-owned. I think they go for 3x-4x that now

It's the only eyepiece that is classed as a "top tier" planetary that I've owned. I did briefly try someone elses Zeiss ZAO 6mm at a star party but I can't recall much about it

[25585]

I recommend a low power wide field EP for zoning in, when you move from finder to main scope. That if for no other reason.

With respect to make/models, discontinued ones with good reputations for their time are worth considering, and can be found on eBay for example.

TV Radians, older Naglers & focal lengths such as the 22mm Panoptic are good buys.