What did the postman bring?

[Barry-W-Fenner]

5 hours ago, Alan White said:

Postie Pete has been with my recent Classifieds purchase....
My smile gave me away, he noted the grin and commented, More Astronomy Kit then.

Looking forward to hearing your opinion on this eye piece Alan. I've had mine about a week now and all I have managed to do is hold and admire it. Looking forward to giving it a try on the double cluster and some nebula.

[AdeKing]

6 hours ago, Alan White said:

Postie Pete has been with my recent Classifieds purchase....
My smile gave me away, he noted the grin and commented, More Astronomy Kit then.

You'll love it Alan, I got mine off Shaun (@Pig) last year and have never looked back.

 

[Pixies]

A bit rattley box arrived for me this morning, so I got a bit excited thinking I had forgotten about something I had ordered!

A little disappointed it wasn't astro-related. But if I drink it all at once, I'm sure I'll order something I'll forget about by the next morning!

(ps - not really disappointed)

[Mr Thingy]

Kind Mr Postman delivered today. A small early Xmas present to myself, hence I pictured under the tree 🎄

0.8 focal reducer and flattener

Plus an Astrobasics finder scope (needs a wee bit of filing to fit snuggly in the shoe but that's easy to do)

Note the festive FLO sticker!

[Tiny Clanger]

I really was determined not to buy myself any new toys until 2021 , but then a returned Rigel quickfinder pops up in the in the FLO sale with a few £ off, and I immediately fall off the wagon ... Well , it was on my wishlist, how could I resist ? And that is why I just spent 5 minutes stood in the kitchen with a towel over my head , admiring the little red circle in the dark ...

I'm not sure if I'm relieved or disappointed though, my small box & jiffy bag didn't get a sticker for clouds or snow . Does that mean .... ?

Edited December 3, 2020 by Tiny Clanger

[HollyHound]

The Pentax family continues to grow... an XW20 to join its siblings (XW30, 10 & 7) 😃

I've read that this (and the XW14) are not as well favoured (field curvature 😬), but as I love the view, form factor & usability of the others, I'm going to find out for myself how well these perform in my scopes🤞

[John]

31 minutes ago, HollyHound said:

The Pentax family continues to grow... an XW20 to join its siblings (XW30, 10 & 7) 😃

I've read that this (and the XW14) are not as well favoured (field curvature 😬), but as I love the view, form factor & usability of the others, I'm going to find out for myself how well these perform in my scopes🤞

I'll be very interested to see what you think of the XW 20

I went for Tele Vue's in the focal lengths above 10mm because of the field curvature reports in the longer XW's but I have not actually used the 14 or 20 so they might not be a problem for me.

I have owned the 8.5mm and 12mm Pentax XF's which did show FC so those might have swayed my choices as well.

It's interesting to see how the optical properties of the XW range vary across the focal lengths:

 

Edited December 3, 2020 by John

[MrFreeze]

45 minutes ago, Tiny Clanger said:

I really was determined not to buy myself any new toys until 2021 , but then a returned Rigel quickfinder pops up in the in the FLO sale with a few £ off, and I immediately fall off the wagon ... Well , it was on my wishlist, how could I resist ? And that is why I just spent 5 minutes stood in the kitchen with a towel over my head , admiring the little red circle in the dark ...

I'm not sure if I'm relieved or disappointed though, my small box & jiffy bag didn't get a sticker for clouds or snow . Does that mean .... ?

Nah - not a chance. It means they've run out of stickers ! I see clouds and snow forecast for the weekend.🤣

David

[HollyHound]

44 minutes ago, John said:

I'll be very interested to see what you think of the XW 20

I went for Tele Vue's in the focal lengths above 10mm because of the field curvature reports in the longer XW's but I have not actually used the 14 or 20 so they might not be a problem for me.

I have owned the 8.5mm and 12mm Pentax XF's which did show FC so those might have swayed my choices as well.

It's interesting to see how the optical properties of the XW range vary across the focal lengths:

I've read so many differing views on the XW14 and XW20, that it's clear to me that it's very scope dependant and also depends how well the observer can accommodate any field curvature. At my age (54) I may fall into the camp where I find it obtrusive or may be lucky. Therefore, I've concluded that it's very much something I need to try for myself and see how they perform in the small range of scopes I now have.

To that end I've also today ordered the XW14 so I can try both focal lengths. I do have the option also of using the 2x TeleExtender on the XW30 which is effectively the same focal length, but with different (better?) eyepiece characteristics. This is only useful in the dob though, as that setup is big and heavy, so ideally I'd like the XW14 and XW20 around to use in the StellaMira etc too.

I've also got a Morpheus 14mm on it's way too as an alternative comparison, as I've read a lot of very positive reviews on this eyepiece too 🤔

I'll certainly start a thread and report my findings (they will be my own experience again of course), but hopefully it will help others 👍

Cheers

Gary

Edited December 3, 2020 by HollyHound

[John]

41 minutes ago, HollyHound said:

I've read so many differing views on the XW14 and XW20, that it's clear to me that it's very scope dependant and also depends how well the observer can accommodate any field curvature. At my age (54) I may fall into the camp where I find it obtrusive or may be lucky. Therefore, I've concluded that it's very much something I need to try for myself and see how they perform in the small range of scopes I now have.

To that end I've also today ordered the XW14 so I can try both focal lengths. I do have the option also of using the 2x TeleExtender on the XW30 which is effectively the same focal length, but with different (better?) eyepiece characteristics. This is only useful in the dob though, as that setup is big and heavy, so ideally I'd like the XW14 and XW20 around to use in the StellaMira etc too....

 

I agree. There is no substitute for finding out for yourself if at all possible

I was very lucky that FLO loaned me all those eyepieces over the years. It would have been an expensive business assembling the various sets that I've been able to try out and report back on.

Edited December 3, 2020 by John

[HollyHound]

2 minutes ago, John said:

I agree. There is no substitute for finding out for yourself if at all possible

I was very lucky that FLO loaned me all those eyepieces over the years. It would have been an expensive business assembling the various sets that I've been able to try out and report back on.

Well I've reached the point now where I'll just get more confused if I read any more comparisons, so it's time to make my own for myself (although of course I will share). I'm trying now to build one good main set primarily for the Bresser and StellaMira, which will see me for a good number of years. Part of that is to experiment, keep what you like and move the rest on.

I'll be in a position over the next few weeks/months to compare XW14, Morpheus 14, DeLite 13mm and Panoptic 15mm as well as various other combinations. After that I'll keep what works best as a main set and possibly a few others if they work better in certain scopes, but thin out the remainder... I have no intention of collecting eyepieces as a hobby 🤣

I agree, that's quite fortunate and I do value your (and others) opinions, as it's a minefield without some basis to start on 👍

[Dantooine]

3 hours ago, HollyHound said:

Well I've reached the point now where I'll just get more confused if I read any more comparisons, so it's time to make my own for myself (although of course I will share). I'm trying now to build one good main set primarily for the Bresser and StellaMira, which will see me for a good number of years. Part of that is to experiment, keep what you like and move the rest on.

I'll be in a position over the next few weeks/months to compare XW14, Morpheus 14, DeLite 13mm and Panoptic 15mm as well as various other combinations. After that I'll keep what works best as a main set and possibly a few others if they work better in certain scopes, but thin out the remainder... I have no intention of collecting eyepieces as a hobby 🤣

I agree, that's quite fortunate and I do value your (and others) opinions, as it's a minefield without some basis to start on 👍

I’ve had the same problems with choice making. Other friends do Astro photos and buy cameras instead of eyepieces, this I will never understand.

Problem being they’ve nothing any good to lend me to try out. This has meant a very expensive year for me buying far to many expensive eyepieces to try out.

I have to admit though the thrill of the chase has been fun. I never did try a Morpheus and that’s eating away at my curiosity if I’m honest. When I see someone else has just had one delivered I’m tempted.

This year I’ve bought and tried Es 24/68, 14, 8.8, 6.7, 4.7 in the 82’s, 17 & 12 in the 92’s, 5.5/100, Delos 14, 10, 8, 6, 4.5 & 3.5.

This has somehow left me (at the moment) with an APM 20/100, ethos 13, 8, 6, 4.7, 3.7 and the Es 5.5. so out of 20 bought I’m sitting on 7. 

it’s been quite a strange year however people have had the benefit of some lovely mint condition eyepieces from me 🤣

ive had a great time coming home from work and opening these little boxes and when you are having a rubbish day at work it’s nice to see a message saying your parcel has been delivered. 

Try before you buy has not been an option for me so it was a case of buy and try... oh dear.  What a journey 🥴

[HollyHound]

20 minutes ago, Dantooine said:

I’ve had the same problems with choice making. Other friends do Astro photos and buy cameras instead of eyepieces, this I will never understand.

Problem being they’ve nothing any good to lend me to try out. This has meant a very expensive year for me buying far to many expensive eyepieces to try out.

I have to admit though the thrill of the chase has been fun. I never did try a Morpheus and that’s eating away at my curiosity if I’m honest. When I see someone else has just had one delivered I’m tempted.

This year I’ve bought and tried Es 24/68, 14, 8.8, 6.7, 4.7 in the 82’s, 17 & 12 in the 92’s, 5.5/100, Delos 14, 10, 8, 6, 4.5 & 3.5.

This has somehow left me (at the moment) with an APM 20/100, ethos 13, 8, 6, 4.7, 3.7 and the Es 5.5. so out of 20 bought I’m sitting on 7. 

it’s been quite a strange year however people have had the benefit of some lovely mint condition eyepieces from me 🤣

ive had a great time coming home from work and opening these little boxes and when you are having a rubbish day at work it’s nice to see a message saying your parcel has been delivered. 

Try before you buy has not been an option for me so it was a case of buy and try... oh dear.  What a journey 🥴

Yes, it's been quite a year... this time last year I had the sum total of two pairs of binoculars, the second pair (Pentax WP 20x6) I ordered from a little, unknown (to me) website called First Light Optics and then made the (fatal as it turned out) mistake of checking out their telescope section... the rest is history 😬

Numerous scopes, mounts, eyepieces, accessories and books later I'm still experimenting a little with what works out best for me but I think I'm entering the state now where I'm honing in on what works for me and hoping that I can go into 2021 and beyond with just the right amount of tools to enjoy observing and not feel that I "need more".

Arguably I should have taken the advise to get a Dobsonian from day one (numerous articles and books said so), but I think going through a range of difference scopes (and eyepieces) teaches you what does and doesn't work for you in various observing situations, so it's all part of the learning process. It does mean now that I have scopes, mounts and eyepieces to cover what I want to do on any given evening. I've also learnt an awful lot, especially from this forum 😃

Expensive... yes, but I've spent far more on things that have (with hindsight) proved to be less enjoyable and relaxing, and I've managed to get a good mixture of new and second hand purchases so it's all been fine. Besides, if no-one buys new, there wouldn't be a second hand market, so we're all contributing to that in our own ways 👍

Besides, as I mentioned to someone before... my partner keeps and rides horse and whilst they're delightful to have, if you think this astronomical gear is expensive, please try horses... they're called "bankruptcy starter kits" for a reason 🤣

Edited December 3, 2020 by HollyHound

[Dantooine]

4 hours ago, HollyHound said:

I have no intention of collecting eyepieces as a hobby 🤣

I see,  so how many do you have at the moment as a “non collection”?

🤭

[HollyHound]

9 minutes ago, Dantooine said:

I see,  so how many do you have at the moment as a “non collection”?

🤭

Too many, but some are “just passing through” 😬🤣

[HollyHound]

Wow that was quick delivery, thanks again @FLO 👍

Pentax XW14 and Morpheus 14mm... These two will be going head to head for the 14mm (ish) slot in my eyepiece case. Once we get some clear skies again, I'm going to compare them myself in my scopes, to verify which will stay long term. I suspect they are both very good indeed optically, but eye comfort and usability will also be important... will report back of course 🤞

Edited December 4, 2020 by HollyHound

[callisto]

Thanks to FLO's B/friday deals, a lovely W/O Zenithstar 61+Flattener for a nice portable imaging set up

 

[LongJohn54]

Two parcels. One for me and one for my grandson who will be eight next week.

[Luke]

1 hour ago, callisto said:

Thanks to FLO's B/friday deals, a lovely W/O Zenithstar 61+Flattener for a nice portable imaging set up

 

The Willam Optics stuff does look swish! I think all I have from them is an extension tube and diagonal, both of which are very nicely made! If they take that much care over an extension tube, I imagine their scopes are lovely.

[callisto]

1 hour ago, Luke said:

The Willam Optics stuff does look swish! I think all I have from them is an extension tube and diagonal, both of which are very nicely made! If they take that much care over an extension tube, I imagine their scopes are lovely.

The scopes are well made (and nice to look at .....Looking forward to imaging with it 👍

Edited December 4, 2020 by callisto

[PeterW]

random we visit last Black Friday revealed a ra her good deal on a down jacket i’d had my eye on for a while. Only risk was whether it’d be the right size... success, I can go walkies in just a shirt and coat and feel just fine. My cold weather gear setup is now finally complete 🙂

Peter

[Dantooine]

8 hours ago, HollyHound said:

Wow that was quick delivery, thanks again @FLO 👍

Pentax XW14 and Morpheus 14mm... These two will be going head to head for the 14mm (ish) slot in my eyepiece case. Once we get some clear skies again, I'm going to compare them myself in my scopes, to verify which will stay long term. I suspect they are both very good indeed optically, but eye comfort and usability will also be important... will report back of course 🤞

This will be interesting 🤔 

[Nigella Bryant]

Just WOW today. Lovely birthday gifts. I'm overwhelmed. Some had to be solar related, lol. And it's not even Christmas yet, lol.

[JeremyS]

What a great collection of gifts @Nigella Bryant

Happy Birthday! Hope you have a lovely day 👍🏻

[Highburymark]

23 minutes ago, Nigella Bryant said:

Just WOW today. Lovely birthday gifts. I'm overwhelmed. Some had to be solar related, lol. And it's not even Christmas yet, lol.

Happy birthday Nigella. Nifty collection of astro gifts you have there. I had no idea that Baader sells an imaging Ca-K filter. What a great way to get into Ca-K a little more affordably.