If I were to chop my Vixen 22mm LVW....

[Alan White]

If I were to chop my Vixen 22mm LVW for a 24mm Panoptic (for a diet) would I likely regret this move?

I am working at balancing my ED80 scope.
In my quest find similar weight and length EP are helping a lot:
The LVW is 370g or so, the 24 Pan is 230g, so a 1/3rd lighter, but I am trying to balance with 150g region others.
I am at present using the 25mm TV Plossl to get balance, I just miss the wider FOV slightly, but may just live with it.

I really love the LVW for the view and quality in all my scopes to date,
but just sometimes a compromise needs to be made.

Your thoughts please.
 

[F15Rules]

Alan

Your decision of course but I sold my LVW22 and regretted it soon afterwards. I was lucky to be able to buy it back a bit later.

I get the weight balance thing, but couldn't you buy a single tube ring to compensate, but it at the front end of your tube?

SW rings are cheap as chips per pair, probably cheaper than swapping to a Pan 24 with very little optical improvement, if any?

HTH☺..

Dave

[martinl]

If you use spectacles when observing then yes, you will likely regret the move. 

I loved my 22mm LVW, but stupidly sold it when I got the 21mm Ethos. Let’s just say that ‘my balance problems are bigger than yours’... So I got a 24mm Pan to try out. Without glasses it is every bit as lovely as people say. Just about perfect, if you’re not bothered by the pincushion distortion (I’m not). With glasses you can barely see the field stop and it is  much less immersive. Since I prefer to use my glasses when observing I’ll probably exchange it for something else, just not sure what. 

[Timebandit]

1 hour ago, Alan White said:

If I were to chop my Vixen 22mm LVW   would I likely regret this move?

   

Your thoughts please.
 

 

 

Hi. My thoughts are if you  "Chop"  your Vixen 22 LVW ?,then I will report you to the eyepiece police? . This is a brutal act to a fine eyepiece. I have heard of chopping scopes before, but never eyepieces 

 

If you really do not like it that much, then I will have it please?

 

 

Edited January 29, 2018 by Timebandit

[Ben the Ignorant]

You can keep your favorite eyepieces if you add a counterweight at the front. This kind slides over the tube, and is very simple and unexpensive to build:

A 90mm ring is a match for an 80mm scope tube, and a 100mm ring is the match for the dewshield. I assume it will also be the right size for those ED scopes that have an oversize main tube. The counterweight locks itself when it tilts because of its unbalanced weight. To move it, just untilt it, no need to loosen the screw.

Edited January 29, 2018 by Ben the Ignorant

[Alan White]

48 minutes ago, Timebandit said:

"Chop"  your Vixen 22 LVW

Not in the literal form, honest guv.

[Piero]

What about the 32mm TV Plossl? Same FOV as the 24 Pan, 176g, more eye relief in case you need this, and also cheaper. 

Only potential downside depending on your telescope f/ could be the exit pupil. 

 

p.s. I have a 24 Pan. Very nice little eyepiece. I thought about replacing it with a 32mm Plossl for the less weight and larger exit pupil of the latter. The reasons why I didn't are 1) the 24 Pan was bought new, so this replacement would translate to an economical loss, and 2) it seems I'm kind of unlucky with plossl eyepieces... , 3) I cannot really fault the 24 Pan!  

Edited January 29, 2018 by Piero

[25585]

7 hours ago, Alan White said:

If I were to chop my Vixen 22mm LVW for a 24mm Panoptic (for a diet) would I likely regret this move?

I am working at balancing my ED80 scope.
In my quest find similar weight and length EP are helping a lot:
The LVW is 370g or so, the 24 Pan is 230g, so a 1/3rd lighter, but I am trying to balance with 150g region others.
I am at present using the 25mm TV Plossl to get balance, I just miss the wider FOV slightly, but may just live with it.

I really love the LVW for the view and quality in all my scopes to date,
but just sometimes a compromise needs to be made.

Your thoughts please.
 

You would lose the good 20mm eye relief the LVW22mm has. Panoptic 24mm has 15mm. The LVW Barlows well. Only 3 deg AFOV more with the 24, so poss very close as the 22 is slightly higher magnification.

The LVW 22mm has a status of its own. Trading another ep for the 24, yes. Keep the 22 yes too! Have you considered a Vixen SLV 20mm or 25mm, 142g 20mm eye relief, and enough around to get a good pre-owned one. New 99.00 from FLO.

Alan, LVW 22mm are hard to get as no longer made. 24mm Panoptics are current & relatively plentiful. Any TV seller can get one for you. Not so the LVW, it will only gain in value. What other FL eps fo you use with the 80?

Edited January 29, 2018 by 25585

[Alan White]

I did not like SLV,s had a full set, sold them all, the eyecup thing was the deal breaker.

This whole query is based on weight and scope balance,

my only two 250g plus eye pieces are the 22LVW and the larger 10mm XW, all others about 160g Max or less.

Edited January 29, 2018 by Alan White

[25585]

Just now, Alan White said:

I did not like SLV,s had a full set, sold them all, the eyecup thing was the deal breaker.

This whole query is based on weight and scope balance,

my only two 250g plus eye pieces are the 22LVW and the larger 10mm XW, all others about 160g Mac or less.

Original LVs weigh less & have an eye cup that rolls back much more, almost to the eye lens. 142g

  https://astrogarten-shop.de/en/accessories/eypieces/vixen/lv/eyepiece-vixen-lv-20mm.html

[Ricochet]

How about a 25mm Starguider? OK, it's not a TV or Vixen eyepiece but the AFoV will be 10° up on your Plossl and it's in the right weight range (182g according to TS).  Plus at £40 (Skies the Limit sale) I'm guessing you could probably afford to keep the LVW for other scopes rather than selling to finance a Panoptic.

[Louis D]

2 hours ago, Ricochet said:

How about a 25mm Starguider? OK, it's not a TV or Vixen eyepiece but the AFoV will be 10° up on your Plossl and it's in the right weight range (182g according to TS).  Plus at £40 (Skies the Limit sale) I'm guessing you could probably afford to keep the LVW for other scopes rather than selling to finance a Panoptic.

If the 25mm Starguider is as bad at the edges as the 25mm Meade HD-60, there is no way anyone with a 22mm LVW or 24mm Panoptic would be satisfied with its performance.  There's a reason it doesn't cost $200+, and that reason is poor correction across the field.  If it was as good as a Panoptic or LVW, who would buy those expensive eyepieces?

[Alan White]

It’s a difficult one, very difficult, love my LVW 22mm as well as my 10mm Pentax XW, But they both cause balance issues with my other eyepieces.

I don’t want the faff of balance weights either as I am bound to forget at the critical moment and things will get damaged.

Thanks for all the suggestions to date.

[25585]

7 minutes ago, Alan White said:

It’s a difficult one, very difficult, love my LVW 22mm as well as my 10mm Pentax XW, But they both cause balance issues with my other eyepieces.

I don’t want the faff of balance weights either as I am bound to forget at the critical moment and things will get damaged.

Thanks for all the suggestions to date.

How many lighter weight eps do have? Other side of the coin is compensating for their lightness, and keeping the 10XW & 22LVW.

[Alan White]

Yes, I could, but I have a set of TV Plossl and a Nagler zoom, and they win by numbers alone.

I don’t want to have to upgrade my focuser either, so lighter weight has won out, hence the Panoptic / LVW question.

I am considering delites or naglers too.

Edited January 30, 2018 by Alan White

[Fozzie]

What about keep the 22LVW and look for a second hand ES24mm 68deg, not as significant outlay as the 24pan, will give you only marginally less of the performance too..

I've not overly struggled with the ER on mine, it's quite a nice EP for the second hand price... although new they seem to have gone up a bit..

you can then take your time deciding if you want to let that 22LVW go..

Just a thought..

Ta

Fozzie

 

Hold the phone.... the spec says the ES is 370g... wow.. that cant be right can it, must be made out of neutron star or something!!

Edited January 30, 2018 by Fozzie

[F15Rules]

15 hours ago, Alan White said:

my only two 250g plus eye pieces are the 22LVW and the larger 10mm XW, all others about 160g Max or less.

...and I'll wager those two are among the best, if not THE best 2..?

Just get a tube ring(s) to counter the weight (sorry), and have done with it!??

Dave

[Saganite]

If the weight issue is really bothering you and you don't want the faffing around with counterweight, then sell it and get a 24mm Panoptic Alan. It certainly will not be a retrograde step as far as optical performance goes, definitely not. I had both until a few months ago, and sure the 22 LVW is a lovely eyepiece, but when it came to the crunch I sold it, in favour of the Panoptic, and have not re thought that decision since. The 24mm Pan is smaller , lighter, and  one hell of a performer ! I admit that I also had an ulterior motive, in that a pair of 24 Pans in a binoviewer fits perfectly for me and I will never part with them, they are that good.

 

[F15Rules]

1 hour ago, Alan White said:

am considering delites or naglers too

Only ever had one Delite. Don't like it at all, lanky thing that it was?..Had a T6 13 Nagler, lovely eyepiece but short eye relief. PS..if you get the tube ring solution, they are fixed to the tube so can't skip off suddenly..

Dave

Edited January 30, 2018 by F15Rules

[alanjgreen]

24 Panoptic is a great EP. A definite "keeper". I have two as I also binoview with them.

The benefits are far more than just "weight"!

They show minute details so clearly. Its great at splitting tight double stars.

love mine, would never sell!

don't let people who don't have one put you off  

Edited January 30, 2018 by alanjgreen

[alanjgreen]

1 hour ago, Alan White said:

I am considering delites or naglers too.

The delite's are very comfy to use and lightweight for sure. But 18.2 is as low as they go. Nothing around 24mm? 20mm eye relief if you wear glasses but do you want 60 degree for a low power EP?

They are super comfortable and like the Ethos, your eye can be anywhere and you get a view (I found it impossible to get a blackout in mine, I tried and tried  )

I only sold them as I needed the cash for more Ethos when I got the big dob.

( Still have the pan24's though - would never part with them  )

Edited January 30, 2018 by alanjgreen

[Louis D]

23 hours ago, Alan White said:

I am working at balancing my ED80 scope.

No one has asked what sort of mount you're using that is so sensitive to balance, so I will.  What mount are you using that gets thrown out of balance by a few extra ounces in the focuser?  I'm using a DSV-2B alt-az mount, and it takes a 1.5 pound or heavier eyepiece to throw it out of balance.  Anything 1 pound or less (all 1.25" Delos/XW/Morpheus/etc.) don't upset the balance enough to require adjusting the tube in the cradle.  I do need to lock the altitude axis when changing eyepieces, but that's about it.

[25585]

Using eps from lightest an old 20mm Erfle to heaviest a 40mm ES Maxview, I use weighted wrist bands.

They can be wrapped round the scope tubes, and the weight upped or downed by removing the weights from pockets, but mostly by sliding the band toward the end for heavier counter-balance and centre for less.   

 

 

 

[Alan White]

3 hours ago, Louis D said:

No one has asked what sort of mount you're using that is so sensitive to balance, so I will.  What mount are you using that gets thrown out of balance by a few extra ounces in the focuser?  I'm using a DSV-2B alt-az mount, and it takes a 1.5 pound or heavier eyepiece to throw it out of balance.  Anything 1 pound or less (all 1.25" Delos/XW/Morpheus/etc.) don't upset the balance enough to require adjusting the tube in the cradle.  I do need to lock the altitude axis when changing eyepieces, but that's about it.

I use alt az mounts, have used a number, now use a Skytee 2 at present but often without clutches engaged.
The 100g to 400g XW is more than enough to upset balance and loose target.
And yes I am balancing the scope when I set up.

In also think its a slightly OCD thing too.

[Alan White]

4 hours ago, alanjgreen said:

24 Panoptic is a great EP. A definite "keeper". I have two as I also binoview with them.

The benefits are far more than just "weight"!

They shows minute details so clearly. Its great at splitting tight double stars.

love mine, would never sell!

don't let people who don't have one put you off  

Thank you Alan