Show me your eyepiece/accessories case, please.

[John]

8 minutes ago, iPeace said:

That's good enough for me . Are the barrel extensions themselves by TeleVue, or another brand?

Baader 28mm Fine Tuning Rings. Less expensive than TV barrel extensions but they do exactly the same job and are threaded for 2" filters, which is the main point of having them on there for me.

 

[iPeace]

1 minute ago, John said:

Baader 28mm Fine Tuning Rings. Less expensive than TV barrel extensions but they do exactly the same job and are threaded for 2" filters, which is the main point of having them on there for me.

I had originally ordered the TV model - which my supplier had (attractively) priced the same as a similar product their own brand - but someone beat me to it, so I was offered their own brand instead so as not to have to wait for the back order. I agreed, and it works perfectly fine. It's indeed threaded for 2" filters.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Very nice case full of goodies

[DRT]

I have made some changes so have updated the case - into two cases

Out has gone my beloved Nagler T5 31mm and the 8mm to 25mm Plossls, most of which will now be resting comfortably in the cases of other SGLers

In have come the 19mm, 24mm, 27mm and 35mm Panoptics and the 3mm, 4mm, 6mm, 8mm, 12mm and 18mm Radians, the Radians plus the 19mm and 24mm Pans being my new 1.25" grab-n-go set in place of the Plossls. Other new additions are a second TV 32mm Plossl and a pair of Japanese Meade 4000 Super Plossls for use with my new TS Optics bino viewer.

I have left a small space in the larger case to accommodate a 15mm Panoptic if I can find one

 

 

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

That is a serious case of TV addiction! Two cases, in fact.

Lovely collection!

[DRT]

Addiction is probably the correct word, Michael, although there is some method in the madness!

I love the Ethi and their immersive FOV and decided some time ago to have them all as my default EPs. I then fell in love with the Pan 41mm and the richness of the "medium" FOV, particularly on the Sun in white light so decided to try one or two others. Each of them turned out to be brilliant so I decided that nothing less than the full set would do!

I bought the Plossls (my thrid set or them!) when I bought my Skylight F16.7 60mm refractor as I needed lighter weight and 1.25". For the third time I found I was struggling to enjoy the very narrow FOV and small eye lenses so decided to try the Radians instead. These are currently living in the Annex case waiting to prove their worth, but from what I have seen so far they are a massive step up from the Plossls and small enough for a serious attempt at grab-n-go. I want to add the 5mm and 10mm Radians to complete that line-up of high power EPs but won't add he 14mm if I can find a Pan 15mm.

But back to the opening line, yes, I am addicted to these things and just love owning them

[Floater]

Oh my, my! Enjoy.

Can't think of anything  - or even that there is anything - else to say.

You've rationalised everything so beautifully, Derek. I shall study and learn.

 ...  and then send a copy to Mrs Floater. ?

Wish me well?

[DRT]

30 minutes ago, Floater said:

and then send a copy to Mrs Floater. ?

Wish me well?

Just don't send her a link to the price list on TelescopeHouse.com

[John]

Great collection Derek

I've moved on my Radians now though. I liked them (4mm and 3mm) but noticed that the XW's were better each time I swapped between them and I found that I was starting to avoid using the Radians.

They are very good eyepieces though for what you pay for them on the used market.

 

Edited April 1, 2016 by John

[DRT]

22 minutes ago, John said:

They are very good eyepieces though for what you pay for them on the used market.

 

That's a big part of the story here, John. The Radians are intended to be very much a portable option and I already have most of the focal lengths covered by the first team EPs so a set of XWs or DeLites would be rather extravagant. If I fly to a foreign land with a TV Pronto, a camera tripod and half a dozen Radians in my hand luggage I don't think I will be kicking myself

[John]

Seems a good plan Derek

 

 

 

[Brasspoodle]

A result of various adventures. Mostly geared towards the 12" Dob but use the lower focal lengths and the BCO in the ST120 Achromat.

[John]

Interesting how many of the cases in this thread are heavily populated by Tele Vue eyepieces. Not all, but very many of them.

 

[DRT]

38 minutes ago, John said:

Interesting how many of the cases in this thread are heavily populated by Tele Vue eyepieces. Not all, but very many of them.

 

I have to admit that the existence of this thread is one of the reasons why my cases are full of green and black. The thread contains lots of useful information about them and all those lovely pictures seem to have a wallet-opening effect

[Mak the Night]

Admittedly, technically not exactly an EP case, but I have discovered a way to carry these seven eyepieces and two Barlows (apochromatic shorties of 2x & 2.5x) in relative safety along with my 90mm Mak in a convenient nylon ‘hand luggage/flight bag’ style carrying case. So effectively they now all live together in one place. There is provision in the Omegon bag (pictured) for the OTA and a compartment above it housing a diagonal, one of the Barlows and three of the eyepieces. The Omegon bag is then placed inside the light flight bag which contains the other eyepieces and an Orion 6x30 RACI.

The idea of a grab’n’go bag with a highly portable tabletop telescope makes taking advantage of breaks in the weather a reality for me. As I’m disabled (the right side of my body is partially paralysed), being able to set-up quickly with little preparation means I can get out and view at a moment’s notice (more or less). Only the tabletop Dob mount is carried separately, also in a light nylon bag. This enables me to carry both shoulder bags together relatively easily whilst walking with a stick. I may only be going to the bottom of my garden but it can be a major expedition for me lol.

The 32mm Celestron is the least used, giving me a 31x magnification, but can be useful sometimes. The ‘dumpy’ 19mm Panoptic is the heaviest eyepiece I can get away with on the 1.3 kg 90mm tabletop Mak. Weighing 187g effectively precludes its use in combination with a Barlow. Although at roughly a hundred grammes heavier than the other individual EP’s it is surprisingly well balanced on the little scope compared to others I’ve tried. The small 19mm Panoptic isn’t often mentioned by many people, but I find that it is ergonomically almost perfect, with its 13mm eye relief, 21.3mm field stop and 68° FOV. The ‘dumpy’ gives me approximately a 53x wide angle view. The smallest eyepiece is an 8mm TV Plossl giving me a ‘squinty’ 125x. Altogether, the little eyepiece collection gives me a comprehensive range from 31x to 182x maximum (0.5mm exit pupil) on a 90mm (f/11.3) Mak.

Edited April 2, 2016 by Mak the Night

[Brasspoodle]

5 hours ago, John said:

Interesting how many of the cases in this thread are heavily populated by Tele Vue eyepieces. Not all, but very many of them.

 

I wonder if there is also a predominance of large fast Newtonians that go with these TVs? This is partly the reason for my TVs and couple of Pentaxs, although eye relief is one of my likes. In an undriven Dob FoV also matters to me: less nudging and averted/peripheral vision seems to work better as the eye moves around the wide FoV. If that wider FoV is also really well corrected I feel I have a better chance of picking up those faint fuzzies. For me ER often trumps the hyper wide 100° experience and dark skies coupled with good observation technique trumps that again.

 

Some amazing eyepiece cases here. I'm also enjoying the updates to see how these collections evolve. 

 

[iPeace]

3 hours ago, Brasspoodle said:

I wonder if there is also a predominance of large fast Newtonians that go with these TVs?

For my part, I live in fear that scope will spit out anything without green lettering

[iPeace]

6 hours ago, Mak the Night said:

The idea of a grab’n’go bag with a highly portable tabletop telescope makes taking advantage of breaks in the weather a reality for me. As I’m disabled (the right side of my body is partially paralysed), being able to set-up quickly with little preparation means I can get out and view at a moment’s notice (more or less). Only the tabletop Dob mount is carried separately, also in a light nylon bag. This enables me to carry both shoulder bags together relatively easily whilst walking with a stick. I may only be going to the bottom of my garden but it can be a major expedition for me lol.

Your approach is inspiring and puts things in valuable perspective. I started out in this business - not long ago - with a strong determination to stay on the grab'n'go path, convinced that "the scope you actually use lets you see the most". It's easy for me to feel greed for "more", or wonder whether I'm not selling myself short...

Thanks very much for sharing.

[iPeace]

4 hours ago, Brasspoodle said:

I wonder if there is also a predominance of large fast Newtonians that go with these TVs? This is partly the reason for my TVs and couple of Pentaxs, although eye relief is one of my likes. In an undriven Dob FoV also matters to me: less nudging and averted/peripheral vision seems to work better as the eye moves around the wide FoV. If that wider FoV is also really well corrected I feel I have a better chance of picking up those faint fuzzies. For me ER often trumps the hyper wide 100° experience and dark skies coupled with good observation technique trumps that again.

 

Some amazing eyepiece cases here. I'm also enjoying the updates to see how these collections evolve. 

 

...and then, there surely is something to this. I have yet to try a newt, but with a grab'n'go frac on an undriven alt/az mount, FoV is king for me - now that I know what's to be had. My preliminary research had convinced me that quality eyepieces would be required to get the most out of a fast refractor - and there was no ignoring that green lettering was - on the whole - taken to be a pretty good indicator. I was very pleased with the experience of using 1.25" Naglers with my ED70 - when the TV85 appeared in the classifieds and just would not go away. A Panoptic and an Ethos were invited to travel along with the scope, and that spoiled me beyond any hope of redemption. However, as you also say, I'm quite convinced that none of this gear will make as much a difference as getting some quality observing time under some really dark skies, which I hope to do for a prolonged period soon...but I may as well make sure beforehand that my gear is sorted

[Mak the Night]

1 hour ago, iPeace said:

Your approach is inspiring and puts things in valuable perspective. I started out in this business - not long ago - with a strong determination to stay on the grab'n'go path, convinced that "the scope you actually use lets you see the most". It's easy for me to feel greed for "more", or wonder whether I'm not selling myself short...

Thanks very much for sharing.

Thanks, and you're welcome. I don't mind spending nearly an hour setting up, it's good physiotherapy lol, but sometimes the grab'n'go approach can lead to some great viewing opportunities. Of course, with any portable gear there has to be compromises, principally in aperture size usually. For me, a tabletop scope solves the problem of making multiple journeys as the table is already in the garden and I don't have to carry the tripod separately. I'm getting a much bigger SCT soon with a GOTO. I know carrying it out piecemeal and assembling everything, let alone carrying my two main eyepiece cases as well, will take time, but that's half the fun for me. It can take me at least 45 mins to set up my 102mm Mak on an EQ2 mount. I keep the counterweight in a greenhouse at the bottom of the garden to save me physically carrying it. Astronomy is so dependant on the weather and it can be disappointing to spend nearly an hour setting up only to find the weather has suddenly turned inclement. Or worse, not to take a chance and find out later it was a clear night! Flexibility and adaptability is the key. To paraphrase the motto of the Special Air Service: 'Who dares views'.

[Brasspoodle]

There certainly is some comfort in knowing you have some of the better eyepieces going around. Kind of takes one aspect out of the equation when trying to see objects better. If something is not visible it's not the eyepieces fault! I had an intreresting conversation in another forum where I was looking for eyepieces to go with my Short Tube Achromat. Here the advice was that the Pentax XW wasn't ideal as it does show up slightly more of the chromatic abberations inherent in the scope. The suggestion was to explore older designs (Orthos and Plössls) or more vintage eyepieces (Swarowski) that were made more with achromatic views in mind (presumable before the Apos became much more affordable and poplar or something to do with microscopes and/or spotting scopes). The Baader Classic Ortho was one affordable suggestion so have a 10mm coming to compliment the 6mm I already have. 

Edited April 3, 2016 by Brasspoodle

[Mak the Night]

30 minutes ago, Brasspoodle said:

There certainly is some comfort in knowing you have some of the better eyepieces going around. Kind of takes one aspect out of the equation when trying to see objects better. If something is not visible it's not the eyepieces fault! I had an intreresting conversation in another forum where I was looking for eyepieces to go with my Short Tube Achromat. Here the advice was that the Pentax XW wasn't ideal as it does show up slightly more of the chromatic abberations inherent in the scope. The suggestion was to explore older designs (Orthos and Plössls) or more vintage eyepieces (Swarowski) that were made more with achromatic views in mind (presumable before the Apos became much more affordable and poplar or something to do with microscopes and/or spotting scopes). The Baader Classic Ortho was one affordable suggestion so have a 10mm coming to compliment the 6mm I already have. 

I've recently discovered orthoscopics and it has been a bit of a revelation for me. I was quite impressed with the brightness and contrast of ortho's and some designs which give similar views. I have a pair of 18mm BCO's for my binoviewer and I rate them as good as my Astro Hutech ortho's.

It was this 18mm AH ortho' that started it for me.

Later I acquired this five element Antares UPL 'Plossl' which gave views that were so orthoscopic-like I ended up acquiring the Baader 10 and 35mm Eudiascopics.

They were not cheap, but I certainly haven't been disappointed.

[iPeace]

3 hours ago, Brasspoodle said:

There certainly is some comfort in knowing you have some of the better eyepieces going around. Kind of takes one aspect out of the equation when trying to see objects better. If something is not visible it's not the eyepieces fault!

Exactly

[iPeace]

3 hours ago, Mak the Night said:

I know carrying it out piecemeal and assembling everything, let alone carrying my two main eyepiece cases as well, will take time, but that's half the fun for me.

I've stated elsewhere that enjoyment itself is the ultimate "grab and go" concept - the fun starts immediately, and includes setting up whatever gear you're using, no matter how long that may take, and indeed irrespective of how much subsequent viewing actually gets done.

3 hours ago, Mak the Night said:

Flexibility and adaptability is the key. To paraphrase the motto of the Special Air Service: 'Who dares views'.

On a similar theme - I'm no angler, but I've heard it said there's a reason they call it "fishing" as opposed to "catching"...

[iPeace]

4 hours ago, Mak the Night said:

Of course, with any portable gear there has to be compromises, principally in aperture size usually.

For me, actual weight turned out to be quite a surprise. My first scope is the carbon fibre ED70, and I remember my novice worries about it being attached to a camera tripod by a single screw . What did I know? Along comes the TV85, which seems to qualify as "grab and go" by quite a margin, and it is so much heavier...I now catch myself picking up the ED70's case and wondering weather the scope is actually in it.