Highest mag before breakdown?

[markclaire50]

41 minutes ago, djpaul said:

To be honest i never really push my 120ed above 150 x mag . 6mm 

If gives me a a comfortable sharp image at that range.

Hi. Interestingly, my 80mm ed can handle 150x as well as my 127mak on the same night and target. When I say handle, I mean maintain pin point stars. The frac punches above its weight. 

[markclaire50]

13 minutes ago, scarp15 said:

There is considerable good advice by Al Nagler; 'Choosing an Eyepiece - Step by Step'; which you can easily search for online.  A quote from this article

Remember, that choosing the lowest-high power eyepiece that reveals the detail you're looking for, you'll have a brighter, sharper appearing more contrasty image. Too high a power may reveal telescope limitations, mount shakiness and floaters in your eyes.

 

Thanks. I've also read that 25x per inch achieves full resolution. After that it's just a matter of making that resolution more obvious. Does this sound correct? 

[markclaire50]

I have another story. 

Many years ago, when Jupiter was high in the night sky, just out of curiosity I decided to put my little £100 spotting scope on a camera tripod and see what it looked like. The spotting scope was a 15-45 x 60mm. Imagine my surprise when I could see two pale brown bands on its disc, at 35x! I even asked my wife to come out and tell me what she could see. I never mentioned anything beforehand, but she confirmed the two bands. I then thought, let's try Saturn, also High in the sky. Again, sharp image at 35x. Gap between globe and ring very clear. Again, my wife confirmed I wasn't hallucinating! 

As soon as I tried to push to 40x, image went mushy. I tried this scope on mars when it was at opposition (not last year; I can't remember the year). I had the 'feeling' there was an albedo difference on the surface at 35x, but I could never be sure. I had the feeling I wasn't far off though with that scope. 

Goes to show what can be done when circumstances are right. 

Mark

[dweller25]

10 hours ago, markclaire50 said:

Very interesting, Dweller. A range of 2.5:1 with majority about 50% above aperture. Is the FS an apo? 

Yes it’ a 5” APO

You may find this review interesting......

http://scopeviews.co.uk/SW127Mak.htm