Eyepieces for Skywatcher 150PDS - F/5 Newtonian?

[masjstovel]

Hi,

Background:
I've ordered, yet not recieved my first telescope, mentioned in the topic.

I'm planning to do a bit AP, but will mainly use prime focus for that, but eyepieces good for the projection method is welcome as well.

As i've never tried a telescope before, i guess i want to do planetary observation, lunar observation, nebulas, clusters, and pretty much you name it.

If i can get away with some perfect eyepieces for a cheap price, I am happy, - but if it costs me to get something good, then i am prepared for that too.

I dont get surprised of the prices anymore since my original budget on this new "hobby" has blewn out of proportion already anyways.

"A telescope probably costs a couple of hundred bucks, can i please buy one" I told my girlfriend. 1000 bucks and 2 weeks later, here I sit with no eyepieces to see stuff in my fancy telescope that hasn't arrived.

 

I've been reading/watching up on eyepieces the last week, and i seem to turn back to my start-position which is zero clue, no matter how much i study this subject.
I've feel i've learned the most from this article: https://agenaastro.com/choosing-eyepieces-for-your-telescope.html#price

According to the article, i've ended up with that i need:
2.5mm minimum 60deg AFOV = exit pupil 0.5mm, 300x magnification
10 mm minimum 60deg AFOV = exit pupil 2.0mm,  75x magnification
25 mm minimum 60deg AFOV = exit pupil 5.0mm,  30x magnification

2x Barlow

Other articles suggests i can just forget about 300x magnification..

 

When I use the info i've learned from the different articles and youtube videos to find a specific eyepiece, then i see the reviews of them saying things like:

'"The field edges get ragged quite quickly as the focal ratio drops below aorund F/7"

"Works pretty good on a F/10, but…" 

All in all, i feel there is just alot of information floating around and only "it depends"-answers when trying to find anything specific.

 

 

So I guess my question is; does anyone have any specific eyepieces to recommend for this specific scope, given what i stated in the beginning of the post?

-Bjørn
 

[mikeDnight]

Baader Hyperion eyepieces may be a good choice without breaking the bank.

Powers of 300X are generally only used relatively rarely and only on certain objects. Jupiter for example will not benefit from over magnification, as although the image scale will increase, the intricate detail will be lost. The Moon and Mars can most definitely benefit from high powers when the seeing is good. Mars particularly benefits from high magnification, especially when it is below 10 arc seconds in diameter. However, a general rule of thumb is to use a maximum power that still presents a sharp image. Even though the image scale may appear small, it contains all the detail you will see, so you'll need to train yourself to carefully and critically observe the detail. The best way is to spend time letting your eye naturally scan whatever it is you're looking at, allowing the detail to build up in your mind. What first appears to be a relatively featureless object may soon develope into a breathtakingly detailed view, but patience is required. So feel free to ignore what books say about the use of high powers and experiment for yourself. When the seeing is steady high powers can be very impressive, but that doesn't occur on every night.

[rwilkey]

I agree with Mike above, 300x is not possible most of the time, I would go for a 5mm which will give you a very satisfying 150x, the optimum mag for Jupiter.  Saturn will take more magnification but 150x is a great value.

[pregulla]

F/5 is going to be pretty demanding on eyepieces. Eyepiece recommendation depends on your budget and how much off axis performance is important to you. Eyepieces that will perform well over most of the field are going to be expensive. 

For low power I would consider something like ES68 24mm (widest field in 1.25" format) and well corrected over most of the field. To cover mid-high power range I would recommend zoom eyepiece + 2x barlow. It will cover the range for first time while you are getting used to your equipment and discover your observing preferences. Later you may decide what focal length you use the most and what fixed focal length eyepieces to buy, or maybe you find out that you like the zoom so much that you are ready to spend on something like Leica zoom.

I started with Celestron zoom, beacuse it's cheap and decent quality. With SkyWatcher SWA70 32mm and 2x barlow it got me covered until I came across a good deal on ES68 24mm and ES82 30mm. I am still not sure about the zoom. I like the convenience, but I miss wide AFoV sometimes. So my next step was getting ES68 16mm and ES82 11mm when I found a good deal on these (still waiting for them to arrive).

[masjstovel]

Thanx alot for the advice @mikeDnight, @rwilkey and @pregulla
I hear good Things about Baader, but I'm from Norway and there is like 3 retailers for astronomy merchendise, and none of them supply Baader eyepieces.

@rwilkey: I've found ES82, 4.7mm, 6.7mm, 8.8mm, 11mm and 14mm for 1.25". Will that do you think, or is 82deg degrading the quality on this scope? In then thinking 4.7, 11mm and find a 24mm or go for another brand 24-25mm.
Also, i wonder what 2X Barlow to buy. The Sky-Watcher 2X Barlow, is that worth it?

[mikeDnight]

Sky watcher Nirvana are amazing eyepieces with an 82° field. Well worth checking them out!

[pregulla]

Can't you buy from somewhere else in Europe that ship to Norway? I have bought some stuff from FLO and their shipping costs are very reasonable and I am not even in Europe.

ES82 should perform well. Better than Hyperions, but with shorter eye relief. Morpheus will perform well and have long eye relief, but are more expensive. The spacing between 24-11-4.7mm seems too big to me and barlowed values will overlap with existing eyepieces. Something like 24mm, 14mm, 8.8mm + 2x Barlow will be more versatile or 16mm Nirvana (not sure how it compares to ES82) and 11mm ES82 in stead of 14mm and 8.8mm

Can't comment on the SW barlow.

[masjstovel]

@pregulla thanks for your reply. I'm not sure which eye-relief i prefer, since i havent seen through a scope yet. Fortunately i have perfect vision so i dont use glasses or anything like that.

When Ithink about it I agree with you it seems like a smart thing to og for 8.8mm, 14mm and 25mm to not overlap too much. 

Well the thing is that there is customs to pay in addition when i buy elsewhere in Europe. It's no totally hopeless though because there is, i think, 25% customs, so i can save money in relation to Norwegian prices anyway. I mean a pint of beer costs $10 in this country...

@mikeDnight i've seen  different 1.25" Sky-Watcher 82deg eyepieces, but I cant remember the Nirvana name. Do they og under a different name too?

[mikeDnight]

I don't think they have other brand names, but they were taken off the market for a short time to enable a slight redesign of the eyepiece body. I think they make them in the 28mm (2"), 16mm, 7mm and 4mm focal lengths (all 1.25"). The Barlow very well and are sharp to the edge, as well as offering great contrast. 

 

[Kusanagi]

They are now called Nirvana - ES, this what they look like now.

As far as I know only the 16mm, 7mm and 4mm are currently available in this new design ( all 1.25" ).

[pregulla]

I think Nirvana are the same as WO UWAN. Maybe they come under some other names.

If you don't wear glasses you may find out that you are fine with short eye relief eyepieces. You may find out that you still prefer longer eye relief though. It's a matter of personal preference and you need to look through something to have a baseline.  24mm will most likely have longer eye relief anyway, so maybe the best strategy will be to be patient and get 2 eyepieces, 24mm and 14mm for example, and see how you feel about it and work from there. If you don't mind the short eye relief you may go ahead and buy more shorter ER eyepieces with a peace of mind, or if you don't, you have only one eyepiece to replace.