Eyepiece Advice needed please.

[rwilkey]

14 hours ago, ukskies said:

Looking at your signature I see you have several manufacturers listed in you collection.

Hi Gary, buying eyepieces was a journey for me, I was always looking for something better; so I bought a better scope (the C100ED), then decided I needed better eyepieces for it and so it went on.  In some ways it would have been better and cheaper to jump in at the deep end to start with, but then my eyes would not have appreciated them as a lot of astronomy is learning how to 'see'.  So now I appreciate quality glass more.  Budget-wise, I went for the whole range of Explore Scientific 82º Series (eye-relief can be a bit short) to start with, but then a great offer of a 'job lot' came up on Ebay, 10 pcs, so I have added bits (second-hand) and now believe I have all I need.  Haven't got the heart to sell any of my older ep's as they were part of the journey.  If you want to save yourself some money, go for the best you can afford at this time.  Good luck with your choices!

[ukskies]

9 hours ago, rwilkey said:

Hi Gary, buying eyepieces was a journey for me, I was always looking for something better; so I bought a better scope (the C100ED), then decided I needed better eyepieces for it and so it went on.  In some ways it would have been better and cheaper to jump in at the deep end to start with, but then my eyes would not have appreciated them as a lot of astronomy is learning how to 'see'.  So now I appreciate quality glass more.  Budget-wise, I went for the whole range of Explore Scientific 82º Series (eye-relief can be a bit short) to start with, but then a great offer of a 'job lot' came up on Ebay, 10 pcs, so I have added bits (second-hand) and now believe I have all I need.  Haven't got the heart to sell any of my older ep's as they were part of the journey.  If you want to save yourself some money, go for the best you can afford at this time.  Good luck with your choices!

Thanks Robin, I guess trying different eyepieces and making your own evaluation is part of the fun.

Yes I will go for quality eyepieces as i believe it saves money and indeed frustration in the long run .

[ukskies]

Right I'm a bit restricted on my spend this month so would like to get maybe 2 premium eyepieces.

I have rather light polluted skies and will go to a dark sky site nearby on some occasions but mainly I'll be viewing from the LP back garden. With this in mind what focal lengths do I go for first?

I think the 7mm Pentax giving 214x might be a good choice for higher powered viewing though I would appreciate your input here too.

Which focal length would compliment my first choice (or yours) best as a first pair?

[Louis D]

I don't know if I said this before, but I find that I use powers between 75x and 100x the most often, so plan your purchases accordingly.  22 years ago, I started out with a 38mm Rini 2", a 14mm Pentax XL, a 9mm Vixen LV, and a 5.2mm Pentax XL.  I used the 14mm the most by far in my 8" Dob and only recently replaced it with 14mm Morpheus.

[rwilkey]

13 hours ago, ukskies said:

Which focal length would compliment my first choice (or yours) best as a first pair?

Knowing what I know now, the 24mm Panoptic would be my first choice for low power.  As for 'high' power, about 150x suits me best, this is perfect for Jupiter and the Moon, the most common objects I observe.  Saturn can take much higher (250x), so a 6mm, my favourite in this range is the William Optics SPL 6mm, a smart eyepiece that punches well above its price range.

Edited February 12, 2020 by rwilkey

[ukskies]

On 11/02/2020 at 23:44, Louis D said:

I don't know if I said this before, but I find that I use powers between 75x and 100x the most often, so plan your purchases accordingly.  22 years ago, I started out with a 38mm Rini 2", a 14mm Pentax XL, a 9mm Vixen LV, and a 5.2mm Pentax XL.  I used the 14mm the most by far in my 8" Dob and only recently replaced it with 14mm Morpheus.

Thanks Louis, that's interesting, assuming 1200mm fl for the scope that's around 85x mag?

[ukskies]

21 hours ago, rwilkey said:

Knowing what I know now, the 24mm Panoptic would be my first choice for low power.  As for 'high' power, about 150x suits me best, this is perfect for Jupiter and the Moon, the most common objects I observe.  Saturn can take much higher (250x), so a 6mm, my favourite in this range is the William Optics SPL 6mm, a smart eyepiece that punches well above its price range.

Thanks Robin, I like that suggestion, the 24mm Panoptic would give me about 65x in my Dob.

I will consider the 10mm XW instead of the 7mm then. That would give me 150x.

[rwilkey]

2 hours ago, ukskies said:

I will consider the 10mm XW instead of the 7mm then. That would give me 150x.

Hi Gary, that would be the perfect choice, I have the 10mm XW and it is excellent, with the 24mm Panoptic they will last you a lifetime.  The XW is a large piece mind you compared to the Pan, but the views in both are stunning and crystal sharp.

[Louis D]

7 hours ago, ukskies said:

Thanks Louis, that's interesting, assuming 1200mm fl for the scope that's around 85x mag?

Yep.  I find those mid-range power most useful for what I view such as open star clusters and nebula.  Even when viewing planets, dropping back in power often yields a better view.  I mainly use very high power for resolving globular clusters and splitting doubles.  I also like to push the magnification up on the moon sometimes, but I mostly resolve the bubbling of the atmosphere.

[ukskies]

8 hours ago, rwilkey said:

Hi Gary, that would be the perfect choice, I have the 10mm XW and it is excellent, with the 24mm Panoptic they will last you a lifetime.  The XW is a large piece mind you compared to the Pan, but the views in both are stunning and crystal sharp.

Thanks Robin, that's my first two eyepieces sorted then and I'll add to the collection as I go forwards.

The help is really appreciated, many thanks.

[ukskies]

3 hours ago, Louis D said:

Yep.  I find those mid-range power most useful for what I view such as open star clusters and nebula.  Even when viewing planets, dropping back in power often yields a better view.  I mainly use very high power for resolving globular clusters and splitting doubles.  I also like to push the magnification up on the moon sometimes, but I mostly resolve the bubbling of the atmosphere.

Hi Louis, thanks , that's more good info.

I know everything is dependant on the seeing on any given night but on really still nights what kind of magnification do you use on the moon?

[johninderby]

Maximum magnification on the moon depends on the scope. With my 8” classical,cassegrain I can use 550x on a good night and with my 80mm f10 ED about 200x. 

[John]

The maximum magnification that proves useful on various targets will vary depending on the seeing, the placement of the target and a few other factors. So its difficult to state what will and will not be useful with any certainty.

What you need is a range of high power options, more so than low or medium power options.

The XW 10 and Panoptic 24 is an excellent start towards a top eyepiece set

By the time it is complete you may well have spent significantly more than your scopes have cost of course !

 

[Louis D]

1 hour ago, ukskies said:

Hi Louis, thanks , that's more good info.

I know everything is dependant on the seeing on any given night but on really still nights what kind of magnification do you use on the moon?

I generally go by exit pupil.  I can tolerate exit pupils down to about 0.7mm with ease.  Below that, floaters and viewing discomfort start to dominate.

[ukskies]

12 hours ago, johninderby said:

Maximum magnification on the moon depends on the scope. With my 8” classical,cassegrain I can use 550x on a good night and with my 80mm f10 ED about 200x. 

Thanks John, I was just curious because I'd read on reviews of people using high powers on the moon with big scopes and excellent seeing.

I understand fully that most nights wont support that magnification.

[ukskies]

12 hours ago, John said:

The maximum magnification that proves useful on various targets will vary depending on the seeing, the placement of the target and a few other factors. So its difficult to state what will and will not be useful with any certainty.

What you need is a range of high power options, more so than low or medium power options.

The XW 10 and Panoptic 24 is an excellent start towards a top eyepiece set

By the time it is complete you may well have spent significantly more than your scopes have cost of course !

 

Thanks John, I'll keep adding to the collection as I go and yes the price of these eyepieces is rather high and I fully expect to spend much more than my scope cost.

[ukskies]

10 hours ago, Louis D said:

I generally go by exit pupil.  I can tolerate exit pupils down to about 0.7mm with ease.  Below that, floaters and viewing discomfort start to dominate.

Thanks Louis, I'm not really sure how small an exit pupil I will tolerate now with my old eyes, guess we'll soon know tho.

[JOC]

I find my 8" 200P Dob is happier at around x200 and maybe x240 if the conditions are really good - I don't get much use out of my 5mm XW Pentax - despite is being an excellent quality EP as with the 1200mm FL this gives x240 which I find is at the top of what works here in my bit of the UK.

[Louis D]

8 hours ago, ukskies said:

Thanks John, I was just curious because I'd read on reviews of people using high powers on the moon with big scopes and excellent seeing.

I understand fully that most nights wont support that magnification.

When I was using my 15" Dob regularly under Texas skies, 200x was loafing and 300x was consistently easy.  Aperture makes a huge difference if the atmosphere is stable and the optics are well figured.