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advice for quality/size but affordable eyepieces for meade 8" lx200 for novice


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hi there,could you possibly give me any advice.im trying to set up a meade 8"classic lx200.it only came with a 17mm unrecognizable make,and ive done as much research being completly new to astronomy,makes,pricerange etc.as i can. i understand meade 5000 is the equivelent and least quality i should be looking for,but was also advised 40 and 32mm eyepieces are not advisable for my telescope .do you know what would be good size eyepieces to aim for,i also contacted guy selling vixen nlv 25 s.would one of these be ok.im nowhere near wealthy,but i dont want to waste potential of scope with inadequate eyepices,your advice much app :withstupid: :( reciated,and i might get to viewing before summer if the rain stops and iv got some eyepieces,cheers

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A 32mm eyepiece would work just fine with your scope and you won't have to spend much money - 32mm Plossls seem to come up for £20 or so 2nd hand or a bit more new. Most brands will work fine in your scope as it's long focal length means that it's not too fussy - you don't need to spend a lot to get decent performance. If you got a 8mm or 10mm plossl as well tha would give you a reasonable range of magnification.

John

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For the native f10 of the LX200, or later when you "try" the focal reducer, down to around f6, you'll find any of the Plossls will be good enough for 99.9% of your observing. In my opinion, the expensive alternatives are just that... expensive alternatives..

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In my opinion, the expensive alternatives are just that... expensive alternatives..

I think that's a touch harsh. I've most of the Hyperion range and they're great eyepieces for the money, but I had the opportunity to borrow a 17mm Nagler at Kelling year before last and it simply blew my Hyperions away. In a slow scope you could get away with some of the cheaper widefields and not suffer too many abberations as you would if you were using them in a faster scope.

Tony..

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I don't disagree. I have a couple of Naglers and they are very good.

I was just considering original question; the 8" LX200 and its capabilities.

I've used TV plossls on my LX200's for the last twenty years and find they, for the cost involved, do a very good job.

(BTW the BEST eyepiece I have and use is an old Ziess 6mm Monocentric!)

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Indeed, I'd never argue with any of the TV range. Quality kit all round.

I'm coming round to the idea that like scopes, some eyepieces are better suited for certain jobs than others. Hence I picked up an old Meade research grade ortho in the theory that it'll outperform the Hyperion albeit with it's much more narrow FOV. If I find that's the case then I'll grab a couple of other orthoscopics to complement the Hyperions.

Tony..

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I used to have an 8in LX90 and the Series 4000 32mm Plossl worked just fine. The 40mm on the other hand was unusable. The Series 5000 are supposed to be better quality but my understanding is that 40mm is simply too wide for an 8in f/10 SCT causing the central obstruction on the primary to come into focus and obstruct the FOV.

I also have a set of UVO HD Orthoscopics with 60deg FOV and these also worked very well with the LX90 and certainly outperformed the series 4000 plossls. The only problem with Orthos is that the eye relief is very short which is likely to be a problem if you wear glasses.

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Suggesting eyepieces is very hard as most people have to work to a budget.

If you are one of these then I would go for the Baader Hyperion range. I have a few and they are excellent for the money. I also have the Telescope House Ortho's and they are very sharp though very poor eye relief.

If you are not on a budget then Nagler's all the way. I've looked through a 31mm once and it blew me away big time but the cost is huge.

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In an F/10 scope most eyepieces will provide nice views - even the really low cost ones like Kellners etc. Below F/6 though the situation is different and I have used low cost wide field eyepieces where the distortion of star images is so great in the outer parts of the FoV that it was really distracting wheras the eyepiece had been fine at F/10. Where it gets frustrating is when you have forked out a substantial amount of dosh and still find the distortion is there

Naglers and UWAN's are expensive but they do exactly what is claimed for them and the results, to my eyes at any rate, are very pleasing.

John

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The other thing to consider is your experience at the eyepiece. By that I mean the more you practise using your eye; the more you can see. It's a mixture of telescope, aperture, eyepiece and mind.

Unless you've experienced "average" eyepieces and what they can and can't do for you, you won't always appreciate the better views through a "top of the line" eyepiece.

Think of it like a pair of runners; you can buy something from Tesco and make a start..... but the ads for Nike etc always make it sound like they will be able to make you "run like the wind" in comform and style. The real challenge is getting out there and practising, improving your starts, stamina and abilities. Sure an expensive shoe may help you as a professional $$$$$$ athlete, but there's many, many of us "weekend hacks" who can enjoy a casual jog, just as well.

I started with a 6" f8 reflector (wildey mirror) and Ramsden eyepieces ( you may have to look that up in Google!)... moved onto my only 12mm Ortho for a year or so and it wasn't until I built a 12" f5 I realised what Coma etc was all about! Time to move to the Plossls. After 20 years they're still good for me; my eyes are not what they were and spending 200 GBP on an eyepiece would be wasted on me..

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Others have already mentioned that an 8" SCT will work well with just-about any eyepiece so you might not appreciate the extra quality afforded by the likes of Pentax or TeleVue the way someone with a faster, more demanding telescope would. That said, quality does matter and you will almost certainly appreciate a wider field-of-view. The Meade Series 5000 offer a good balance of quality, light weight and FOV. The Hyperions are also good choices - a wider FOV but larger and heavier.

Whatever you choose, you will need low, medium and high magnification eyepieces. Personally, staying below £100 per eyepiece, I'd probably opt for a 24mm Hyperion for low magnification, a 13mm Hyperion or 14mm Series 5000 for medium magnification and an 8mm Hyperion or 9mm Series 5000 for high magnifications.

HTH

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