Powermate or Barlow

[imtrappin]

Hi, I'm looking to get a decent Powermate or Barlow, budget is around £100, I have a Skywatcher 250 F 4.7 collapsable Dob and have been using it to view the planets but also want to get into viewing DSO's.

Could either get a ES barlow or a Tele vue powermate but unsure which to go for or there maybe another choice that I haven't considered

Thanks

[Zermelo]

Hello.

Powermates (new) are well above £100, but there are other brands of telecentric multiplier for that sort of money.

I'm not sure how your comment on planets and DSOs relates here. With your fast scope you would be getting wide views suitable for larger DSOs without multipliers. It's the planets where a Barlow or telecentric may prove useful.

Can you tell us which eyepieces you are using? As it's a Dob, I'm assuming you're asking for visual not imaging.

[imtrappin]

3 minutes ago, Zermelo said:

Hello.

Powermates (new) are well above £100, but there are other brands of telecentric multiplier for that sort of money.

I'm not sure how your comment on planets and DSOs relates here. With your fast scope you would be getting wide views suitable for larger DSOs without multipliers. It's the planets where a Barlow or telecentric may prove useful.

Can you tell us which eyepieces you are using? As it's a Dob, I'm assuming you're asking for visual not imaging.

Can get a 2nd hand Powermate for just over £100 or an ES Barlow for just under, i mentioned the Planets and DSO's as I've often been asked what I'm mainly looking at when asking about types of equipment.

At the moment I have a Nirvana 16mm ep and the stck ones that came with the scope but want to start adding to my collection.

I'm not that much into imaging at the moment but do have a Svbony camera which I've had a play around with

[Zermelo]

OK, so the Nirvana is a decent eyepiece. I'm presuming then that your shortest EP is a stock 10mm or so, which won't be great. You could Barlow the Nirvana at 2x and get around 150x which would be good for planets. Or perhaps a little more with 2.25x here:

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/barlow-eyepieces/baader-classic-q-225x-barlow.html

Edited October 15, 2022 by Zermelo
Confusing wording

[imtrappin]

So would a powermate be a better choice of the two but the barlow a cheaper option?

[RT65CB-SWL]

Hi @imtrappin and welcome to SGL. 

You may find these articles useful... Tele Vue Optics: Powermates especially the Powermate™ vs. Barlow section at the end and here... Tele Vue Optics: Barlows dedicated solely to Barlow's. 

[Zermelo]

41 minutes ago, imtrappin said:

would a powermate be a better choice of the two

I asked for opinions on that recently:
https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/397702-barlow-or-not/#comment-4273394

 

Also @zetareticulan has been reviewing and comparing Barlows:
https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/398554-svbony-sv137-2x-barlow

 

[Highburymark]

Powermates are optically excellent - for £100 I would jump at it without hesitation. Only the very best barlows are as good, though I haven’t used the ES one you refer to.