First Impressions & Unboxing Vid of ES 17mm 92 Degree

[Drkneb]

I've long wanted this eyepiece for the 92-degree field which supposedly has enough eye relief for glasses wearers but found it a bit difficult to conceptualize the size and the price was steep. So during the ongoing Explore Scientific Sale I picked one up.

As luck would have it the sky cleared Friday night and I've had first light despite an 8+ day moon in the sky. The eyepiece has some weight, but the bulk is low down the barrel so this helps mitigate the mass a little. We had a look at M13, M3 and some star fields through my Tak 100mm DC and the Tak 78. The field is sharp and easy to take it all in even with eyeglasses on and I didn't need to turn my head with the 44x presenting these globulars with just a hint of resolution. Oddly I found the eyepiece reminiscent of the Edmund 28mm RKE as the image just appeared to float in front of me. Another oddity was that my observing partner didn't need to adjust the focus which we've had to do essentially any other eyepiece we've ever used together for the past 12 years. The view reminds me of a binocular view where the image scale makes the field appear larger.

Unboxing Video of the Explore Scientific 17mm 92 Degree Eyepiece

Clear skies,

Chris

[Louis D]

On 01/05/2023 at 04:12, Drkneb said:

Another oddity was that my observing partner didn't need to adjust the focus which we've had to do essentially any other eyepiece we've ever used together for the past 12 years.

Do both of you always swap views after focusing for infinity using distance vision eyeglasses or contacts?  If not, it is unreasonable to expect the eyepiece/telescope combination to be focused at the same distance for two observers that have native eye focus at different distances.  If you are focusing for infinity with other eyepieces and both observers have distance corrected vision, I'm not sure why you needed to adjust focus with those other eyepieces and not the ES-92 17mm.

[Louis D]

BTW, does anyone know why the current popularity of unboxing videos exists?  I find them completely uninteresting.  At the end of the video, I still have no idea if the item is any good for its intended use.  I only include images of the packaging in my reviews to satisfy those who find that sort of thing essential to a review.

[Franklin]

7 minutes ago, Louis D said:

BTW, does anyone know why the current popularity of unboxing videos exists?

Because we are all like a bunch of big kids at Christmas😁.

[johnturley]

6 minutes ago, Louis D said:

BTW, does anyone know why the current popularity of unboxing videos exists?  I find them completely uninteresting.  At the end of the video, I still have no idea if the item is any good for its intended use.  I only include images of the packaging in my reviews to satisfy those who find that sort of thing essential to a review.

I assume that some people do it to prove that the item was in condition it was at the time of opening, useful perhaps if the item has sustained some damage in transit.

john 

[John]

I'm not keen on unboxing movies generally. This one though I did find interesting - the arrival of some ES eyepieces at the Lowell Observatory. Some of the 3 inch gear included here which you don't get to see often and it is BIG stuff !!:

Unboxing Our New Explore Scientific Telescope Eyepieces - YouTube

I used to have the 17mm and 12mm ES 92 degree eyepieces and they were pretty large and heavy pieces even for 2 inch accessories. I didn't get on with the eye relief of these though so I let them go to new homes. Optically they were very impressive though.

Edited June 10, 2023 by John

[Franklin]

OMG, that eyepiece is as big as my telescope!

23 minutes ago, John said:

Some of the 3 inch gear included here which you don't get to see often and it is BIG stuff !!:

 

[rl]

Quote

OMG, that eyepiece is as big as my telescope

@ Franklin

Yep, I've seen the rings of Saturn through scopes with less aperture than the eyelens of the ES92...

Edited June 10, 2023 by rl

[badhex]

I was going to say the same thing - I've got scopes smaller than that 3" EP! 

[Zermelo]

On 10/06/2023 at 16:48, John said:

I'm not keen on unboxing movies generally. This one though I did find interesting - the arrival of some ES eyepieces at the Lowell Observatory. Some of the 3 inch gear included here which you don't get to see often and it is BIG stuff !!:

Unboxing Our New Explore Scientific Telescope Eyepieces - YouTube

I used to have the 17mm and 12mm ES 92 degree eyepieces and they were pretty large and heavy pieces even for 2 inch accessories. I didn't get on with the eye relief of these though so I let them go to new homes. Optically they were very impressive though.

 

I'm waiting for that guy to start posting on our "What did the postman bring?" thread.
I wonder if they've ordered any 3" filters to go with the eyepieces.

[F15Rules]

On 10/06/2023 at 17:08, Louis D said:

BTW, does anyone know why the current popularity of unboxing videos exists? 

I don't know the answer to that question..but I do know that it's never, ever taken me 8 minutes 45 seconds to unbox one and shove it in the focuser..

🙂🙃

Dave