Do you think apos will ever come down in price, given enough time?

[GordonCopestake]

Oh yes, I forgot about the flat field Steve. Quadret petzvals anyone?

[russ]

Quadret petzvals = rubbish!

[GordonCopestake]

cheap though

[FLO]

Gordon, I am sure an ED80 with a nagler will give better views than a similare aperture TV with a budget EP

I agree

Odd isn't it, people will spend big money on a scope then use a set of eyepieces off ebay, or wherever!

Most scopes are better than most eyepieces are capable of showing!

[russ]

Quadret petzvals are okay for the visual observer, completely useless for the imager. Colour correction appears to be not much better than your average achromat. But they are cheap, especially the Scopos jobbies - £159

[The Warthog]

Gordon, I am sure an ED80 with a nagler will give better views than a similare aperture TV with a budget EP

I agree

Odd isn't it, people will spend big money on a scope then use a set of eyepieces off ebay, or wherever!

Most scopes are better than most eyepieces are capable of showing!

Yep. The best view of Jupiter I've ever had was through a Skywatcher 6" Dob, with a Pentax eyepiece. Improving my eyepiece kit has def improved my views.

[FLO]

Its a bit like photography - amateurs talk cameras, pros talk lenses and tripods.

[GordonCopestake]

Its a bit like photography - amateurs talk cameras, pros talk lenses and tripods.

Yup. Infact photographers i know buy camera bodies just to be able to use specific lenses.

[FLO]

Yup. Infact photographers i know buy camera bodies just to be able to use specific lenses.

You can add me to your list Gordon

[tenbyfifty]

Since you guys brought up the subject of eps, while I am still borrowing an etx 90 (focal length 1250) I was thinking of getting a decent quality 7mm to get the maximum mag (180) for the return of the old ring-master himself,Saturn. I was prepared to splash out on a meade 5000 series, trouble is they don't seem to do a 7mm .

Can anyone recommend a similar price/quality 7mm ep?

[FLO]

I have a SH Meade Series 4000 6.4mm Super Plossl for sale - £29

http://tinyurl.com/plkyk

[GordonCopestake]

7mm T1? Steve has one for sale for £99 if you can go to that

http://stargazerslounge.co.uk/index.php?topic=6700.0

[tenbyfifty]

I have a SH Meade Series 4000 6.4mm Super Plossl for sale - £29

http://tinyurl.com/plkyk

Is there much difference between the 4000 and 5000 series?

[GordonCopestake]

They are just marketing numbers for different eyepiece designs. However even within the 4000 and 5000 ranges there are different designs so they are doubly meaningless. Best to read reviews for the specific eyepiece you are looking at buying

[FLO]

Is there much difference between the 4000 and 5000 series?

In short, 4000 series have 52 degrees AFOV compared to the Series 5000's 60 degrees.

Optically, they are about equal.

Alternatively, you could barlow one of your existing eyepieces... Have you anything around 15mm?

[GordonCopestake]

Steve, what about the 4000 QX, 4000 Super wides, 4000 Ultra wide, 5000 super wide, 5000 ultra wide etc etc etc all different designs AFAIK

[Albireo380]

Hi Steve, You could always splash out on a 7mm Nagler - 82 degrees aFOV and gives "spacewalk" views - you may need to sell your children to be able to afford it though.

Tom

[FLO]

I see what you mean Gordon; I am assuming tenbyfifty is talking about the regular 4000 and 5000 series...?

[FLO]

Hi Steve, You could always splash out on a 7mm Nagler - 82 degrees aFOV and gives "spacewalk" views

Hi Tom, I'm the one selling, tenbyfifty is the one looking

But yes, I also have a 7mm type 1 Nagler for sale - fantastic eyepiece 8)

[GordonCopestake]

Actually i was looking for a 7mm nagler, but i was more thinking the T6 rather than the T1. Cheap though

[tenbyfifty]

Best to read reviews for the specific eyepiece you are looking at buying

which one would best for planets, especially saturn - should i go for an orthoscopic?

and how come there's a £30 price difference between the 4000 and 5000 series if they optically equal?

as for barlowing I haven't got a decent apo barlow which seems to be around £80 and the only thing around 15mm I've got is the 12mm that came with the skylux 70mm

[GordonCopestake]

Not always, but as a rule the more you pay for an eyepiece the better it is. You are best putting a budget on your spending and then buying the eyepiece that suits your budget. However there is always an eyepiece that is better for JUST THAT LITTLE BIT MORE MONEY!

[The Warthog]

Best to read reviews for the specific eyepiece you are looking at buying

which one would best for planets, especially saturn - should i go for an orthoscopic?

and how come there's a £30 price difference between the 4000 and 5000 series if they optically equal?

as for barlowing I haven't got a decent apo barlow which seems to be around £80 and the only thing around 15mm I've got is the 12mm that came with the skylux 70mm

Antares makes a 7mm Ortho. I wouldn't suggest buying this, though, as you would only be able to use it on nights of very good seeing. I would suggest getting a 14 or 15, and Barlowing it. Celestron makes a decent Barlow in the Ultima line that should fill all your needs. There are other Barlows in the same price range that are decent.

[tenbyfifty]

Antares makes a 7mm Ortho. I wouldn't suggest buying this, though, as you would only be able to use it on nights of very good seeing. I would suggest getting a 14 or 15, and Barlowing it. Celestron makes a decent Barlow in the Ultima line that should fill all your needs. There are other Barlows in the same price range that are decent.

wouldn't a barlowed 15mm be subject to the same seeing conditions though - I'm assuming your reasoning is that the 15mm on its own would be useful at other times. The only problem is that given that I have a 12mm already I can't really see the need for a 15 , although I suppose it would be more comfortable to look through when barlowed than a 7mm on its own.

I could barlow the 12mm I suppose but that would be give me a mag of 1250/6 = 208 , wouldn't things get a bit blurrythen? I've also got a 20mm that came with the skylux 70 - how about barlowing that 3x which would give 187.5 mag - only slightly over the limit of a 90mm scope?

My main reservation is that the 12 and 20 are pretty bog standard eps so I am not sure that barlowing would work that well

[FLO]

and how come there's a £30 price difference between the 4000 and 5000 series if they optically equal?

Though optically they are more or less equal, the 5000 series have a wider field-of-view and so are more expensive.