Review: University Optics 2" 2x Barlow

[iceman]

Dave47Tuc has kindly written a review on the 2" 2x Barlow from University Optics.
You can read the review from the IceInSpace Reviews (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/?reviews) page, or directly by clicking on the link below:

University Optics 2" 2x Barlow (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/index.php?id=42,239,0,0,1,0)

Thanks very much to Dave for writing the review!

If you'd like to submit a review for something, just contact me!

[Starkler]

Nice review Dave.

I noticed in the pictures that the barlow doesnt seem to be sitting all the way into the focuser. Did you have to pull it out some to achieve focus?

Good thing you have a crayford focuser Dave, I'd hate to think how the standard r&p focuser would go with such weight hanging off it :lol:

Looking forward to catching up with you. Id love to compare your barlow with my Celestron Ultima in use with 1.25' eyepieces.

[elusiver]

top review! i'd love to see a review comparing the UO 2" to soemthing regarded as a good 1.25" barlow for use with 1.25" eyepieces like the Shorty Plus, as they don't have that much between them in terms of price. I think as alot of us meer mortals who don't have a case full of naglers, really only have 1 or 2 2" eyepieces. Which is why I was looking at getting at either replacing my GSO 1.25" with either a Shorty Plus or 2" barlow, as I figured with the 2" i could barlow my superview and still barlow my 1.25's.

Dave.. and AN looks awesome :D What's that underneather the scope? Do you carry a slab of concrete to where you observe?

el :)

[chunkylad]

Thanks for the great revue Dave

You must be sidekick, err pyschic. I ordered a UO 2" barlow from Daniel a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately, he was out of stock. I twas sent on Wednesday, so I'm hoping it's here later today - in time for our local group's observing night on Saturday.

I don't have the range of EPs you do Dave, but I do have a nice SV 30mm EP to try it out on.

Cheers

[Dave47tuc]

Thanks dave and All for the feedback. Your 30 mm will be much improved with the barlow :thumbsup:

[Dave47tuc]

:rofl: :rofl: No I don't carry the concrete around. But it is where I plan to put my Observatory in the future. :thumbsup: The AN system is very :cool:

Thanks for your comments. :D

[Dave47tuc]

Thanks Geoff, Hope to catch up with you over the next week or two. :D
The Barlow does have to come out of the focuser a bit as seen in the pictures, to get focus. The 31 and Barlow is something to see :scared: :rofl: :rofl:

[ving]

the why does it appear to be sitting out of the focuser a fair way dave?

nice writeup by the way :)
if I decide to get a 2" barlow I'll probably get this one :)

[elusiver]

:lol: sorry dave.. i just thought cause u have your car in the picture with the boot open it looks like you had driven to a dark sky site.. i assume u'r putting u'r observatory in your backyard?? do u drive to u'r backyard?? :P ;) :D j/k

el :)

[davidpretorius]

I really enjoyed this review. Thankyou very much for taking the time. It is simply great!

What do you suggest as counterweights?

Are you coming to starcamp with everything shown?

Up until now, I could not have given a toss about Naglers (not in my sight screen for a fair while, rather get other stuff first, best not to even dream about them yet!), but your descriptions started to make some serious connections somewhere deep inside and i can see myself getting in big trouble soon when i buy one and have to explain to the wife!

I had always thought shorty plus, but as i have the adapter from 2" to 1,25", it really shouldn't matter. At least my ultra wide can fit in the 2" and also the 1.25".

Top report, i may have already said that, but it deserves a double congrats!!

[Dave47tuc]

el :rofl:
I suppose it does look a bit funny. But really I use my boot for all the Ep's etc. Same as when I'm out in the field. On a table everything gets so dewie :whistle: I hate it. As I can drive in the backyard :whistle: You can see what I do. Observatory is going in the backyard :shrug: and not in the boot :rolleyes: Mite be worth looking into :D

dave yes I will be at the star camp with the lot, but not my car :doh:
Coming with a friend and we are going in his 4wd. :D

Looking foward to it. the camp that is :rolleyes:
I'm sorry to say but after the camp I know what will be on your shopping list.
There will be a few Nag's and Pentax's etc on show at the camp.
Once you have a peek :scared2:
The wallet or credit card will burn. My wife has said one more Ep's then my life will not be worth living :scared:

[Dave47tuc]

Yes David it does need to sit out a bit. No problem with the focuser I have.
The normal R&P one ouch! :eek:

[ving]

i have a r n' p :(

[Starkler]

Ving , its only a problem if your hanging something heavy off it , like a 31mm nagler which weighs about a kilo :lol:

[jps]

If I use a 2" barlow can I use 1-1/4" eyepieces by using the adapter that comes with my focuser? The reason I would want to do this is that I may one day buy a paracorr for my f/4 newtonian. TV say you can't use 1-1/4" barlows with the paracorr.

[chunkylad]

My 2" UO Barlow arrived this morning. Hoping it will see first light tonight. :cool: My standard 2" - 1.25" adaptor fits straight into it.

Cheers

[chunkylad]

Hi guys'n'gals

My UO 2" barlow saw first light this morning. Saturn. Mars and Luna were the targets, just before dawn.


Thi barlow allowed me to step up my GSO 6mm and 4mm eps to 500x and 750x respectively. Talk about up close and personal. Excellent results. Crisp and clear to the edge of fov. Awesome also in combination with the 30mm 2" GSO Superview.:thumbsup: I did find it needed some extension in the Crayford focusser to achieve focus, but this is no prob.

Very happy with this unit, so far. Planning try it out on DSOs tonight.

Cheers

[davidpretorius]

The 4mm and 6mm were easy on the eye at those magnifications??

Sounds like you are having fun. 2" sounds like the way to go.

How fast were the planets moving across the field of view?

[chunkylad]

Hi David

I have no great problem with the Eye Relief afforded by these two (4mm & 6mm) eps. The beauty of the barlow is that the ER stays the same. You guessed it though. At these magnifications, anything viewed through a plossl ep just scoots through the narrow fov. Not a great drama, you just get a lot of practice at nudging your Dob.:poke:

I'd love to have a bo peep through a super wide fov ep like a Nagler at these focal lengths.

I have on order a Narrow Band Pass filter from DGM optics in the USA in the 1.25" configuration. However, now that I have a decent 2" Barlow, I am leaning towards another 2" GSO SV ep - the 42mm, for DSO hunting; especially for planetary nebs. If the DGM NBP filter proves its worth, I may get its big brother as well.:cool: I find I really like the 'spacewalk' feeling I get from these budget priced eps. They're big bazookas (especialy combined with the UO 2" Barlow), and in that regard, not everyone's cup of tea. But I like 'em. I might think differntly if I had heaps to spend

Cheers

[davidpretorius]

do you have to use weights at all?

my 6,5mm series 500 was fine last night with good seeing, but useless most of the time. I am please that the 4 and 6 in the gs are good.

have you seen andrews ultra wide 80 degree 30mm?

i have one, very nice!!!

great for dso hunting and i would be keen to stick it in a 2" barlow to get 15mm

What was the cost of this barlow and can you get higher magnifications.

How big did saturn look in your 4mm ie filled the eyepiece??

I am doing some planning for star camp end of october, ie two good eyepiece, a good barlow to cover planetary and dso's

[Dave47tuc]

Well done Dave :thumbsup: Glad you like the UO Barlow :D
500x & 750x :scared: Must of had good seeing ;)

Enjoy your sky :D

[chunkylad]

Hi Daves

To answer David p first: No, I didn't have to use any additional counter balance weights. It seems that the spring tensioners are adequate.

No, I haven't seen the GS UW eps. I have read in this forum that they tend to have only around 80% useable fov, that is, there are seagulls filling the edge of the fov. How have found them?

The UO 2" is a 2X barlow. See Frontier Optics accessories page for other barlows. They have this as well:William Optics 2.5x 2" APO barlow.See thier webpage. http://www.frontieroptics.com/Barlow%20Lens.html

:jawdrop: Yes, Saturn took up a fair chunk of the fov!!! Have fun at the star camp mate. Wish I could be there!!!

Dave Tuc, the seeing early this morning was exceptional.:thumbsup: My wife was blown away by the intimate close-up view of some of the Lunar mountains at high mag.

Dave W

[gaa_ian]

Hmm ... one of these would go well with my UO Konik 2" 40mm EP.
I made the mistake of ordering a "Shorty" barlow & not the "shorty plus"
There must be a big difference, as I almost never use the shorty as it looses to much light !

[davidpretorius]

Thanks Dave, for helping us daves out!

[chunkylad]

Bad news

Just had an email from Daniel at Frontier Optics. UO are no longer going to supply their 2" Barlow.

Dave #17

[Dave47tuc]

Wonder why :shrug:

Geez glad I got mine before the no more sale :whistle:

[davidpretorius]

bugga, now off to edit my signature

[gaa_ian]

This thread has been Idle for a while now but ...
Are the Daves stilll happy with their UO 2x barlows ?
Seems they are still available direct from UO in the USA :)

[Dave47tuc]

I sold mine to geoff (Starkler) :P

[gaa_ian]

Hmm .... So Dave, were you happy with it ?
If not, where did you find it underperformed ?

[Dave47tuc]

Great barlow IMO one of the best around. :)

I sold it because I now have a Maksutov at FL 1800. I don't need a barlow like that one. :)

[janoskiss]

I've got one of them barlows now, and it is a beauty. My old Shorty Plus got the sack the day I tried the 2" barlow. You want negatives, here: There is noticeable light scatter when barlowing high contrast eyepieces like TV Plossls and UO HD orthos. The views are still awesome just a little diffuse scattering of light is noticeable. That's about it.

On the + side, my 19mm Panoptic in the barlow makes for a fantastic 9mm wide view EP, very sharp on-axis and good sharpness to the very edge (and beyond :P, 6 stars in trapezium edge-to-edge no sweat).

[gaa_ian]

OK ...that pretty much settles it.
I'm getting one :drink:

[chunkylad]

I'm in love with mine!!!!:love:

As Steve has mentioned, Outstanding performance with both my 19mm Panoptic, and UO HD Ortho.

Good luck in procuring one;)
Dave

[gaa_ian]

I have just put in an order with UO in the States :drink:

[janoskiss]

I still want to see how a Televue barlow and powermate would perform in comparison. The Powermate is described as an apparently "nothing there" barlow, so I might expect the throughput, sharpness and contrast of the EP being powermated to be preserved... :shrug: Would love to see one in action. 4 elements though, so there's got to be significant light loss even with the best multi-coatings...

[gaa_ian]

Well, I am :sad: to report that it is true, the UO 2" is no longer made.
Despite it being on the UO website, when I enquired about it they confirmed it was no longer manufactured.
So I am still without a 2" barlow :confuse3: , back to the drawing board.

[janoskiss]

This is one diehard thread! :P
Pity about the UO 2", Ian. Maybe they are still made just not sold as UO products. Mine is not actually a UO branded one. Maybe the new GS ED barlows are worth a look.

[gaa_ian]

Thanks for the Tip Steve, BD (Ken) is very happy with his GS 2" barlow
Apparently it works well with the GS 32mm? Superview, taking away all the nasty seagulls at the edge of the FOV !
I will look out for the new ED version, I guess Bintel & Andrew would have it ?

[gaa_ian]

We will have to start a new thread "review of 2" GS ED barlow" :P

[janoskiss]

MyAstroshop has them on their website for $120.

[ausastronomer]

Steve,

You really only use the TV powermate when looking at bright targets like the moon, planets or double stars and the light loss is not detectable to the eye. It probably is with sensitive instruments. By the same token I have also observed a large number of DSO's with the powermate and again if there was any light loss it was minimal and I could not detect it. Best barlow I have ever used, superb and I own 2 other good ones besides the powermate.

CS-John B

[gaa_ian]

Thanks Steve !