"EyePieces"

[Striker]

I would like to know when the time comes should I be looking at 2" eyepieces or 1 1/4".......for my LX 200 10".

What do the rest of you meade owners use and what do you recommend as far as size and magnification......I want good quality pieces that are well priced....so no Naglers please....I will spend up to $250 each eyepiece approx......

I have bought the aluminium case but dont want to look at Foam until I decide what eyepieces to look at......

[Striker]

I just have the standard 26mm 1 1/4" that come with the Meade.......I want to start looking around for 1 or 2 eyepieces....

Got any Suggestions? 1 1/4" or 2"

[rumples riot]

Hey striker I have a 20mm and 12.5mm Meade 4000 series 1.25mm. I find that this combination works quite well with the 26mm that I received with the scope. Not that I do much viewing any more. Still quite a nice combo. I would like to get a couple of the series 5000 EP for super wide angle stuff.

I also have a 40mm Maxview Eyepiece which I sometimes use.

[silvinator]

Hey Striker, I would suggest that you get another one or two normal eyepieces - one from the high power range and another from medium power. A third, wide field eyepiece, probably two inch would also be a nice addition to an ep collection (one that I hope to add to mine soon!) The last sky and space had a great article about budget wide field ep's which there is a thread about lurking around here somewhere. Keep in mind that any scope will have a maximum useful magnification of about 300x, any higher and the effects of atmospheric blurring and seeing are just too much to bear. Do you have a barlow by the way? That would also double your ep collection as it effectively doubles the focal length of any eyepiece you have. That's something else to consider when you get more ep's, you don't want to end up with identical or similar magnifications. Also, there is a low power limit which is calculated by multiplying your telescope's focal ratio by 7. I personally have a 6.4mm, 9.7mm and 26mm (all meade series 4000) but I find I don't use the 6.4mm very much at all. The seeing is never good enough for it when I am out. I'd like to get a 15mm or 14mm wide field, and possibly a 30mm wide field too. Buying ep's used from o/s is a good way to save $$$. I've had no probs with the ones I bought. Good luck with your search.

[Striker]

Thanks Paul,

Would you consider 2" eyepieces ?

Whats a good price for the Meade 12.5, 20mm, 32mm super plossl 4000 series.

Tossing up between 1 1/4 or 2"....atm

[Striker]

I was thinking about buying the Meade Barlow 1 1/4 apochromatic 2 x for $135......

Do you think a widefield 1 1/4 is as good as 2"....not sure on prices.........looking atm...

I have already been told the Meade range arn't bad for their price but if you have others I will compare prices..

[silvinator]

hey Striker, quick, there's a guy from aus selling his barlow for AU$110. Here's the link:
astromart ad (http://www.astromart.com/classifieds/details.asp?classified_id=323745)

[Striker]

Just rung up Star optics Gold Coast getting some prices on the Series 4000 QX Wide Angle Eyepieces...range from $150 to $200.

the 36mm was $190 and the 15mm was $160....

Thanks Silvie for 2nd add...but I would prefer to buy new considering their only $135 for the same Barlow...but thanks anyway.

[[1ponders]]

Here's something to think about Tony.

If you get a barlow and a wide of around 35/36/40mm (whatever is available) and a 15mm then along with your current eyepiece you will have
35/36/40mm
26mm
17/18/20 mm
15mm
13mm
and 7.5mm
Not a bad range really, plus using the barlow keeps good eyerelief, just loose a bit of brighness.

Alternatively a 40, a 32, and a 12 with a barlow

Gives 40, 32, 26, 20, 16, 13, 10, 12, 6. Eight for the price of 4.

Am I teasing you enought :D:P

As far as high power go, I've never used my 4mm and only used the 6mm once or twice. Seeing is just rarely good enough.

Seriously though, think about what it is you want to look at and select your eyepieces accordingly. Galaxies, clusters and Nebs wide field, generally low power. Planets, moon, double stars medium to high power, wide field is not necessarily as important.

I'd suggest make that decision first. If you're unsure, then one of each (wide and low 35-40, and narrower and medium12-15) and a barlow.

In the end its a personal choice. See if you can get a chance to try some out first before you buy. Maybe the shop you got your scope from would be willing to lend you a couple, especially seeing how much you spent there. Its called "after sales service":D:D

[silvinator]

That's ok, I skipped the part in your post about it being only $135 new so it's not much of a saving when you include postage. Well I would definitely go with the barlow you mentioned, I have that as well and use it all the time.
Striker, are those prices for the 1.25" ep's? Well, they sound reasonably priced. What's the FOV on those QX wide angles anyway?

[Starkler]

Just to confuse you a bit more, ive heard the Meade 140 barlow is a bit of a dog in comparison to the Celstron Ultima or orion shorty-plus.

Realisticly one doesnt need a multitude of different focal length eyepieces and you will end up using just a few and the rest will collect dust most of the time.

Go for a 2 inch maximum fov eyepiece, and one that gives about 100x for dso viewing, and perhaps two others giving maybe 180x and 250x for viewing planets.

[Striker]

Thanks Paul....

And Silvie as far as I know the FOV is 70 degrees.....but dont quote me its just what I have read.....

Ok it looks like I will definetly be getting the 2 x Apochramitic Barlow for a start.....I may just get one of the Meade QX range while I am there for a start......

Thanks

[Striker]

Thanks Starkler...I know where all of you are coming from....and appreciate your comments.......

I think I would like both 2" and 1 1/4" eyepieces....so I will shop around....

[silvinator]

Hey Starkler, what specifically do these people say is the main fault of the meade 140 barlow? My use of it so far has not been negative, but I cannot compare its quality to a celestron or the orion shorty as I've never used either. The difference with the orion shorty though is that it is a two element achro design. I'm not sure how much that would affect the end view but it is significanty cheaper than both the meade and celestron 3 element apo designs. It's better to stick with the same brand accessories to your scope anyway isn't it? Unless of course, budget doesn't permit this. I say this because each company would design their accessories to perform very well with their own equipment wouldn't they? Not that I'm saying you shouldn't use other brands but it's just something to think about.
Striker, do get one of those QX's, I'd really like to see how good they are so you can be the guniea pig!

[Starkler]

Silvie ,sharpness of view and reflections/glare if I remember rightly, but then its 70% of the cost of the Orion also.

Don't confuse the Orion shorty with the Orion Shorty-plus !
The Orion shorty is an inferior cheap barlow, whilst the shorty plus is a 3 element apochromatic reputed to be near as good as a televue barlow.

As for sticking to brand names, its pretty rare that this is a problem with eyepieces.

Geoff

[silvinator]

Thanks Starkler, I had no idea there were those kinds of complaints around about that barlow. If I had another barlow to compare it to, I might be able to make a more informed comment...so, anyone wanna lend me a powermate?
Oops, my mistake, I guess I was talking about the cheaper orion barlow.
Also, I wasn't trying to say that using a different brand of eyepiece to the brand of the scope would be a problem at all. What I should have said is that people prefer to stick to the one brand for that very reason I mentioned in my above post. It definitely is just a matter of personal choice.

[Dave47tuc]

Striker,I've had the 10" for a couple of years.:)

I have used lots of eyepieces in it:whistle:

Forget buying anything other that 1 big 2 inch eyepiece. Say 31 Nagler or 35 Panoptic or 41 Panoptic. If you can't afford it yet. wait till you can or buy second hand:D

Then buy the Peterson eyeopener, you will need this with the above eyepieces.

22 Panoptic or Nagler next.

Then get a 12mm Nagler wait till you can afford it or again get one second hand.:D

As you will not get many nights you can use high power, go for the 9mm Nagler last.:)

My opinion but once you look through them there is no going back.
As i said have patience then get high end ones first and last
:cool:

Best.





:astron:

[beren]

:) Dav ive been trying to hold back :whistle: but thats a great combo ......i have a 32 meade SWA, 22 mm nag, 14 meade uwa and 9mm nagler , nice balance on mag values in conjuction with a focal reducer/barlow . The 22mm i use all the time , in fact some nights thats the only one i use , with a focal reducer/barlow and standard i get about 70x,113x,140x,226x...perfect for most nights ,excellent 20mm eye relief and exteme wide views.

[Dave47tuc]

Very nice Stuart:cool:
Meade 14 UWA very nice, I don't have this one as i have 16mm Nagler:P
22 Nagler wow:eyepop: Very very nice.

Best.


:astron:

[Striker]

Whats that.....?

The Meade 14 UWA...thats the new series 5000 Ultra wide with 82 degrees FOv isn't it...if so how much are they.........$

[Dave47tuc]

Have a look here:confuse3:
http://www.petersonengineering.com/SkyDiv/EO.htm

Best.


:astron:

[Striker]

Thanks Dave.....

I would love to go 2" so I may look at this.....but will only be able to afford 1 good eyepiece....unless your ready to sell those crapy nagler's...I heard their crap......lol....

Vermin...when you coming up to Brisbane next....and of course Aragorn your invited aswell......you too Dave....lol.....

[Dave47tuc]

Thanks:) :) :)
Never looked through a crapy Nagler:P

[Striker]

Yeah I know what I need now to set up for 2"...but I still think its about time you boys upgraded and sell of your Nagler's and wide view eyepieces cheap........to me preferable.:cool:

[Dave47tuc]

Show me a eyepiece that's better than my Nagler's and i'll buy it.:P

[Starkler]

The pentax comes close :P

[Starkler]

Tony in all seriousness you could do much worse than to get a GSO superview 30mm for $99.

It will perform much better in your f10 scope than it will in a f5 or f6 dob. Next step up performance wise is a televue panoptic at 5-6 times the price.

[Dave47tuc]

Yes Pentax's a very good and I would have them if I didn't have Naglers:whistle:

Best.


:astron:

[Striker]

I am going to a clubs viewing night tonight......the skies are looking ok so it gives me chance to look through what all their members are useing...

[ballaratdragons]

Hey Starkler,

Quote:
(Tony in all seriousness you could do much worse than to get a GSO superview 30mm for $99.

It will perform much better in your f10 scope than it will in a f5 or f6 dob.)


Whats wrong with a GSO Superview 30mm in an f6 Dobber?:confuse2:

[Starkler]

I would expect better edge correction at f10 where some say its not quite up there at f5-f6 but still good for the price.

At f10 I would expect it to be closer in performance to a panoptic than at f5.

[ballaratdragons]

Could you recommend a range of EP's for a GS 8" f6 Dobber.

I want to use 4 Plossl EP's @ 1.25"

and 2 GS (Andrews GS or Superview GS) EP's @ 2"

Ta

[Starkler]

I would go for 12.5mm, 15mm, 20mm and get a 30mm superview along with a 1.25" barlow.

[ballaratdragons]

Thanks.

What is your recommendation in GS 2" (2 sizes)

Also I was thinking 2" Barlow. Yes/No?

If 1.25" barlow - short or long?

[Striker]

Ok I have just returned from night viewing at the club......couldn't stay late as the wife wanted me home by 9:30pm....lol..."striker's under the thumb"...hehe

All I can say is I am happy I bought the Meade LX200.... Nothing they had their compared to my scope.....the best scope they had their was a Vixen 8" SCT on goto EQ mount....sorry but it was crap....the mount was so shakey compared the LX 200 fork mount....I was looking at saturn and just by manualy focusing the scope would shake badly....well not badly but could see a lot of movement......

Unfortunetly they didn't bring their 11" Celestron GPS SCT as that's the scope I really wanted to look at.....the majority of the scopes they had were Dobsonians ranging from 6" to 10"....but they were talking about one of their members who has just about finished his 30" dob costing about $30,000.00..

As far as eyepieces.....non were useing 2"..they all used 1 1/4 and nothing special either...I didn't see any nagler, pentax or panoptics...mainly plossl and super plossl eypieces.....I would have liked to have a look through some wide view and 2" eyepieces..oh well....

Was a good night though...learnt abit more about the stars.....saw many satelites and the hubble that come from the n/w around 8:30pm saw a comet and some more that I cant even prenounce the names so dont ask....lol....

[Starkler]

Tony, people who own expensive eyepieces often wont bring them out for public viewing nights.

It just takes one kid or clueless noob to stick their grubby finger on the eyelens saying "is this where I look?" and the good stuff never comes out again for the public. Similarly women wearing mascara make a mess of eyepieces.

[Mombat]

Lol isn't that what ving Dave47tuc is always saying the best telecscope is the one that you use. A 30" dob that that would be a nice scope to own without the price tag of course!!

[ving]

not a nice scope to move tho!!!!

[Striker]

For any of you people who have bought eyepieces overseas.

What company and websites have you used or found to be the best...I am comparing prices at the moment.

I have found heaps of overseas online websites where I can purchase virtualy every eyepiecs available but are wondering what company or website anyone has used....

I dont have any issues buying overseas as I have bought heaps of items in this way on Ebay....so if you can give a list or even 1 you have used and found to be credible.

[Starkler]

Perhaps you could start a new thread on this topic so more people will see and contribute.

[Striker]

Regarding Tele Vue Panoptic 22mm......what does it mean when its both 1 1/4" and 2"....I dont understand...are you still getting a 2" eyepiece.....Bintel has them for $465

Any disadvantages buying this eyepiece?

[beren]

No , its still a 1.25 inch eyepiece with a feild stop restriction of 27mm , but you still get the spacewalk feeling ....apparently so , i havent unfortunately looked through one , Dave has one though.the dual barrel system is for convenience , instead of replacing diagonals you can slip it into a 2inch diagonal. My 14meade UWA shares the same characteristic.

The 22 pan would like any televue eyepiece be great , the only thing i would be concered about is the tight eye relief , im thinking if it has a large objective glass because its a longer focal length eyepiece you might have to have your eye pretty close to capture the full feild . I think you would still need a 2 inch diagonal as well , it would be a bit unstable looking in a 1.25 , thats even if works with one .

If it was me :whistle: i would go for the 17mm {thats if the 22mm,20mm naglers are beyond your budget} a little more expensive but every review and comment ive seen gives this nagler the tag of best ever . Youll get the same true feild as the pan 22 , greater eye relief and no pincussion effect that can occur in the Pan range. The 145x mag delivered by the 17mm is a sweet range , get a focal reducer and you have your low power and medium mag set at a wopping 82* AFOV

[Striker]

Thanks Aragorn......thought it was bit cheap being it was 2" eyepiece......

[Striker]

Whats the difference between the 16mm & 17mm Nagler 2" beside's the obvious......

bit of difference in price for such a small difference in focal length?

[Striker]

sorry my mistake....the 16mm is 1 1/4....

[Striker]

I am realy liking the 17mm 2 inch Nagler........just the price I dont like $625 at Bintel.

Are the Celestron Axioms in the 2" ok.....I seem to be able to get them at good prices overseas?

localy they are charging heaps for the celestron range.....neally as much as bintel are charging for Nagler's......they are much cheaper overseas...half the price of Naglers.....are they worth looking at.

[Vermin]

I got my 17mm Nagler from Woodland Hills Camera in the US when I ordered a whole bunch of other stuff:

http://telescopes.net/t_-_nagler__eyepieces.html

at $565 AUD (inc gst/duty) the shipping and warranty issues would probably not make this worthwhile if it was the only purchase.

The 15 and 19mm Celestron Axioms got an excellent review rating in the Nov/Dec issue of S&S. Not as good as the 19mm Panoptic but at half the price...

[Dave47tuc]

Striker:)
A few more comments to try to help:D

I have the 35,22 Panoptic. 16 type 2 nagler 2 inch barrel.
12 Nagler and 8.8 Meade uwa. You will see all these eyepieces have 2 inch barrels. So for convenience sake i don't have to change down to 1.25iinch adaptor.:P

Only 2 of these i brought new, 12 and 8.8mm. so you may think about having a bit of patience and trying to get what you may want 2nd hand:D

I haven't stated this before and i should of:ashamed:
Just because i have tele vue eyepieces dosen't mean i think they are the be all end all eyepieces.:whistle:

I once had a set of University Optics Abbe Orthoscopic eyepieces.
I tested these against many diffrent brand name eyepieces.
These Ortho's are as sharp as any eyepiece i tested:astron:
The only problem with them is small field of view.
You could buy a set of 8 of them for around $800!!!!!
I very much regret selling them and will one day get another set:whistle:

So more thoughts for you:P

I hope you enjoying your scope and remember the best scope is the one you use :D

Best.


:astron:

[Striker]

Thanks dave...I have sent some emails to overseas sellers regarding the Nagler 17mm and the Celestron Axioms 19mm and 34mm all in 2 inch......oh and the Peterson Eyeopener which is only $60 USD...still waiting on a reply on availabilty and postage costs...

For some reason retailers are selling the Axiom series so expensive up here......

Axiom 34mm 2" (http://www.yorkoptical.com.au/Results/productFun.asp?PassCat=CAT-01&PassView=CE3-93363&PassName=Eye%20Pieces%20&%20Kits&PassColour=99CCCC)

Axiom 19mm 2" (http://www.yorkoptical.com.au/Results/productFun.asp?PassCat=CAT-01&PassView=CE3-93362&PassName=Eye%20Pieces%20&%20Kits&PassColour=99CCCC)

Axiom 40mm 2" (http://www.yorkoptical.com.au/Results/productFun.asp?PassCat=CAT-01&PassView=CE3-93364&PassName=Eye%20Pieces%20&%20Kits&PassColour=99CCCC)

Overseas they sell for $170 USD and $209 USD + Eye-opener $65 USD...not bad compared to local prices no matter what the postage is!...thats much less then half the price here....even the 40mm is only $260 USD compared to $865 AUS here....the naglers are a small saving compared to the Axioms series purchasing overseas.

[Dave47tuc]

Tony,
the 17mm is a great eyepiece, I have used one before and like it big time. I don't have one as I have the old 16mm!

Happy viewing.

[Starkler]

York Optical are the sole distributors of the Celestron brand in Australia I have been told. I for one refuse to pay a 100% markup on US prices.

In my experience shopping around, if you want anything other than Chinese made stuff, there are significant savings to be had buying from overseas.

[thomo]

Has anybody bought from centre.net.au - their prices seem a lot cheaper than other places in Oz. Their range is limited but they have all the Celestron stuff.

http://shop.centre.net.au/index.html?cat=00065S00069V00019T00 01YT0001YX0001YY&it=prod

[Striker]

Their is NO way i will be purchasing at these prices at York.....if anything I will purchase overseas.....

But when comparing say the 17mm Nagler to overseas prices their is not as much of a saving......Bintel sell them for $625...so i Might save like $75 buying overseas...not really worth it compared to the savings on Axiom's......I will wait for postage prices from overseas sellers then make a decission..

Thomo...those prices are much more realistic...and so they should be.

Thanks...

[iceman]

Moving to equip forum

[Jimmy]

Are these good prices:

1x Meade Series 4000 Apochromatic 2x Barlow (3 element) for 40 bucks shipped

plus

1x 26mm Series 4000 Super Plossl Eyepiece for 32 bucks shipped

[Striker]

Hell yes.....where can you get these prices......


They both retail for $135 each.....