What is the most used EP in your collection?

[TechnoViking]

Hi Guys,

Just wanted to know what is the most used EP in your collection, and why?
Im asking this because i have a set of cheap celestron EP's that i was using with my old EQ114 scope, which just dont cut the mustard with my new scope (CGEM925) and i would like to purchase a premium EP to start my collection. I was thinking of a 20mm or 26mm to start out with. Thoughts? :)

[ourkind]

My glasses first and foremost :lol:

I too only have cheapo Celestron EP's.

I wrote to Santa this year and asked that he bring me either a 21mm televue Ethos and/or a 8mm televue Ethos.

To be honest I do most of my observing via my DLSR and PC connection, I haven't used an EP for months!

I believe from what I've read that the scope in use also influences the quality capabilities of the eye piece i.e. Aperture, F/L etc ...

when comparing these to what I currently own, I'm sure I won't be disapointed with my picks.

[vaztr]

James,

I have only 10mm and 25mm SPs and find the 25mm is the one I prefer but I try to do deep sky stuff and the 10mm just doesn't cut it.

Being cheap I've asked santa for a 8-24mm zoom ep so I can get a feel for the best mm for my viewing and then maybe I'll splurge on a decent ep

VAZ

[AG Hybrid]

Some where between my ES 9mm and 14mm 100 degree eyepieces. Trying to use my Pentax more to justify its purchase though. :screwy:

But its so difficult to go from 100 degrees of the ES to the 70 degrees of the Pentax and be... satisfied with the view. Especially when sharpness wise there is barely a difference. I mean its definitely there. Just not the incredible and magical views that people here would have you believe.

The 9mm-14mm in 12" dob give magnifications between ~160x and ~110x. Which, thanks to the apparent field are very useable magnifications.

In my AR102 the 10mm Pentax throws up a very nice low powered but very contrasty view at 66x. My 9mm and 14mm all of a sudden become lower powered searcher eyepieces. My ES 30mm 82 degree provides a staggering 3.5 degree view. Superb at cruising through the Milky Way star fields.

The point of all this is that these eyepieces are in a useable range all the time. When you choose your eyepieces. Try for 3 eyepieces that give you exit pupils of ~1mm, 2mm and 5 mm. With a distribution like that you will be set.

In your C9.25 that's no less then:
10mm @ 235x at 1mm.
20mm @ ~110x at 2mm
40MM @ ~60x at 4mm

Explore Scientific have a range 68 degree eyepieces that will cover your longer focal length eyepieces perfectly at a very reasonable price. Alternatively you can go in swinging with a ES 100 degree 20mm for that 2mm exit pupil. It will be without a doubt your most used eyepiece.

Hope I helped.:hi:

[brian nordstrom]

:D My 19mm TV Panoptic , is the 1st eyepiece I grab every time , no matter what scope I have out , from 60mm f/355, to my 210mm f2415 as it is just an awsome eyepiece , just lets me get on with observing , nice :thumbsup: .
I love it .
Brian.

[LewisM]

I use 2 eyepieces exclusively - a 20mm Pentax for ALL observing, and a 6mm illuminated reticle for alignment. I use NOTHING else.

I have a bunch of eyepieces, none of which get used, EVER. I put them for sale recently, cheap, and no one wanted them, so back into storage they went.

I, like Caros, do most of my observing after an exposure appears on screen :) I have visually observed twice in the last 3 months, and that was to try new scopes out.

Having said that, my newly acquired Vixen Fl102 refractor BEGS to be used visually, as it is stunning on ANY object you point it at.

[BlackWidow]

I lover my Baader Zoom mk2 lense. It's all I use now as it is simple and the images is clear. Never use my singles anymore. I would purchase another in a flash if I ever lost it



Mardy

[Varangian]

Probably my 13mm Orion Stratus 68 to be honest.

[Kunama]

Vixen LVW 13 and LVW 17 equally.

[Colin_Fraser]

Vixen LVW 22 and LVW 13 get swapped in and out most of the night for looking at clusters and nebula.
Use a Vixen LVW 5 for studying craters on our moon. I don't have an outright favourite.

[omegacrux]

Hi James
For me its
17 mm
21mm
25mm
30mm
In both my scopes
the mak is double the mag for each of the ep's

David

[MattT]

ES all the way with me :thumbsup: My most used is 20mm 68 degree closely followed by 6.7mm 82 degree.
Matt

[TechnoViking]

Thanks for the info guys, its just nice to know what people use, and then make my decision based on it. I wish astro shops had try before you buy, sort of like taking home tiles to see if they suit your vanity unit :lol: we can live in hope!
The hardest thing with buying a $200+ EP is explaining to my wife what the difference between a cheap 20mm plossl, and a premium 20mm is. im sure im going to get the "Dont you already have all the eye pieces, why would you buy another 20mm one!!" ...sigh:sadeyes:

[AG Hybrid]

Ask her how many pairs of shoes and hand bangs she has. Surely you only need 1 hand bag and 1 pair of shoes for going out with an extra pair of sneakers for exercise or around the house type stuff. :rofl:

[allan gould]

Vixen LVW 13 or 8 mm

[Tom Hancock]

Mine would be Pentax XF12 and ES 18...luv them both!

[casstony]

A 30mm ES 82 degree would be good to start with for DSO observing at around 80x magnification. The eyepiece has comfortable eye relief and it's easy to take in the whole field.

[brian nordstrom]

:screwy: Brave man ....better you ask that than me ..:rofl: .
Brian.

[AG Hybrid]

With pleasure. She's your wife at the end of the day.:rofl:

[Wavytone]

My 50mm LV followed by 13mm LVW, though bear in mind my main scope is f/15.

My 15 and 25 LV's also for digiscoping, as the lens on my LX5 is a neat fit in the rubber eyecups on these.

[cometcatcher]

Televue 13mm Nagler Type 6, and a very old 30mm Kellner. These are about the only two I ever use. Plus a GSO ED Barlow.

[Poita]

My super crappy 12mm illuminated reticle eyepiece.
Next would be the LV50 50mm, used every night for ages as I didn't have a finderscope.
Most used for actual viewing would be the 6mm planetary for the occasional night when looking, not imaging.

When I was doing visual, the ES eyepieces were absolutely wonderful and got a serious workout. I had some more expensive brands at one stage, but the very small increase in performance over the ES eyepieces just wasn't worth it.

[Poita]

I would second all of this, in my C9.25 the ES eyepieces really were the best value for money, not quite as good as some TV eyepieces I borrowed, but the difference was really subtle, and I preferred the wide views of the ES eyepieces. The difference between a good ES eyepiece and a really amazing Pentax or TV eyepiece isn't all that it is often made out to be. Better, yes, but by a very small amount, and if the FOV is smaller, then it's not worth it to me personally.

The only thing I would add to the above list would be a 6mm planetary eyepiece, like a TMB. You get such great views of Saturn and Jupiter with it on the 9.25 and they are really inexpensive and well worth it for the occasional planetary gander.

[Miaplacidus]

24 Panoptic. Good in dobs, short refractors, long FL SCTs.

Light, small 1.25" form factor, means I can use a light, small diagonal, and avoid any balance issues. Good eye relief, sharp to the edge, no reflections, good eye cup. Novices and noobs can use it without fuss. Quality construction. Not even murderously expensive. You can buy two for the binoviewer. Fits in your pocket, so it's grab-and-go.

It's as close to the perfect eyepiece as you're likely to come across.

You want proof? How long since you've seen one on the second hand market?

[MattT]

I'm thirding this. I did my own Pentax XW 10 V the ES 11mm 82* and the difference in my scope (6" f8 refractor) was very close. The Pentax was ahead but only by a small bit. Might have been the 1mm difference in magnification :shrug: My personal preference was for the wider field of view. In value for money the ES is miles out in front. Think I'll have to try the 100* series.
Matt

[Steffen]

The first one I throw at everything is the 17.5mm Nikon (no, not the NAV, the spotting scope EP with 1.25" adapter). After that, as required, I usually pick the 7.5mm Takahashi or the 24mm Panoptic.

That's in the 6" Mak, the 8" Dob as well as the ED80.

If someone came around to take all my eyepieces these three would be the ones I'd protect with my body (along with the Mak).

Cheers
Steffen.

[Max Vondel]

I have different favourites for different scopes

I normally first grab the old 22mm Panoptic
Usually a good start for my refractors

The Dob & SCT like the 31mm Nagler, but don't like the weight
Gives a nice 50X magnification in the 12" F5

I like lots of planetary EP's but the Ethos 4.7SX is my current favourite
(more field means less moving unguided scopes!)

The only drawback being it's length compared to other EP's in the short focal range

The TMB's 7,6,5,4 are great value planetary EP's that I prefer over the Radians

[Allan_L]

DSO = Televue Panoptic 27mm

Planetary = Televue Nagler 9mm

I have tried a lot of others, and keep coming back to these.

[Irish stargazer]

For my 12 dob I use a 27mm Panoptic which is the perfect eyepiece for this scope. Followed by 16 mm Nagler. I use a 40mm Meade 4000 more for solar observing though in terms of time spent.

[MortonH]

9mm Nagler and 14mm Delos.

But as others have said, you don't need to pay Televue/Pentax prices to get excellent performance in a slow scope like the C9.25. Baader Hyperions should do well in it and are reasonably priced.

Remember you can post a "Wanted" ad on Ice in Space and buy something used. Then if you don't like it you can resell and you'll probably get your money back.

Morton

[mercedes_sl1970]

I have several Nikon spotting scope eyepieces (7, 10.5, 17.5) and would use the 17.5mm the most out of those along with an ES 14mm 100 degree eyepiece. Plus a Pentax 10mm...

Andrew

[TechnoViking]

Thanks all for your imput, after reading all the fantastic comments and reviews on EP's, I have decided on the follow EP's due to their overall bang for your buck (i dont have many bucks left after the OB Build)

Explore Scientific
ES 6.7mm 82D (possibly)
ES 11mm 82D
ES 24mm 82D
ES 30mm 82D

What do you all think of this choice? I know the 6.7mm is a very high power EP, and I am still debating if this will be any practical use with my 925 cgem?, or will this EP cause "fuzzy" viewing?
If anyone has the same OTA as me i would especially like your comments for or against my selections :thanx:

all i really want to achieve from this is quality views of Planets and stars, and i believe that my celestron plossls are just not up to the job.

[Astro_Bot]

With your OTA F/L of 2350mm, a 6.7mm ES 82D will give you mag 350x and a TFOV of approx. 14 arcminutes.

You will rarely get to use it, as seeing rarely supports anything over 300x (and often is limited to 150x or below, in my experience). Personally, I would hang on to your money with that one. IMHO, you should stick with the 11mm for a while and see how many times you get to use it in a year before going shorter.

[AG Hybrid]

My pick for the C9.25 would be 11mm 82 degrees for high power. 20mm 100 degrees for general purpose and 40mm 68 degrees for low powered extended object observing.

If you get that 20mm, you'll be using that a lot! Big eyepiece though so make sure you have a decent 2" diagonal.

[Astro_Bot]

Oh, that reminds me of the other thing I was thinking ... similar to what Adrian said ...

The 30mm is a bit close to the 24mm and you should successfully be able to use something longer, say 40mm. I'd pick: 40mm (68D), 24mm (82D), the 11mm, and later maybe infill with an 18mm. (I prefer not to use 100deg eyepieces, though, as I have to move my head around to much).

[TechnoViking]

Thanks RG and Adrian, Great info!!

ok narrowed it to:

ES 11mm 82D
ES 20mm 82D
ES 40mm 68D

I can completely see the reasoning behind the 24 - 30mm being too close, i should have thought about that a little more, as i have a 25mm and 32mm plossl and they are very similar! :screwy:

Thank you all again!!! I love this place! :thanx:

[AG Hybrid]

ES 20mm 82D - there is no 20 mm 82 degrees. There is a 24mm 82 degrees and that will do you fine as well in your C9.25. You'll still need a 2" diagonal.

[TechnoViking]

See what happens when you are reading a review, whilst replying on a forum, at the same time looking at DSLR's on ebay, i end up typing wrong numbers everywhere :rofl:

but thanks for pointing it out Adrian :P

[crazyqban67]

I would have to say that my 13mm Ethos get the most use.

[Miaplacidus]

24 Panoptic.

Produces easy, sharp, aberration-free views effortlessly in everything from 80mm refractor to dob to mak to SCT. Gets in and gets out of the way immediately.

[Larryp]

16mm Nagler

[chrisp9au]

I've got a real mixed bag of pretty ordinary eyepieces.
The one I always seem to gravitate to is my Meade 18mm UWA.
It's certainly lasted longer than a number of my scopes!

Chris

[miker03]

I too have a eclectic mixture of eyepieces: Celestron e-lux 25mm, SWA 20mm, ES 11mm and 6.7mm, a 40 year old Celestron 36mm plossl and finally a TV 24mm panoptic. Not surprisingly the panoptic is my favourite ep in terms of the quality of the image but it is also happens to be one of the more useful maginifications on my 6" SCT. I also find the old Celestron 36mm useful for wider views of the heavens and the ES 11mm and 6.7mm for planetary work.

[Wavytone]

James,

My most-used is my Vixen LV50mm, a big 2" beast, on my f/15 Maksutov. On an f/10 SCT the equivalent is 33mm.

The next most-used is my 13mm Vixen LVW, this is very nice eyepiece and compared favourably to a Delos 14 mm. In your scope the equivalent is a 9 or 10mm.

I also have 5, 8 and 22mm LVW's; they're parfocal, 2" and all weigh about the same so no re-balancing or refocussing when swapping from one to another. The 8mm is occasionally useful in excellent seeing, though both the 8 and 5 are more ideal in my refractor (f/7).

[AstralTraveller]

On the big scope it's the 20mm T2 Nagler (the Holly Handgrenade) followed by the 13mm T6 Nagler. On the smaller scopes it's probably the other way around. For planets it's the 7mm UO Ortho.

[Varangian]

My 68 ES 40mm and my Ba'ader 8-24mm click zoom between 8mm-16mm.

[bytor666]

10mm and 7mm Pentax XW's. WHY?

Excellent eye relief providing me with hours of comfy observing without having to jam my eye into the glass. :) Plus, they are sharp right out to the edges in my short FL scope! After that would be my 14mm Denk followed by the 22mm Vixen LVW.

Cheers,