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Stepping into a mine field, my friend -eyepieces!!!
There are essentially two camps: 1, the big bucks crew, and 2, the cheaper crew.
I'm in the second group.
This doesn't mean cheap and nasty. I see it as practical and logical.
Eyepiece technology has come a very long way since the plossl design ruled king. Today, even 'cheap' eyepieces use glass materials, lens coatings and lens designs that make plossls look just aweful.
My main obs. eyepieces are GSO's. They come from the Superview range. I have the 2" 30mm, and the 20mm & 15mm in the 1.25".
For higher magnification, I've got the TMB Planetary Type II 9mm & 6mm. These are sensational, and as there is a nasty bum fight between the estate of the designer & the Chinese manufacturer, they are dirt cheap. The eyepieces classifieds here in IIS sees Sylvain giving us IIS members a great deal on the 6mm & 9mm. I've had the 6mm for nearly a year. When Sylvain posted the TMB deal, I jumped at getting the 9mm.
If you like the idea of cheap and practical, I can suggest for your 8" dob the Superview 30mm & 15mm & the TMB 6mm (read the classified ad on the topic of these and contact Sylvain). These will serve you very well. Not bad for less than $150.
Barlow? I've got one, I don't really use it though. For your 8", with these eyepieces, taking into account the effects of the atmosphere on maximum magnification (200X at the best of times), you really don't need a barlow as the 6mm will give you 200X.
Prices then go up, but not practicality necessarily.
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