Took the plunge

[Lee]

Made a decision on the damn eyepiece selection.... just forked out a number of Bradmans for a Pentax XW-10.... I figured I'm on holidays for the next two weeks, so will be broke anyway, what the heck! Damn thing cost just a tad shy of the cost of the scope!
Was a toss up between that or a Radian or Nagler....
My biggest fear is I won't be able to use anything less after using it....

[ving (David)]

at 10mm you will find it very usable anyhow
I have 6 EPs and only use 2 of them most of the time

[iceman (Mike)]

From all reports (I know xreckor and ausastronomer will chime in here ), the 10mm Pentax XW is one of the finest going around at that focal length.

You've made a great purchase, and will be handy for planets when the seeing is only fair, barlowed on the planets for when the seeing is very good, and great as an alround high power DSO eyepiece for globs, galaxies and PN's.

Nice choice!

[Lee]

Originally Posted by ving

at 10mm you will find it very usable anyhow
I have 6 EPs and only use 2 of them most of the time

I have figured that much too.... I'll prob end up with 3-4 good ep's and a barlow....
any recommendations on a really good barlow to take advantage of the XW-10????

[iceman (Mike)]

Budget: GSO 2x 1.25" (not recommended with such a good eyepiece)
Intermediate: Orion Shorty Plus 2x 1.25" (approx $130)
Top of the range: Televue 2x barlow 1.25"
Top of the range: Televue 2.5x powermate 1.25" ($310)

I'd probably get the orion shorty plus (same as the celestron ultima barlow). The televue barlow isn't going to be that much better for the price difference.

[Starkler (Geoff)]

I use a Celestron ultima barlow, which is the same beast as the Orion shorty plus, with my Pentax XL's and it performs well. I get a magnification factor of 2.2x tested by timing star drift. You may find occasions are rare where you can use such a high power. 90% of my planetary viewing is with my 14mm barlowed.

P.S. The XL is very similar to the XW which superseded it.

[ausastronomer (John Bambury)]

Lee,

You have made an excellent choice and I am sure you will be very happy. I own 4 Pentax XW's and have used most of the other top grade eyepieces running around. AS I mentioned in another recent post not all focal lengths in an eyepiece series perform to the same standard. eg Not all pentax XW's are equal, just as not all Panoptics are equal and not all Meade UWA are equal. However the 10mm Pentax XW is one of the best as are the 7mm and the 5mm. It has a wonderfully flat field right to the edge in an F6 scope with very high light transmission and contrast. It is also very sharp, as good as any premium plossl. It is at least as good if not a tad better than the equivalent focal length Nagler's and Radians IMO although there is little between them and they are all outstanding. The Pentax is very comfortable to use for long periods due to its eyecup design and long eye relief.

In terms of a good barlow I own both the Orion Shorty Plus and the Televue 2.5X Powermate in 1.25" format and also a 2" 1.6X Antares APO barlow. I have also previously owned a Televue 1.8X barlow. I have also used a lot of other barlows over the years.

The Orion Shorty Plus/Celestron Ultima is a very good barlow, with simple eyepieces like orthoscopics and plossls the 2.5X powermate is a little better but not by much. With my Pentax XW's the performance gain (not just the amplification factor) of the 2.5X TV Powermate over the shorty plus is noticeable. With the shorty plus you always have the feeling that "something else is in there" with the powermate its just like using a native eyepiece. I haven't used the Shorty Plus since I bought the 2.5X Powermate as its just that little bit better with the Pentax's. Is it worth spending an extra $160 on ? That depends on how fat your wallet is but if you plan an accumulating 3 or 4 premium eyepieces over time I think it worth spending the extra on the best barlow if you can afford it.

CS-John B

[RapidEye]

Originally Posted by ausastronomer

The Pentax is very comfortable to use for long periods due to its eyecup design and long eye relief.

IMHO - that feature alone is worth the extra price over 10mm Plossls (FOV and Quality aside).

Here in the SE US, humidity is always an issue and the short FL Plossls fog up if you stare at them too hard from across the room! The only time I've ever fogged up either of my XW's is when I breathed on them by accident.

The increased mass and distance between your eyeball and EP really make a big difference on the fogging up issue.

That long eye relief and adjustable eyecup are awesome! My 10x50 Orion Ultraviews have the same feature, and I doubt I'll buy either another EP or Binocular that doesn't have that!

I know using a short FL plossl would give me terrible eye strain. I can use my 10mm and 14mm XW's all night and not ever notice any strain.

Next time I'm in Japan, I'll have to look up that guy from Pentax and buy him a big cold beer - Kampai!

You made a great choice - enjoy!!!

[Lee]

Thanks for the advice John.... From that I likely would get the TV Barlow.... these purchases are one-off (should be) and I don't mind spending money on quality - it is never wasted.
Can't wait to use it now.... then I guess I'd better start saving bickies for the Barlow and next EP....

Thanks to everyone who gave advice to me, and to the forum before me....

[ausastronomer (John Bambury)]

Originally Posted by plasmodium

Thanks for the advice John.... From that I likely would get the TV Barlow

Lee,

Don't confuse the TV 2x Barlow with the TV 2.5X Powermate. The 2.5X TV Powermate is the best option (and most expensive) although the 2X TV barlow is very good also and a tad better than the Orion Shorty Plus IMO.

CS-John B