Dobsonian 10”

[Revan]

Hey all, I have a dobsonian 10” and wondering what I need to do to get the best viewing experience possible equipment wise to see planets and deep sky. Specific types of lenses, Barlow, 2”/1.25”? And the difference between eyepieces like luminous and plossl. Thanks

[AstralTraveller (David)]

Hi Revan,

For deep sky start by getting the widest true fov possible and then go up magnification in steps of about 1.5. I like the 'space walk' of ultra-wide eyepieces so you would be looking at a 31mm Nagler ($$$) or 30mm Explore Scientific (less $$) or a 28mm William Optics UWAN (very rare). I have the 28mm WO, then a 20mm, 13mm and 9mm (all Naglers). Only one of these was bought new, the rest are from IIS classifieds. Alternatively you can buy quality super wide (ca70 degree afov) eps much cheaper. Start at about 35mm to get the max true fov. You don't get the full space walk but they aren't objectionable.

For lunar/planetary minimal glass rules and narrow afov is OK. I recommend Abbe orthoscopics (generally just called orthoscopics) but _good_ plossls are OK too (there are a lot of junk plossls about). I love my 7mm University Optics ortho but you can only get them second hand now. I also have the 5mm but the eye relief is a bit too short for comfort, I should have got the 6mm. BTW My UO 7mm ortho is much nicer than my old Celestron 7.5mm silver top plossl.

I was just looking at this thread (for other reasons) and you may find it useful

https://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/...d.php?t=196781

also

https://www.iceinspace.com.au/63-652-0-0-1-0.html

cheers,
David

[Revan]

Thanks a lot David, right now I have the celestron eyepieve/filter kit and that already contains a 32mm I believe. Is that similar to the ones that you recommended or is it different based on the field of view?

[EpickCrom (Joe)]

Hi Revan and welcome to IIS

You made a wise choice purchasing a 10 inch dob, they are dynamite for visual work. This is the same scope I'm using and started with in 2020 as my first telescope.

The two plossl eyepieces that came with the scope are good to start with, but I found the 50° apparent field of view too narrow for me and purchased Saxon Cielo (60°) and Saxon SWA eyepieces (68°) which are the equivalent of the Celestron XL and Orion Stratus eyepieces respectively. I'm very happy with them and recommend them for planetary and deep sky observing with your scope. Your plossls will do well for lunar and planetary observations as well, especially when paired with a decent ×2 Barlow. My Barlow is a Saxon x2 shorty ( same as the Orion shorty barlow) and performs well.

Sky conditions will ultimately rule your observations, a dark,transparent and steady sky will show you wonders through your 10 inch. Then there is the high end of town in terms of eyepieces, particularly Televue. APM (Sky Rover) are also excellent eyepieces with up to 100° AFOV!

Wide fields of view deliver a more immersive viewing experience, but cost more! The second hand market is your friend here as most amateur astronomers take good care of their gear. Hope this helps, feel free to ask more questions and enjoy the journey!

Clear Skies
Joe

[refractordude]

Hello There Raven


Congrads on the new telescope. What is your max budget? I have a $115 2 inch 22mm Olivon/Astromania that will knock the socks of some eyepieces that cost 4 times more.

https://astromaniaoptics.com/product...riantsId=10092