My new Omni Celestron 2 x Barlow Lens

[Frosty]

Hey guyz... I ended up going into the city today and buying myself a Barlow lens (Omni Celestron) for $95.

The guy at the store told me that if I wasnt happy with it I could bring it back and get the Ultima Celestron 2 x Barlow which is $190.

Ill let u know what I think about this barlow soon, has any1 used this barlow b4 or the Ultima Celestron barlows? If so let me know what u thought.

Thanks guyz

[Starkler (Geoff)]

I have the Celestron ultima, which is the same beast as the Orion shorty-plus , which is considerably cheaper.

$190 is too much to pay for it.

[gbeal]

And for the same sort of money you can sometimes find a Powermate on Astromart, (about US$130)
Gary

[Frosty]

Hmm ok... Well ill try the Omni Barlow for now and see how I go...

[[1ponders] (Paul)]

I've used the omni for Negative Eyepiece projections of the moon both in conjunction with an eyepiece (10 mm) and with an adapter to fit the camera straight into the Barlow (sorta like prime focus, but still negative projection) and found that with the eyepiece or the Barlow on their own the images were ok but in conjunction there was an awful lot of flaring.

Celestron HD102-EQ refractor
Canon EOS 500
Celestron Omni Barlow
Celestron E-lux 10 mm EP

First image just the barlow (excuse the lack of sharpness in the closeup, either poor focus but more likely from mirror flip)

[[1ponders] (Paul)]

This image is the combination Barlow and 10mm eyepiece. Notice the bad flaring from internal reflections between the lense elements of the barlow and eyepiece

[Frosty]

Hmm ok... this is all new to me so im still learning.

Well I just tried the Omni 2 x Barlow tonight together with 25mm, 30mm and 9mm. I am very happy with the results when looking at the moon. Images were sharp and clear.

The Ultima Barlow lens sais "The Ultima® Series Barlow (2x – 1¼") is an air-spaced, three element apochromatic design with a 27mm clear aperture".

Does anyone think the difference between these two EP is worth the extra $100 if I return the Omni? Im happy with the Omni at the moment but if this Ultima barlow lens is heaps better, then I would rather that.

Any suggestions would be a great help. Would you pay an extra $100 for the Ultima Barlow? or stick with the Omni.

I think the problem is I havnt looked through a good barlow to be able to tell the difference.

Clear skies ppl

[[1ponders] (Paul)]

Certainly an apochromatic would generally be a better quality product (assuming same brand) as far as colour correction is concerned.

Something that might help you decide is: What quality eyepieces do you have? No matter how good a barlow you get if your eyepieces aren't up to the job no amount of perfection in the barlow is going to do the barlow justice. If you are planning to improve your eyepiece quality over time and stick to 1 1/4" eyepieces it might be worthwhile the get the Ultima. But if your thinking of moving up to 2" eyepiece and a powermate eventually the Omni may be all you need at the moment.
IMHO

Having said all that you can never have too many accessories

Bet your even more confused now

cheers
Paul

[Frosty]

Lol! that actually makes sense. I was thinking about what kind of EP I want to buy in the future. I wouldnt mind buying the Celestron Omni EP which are $85 each then they move onto $115 each in the 42mm range.

I guess if I stay with the omni EP I might aswell stay with the Omni Barlow.

At the moment my EP's are two that I got to choose from Andrews and another two that came with the scope itself.

So when moving up to the 2" EP its giving you more viewing area?

So a Powermate is better than a Barlow? How much do these Powermates cost, or how much should I spend on a Powermate if I was to purchase one?

[gbeal]

One thing you may need to consider is that the barlows etc you are looking at will be 1.25", and the move to a 2" eyepiece will give you headaches, the eyeiece won't fit the barlow.
Powermates better? Hhmmmm that will cause an arguement. They ARE more expensive, and there are some that will say they are better. It is a matter of personal taste though.
Gary

[Frosty]

Thanks for the feedback Guyz .

Everything is starting to make sense.

[[1ponders] (Paul)]

Isn't it a shame that in the end it all boils down to money

[MintSauce (Gordon)]

powermates have more lens elements and are meant to be better, I had trouble with my barlow, but I think it's just a matter of getting used to it, also I think I should clean the focuser on my scope as it's a bit sticky - do you find this frosty?


G.

[Frosty]

so much info to take in, but its all good. I have alot of thinking to do, to work out where to spend my money

Focuser sticky Mint? Mines rotates pretty smoothly.