Bachus
professor emeritus
Reged: 11/25/05
Posts: 639
Loc: Nashville,TN.
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Hello
I'm looking (actually thinking about) at getting a 2" EP in that 32mm ot 42mm range without breaking the bank. I actually don't have a 2" at all but have looked thru a few. At the same time I'm wondering if I should just save and grab a more proven 1.25 with a 68 or so FOV like a Stratus or Baader or what ever?
I saw where Orion had their 2" Deep Views on sale. I've seen the Agena 2" SWA's mentioned with some positive feedback. I've got a Meade 15mm QX that's not bad at all and was wondering about the 32mm? Any suggestions and comments more than welcomed.
Kenny J
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Orion XT8-1st Gen. flocked tube
1989 Ultima 8" SCT-with updated PEC and motor,original fork, wedge, tripod, 8x50 R.A polaris finder scope
Orion 80ED for piggybacking
Atlas Non-GoTo
Canon XT (non-modified)
Meade DSI Pro
JMI Mini-Max with encoders (Ultima)
Xantrex Powerpack 400 Plus
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DanJ
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/01/04
Posts: 1026
Loc: Youngsville, NC
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The GSO SV 32mm (or is it 30mm  , I can't remember at this moment) is a good value EP. It gets a bit soft at the edge, but for the cost it is good.
Cheers,
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Dan J.
XT8i
ETX 90
PST
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firestar
Born to be Mild
Reged: 10/18/06
Posts: 3942
Loc: Cleveland Ohio USA
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olivon review
Olivon's website is down at the moment,but the stratosphere's are really good for around $60 each.
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Eastlake Ohio
Lots of cheap Asian glass  
Antares 12" Dob,Antares 8" Dob
Meade 8" SCT, Celestron C8 SCT
Zhumell 152 mm F8,Antares 127 mm f9.4
Orion short tube 90 F5.6,Celestron 80 ED F7.5
Imaging Source DMK 21AU04 ccd camera
Stellarvue bv3's with 32,26,23,21,9 mm pairs
Olivon 42,35,28mm,siebert 21,12.5,7mm,GSO superview 20mm,Meade swa 13.8mm,Hyperion 13mm
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jtpowers1972
Professor or something
Reged: 11/03/05
Posts: 821
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I've also been thinking about the Agena 32mm SWA. Seems like a good find. Only $74 too! Also, it weighs under a pound- that's good an a small Dob.
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rboe
Numbfinger
Reged: 03/16/02
Posts: 39690
Loc: Phx, AZ
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My 40mm Optilux is my favorite finder and surfing eye piece. So I bought the 32mm version, but in the mean time I picked up a 33mm WO SWAN, thinking that it would be similar. Just not that impressed with the 32 or 33. sigh. That is all in my fast dob with the paracorr.
Still like the 40.
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Ron
NS11GPS
Pronto
16" dob
15X70 Obies
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naglertized
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/10/07
Posts: 1515
Loc: Jacksonville Florida
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Kenny,
I have an OPT Superview 30mm. on its' way to me as we "speak". It is the same as the GSO Superview that Agena astro has for sale around $57 new. When I get it I hope to do a quick review ASAP, look for it on the thread "OPT Superview eyepieces?" It will be interesting to see how this stacks up to some Televue products I have experience with; Panoptics 35 and 27. I also have the 50mm. coming as well.
my two cents
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Clinton
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Achernar
Post Laureate
Reged: 02/25/06
Posts: 3720
Loc: Alabama, USA
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I have a 32mm Optiluxe, and found it to be remarkably good even in fast telescopes like my 10-inch F/4.5 Dob. I use it for wide field viewing in that telescope and my 6-inch Dob too.
Taras
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10-inch F/4.5 Discovery Dob
6-inch F/8 Homebuilt Dob
4 1/4-inch F/4 Homebuilt reflector
Edited by Achernar (01/30/07 10:10 PM)
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Steve Fisher
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 08/12/06
Posts: 788
Loc: Utah
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Kenny. Here is the deal. I have a perfectly good Astrola 32mm 2" that is yours for the price of first class postage. You just have to promise you won't try to sell it if you tire of it. Just pass it along to someone getting started in 2" eyepieces.
Send me a PM.
Steve
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Steve
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"Never try to teach a pig to sing, It wastes your time and it annoys the pig". (Robert Heinlein)
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Markus
Postmaster
Reged: 12/26/04
Posts: 5395
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Wow!!!...that's very nice of you Steve 
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25X100 Skymasters
15X70 Skymasters
Home built Parallelogram Mount
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tnscoper
professor emeritus
Reged: 07/09/04
Posts: 561
Loc: Cottontown, Tn
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Hey Kenny,
I have a 2" GSO 30 mm that works well in slower scopes(f/6-10) You should try it out the next time we are able to observe.
Allen
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13.1" Coulter dob
Orange tube C-8
ASGT Mount
8" f/6 dob
ST-80
BO 80mm Planet Hunter
15x70 Burgess binos
8x56 Ultima binos
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Walt M
member
Reged: 11/04/06
Posts: 30
Loc: N. California
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I concur with the votes for the Orion Optilux. I have the 32 mm model and am very happy with it, even at f/4.7 (soft at the edges, but tolerable). It is spectacular when barlowed (2X), BTW (sharp to the edge).
Walt
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Orion XT10; Orion 130mm f/5 Newt; Orion 102mm Mak; AT66ED; Celestron 15 x 70 Skymasters
7mm & 11mm T6 Naglers, 15mm & 19mm Panoptics, 17mm Hyperion and a few more EPs
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JonnyB
member
Reged: 01/08/07
Posts: 95
Loc: Maryland, USA
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I have a couple 2" GSO's that I'm very happy with. They seem to be a great budget choice for the slower scopes.
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John
C11S-GT XLT
Orion 80ED
Konus 130 Mak
Meade 90mm ref
Barska 15x70 Binocs
Canon Rebel 300D
Coronado PST
SPC900N
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Bob Griffiths
Post Laureate
Reged: 10/10/05
Posts: 4178
Loc: Frederick Maryland
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I own a 26 mm Agena Eclipse that I have only had in the diagonal once because of the weather so I can not comment on it...(I was not overly impressed with it the one short time I used it however)
That may change when I give it a chance.
But I love my 31 mm Proxima..
But my 35 & 42 mm Orion Deep Views are also acceptable to my old eyes.. they do have some softness and show a slight out of focus object at the edge of the FOV.. but I can accept that.
I am Using a SLOW f/10 SCT have no clue how they would work in faster scopes.
Bob G.
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CPC1100
Nexstar 8i + GPS & Rays Brackets
Denk S1 power switch
Orion 100 mm Refractor
Meade LXD 55 ...AR-5 127 mm Refractor
Exploradome Observatory S.I.E. (Smiling Irish Eyes)
39*21'03" N
77*28'12" W
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Glassthrower
Vendor - Galactic Stone & Ironworks
Reged: 04/07/05
Posts: 14682
Loc: Hurricane Alley
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I have the 2" GSO Superview 42mm. Performs very well in my f/6 achromat. It is a bit weak around the edges of the field, but otherwise a great performer for the money. It barlows well, but then the ER gets a bit long and eye placement can be picky like that.
So, how does the Optilux 40mm compare to the GSO SV 42mm?
Regards,
MikeG
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Michael Gilmer - Member of the Meteoritical Society & Collector of Falling Stars.
Galactic Stone & Ironworks - Buy/Sell/Trade Meteorites, Moon Rocks, Mars Rocks, & 35 different falls and types!
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Starman1
Vendor - Scope City
Reged: 06/24/03
Posts: 10955
Loc: Los Angeles
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Good--Cheap--Widefield.
Pick any two.
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Don Pensack
12.5" Truss Dob, 5" Maksutov
Sustaining Lifetime IDA member, TeleVue junkie
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Glassthrower
Vendor - Galactic Stone & Ironworks
Reged: 04/07/05
Posts: 14682
Loc: Hurricane Alley
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Quote:
Good--Cheap--Widefield.
Pick any two.
Boy, isn't that the truth!
Clear dark skies,
MikeG
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Michael Gilmer - Member of the Meteoritical Society & Collector of Falling Stars.
Galactic Stone & Ironworks - Buy/Sell/Trade Meteorites, Moon Rocks, Mars Rocks, & 35 different falls and types!
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Craig
Vendor (Stark Labs)
Reged: 09/16/03
Posts: 449
Loc: Irvine, CA
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Well, what scope do you plan to use it on there? The SCT you have there makes life easy on a lot of eyepieces. I've got a BW Optik 80-degree guy that is great at f/10. Now that the f/10 scope is gone and I'm at f/4... well, not so great (hey, let me know if you want to buy an eyepiece...)
Craig
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Stark Labs Astrophotography software
Borg 101 ED f/4, CPC 1100 XLT, and too many cameras to mention
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erik
telescope surgeon
Reged: 01/30/04
Posts: 24019
Loc: Hawaii 19 N lat -155 Long.
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If you're using it in the XT8, the Agena SWA 32mm isn't bad. Some astigmatism near the edges, but the pinpoint stars and excellent contrast make up for that somewhat. Pretty much any 2" eyepiece under $150 is going to have some astigmatism in fast scopes, but the Agena at $69 is a good deal.
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-Erik Wilcox
Homebuilt 16" Truss Dob
SV 80mm ED Nighthawk NG on M1 ALT/AZ
Nikon Prostaff 65mm spotter on Trekpod
Konusvue 20x80 binos/Peterson pipemount
Orion 10x50 binos
Homebuilt 80mm f/5 refractor
Mirador 60mm f/12 1960's refractor
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Starman1
Vendor - Scope City
Reged: 06/24/03
Posts: 10955
Loc: Los Angeles
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The Agena SWA eyepieces are identical to the new W70 eyepieces from Orion. They also appear to be the same as eyepieces sold by Owl Services and others (perhaps Burgess and Antares). And similar to the Meade QX series.
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Don Pensack
12.5" Truss Dob, 5" Maksutov
Sustaining Lifetime IDA member, TeleVue junkie
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Bachus
professor emeritus
Reged: 11/25/05
Posts: 639
Loc: Nashville,TN.
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Quote:
The Agena SWA eyepieces are identical to the new W70 eyepieces from Orion. They also appear to be the same as eyepieces sold by Owl Services and others (perhaps Burgess and Antares). And similar to the Meade QX series.
You just answered part of my add on. First I can't use any 2" EP's with the XT8 as it's a first gen model with a 1.25 focuser. I've thought about enlargering thehole but it maybe more trouble than what it's worth for now. Instead the 2" would be for the sct's and Orion 80ED.
I was looking formore reviews about the Orion "Q70" which is identical to the Agena SWA's. I see the 32mm has a 70 FOV, 5 Element - 4 Group set at about $74. I know there was allot of interest about the Q70 when it was introdueced but not much reviews.
The GSO's have a pretty good following but haven't seen much on the 2" models. The 30mm has a good 68 FOV with a 5 Elements - 3 Groups set and a super value of $57!
I remember the Antares W70's from awhile back but again not much since. I thought these were more in line with the Meade QX series? The 2" 30mm has a 70 FOV, couldn't find the glass setup and goes for $89.
Kenny J
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Orion XT8-1st Gen. flocked tube
1989 Ultima 8" SCT-with updated PEC and motor,original fork, wedge, tripod, 8x50 R.A polaris finder scope
Orion 80ED for piggybacking
Atlas Non-GoTo
Canon XT (non-modified)
Meade DSI Pro
JMI Mini-Max with encoders (Ultima)
Xantrex Powerpack 400 Plus
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