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Charlie Hein
Postmaster
Reged: 11/02/03
Posts: 6571
Loc: 26.06.08N, +80.23.08W
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Ok, I'll admit it. I'm not much of a visual guy. Most of the time the only eyepiece I use is a 12.5 reticle EP to get my finder lined up properly before switching straight over to the cameras.
However, now that I have the 9.25 I'm seeing a need for some decent EP's - a set to be used for fine collimation (didn't realize how much a good EP can help here until a friend opened my eyes so to speak) and an all around set that will give a "knock your socks off" view for public viewing nights and other outreach events. Because we are really talking about mostly events with the public, I'm looking for super views (well, the best views possible) without having to blow the bank on super high end glass - this stuff will be used often and is going to need to be cleaned often and rigorusly of thumbprints, makeup and eyelash "smudge". Even so, I want to make a stong impression at these events or I'd just continue to use the set I have now and not worry about it.
My current eyepiece collection consists of the already mentioned reticle EP, the original Celestron $99.00 1.25" collection, the 25mm and 10mm Sirius Plossls that came with my Atlas 8 way back in the day (and a generic Orion 2X barlow), and a 32mm 2" Orion Optiluxe (which I've always kinda liked, actually). Needless to say I'm sure that there's a huge amount of room for improvement.
So can you guys help me decide on a sane course of action to meet my needs at reasonable cost (or at price points that family could see as a no-brainer Christmas or birthday present)?
Charlie
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Weston CSC:
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firestar
Born to be Mild
Reged: 10/18/06
Posts: 3942
Loc: Cleveland Ohio USA
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There are so many budget ep's they are hard to list all of them.
I like to keep my eye out for deals in swap and shop.
Try a few different versions and see what you like.
Everyone is different.
The usual suspects include siebert,gso,owl,burgess/tmb and maybe the hyperion/stratus line ($100 max).
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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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arowana
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/02/06
Posts: 2724
Loc: Pleasant View,Tennessee
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Hey Charlie,
Now that I have gone to 100% Binoviewing, I have sold all my High end glass except for my pair of 24mm Panoptic's.
But since I do a lot of public viewing events, I had to get a Public friendly set of mono eyepieces so everyone could enjoy the views without tinkering with the binoviewers for each individual.
After a lot of trial and error, I have completed my set with the following:
Burgess B/TMB Planetaries: 4mm,6mm,8mm and 9mm
Baader Hyperion's: 8mm,13mm,17mm,21mm
Burgess B/TMB Paragon: 30mm and 40mm.
The whole set used cost me about $950.00
Some of these I dont use often enough to keep. Like the
4mm B/TMB,8mm and 21mm Hyperions.But I hold on to them for those just in case nights.
So, for around $700.00 used,you could have a nice line-up of EP's. And all are great performers. Not Nagler or Pentax great, but great. :-)
My choice of eyepieces above were based on eyerelief, ease of use and performance. Not price. I tested over 60,low cost eyepieces,and these were the overall winners.
Tested is a 11" f/10 SCT and 80ED/66ED refractor's.
CS's
Joey
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Orion 80-ED Refractor
Astro-Tech 66-ED
Atlas EQ-G
Moonlite Focuser's on all scopes
ADM accesories on everything
Edited by arowana (12/02/07 10:23 AM)
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Charlie Hein
Postmaster
Reged: 11/02/03
Posts: 6571
Loc: 26.06.08N, +80.23.08W
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Hmmm - I think that if I were to set a budgetary number I might say that I'd even put the ceiling closer to $200.00 than $100.00 actually - if the difference in performance was truly enough to warrant the expense. I'm not afraid of spending good money to get good stuff, but I'm not enough of a visual guy to warrant the really expensive stuff (I don't think so anyway).
For the EP's that I'm looking to do collimation with, I could tell from just one session with a friend who used his TeleVue EP's to help me collimate that my existing glass is just plain inappropriate by comparison. The cheaper Plossls just weren't nearly sharp enough for very fine collimation (which I truly need for imaging through the 9.25). I don't know if I'm going to have to pony up for that level of EP to do that job or not, but it's clear I need to do much better than what I currently own there.
Visually, I want to get a well rounded set of EP's that don't break the bank but are also good enough that your typical EP maven could look into the scope and think the views were decent to very good (or better). IMO, if the EP's are that good and the scope's in good collimation then the public will be flat blown away. Right now I shudder to think what such a person thinks of my current EP's - I find them wanting myself.
I'm looking for specific suggestions that would work well with my specific setup, too. I'm really hoping that folks who have been there and done that can help me avoid a lot of buying and selling to get to where I want to be.
Charlie
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Weston CSC:
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Rcade
professor emeritus
Reged: 09/04/04
Posts: 728
Loc: GA
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Hi Charlie, I have excellent results using Stratus eyepieces in my 9.25. They are a lot of eyepiece for the price and they have a large lense to view through which would make it easier for inexperienced folks to use. The wide angle view should also be an advantage. The Sieberts are also excellent but may not be quiet as easy for inexperienced users to view through. I would lean toward the Stratus. The 13mm is the best allround Stratus and the sweet spot in the series in my opinion. The 5mm is an excellent higher power eyepiece. They can be picked up used for under $100.00 Good luck and let us know what you, a non-visual user, settle on. It would be interestuing getting your perspective.
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Clear Skies,
Rob Cade
Cave Astrola Deluxe 8" f8 (Achilles)
Stellarvue NH-II in Stardust Blue (Cleopatra)
Celestron C9.25 (Maltese Falcon)
Celestron C6R-GT (Criminal Intent)
Oberwerk 15x70
Vixen Polaris Mount
Clear Sky Chart == Macon, GA
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Charlie Hein
Postmaster
Reged: 11/02/03
Posts: 6571
Loc: 26.06.08N, +80.23.08W
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Quote:
After a lot of trial and error, I have completed my set with the following:
Thanks Joey, that's a helpful list. Which of these do you typically use for collimating your 11" - any why?
Charlie
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Weston CSC:
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arowana
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/02/06
Posts: 2724
Loc: Pleasant View,Tennessee
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Quote:
Quote:
After a lot of trial and error, I have completed my set with the following:
Which of these do you typically use for collimating your 11" - any why?
Charlie
I am sorry Charlie, I missed this in your beggining thread.
I dont use any of these for collimating my 11" SCT.
Although I am sure the B/TMB Planetaries would do a fine job.
I use Orion Sirius Plossl's to collimate my SCT.
20mm,12.5mm,7.5mm and 6.3mm 140x/224x/373x/444x
I like using these because they are cheap and are very sharp on Axis. The 7.5mm and 6.3mm allows plenty of light through at f/10 to see a nice airy disc, if the conditions/scope acclimation is right. Other wise, I only use the 12.5mm and 20mm.
These may not be the best eyepieces to use for collimating a SCT, but all four cost me $60.00 and have never let me down.
Sorry if this was not a helpful answer. But I rarely have to re-collimate my SCT, so more expensive eyepieces have not been needed.
CS's
Joey
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Orion 80-ED Refractor
Astro-Tech 66-ED
Atlas EQ-G
Moonlite Focuser's on all scopes
ADM accesories on everything
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Patrick
Postmaster
Reged: 05/16/03
Posts: 6788
Loc: Franklin, Ohio
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Hi Charlie,
I'm pretty budget conscious and can't justify Naglers and Panoptics. However, I've found the Stratus eyepieces to be pretty good and comparable to the Panoptics in terms of function. I also have the TV 32mm and 20mm Plossls which are excellent, offer good eye relief and are relatively inexpensive. I tend to stay away from any plossls lower than those however, because of the small eye lens and short eye relief. That's where the Stratus eyepieces come into play for me.
Patrick
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Discovery 10" f/6 Split Tube Dob
Celestron C6 SCT
Denk Binoviewers
AT66ED Refractor
Oberwerk Ultra 15x70 Binocular
475B Geared Tripod & 501HDV Head
Oberwerk 9x60 Binocular
Celestron Regal 8x42 Binocular
Canon 30D DSLR
Mini EQ1
My Astronomy Pages
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whacked
member
Reged: 11/08/07
Posts: 21
Loc: Oregon
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For collimation I would (do) use a quality plossl. I have a Televue 7.5mm (no longer made) I use. As noted above, the eye relief is very short. The Baader Hyperion line gets very good reviews in longer focal length scopes, and I'm about to order several. I have seen a number reviews of the Baader eyepieces that favor the (phantom) coatings a bit over the Stratus, but I don't have an opinion since I have not seen them side by side. Baaders also lend themselves to eyepiece projection photography better due to barrel design differences.
In favor of the Hyperion eyepieces, there is a vendor with them on sale for $99 a piece. They are sort of a poor man's Panoptic as mentioned above. Most of the compromises are found at the edge of field and are most noticed in faster (than about f6) scopes. The Hyperion 24mm is a different design that has not been as well reviewed as others in the Hyperion line.
I also have a 32mm Televue plossl that is a favorite.
Edited by whacked (12/02/07 07:30 PM)
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Rusty
Postmaster
Reged: 08/06/03
Posts: 16399
Loc: Brooker, FL
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Charlie, since you mentioned a budget of (maybe) $200, the EPs I use a lot (and also use for publics sessions), are the Pentax XLs. I wear glasses most of the time, so the ER is comfortable. I also use them for public viewing because the ER allows the eyecup to be raised to its highest setting, and because it screws in and out, there's no chance of eyelashes or mascara on the glass.
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N11GPS Fastar
TOA-130S
MK66 Std
Vintage C5
Megrez II 80mm ED Triplet APO
SolarMax 40
NJP Temma II
Sirius EQ-G
ST8XE/CFW-8(LRGBHa)/AO-7/DF-2/STV Dlx/ST237a/350D (Unmodded)/Mallincam Color Hyper Plus/DSI III Color/DSI II Pro
Two not-spoiled Golden Retrievers - Maggie and Casey
Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering. - Arthur C. Clarke
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rumples riot
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 07/01/04
Posts: 2295
Loc: South Australia
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Charlie with two EP's and one barlow you can cover a lot of ground. For a C9.25 I can recommend a pan 24 and 2.5x powermate. For fine collimation and general planetary viewing a 9mm nagler is the shot. You know my images and those two EP's are an important part of my kit.
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EARTH AND COSMOS
My Solar System Imaging BLOG
How to peltier cool a C14 SCT
SOUTH CELESTIAL POLE
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Paul G
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 05/08/03
Posts: 1765
Loc: Freedonia
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The Radians are on sale at $218. Nice eyepieces, huge eye relief, and a pupil guide that will keep fingers off the glass and help the inexperienced find the image. My club does a LOT of public sessions (it's NASA's club and the guvmint stresses outreach) and the Radians are the only eyepiece I've used that never gets anything on the glass. Get a couple of longer fl ones and barlow them for higher mags.
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Gus
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Rusty
Postmaster
Reged: 08/06/03
Posts: 16399
Loc: Brooker, FL
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The Radians are also very nice, but I've had viewers scrunch the eyecup down to the lowest position, as it's only a frriction fit. Radians are fine as Gus mentioned, but run a wrap of tape around the eyecup/barrel to prevent eyecup retraction.
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N11GPS Fastar
TOA-130S
MK66 Std
Vintage C5
Megrez II 80mm ED Triplet APO
SolarMax 40
NJP Temma II
Sirius EQ-G
ST8XE/CFW-8(LRGBHa)/AO-7/DF-2/STV Dlx/ST237a/350D (Unmodded)/Mallincam Color Hyper Plus/DSI III Color/DSI II Pro
Two not-spoiled Golden Retrievers - Maggie and Casey
Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering. - Arthur C. Clarke
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Patrick
Postmaster
Reged: 05/16/03
Posts: 6788
Loc: Franklin, Ohio
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In case you missed it in all the noise, the TV 32mm and 20mm Plossls are great and not that expensive.
Patrick 
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Discovery 10" f/6 Split Tube Dob
Celestron C6 SCT
Denk Binoviewers
AT66ED Refractor
Oberwerk Ultra 15x70 Binocular
475B Geared Tripod & 501HDV Head
Oberwerk 9x60 Binocular
Celestron Regal 8x42 Binocular
Canon 30D DSLR
Mini EQ1
My Astronomy Pages
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Rusty
Postmaster
Reged: 08/06/03
Posts: 16399
Loc: Brooker, FL
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Quote:
In case you missed it in all the noise, the TV 32mm and 20mm Plossls are great and not that expensive.
Patrick
True, but to recommend them vacates the Prime Directive of the TOS: "Strive to spend others' money"
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N11GPS Fastar
TOA-130S
MK66 Std
Vintage C5
Megrez II 80mm ED Triplet APO
SolarMax 40
NJP Temma II
Sirius EQ-G
ST8XE/CFW-8(LRGBHa)/AO-7/DF-2/STV Dlx/ST237a/350D (Unmodded)/Mallincam Color Hyper Plus/DSI III Color/DSI II Pro
Two not-spoiled Golden Retrievers - Maggie and Casey
Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering. - Arthur C. Clarke
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