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so before i deleate the pic are these the right oones???? just making sure i got the pic from google and i forgot yournot alolowed to post pics from other sites

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If it was from a poor old widow selling her hubby's toys to buy groceries, I would not 'steal' anything. There is always a place for compassion. Same thing for Salvation Army, Goodwill etc.

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I think you have it exactly right, Dan.

I've seen folks brag about their "steals" from Salvation Army, though--even "beating down" the already low asking price. Go figure...

...and of course, always treat astronomy widows with compassion. Give her a fair price on those eyepieces, she might sell you the refractor that's still in the basement, too!

Jim

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The ZAO-IIs sell for around $3500 a set used. And if I recall correctly, the ZAO-Is were selling used for around $200 each until Roland Christen said what wonderful eyepieces they were. Now the complete set used is around $4000, with only the 34mm being worth around $1000.

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Did you get the opportunity to hold the eyepieces, remove the end-caps and examine the eyepieces in detail?

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The ZAO-IIs sell for around $3500 a set used. And if I recall correctly, the ZAO-Is were selling used for around $200 each until Roland Christen said what wonderful eyepieces they were. Now the complete set used is around $4000, with only the 34mm being worth around $1000.

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A 34mm ZAO recently sold at auction for $1825.

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Yup. $3400 for the full set is a good price.

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That is an absurd price. $1825 for a 34 mm. Abbe Ortho. Really?

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That is an absurd price. $1825 for a 34 mm. Abbe Ortho. Really?

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A P.T. Barnum quote suddenly comes to mind.

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So you're saying he spent $1825 on an eyepiece to look at!

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So you're saying he spent $1825 on an eyepiece to look at!

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Maybe not ONLY to look at, but certainly MOST of the perceived value must be as a collectible/investment. Let's say that the market value suddenly plunged to $185. The views through the eyepiece are the same, so that shouldn't matter as long as the owner didn't want to sell it. However, I bet that it would matter - a lot.

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This ended up being one of those Supply and Demand things.
The 34 was offered as an option in the ZAO-I Sets, one that relatively few took advantage of. And, by all accounts, it is a superb EP, with no peers out there in EP land. Consequently, there is great inherent value there.
I spoke to the seller of this EP after the auction. He stopped the sale when he did, because the bidding had exceeded his expectations. Afterwards, he sustained a barrage of withering criticism from deeply disappointed bidders, who were quite prepared to bid MUCH higher to obtain this EP.
For observers and collectors alike,the 34 has long been undervalued.

The value will not drop any time soon, as there is a finite population of this ocular.

No one is making premium orthos these days. Markus Ludes is however working with Berliner Glass on a new, limited line of no-holds-barred neo-othos, rumored to be a Konig-II design, using ZAO II as a performance benchmark.
But these are months away, if they are ever made - and they won't be the ZAO-I 34mm.



Edited by Levine (04/24/12 09:16 PM)

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