terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Sears color-coded eyepieces.
#5681391 - 02/15/13 12:47 PM Attachment (37 downloads)
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I currently have 5 out of 6 of the color-coded 0.965 inch eyepieces that were available with various models of Vintage Sears telescopes in the late 60s and early 70s They were color-coded according to focal length. There was a green 22mm Kellner, a yellow 18mm Kellner, a silver 12.5 HM, a blue 9mm HM, a red 6mm HM, and a black 4mm SR. I have all but the yellow 18mm. I am therefore looking for a "yellow-top" Sears 0.965" 18mm Kellner eyepiece to complete my collection. I would also like the original plastic black eyepiece capsule with the word "Sears EYEPIECE" on it. If anyone out there can steer me in the right direction, it would be greatly appreciated.
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bremms
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 08/31/12
Loc: SC
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: terraclarke]
#5681478 - 02/15/13 01:20 PM
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Don't think I have a yellow Kellner. Think the blue one is lurking in box somewhere, no capsule for certain. Mini anvil??
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bob midiri
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 06/17/04
Loc: pa 19320
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: terraclarke]
#5681522 - 02/15/13 01:34 PM
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I had a yellow at one time, always thought it was 20mm, but now I guess it was 18mm
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CharlieB
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/11/07
Loc: Southern NH
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: bob midiri]
#5681553 - 02/15/13 01:47 PM Attachment (24 downloads)
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The yellow one I have is a 20mm Kellner.
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CharlieB
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/11/07
Loc: Southern NH
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: CharlieB]
#5681591 - 02/15/13 02:01 PM Attachment (26 downloads)
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Here are the others: 4mm, 6mm, 8mm, 9mm.
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terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: CharlieB]
#5681612 - 02/15/13 02:12 PM
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I had no idea that there was an 8 and a 20. My set of five is the one that came with the #6344. I figured the same set went with all of the 76mm telescopes. I didn't know about the yellow 18 until recently when I read of it with a 60x700 alt-az as part of a two eyepiece set. I always thought it was neat the way they were color-coded. Did any other maker do that?
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CharlieB
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/11/07
Loc: Southern NH
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: terraclarke]
#5681621 - 02/15/13 02:14 PM
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Only Sears color coded them, as far as I know.
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terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: CharlieB]
#5681630 - 02/15/13 02:18 PM
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The only thing similar that I know of is the color banding on the Vixen LV series of eyepieces (I love those eyepieces btw, and they don't make them anymore- soon to be classic).
Terra
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CharlieB
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/11/07
Loc: Southern NH
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: terraclarke]
#5681645 - 02/15/13 02:23 PM
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The TMB SuperMonos also had some color coded banding, but not like the Sears .965s.
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terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: terraclarke]
#5681671 - 02/15/13 02:32 PM
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Some time ago I started a thread here in "Classics" entitled "You meet the nicest people here in the Classics Forum." Over and over again I have had that confirmed. Due to the overwhelming generosity of a fellow refractor addict and classicist, I am soon to have a complete collection of Sears eyepieces. When I started this thread, I didn't know if I would get a response, and within an hour I had the most generous offer of said eyepiece. I don't know if its that we are of a similar generation (or so) that bonds us, or more than likely its our shared love of old things that so many people just don't care about and continuously replace or upgrade, but we are collectively a group that has common values and sees inherent value in what to others is tarnished, rusted, broken, or disposable. To us, those things are mendable, restorable, keepable, and valuable, and that carries over from our equipment to each other. I am so glad to be part of this group and again, I say thank you to all of you. I have made some wonderful friends and comrades in arms here. As I said, I am overwhelmed.
Terra
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BigC
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/29/10
Loc: SE Indiana
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: terraclarke]
#5682001 - 02/15/13 05:20 PM
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Those colored Sears oculars are pretty but still must have been difficult to see colors in the dark.I have one or two Sears refractors and just a couple colors.
All in all,astronomy gear historically has been a bit bland.Sears light green tubes added a bit of distinction.Someday I hope to find the "big one" ,a Sears 90mm.
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terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: BigC]
#5682246 - 02/15/13 07:53 PM
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Those "big ones" are few and far between. You will be lucky indeed when you find one BigC. I can't believe how Sears was fire-selling them at unbelievably low prices toward the end.
Terra
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CharlieB
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/11/07
Loc: Southern NH
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: BigC]
#5682465 - 02/15/13 10:15 PM
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The colors are quite easy to see in the dark. You just turn on that little light on the eyepiece tray on your Sears telescope for a few seconds.
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Dave M
Postmaster
Reged: 08/03/04
Loc: N.E.Ohio
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: terraclarke]
#5682477 - 02/15/13 10:22 PM
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I always thought those were some cool classic eyepieces, Nice eyepieces Terra.
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Mr Magoo
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/05/05
Loc: Franklin, Indiana
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: Dave M]
#5682985 - 02/16/13 09:02 AM
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The green 22mm is one of my favorites.
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terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: Mr Magoo]
#5683066 - 02/16/13 09:41 AM
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Yes, the green one is surprisingly good.
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BigC
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/29/10
Loc: SE Indiana
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: terraclarke]
#5683268 - 02/16/13 11:18 AM
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Re: fire sale prices.
Large retailers often sell discontinued items very cheap just to clear the space;or else they smash and trash the items and write them off as unsaleable goods for tax reasons.I once had the rather upsetting job of destroying tens of thousands of dollars of perfectly serviceable goods that the management of a very large retailer "wrote off";no one was permitted to have any of it for personal use.And I know a fortune 500 company which routinely sent its 2 year old computers to the landfill and monitored their burial!Much good stuff is deliberately wasted every day. 
So I really applaud the companies that give customers a chance to buy drastically marked down items. 
I personally get a "kick" out of restoring or using some old well-designed item. 
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strdst
Post Laureate
Reged: 03/23/08
Loc: Oregon Territory
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: BigC]
#5688149 - 02/19/13 12:47 AM Attachment (10 downloads)
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One empty chamber and wouldn't you know it! In 1970 apparently white became the new yellow.
other keith
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actionhac
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/09/08
Loc: WA
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: strdst]
#5688181 - 02/19/13 01:21 AM Attachment (11 downloads)
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I don't have a white and its capped off.
The manual states only five eyepieces supplied:
K 22mm green 64X
HM 12.5 silver 112X
HM 9 blue 156X
HM 6 red 233X
SR 4 black 350X
No mention of a 6th for the white port. 18mm would be 78X
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strdst
Post Laureate
Reged: 03/23/08
Loc: Oregon Territory
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: actionhac]
#5688235 - 02/19/13 02:34 AM
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 She is... uh... beautiful! Robert, you always have the best toys!
So why not a Uni-Sears-A-Pent? You know they could have slipped a 16.3mm Galoc between the 22mm and the 12.5mm and made us all so VERY happy! Oh well, at least I can stop looking around here for a missing Sears ep!
other keith
other keith
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actionhac
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/09/08
Loc: WA
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: strdst]
#5688242 - 02/19/13 02:40 AM
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Its your fault Keith you always start it! like who is that looking in the white chamber?
I thought Spacey was a little too much so I put Glowy in her place.
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Jon Isaacs
Postmaster
Reged: 06/16/04
Loc: San Diego and Boulevard, CA
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: Dave M]
#5689056 - 02/19/13 03:08 PM
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Quote:
I always thought those were some cool classic eyepieces, Nice eyepieces Terra.
I always like the old eyepieces and the color coded Sears were my favorites. Not quite up to the Naglers in terms of all around performance, but you could take them apart and put them back together on a regular basis without a PhD in probability theory.
Simple is good.
Jon
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apfever
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 05/13/08
Loc: Colorado
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: Jon Isaacs]
#5707770 - 03/01/13 08:42 PM Attachment (14 downloads)
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I was in S&S Optica today. Cathy's store is about the only astronomy shop we have in the Denver front range area. Cathy has a true passion for astronomy.
There in the display case was this unit with typical reasonable price, and it just happens to be the one I didn't have. I'm tickled yellow. The glass is excellent.
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BRisley
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/04/06
Loc: SW Florida
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces.
[Re: apfever]
#5708072 - 03/02/13 01:12 AM
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Lucky Dog!
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terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces- The Whole Family
[Re: BRisley]
#5708685 - 03/02/13 12:10 PM Attachment (17 downloads)
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Here's the whole Sears eyepiece family! A kaleidoscope of color. Going around the circle clockwise beginning with green- 22mm K, 20mm K, 12.5 mm HM, 9mm HM, 8mm HM, 6mm HM, 4mm SR, moon filter, sun filter.
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actionhac
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/09/08
Loc: WA
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces- The Whole Family
[Re: terraclarke]
#5709126 - 03/02/13 04:54 PM
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Thats a great collection Terra.
I still can't help wondering about a white one though.
Have we decided white was pre-1970 18 or 20mm and changed to yellow, or in fact has yellow always been 20mm and a white 18mm exists.
We know white did exist or was planned because of the white port on the turret.
I checked Astro Optical catalogs around the same time period 1969-70 and all jump from 12.5 to 22-25mm.
The only 18mm I could find is listed for a Newtonian and is a Orthoscopic.
I also checked a few Towa refractors and found the same, 12.5mm and next is 22mm.
Bushnell (circle T Towa) lists a K21mm.
Unitron lists a 18mm (12.5 18 25).
Robert
Edited by actionhac (03/03/13 01:42 AM)
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clintwhitman
Caveman
Reged: 01/01/07
Loc: CALI SoEasyACavemanCanSlewIt
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces- The Whole Family
[Re: terraclarke]
#5709909 - 03/03/13 03:40 AM Attachment (10 downloads)
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I never really thought about these to much. I have a small collection of them.
They belong to my Sears 6339-A 76 mm kit, the grey one is in the diagonal. I have the rest in another set that I collected over the years. Neat stuff! Its good to know I am not the only one that has a couple of these in a box. I think this set is made by RA Royal Astro, Right? 
Edited by clintwhitman (03/03/13 03:51 AM)
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terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces- The Whole Family
[Re: clintwhitman]
#5710374 - 03/03/13 10:58 AM
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Thank you Robert. Yes, I do believe that there is a white one out there and also an 18 mm. I have heard mention of both and other evidence makes me believe it. For one, an 18 mm would logically fit in the series between 22 (or 20) and 12.5. Then we have the white socket on the the Sears version of the Unihex. My belief is that the white 18 became the yellow 20. But only one of our friends here can answer that question for sure. Maybe someone has a white 18 lurking in a "junk box" or maybe one of us will come across it in some future find.
Clint, though they bear no manufacturers mark, you may well be right because these Sears eps seem to be a cut above most of the run of the mill 0.965s of the time. Especially the two Kellners. They are excellent eps and up to Unitron standards in my book.
Terra
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KeithC
member
Reged: 08/23/06
Loc: Atlanta GA
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces- The Whole Family
[Re: terraclarke]
#5719985 - 03/08/13 08:05 AM
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I thought I had owned a yellow 18 but it was in fact a 20mm. My mistake.
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t.r.
Post Laureate
Reged: 02/14/08
Loc: Upstate NY
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces- The Whole Family
[Re: KeithC]
#5720090 - 03/08/13 09:19 AM
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Terra, great classic collection there! It is so cool that a CN'er responded so quickly to your request. I find that often here myself. This website is a great resource in tracking down odd items. I just recently picked up a spare Curt Gowdy Jason 313 Discoverer with mount complete with accessories from a fellow CN'er as an identical spare to my childhood Jason...how cool is that!? I look foward to sharing it side-by-side with a child someday as their first scope, cutting their teeth as I did, so many years ago! 
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terraclarke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/29/12
Loc: Over the river and thru the wo...
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Re: Sears color-coded eyepieces- The Whole Family
[Re: t.r.]
#5720111 - 03/08/13 09:28 AM
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Absolutely T.R.! This website/forum is the best. Not only for tracking down obscure items, but for the tremendous wealth of information that we possess and freely share with each other, the spirit of community, the shared values, and the inspiration to try out and find use in what others have discarded. I love it!
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