7 replies to this topic

[aaronfunk]

Hi all,

 

I’m new to the forum, but have been into astronomy for a while. I have a vintage Celestron orange C8 that I bought used when I was a kid. As an adult, I’ve not put much money into this hobby, if I can call it that, but I’m now thinking of buying some decent eyepieces. I currently have a 10 mm Plossl and the original 25 mm ortho that came with the scope. I also have the original 90 degree adapter. The scope is in good shape I think.

Is it a waste of money to purchase good eyepieces for an old C8? If I throw a Televue Delite on it or a Celestron Xcel LX will I be getting most of the benefit of such an eyepiece?

[ShaulaB]

My 1974 vintage C8 has super optics, and it gives killer views of planets. Old in optics is not the same as old in computers. You won't know if you have a good scope until you get some time with it viewing.

Collimation of a Schmidt-Caassegrain telescope is pretty straightforward, if you have not attemped it yet. Lots of videos and CN friends can give you guidance.

A Delite would good for planet viewing. I use a 9mm DeLite on the Moon, planets, and small-ish DSO's like M57. Regarding eyepieces, find out if you are mainly a planet observer or a deep sky observer. If you search on this topic here at CN, there are tons of opinions.

Edited by ShaulaB, 13 July 2020 - 10:15 PM.

[bdcmd]

Is it a waste of money to purchase good eyepieces for an old C8?

 

Not at all, if your scope is in good condition.  I have an original Nexstar8GPS, somewhat newer than your scope, that I use with TV T5, T6 and Panoptic eyepieces.  I also use original Celestron Nexstar Plossls.  They all work very well, providing great views.  As noted above, good collimation is required for best results.  I'd say go for the Delite or Xcel LX and decide for yourself.

[Hesiod]

One eyepiece to rule them all...with the C8 in my opinion nothing beat the Baader Hyperion zoom 8-24: in a single eyepiece have basically all the focals you need, with the convenience of not having to swap EP or bring a lot of them (may add a 32 or 40mm Plossl for max tfov and nebular filter, and maybe a Barlow such as the Baader Q-Barlow* if feel 250x being not enough)

*not only it is compact, but can screw the optical cell and apply to the zoom as it were a filter. In such case would give more or less 1.3x, bringing the zoom above 330x

[davidmcgo]

Absolutely worth it if you like the scope.  A 24mm Panoptic will fit your diagonal and really open up your views compared to the 25mm Ortho.  A 19mm Panoptic will be great on globular clusters with a bit more magnification.  Then a 9mm Delite for higher power.

 

if you go with the Baader Hyperion Zoom, th slow power view is narrower, not any wider than your Ortho, so you would still want a 24mm 68 degree eyepiece or a 32mm Plossl for the widest field the 1.25” diagonal will give.

 

While you can go to 2”, if you ar easing the fork the balance gets really unwieldy with the scope becoming very back heavy.  I stick with 1.25” on my 1975 C8 for that reason.

 

Dave

[aaronfunk]

Thanks all for the feedback so far. My old C8 is in very good shape so I think I’ll work on upgrading the eyepieces.

[RichA]

Hi all,

 

I’m new to the forum, but have been into astronomy for a while. I have a vintage Celestron orange C8 that I bought used when I was a kid. As an adult, I’ve not put much money into this hobby, if I can call it that, but I’m now thinking of buying some decent eyepieces. I currently have a 10 mm Plossl and the original 25 mm ortho that came with the scope. I also have the original 90 degree adapter. The scope is in good shape I think.

Is it a waste of money to purchase good eyepieces for an old C8? If I throw a Televue Delite on it or a Celestron Xcel LX will I be getting most of the benefit of such an eyepiece?

Honestly, 2000mm focal length, your first concern should be maximum field size.  Something at least 60-degrees and better still 80 or so is probably a better all round eyepiece than esoteric narrow-field eyepieces like orthos.  Reason being, f/10 focal ratios "tolerate" a lot of eyepiece issues that a fast scope won't and having a decent field size, even at higher powers means finding objects is easier.

[whizbang]

Best 1.25 eyepiece for your scope is Explore Scientific 24mm 68 degree.