7 replies to this topic

[gustave]

What degree of compromise in general viewing is there when using  a crosshair reticle eyepiece with the LED illuminator crosshairs off?

TKs for reading...

 

[Maritime]

I have an svbony 20 mm, and when not illuminated, the reticle is for all intents and purposes invisible. 

[SeattleScott]

Well if you have light pollution the crosshairs won’t be invisible.

If you look at Orion Nebula, Andromeda or the Moon, the crosshairs won’t be invisible.

Basically I can’t see how this would be a desirable thing. But if I drove an hour and realized I forgot my eyepieces at home I would give it a go.

Scott

[epee]

Crosshairs can be useful for pointing out smaller points of interest in the FOV to others. Beyond that, they are a distraction.

[ButterFly]

Crosshair reticle eyepieces aren't usually made to very high standards.  Even centering of the crosshair can be off, noticably.  The focusing mechanism can also leave a lot of tilt between the elements.  An eyepiece like that usually won't provide the views your scope is capable of.

 

Higher end reticle eyepieces tend to have smaller fields of view in order to minimize distortions to assist measurement.  My Celestron/Baader reticle has a nice field with very little distortion.  You certainly don't need to illuminate the reticle on the Moon, but you can to make it red instead of black.  It's sharp enough to measure features on the Moon/Planets and double stars.  It's a nice eyepiece, but not my preference for anything other than measurement.  I prefer the comfort of a bigger field of view.

[Jon Isaacs]

Crosshair reticle eyepieces aren't usually made to very high standards.  Even centering of the crosshair can be off, noticably.  The focusing mechanism can also leave a lot of tilt between the elements.  An eyepiece like that usually won't provide the views your scope is capable of.

 

 

I make my own cross hair reticule eyepieces by adding cross hairs to standard eyepieces.  The cross hairs are reasonably centered and reasonably square but they're not perfect.  If the cross hairs are slightly off-center, it really doesn't matter as long as they are aligned. 

 

But finding quality wide field eyepieces with reticules, I know of none..

 

Jon

[aeajr]

Other than helping center the alignment stars for a GoTo mount, you would not typically use a reticle eyepiece.

 

There is one place where it can be helpful and that is sketching.  The crosshair can help you align your view and help you get the position of the things you are sketching more accurately.  But I would not use it for general observing. 

[gustave]

Thanks to all for the input - a lot of good and varried info above