OK. I finally succumbed to the positive field reports of the optical performance of the Baader Morpheus eyepieces, as well as their smaller size and lighter weight compared to 100-degree eyepieces. Within the last couple months, I've bought three Morpheus used and the other three new. I intended to buy all six used, but I got tired of waiting for them to pop up. When they did pop up, other buyers usually beat me to them, sometimes within just an hour or two of my offering to buy them.
Now I have a complete set of Morpheus. I'll still keep my 100-degree eyepieces, or at least most of them. I'll probably sell the largest and heaviest, as well as my 31 Nagler and 41 Pan. Not because anything is wrong with their optical performance, but entirely because of their size and weight.
Case in point: my Pelican 1550 case of 100-degree eyepieces weighs 35 lbs. That's a lot to lug outside by the handle and hoist up onto an equipment table. But I don't feel like dividing these eyepieces into two cases. In fact, I mostly just bring out a small subset of them in a smaller equipment bag for observing sessions.
Now I want to load the full set of Morpheus and a few other eyepieces into one case. I recently bought an Apache 3800 case from Harbor Freight Tools for this purpose. Here are the eyepieces I intend to set up in the 3800 case:
2.5 Nagler
3.5 Nagler
4.5 Morpheus
6.5 Morpheus
9 Morpheus
12.5 Morpheus
14 Morpheus
17.5 Morpheus
24 UFF
30 UFF
34 ES 68-Degree
40 Titan II-ED or 40 XW
I already have all these eyepieces, so I have nothing else to buy. They certainly cover a wide range of focal lengths. They all have AFOVs between about 65 degrees and 82 degrees. I don't want to go wider or narrower than that.
The total weight of all these eyepieces in the 3800 case is 16 lbs. That's less than half the weight of the 100-degree eyepieces in the bigger Pelican 1550 case.
The intended objects for this set of eyepieces will be deep sky, planets, lunar, double stars. In other words, everything except solar. I don't do solar ... yet. The intended telescopes for this set of eyepieces will be just about every telescope in my sig that can handle them.
Any comments or suggestions? Should I leave out some eyepieces? Should I substitute other eyepieces for some in my list? I haven't plucked out the foam yet, so I still have time to decide exactly what eyepieces I'll put in the case with the Morpheus.
Mike
Edited by Sarkikos, 08 August 2024 - 07:53 AM.