44 replies to this topic

[Marcus1]

Speaking as a newcomer: One can go overboard on telescope quality ending up with insufficient funding to match telescopes and eyepiece quality, or vice versy.
For example what eyepieces would complement an 8” edge hd without going overboard. I would appreciate comments.

[Keith Rivich]

When I first got my 8" Celestron SCT I used all Televue Plossl's. They worked just fine. Still use them occasionally in my bigger scopes. 

[Starman1]

Speaking as a newcomer: One can go overboard on telescope quality ending up with insufficient funding to match telescopes and eyepiece quality, or vice versy.
For example what eyepieces would complement an 8” edge hd without going overboard. I would appreciate comments.

Literally hundreds of different eyepieces with 40 to 120° fields fill this requirement.
All you can expect to get in answer is a litany of everyone's favorite eyepieces.
What is "without going overboard"?
So,
-- what price range do you have in mind?
-- what apparent fields do you like?
-- do prefer low powers, or medium, or high powers?
-- how light polluted is your observing site?
-- are you primarily going to view planets and moon, or are you interested in deep sky objects?
-- how long have you been using a telescope?
-- will you travel to darker skies or observe in the back yard?

The answers to these questions will determine recommendations concerning price and type of eyepiece, the appropriate magnifications, etc., etc.

Please don't take my comments as criticism, because they are not. Newbies don't usually know enough to ask more directed questions. To answer yours will require a little more information so you don't merely get an answer that won't be helpful.

Edited by Starman1, 27 February 2025 - 11:06 AM.

[Starman1]

One piece of advice I often give is to start out small, with eyepieces of 50x, 100, and 150x.
With an 8", that will give you enough choice for many types of objects. I'd add 200x and 250x later for moon, planets, double stars.
The main difficulty with the 8" SCT is getting to 50x, which requires a 40mm eyepiece, and likely a 2" size, meaning a 2" diagonal is needed.
To get there more economically, the 0.7 focal reducer can be added to the scope to allow you to get to that low a power with the 1.25" diagonal and eyepieces.
Or, a 30-32mm eyepiece can be used for low power.
You'll quickly discover that an SCT is a narrow field scope, and getting to large true fields will need that focal reducer or 2" diagonal conversion. In the meantime, let's get you a minimal set to start observing.

What eyepiece came with your scope?

[Marcus1]

So when I said newcomer I meant strong interest without any telescope. I live in the countryside with dark skies and a bright Milky Way overhead. College background is in Mossbauer spectroscopy. Industrial experience in us-vis instrument design for polluting gas measurement.
Clearly the sky is the limit for acquisition of eyepieces which become collectors pieces. The question I was posing was not expressed very well due to lack of experience, just like you noted. At the age of 16 I ROF and cracked c7 so my ability to bob and weave at a pinpoint eyepiece is not there, thus wide view eyepieces are necessary. Yes I would like to view all of the above celestial
objects .
So is there a rule of thumb for start out system cost eg 1:1 telescope cost to the Eyepiece cost that will get the job done and what are the magnifications best suited.
You have outlined much of this in your previous comment and I Thank you

[rfcooley]

M1,

 

Sorry to hear about your ROF. Would a good observing chair help?

 

I do a lot of public outreach with mostly my C8s. For those events I use a SVBony 26/70 2" and a SVBony 7-21 Zoom. I also use a observing chair when not doing outreach. Jumped out of to many perfectly good aircraft when in the service. I am also approaching the big 70. While my discomfort is probably no where near yours, being seated is much more comfortable.

 

Starman1 is correct we need to have some ideas of your budget and your preferences in order to make reasonably close recommendations.

 

RF

[Starman1]

So, when I said newcomer I meant strong interest without any telescope. I live in the countryside with dark skies and a bright Milky Way overhead. College background is in Mossbauer spectroscopy. Industrial experience in us-vis instrument design for polluting gas measurement.
Clearly the sky is the limit for acquisition of eyepieces which become collectors' pieces. The question I was posing was not expressed very well due to lack of experience, just like you noted. At the age of 16 I ROF and cracked c7 so my ability to bob and weave at a pinpoint eyepiece is not there, thus wide view eyepieces are necessary. Yes, I would like to view all of the above celestial
objects .
So is there a rule of thumb for start out system cost eg 1:1 telescope cost to the Eyepiece cost that will get the job done and what are the magnifications best suited.
You have outlined much of this in your previous comments, and I Thank you

First, use a chair.  Humans are not stable standing, so lower the tripod to use the scope sitting.

That will reduce/eliminate the sensitivity of eyepiece use, more or less.

This also makes it easier to share the view with others.

 

I think you would find some fairly inexpensive eyepieces to yield good image quality.  Once you have a couple years of use under your belt you can decide what to get for specific preferences.

For the basic set, here are some decent examples (and FAR from your only alternatives):

Astromania 70° SWA eyepieces 13mm, 22mm, 32mm (requires a 2" diagonal) (add 8mm for highest most-often-usable power later)

[If you are in the EU, the same eyepieces are available under the Omegon Redline name]

Baader Hyperion 68° eyepieces 13mm, 21mm, 36mm (requires 2" diagonal) (add the 10mm later)

 

I owned an 8" SCT for 11 years and owned a couple hundred eyepieces during that time.

I do encourage the acquisition of a 2" diagonal so that you can use 2" eyepieces, which will give you wider true fields at low power, since the scope is limited in field size due to its long focal length and internal baffles.

It's not a very expensive upgrade.  For example, $119:

https://agenaastro.c...r-diagonal.html

 

Of course, there are many more options for eyepieces and diagonals, but I suggested a good diagonal that was about the price of an eyepiece.

And I suggested widefield eyepieces because they are comfortable to use, and the ones I mention are also glasses-compatible in case you share the views with someone who wears glasses.

The Baader 36mm is a little more expensive, but also yields a larger true field and slightly lower magnification than the 32mm Astromania.

 

I'd aim for 50/100/150/200/250x as a set of eyepieces.  Later on, after you gain a bit of experience, you might replace 150x with 130x and 160x or replace 100x with 80x and 120x. Or, go higher than 250x if you have an area where the skies are stable and stagnant much of the time and high powers don't result in blurry images.

Sets of eyepieces never seem to get smaller, only larger, LOL.

 

Some will recommend a zoom eyepiece.  I do not.  Fields of view are narrow (especially at low power, where you need a wider field) and it is not common for them to have the same optical quality as fixed power eyepieces.

It can be a way to save money, but it doesn't sound like you are seeking the lowest cost solution.

 

I will sit back now and watch the other comments you will get.  There are a lot of experienced observers on CN.

[Keith Rivich]

So when I said newcomer I meant strong interest without any telescope. I live in the countryside with dark skies and a bright Milky Way overhead. College background is in Mossbauer spectroscopy. Industrial experience in us-vis instrument design for polluting gas measurement.
Clearly the sky is the limit for acquisition of eyepieces which become collectors pieces. The question I was posing was not expressed very well due to lack of experience, just like you noted. At the age of 16 I ROF and cracked c7 so my ability to bob and weave at a pinpoint eyepiece is not there, thus wide view eyepieces are necessary. Yes I would like to view all of the above celestial
objects .
So is there a rule of thumb for start out system cost eg 1:1 telescope cost to the Eyepiece cost that will get the job done and what are the magnifications best suited.
You have outlined much of this in your previous comment and I Thank you

You are going to get 20 different answers to this, each based on the posters personal journey 

[Marcus1]

The more the merrier 😃

[PKDfan]

Speaking as a newcomer: One can go overboard on telescope quality ending up with insufficient funding to match telescopes and eyepiece quality, or vice versy.
For example what eyepieces would complement an 8” edge hd without going overboard. I would appreciate comments.

Yes your right Marcus1 !

It can become an endless chase to catch your own tail.

- so its important to know the difference of quality- those multi-thousands dollar instruments for connoisseurs and hundreds of dollar consumer mid level optical class that has zero need for ultra fast eyepieces suitable for F/4.

F/10 Schmidt-Cassegrain i'd stick with Celestrons brand of eyepieces X-cel lx i think is one and luminos. I am not familiar with them so forgive my imprecise advice. The cheaper ones !

You need only midgrade eyepieces especially Plössls and pseudo 5 element Masuyamas work exceptionally well at F/10.


Good Hunting !



Lance

Clearest Steady Skies

[SeattleScott]

SCT are more forgiving of mediocre quality wide angle eyepieces, so most eyepieces will perform just fine. It mostly comes down to deciding how much AFOV and ER you want, and then if you are willing to pay a premium for a touch more contrast in the center of the field.

[briansalomon1]

Keep in mind you are probably going to add and subtract telescopes, at least for awhile, and it might be many years before you end up with the telescope(s) you really want. If you buy used at a fair price you can probably sell if you want to, and not loose very much.

 

Early on, I tried different brands of eyepieces but settled on TeleVue and just stayed with them. After 27 years this is what I have that I don't have any desire to change. I use all these in a 15" dob as well as a 4" wide field refractor. Keeping all the eyepieces and accessories in 2" format simplifies everything.

 

31mm 82 deg fov

21mm 100 deg fov

13mm 100 deg fov

6mm 100 deg fov

4.7mm 100 deg fov

3.7mm 100 deg fov

 

As Keith said in post #2, all the TV plossls are very sharp.

[Inkie]

Agreed, the SCT type is typically longish in FL, so you can use lesser quality, and longer FL, eyepieces to good effect.  It's also a fine enough scope that you can grow into it and all it can do for you, including better add-ons like eyepieces, diagonals, better mount, etc.  They can all come in time as you get more comfortable with what you really need from the instrument.  I don't know much about the Edge/HD but I sense that it has at least dual capability for imaging, meaning less than F10.  Later, outside of imaging, you may want a better eyepiece or two for extra sharp views.  They'll cost, of course, but not outrageously so, and not if you watch for sales where they can be had for about 15-25% off, depending on the seller.  Look for Baader Morpheus, Pentax XW, Televue Plossls, APM XWA, and please don't overlook our hosts, accessible by clicking on 'astronomics' in the black marquee at top, who sell fine eyepieces.

[sevenofnine]

As others have said, it's very important to have an height adjustable observing chair. Starbound is the most recommended but I like the TeleVue Air Chair for it's pneumatic lift and easy portability. If your scope came with very basic plossls then the Astro-Tech Paradigm/Agena Starguider ED's are a nice bump up in quality and viewing comfort IMO. They are reasonably priced too 

 

https://astronomics....ndor=Astro-Tech.

[rfcooley]

"You are going to get 20 different answers to this, each based on the posters personal journey."

 

Only 20?

That's what makes this hobby so fun.  If we don't experience Analysis Paralysis at some point were not interested enough.

 

RF

[ABQJeff]

"You are going to get 20 different answers to this, each based on the posters personal journey."

 

Only 20?

That's what makes this hobby so fun.  If we don't experience Analysis Paralysis at some point were not interested enough.

 

RF

I think he meant 20 different answers from just 5 different people, all in disagreement.

[ABQJeff]

My top eyepiece recommendation for new comers wanting to maintain a reasonable budget is the AT/SV/APM 82 degree line up (4, 7/8, 10/11, 15/16), the ES 20mm and 24mm 68 degree, a 32mm Plossl, and a 40mm Plossl.  

 

From there you can then go Pentax XW and/or Morpheus, then 2" EPs, then 100 degree, then Televue everything, etc.

Edited by ABQJeff, 27 February 2025 - 05:25 PM.

[jrmacl]

So when I said newcomer I meant strong interest without any telescope. I live in the countryside with dark skies and a bright Milky Way overhead. College background is in Mossbauer spectroscopy. Industrial experience in us-vis instrument design for polluting gas measurement.
Clearly the sky is the limit for acquisition of eyepieces which become collectors pieces. The question I was posing was not expressed very well due to lack of experience, just like you noted. At the age of 16 I ROF and cracked c7 so my ability to bob and weave at a pinpoint eyepiece is not there, thus wide view eyepieces are necessary. Yes I would like to view all of the above celestial
objects .
So is there a rule of thumb for start out system cost eg 1:1 telescope cost to the Eyepiece cost that will get the job done and what are the magnifications best suited.
You have outlined much of this in your previous comment and I Thank you

I bought a used C8 25 yrs ago and 2 Plossls, an 8mm for 250x when seeing is decent and an 11mm for 185x. That and the stock 25mm served me well then I got a inexpensive 18mm SWA and have been loving it since, SWA is supposed to mean Super Wide Angle but should just be renamed Slightly Wider Angle

Edited by jrmacl, 27 February 2025 - 05:29 PM.

[Starman1]

My top eyepiece recommendation for new comers wanting to maintain a reasonable budget is the AT/SV/APM 82 degree line up (4, 7/8, 10/11, 15/16), the ES 20mm and 24mm 68 degree, a 32mm Plossl, and a 40mm Plossl.  

 

From there you can then go Pentax XW and/or Morpheus, then 2" EPs, then 100 degree, then Televue everything, etc.

And those 82° eyepieces come in a wide swath of focal lengths: 4mm, 7/8mm. 10mm, 13mm, 16/15mm, 21mm, and 28mm

(note: the ones with 2 focal lengths are label focal length/actual focal length).

You're right--incredible values just as long as glasses are not in the picture.

[Keith Rivich]

The more the merrier

Just don't end up with paralysis by analysis. Sort through all this, find what seems to work for you, then pull the trigger. Not sure if it was mentioned above but if you have access to a club (where members actually observe) or an organized star party try and attend observing sessions. Hands on experience is always the best! 

[Marcus1]

Just don't end up with paralysis by analysis. Sort through all this, find what seems to work for you, then pull the trigger. Not sure if it was mentioned above but if you have access to a club (where members actually observe) or an organized star party try and attend observing sessions. Hands on experience is always the best!

[Marcus1]

I will try to plot a course between the twin reefs of “analysis paralysis and sunk cost fallacy”. I’ll take your advice on getting something that works for the moment and improving on anniversaries, at my age every day is an anniversary of something or other😃

[Marcus1]

Thanks to you all for all your helpful comments, advice and suggestions. BANG trigger pulled.

[Jon Isaacs]

I think he meant 20 different answers from just 5 different people, all in disagreement.

 

Not only are they in disagreement with the other 4 people, they are in disagreement with themselves. 

 

That's because there are so many different paths one can take.  My first serious scope was an 8 inch SCT from the 1970s.  Expensive eyepieces were not on the menu, just a simple set of Plossls were all I could afford and that meant three plus a Barlow and the 25mm that came with the scope.

 

So far though, there's been lots of good stuff.   Don has lots of good advice, experience and strategies.

 

The Edge design is corrected for field curvature and coma so they perform nicely with wide field eyepieces... 

 

One could start out with a set of astro-tech Paradigms and get some nice views at $70 per eyepiece.  The Astro-Tech XWAs are 100 degree eyepieces and quite the bargain at under $300 each..  Am I disagreeing with myself or just offering two of many possibilities?

 

Jon

[vrodriguez2324]

Thanks to you all for all your helpful comments, advice and suggestions. BANG trigger pulled.

Which one did you get?

 

The eyepiece journey. For all of us it begins with a single step. For many, myself included, it never ends. I am okay with that as the "best part of the journey is the surprise and wonder along the way" - Ken Poirot

 

I don't wear glasses and my eyes seem to get along with most eyepieces: big, small, narrow, wide, short eye relief, long eye relief, higher cost, lower cost, etc. (as long as its well corrected and works in my telescopes).

 

Over the last five years I've built sets around my favorite two types:

1. Hyperwide (XWAs, Ethos, and Optimus)

2. Ultrawide Long Eye Relief. (Terminagler, 22NT4, and Morpheus). 

 

I have all the bases covered but still find myself thinking about ways to change things up or start a 3rd set. Maybe a small form factor set, I do have a 24 Pan and Meade 5.5 UWA. Time to fill the gap =/

 

 

-Victor

Edited by vrodriguez2324, 28 February 2025 - 12:03 PM.