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Plössl eyepieces
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TeleVue eyepieces
The 27 mm Pan is maybe a bit too wide, showing just too much coma in an f/4.5 Newtonian scope. The 24 mm shows less coma, and it comes in a 1 1/4" barrel (the 26 has a 2" barrel), and therefore fits better in my filter adapters. |
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Filters
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Laser collimator
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Home-made Telrad copy
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Binoculars I have gone through several pairs of cheap binoculars, some bought second-hand, some bought new, some quite decent for their price, some optically beautiful but utter plastic rubbish mechanically. Some I have purposefully destroyed to obtain optical parts, some have broken down because... because they are utter plastic rubbish mechanically. The optics are glass, of course. And, surprisingly, even the cheapest plastic rubbish 7×50 binos that I've used have been optically quite decent! I guess it's not rocket science to make an optically decent pair of 7×50s, but I can't say the same for most 10×50s I've tried. Strange. Finally I paid up and got myself a pair of vintage Carl Zeiss Jena Binoctem 7×50 binoculars, made in East Germany. Based on the serial number, they were produced in 1983 and they do obviously have multi coated optics. Yea, legendary Carl Zeiss glass from Jena, DDR. Mint condition, complete with ugly faux leather case. I swapped the original masochist neck strap for a padded one, and I love these. Just watch out for fakes when bidding on eBay, and buy from a reputable seller. Since then, I have also obtained a nice pair of mint condition ЗОМЗ БПЦ (ZOMZ Zagorsk "BPC") 7×50 binoculars, made in the USSR. The optics are tack-sharp, but the focusing mechanism is waiting to have its authentic Soviet all-purpose grease cleaned out and replaced with something that actually enables the parts to move. (I have a tube of Synco Chemical Corporation Super Lube in-shelf for that purpose. Many astro forums rated that stuff above generic lithium grease, especially for use at below-freezing temperatures. The manufacturer specifies it down to −40°C.) |