Explore Scientific 14mm 82 Degree

[Dboots]

Hi All,

I am looking for some advice on the Explore Scientific 14mm 82 degree eyepiece. I have recently returned to astronomy and enjoy deep sky observing. I have a 14" F4.5 Goto dob and thought the 14mm ES would be a good match for the scope.

I have read quite a few good reviews on the 14mm ES but I have also read one bad review on a fast scope. Has anyone used the 14mm ES on a fast scope? Also, would you recommend any other eyepiece in a similar size and price range.

Thanks.

[rrussell1962]

I use the ES 14mm 82 degree in an 18" F4.5 and like it a lot. Eye relief can be a bit tight, but because of astigmatism in both eyes I am stuck with either glasses with good views and eye relief issues, or contacts with better eye relief but worse vision and drying eyes during the night! If you do not have that issue you may find the ES a good choice and excellent value.

[nebulosity.]

The ES 14mm 82 is one of my favourite EP's, definitely recommend it.

Jo

[Dboots]

Hi Jo and Russell,

Thank you for your feedback. By the sounds of it, you are both happy with the EP. That might make it hard for me to find one on the second hand market!

Duncan

[MattT]

Dragging up this post from last year as I have just bought the 14mm 82º and I'm interested to compare it to memories of the Denk 14 and ES 14 100º.

Typically its cloudy but soon I hope to give it try in my trio of scopes.
6" f12 Refractor, 4" f5 refractor and 10" f4.8 Reflector, with and without a coma corrector.

By most reports the 14 82 was a ghastly mistake, with field curvature being the ghastly bit :lol:

Much thanks to Morton for parting with the ES 14 82 :thanx: I hope....

[byronpaul]

Matt,

Will be interested in your findings.

I have a 14mm ES, 13mm Type 6 Nagler and 13mm Ethos. In my 18" the Ethos gets most use these days, but I will not part with the ES.

In the past, I've had some amazing views with this eyepiece and I'd put it on a par with the Nagler on some targets. Whilst I'd rank the ES 3rd in this group, I think its still a keeper.

I too have read some very negative views about the 14mm ES, but to my eyes I think it a great ocular, particularly for the price.

Paul

[bytor666]

I recommend this one below over it.

Excellent sharpness, really good eye relief and almost a 70 degree apparent field of view. I'm really surprised at how good the correction is in my fast 10" F/4.7 reflector without a coma corrector.

http://www.longperng.com.tw/goods.php?act=view&no=119

[MortonH]

I've read some good things about this on CN but no-one sells it in Australia yet. Probably not proven enough yet to justify the expense of ordering from overseas.

[AG Hybrid]

The 18mm one is interesting to me. Are they expensive?

[bytor666]

https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fastro-talks.ru%2Fforum%2Fviewtopic.php%3F f%3D32%26t%3D998

[MattT]

Adrian...here you go from my favourite supplier in the US

http://agenaastro.com/eyepieces.html?manufacturer=357

add $20 post...i always go the cheap one, takes a few days more but so far so good.

[Camelopardalis]

That's pretty reasonable, but the same price as the ES82 14mm :shrug:

[AG Hybrid]

Aww thanks for that folks. You people are so nice. 20 mm of eye relief is pretty neato. With a coma corrector they maybe like a cut-price Delos!

[MattT]

Had a quick viewing between clouds last night with my 100mm f5 Achro and 70mm f13 achro.

Not the best night to try it out but I couldn't wait...The 14mm 82º in the f5 frac is not as bad as I thought it might be. The dreaded FC started at 60-70% out. None of my other ES 82's are perfect either, a couple come close, those being the 11 and 6.7mm.

In the f5 the 14mm gives an Exit Pupil 2.9mm, 35x and a TFOV of 2.3º.
The evident FC is fixed with a 1/6th turn of the fine tune wheel on the GSO 10:1 Crayford. Stars are obviously stars at the edge when focused at the centre of the field. My other 14mm eyepiece is the ES 28 68 with a 2" 2x ES Focal Extender, a bigish heavyish combo. Obviously smaller TFOV with no FC evident. I think I prefer the 14 82 already for weight, size, ease of use and the bigger TFOV.

I put in the 6.7mm and its nice :thumbsup: Bit of colour at the edge but really I don't look right at the edge. Put the 14 82 in the 2x FE and all the FC was cleaned up...identical to the 6.7 as far as I could see in the short time frame avaliable.

On to the 70mm f13 and as expected the FC just wasn't there. Hope to get it in the 6" f12 frac and 10" f4.8 Newt ASAP.

So far so good, it's not the awful monster I was half expecting....early days though.

How does it compare to the Denk and ES 100 14mm eyepieces? The 14 100 was brilliant, just huge and I grew to dislike the 100º field :shrug:
The Denk was beautiful just couldn't get used to the long ER of 20mm, would have been alright if it had an adjustable eyecup like the XW's and others do. My preference is the shorter end of ER...can use a 5mm Ortho happily :)

More later on...

Matt

[MattT]

Spent a plesant 90mins with my 10" f4.8 Newtonian reflector early in the night. Cruised around Ara, Pavo, Corona Australis and Scorpius with the 14 82...among others. With no coma corrector the 14 starts to show coma from 20% out....by 50% it stays much the same to the edge lots of coma and probably FC in there too but impossible to see. There is also the usual ES colour fringing showing itself too. The 14 is the worst of the 82's I have with the colour.

Rule one...for me at least....don't use a fast reflector without a coma corrector.

With the coma corrector, mine is the ES HRCC, it's a different story. A few minutes finding close to the right setting and the stars have very little coma, still a bit of false colour.
Also tried the ES 30 18 and 11 82º....all of them get the :thumbsup: from me...specially the 18mm.

The 14mm....I like it in the reflector (more so than the ES 16 68 which I also briefly tried) the 14 82 is better in this scope. With the CC in the focuser FC is there 80% out, but not annoyingly so.
What's to like....
Can see the whole field easily, no eye placement issues...that is no blackouts or kidney beans, just easy on the eye. Not a perfect eyepiece, but as with all the ES line 90+% of much higher priced alternatives.

Last on the list is my 6" f12 refractor....TBC.