Vixen zoom & PF-Ed 80mm (1 Viewer)

Will the Vixen zoom reach infinity on the 80mm? Have spent last 2 days reading through forums to find the answer and if it is there, I managed to miss it!

Actually, it seems like it worked in the 65mm , so I am ordering it.

Lulubelle I don't see any reason why it wouldn't come to focus in the 80mm Pentax? I have the current click-stop twist up EP and it is a good zoom I use it on the original 65mm Pentax. Great eye relief nice audible clicks seems very accurate on magnification have compared to fixed EP's. Bryce

I was using the televue zoom which i believe is a Vixen clone until recently. Using a Baader now.Televue worked fine in all 3 Pentax PFs.
Brian.

Thanks Bryce & Brian. I had the option of buying a Vixen or a Televue zoom. Chose the Vixen, perhaps should have chosen the other. My first foray into the EP candy store! Looking at getting a plossl next based on Can Popper's recommendation.

I appreciate your time.

Lulubelle I would shy away from plossl's, as much as they are affordable and they will work just, most are limited on eye relief. You can get excellent results, sharp, wide fov just no eye relief! Just a thought! Bryce.

Thanks Bryce. Need the eye relief as I wear glassess. Besides getting a Pentax XW 14 or 20, what other EP would you suggest? Looking through the posts, Televue, Baader & Vixen seem to be well thought of.

I like the newer Vixen line with twist up EP's they use Lanthanum glass as does Pentax! They may not have the fov but, they are very sharp with excellent color saturation. The Baader's come highly recommended but I have limited experience with that particular line! Bryce.

They Hyperions fixed get good reviews.

The Celestron XCel are big and not as expensive as teh Hyperions and give a decent view (I have 25mm and a 8mm ... there latter has some interesting ER issues ... too much ER or rather too much and too little ... a bit like the Swaro 25 to 50 zoom by the sound of it).

Plossls are not bad for a longer focal length (the ER is about 2/3rd the FL .. so I find them usable down to 20mm or so perhaps a little less) though there are now good more complex EPs for the same sort of price (or a bit more) as a good plossl.

"Plossls are not bad for a longer focal length (the ER is about 2/3rd the FL .. so I find them usable down to 20mm or so perhaps a little less) though there are now good more complex EPs for the same sort of price (or a bit more) as a good plossl. "

Kevin,

If you don't mind me asking, which are the "good more complex" EP's to which you are referring? I have been looking at various sites and reading through the posts to educate myself as far as EP's go, but my lack of knowledge is hugely apparent as I sift through all the info! One more question (for anyone willing to answer), regarding storage of EP's - I see they have bolt boxes, which have little foam inserts, but one site I looked at recommended storing the EP's with little bags of silica. Is that necessary? I hope the question doesn't make anyone laugh! I won't be buying an abundance of EP's, but they aren't the cheapest things in the world and I want to store the few that I will buy appropriately.

Thanks to all of you for your help and advice

The Williams Optical SWAN (and other clones) and the other wide angle like those from EWA EPs from Knight Owl (and others as they seem to come out of a signle Chinese factory). The 20mm SWAN is good (though the others in the range haven't been reviewed so well and it's usable ER seems to be optimistic.

Beyond those are the Celestron XCel and similar Meade EPs like the Stratus then the Hyperions.

The designs are a bit more complex so they can optimize ER and AFOV -- which is perhaps what you should be looking for. Browse their catalogs and search for reviews.

Reading other astro eyepieces comments in the Pentax subforum will also give you some more ideas to use web searching. Try reading the carious astro EP reviews too: they make the most use of these EPs (though have slightly different requirements ... dealing stray light tends not to be such a big features).

Most astro EPs are not waterproofed in anyway so they recommend storing them with desiccant to get any water out of them. so they won't fog/ I suspect this might be more of an issue for cold nights for astro folks but if you use your spotter in the rain beware of this.

Belated thanks, Kevin!

Took the scope out yesterday - cold & cloudy. I was looking at some lifer Mountain Plovers and noticed a good deal of C.A. on the Pentax zoom. I have the Vixen zoom (not the click-stop) and had meant to switch out the zooms before I left. This was a learning experience on the Pentax zoom and I must say it was not impressive (as everyone else has pointed out). Hoping for better with the Vixen!

Have been looking through BF, Cloudy Nights and other forums/sites for info...could be like a kid in a candy store and want to try every thing! easy to see how people end up with a variety of EP's, scopes and bins!