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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Fun with a Zeiss Tripler (1 Viewer)

henry link

Well-known member
The Zeiss Tripler has a long history. It's a tiny 3x12 monocular/loupe that appears in my 1984 Zeiss brochure and probably goes back much further. The one I just bought appears to be mechanically identical to the 1984 brochure photo and, except for phase correction, must be optically unchanged too (not even T* coated). It's an insanely expensive item now, around $400, but I ran into a demo for $99.99 which is the only reason I bought it. I can't believe Zeiss actually sells many of these.

I tested it just as if it were a real fully grown optical device. Boosted magnification resolution at a whopping 15x was OK, about 12 arcsec, more than good enough for a very sharp image at 3x. It also star tested pretty well. The only real defect was a visible line from the roof edge in the out of focus diffraction pattern, perhaps unavoidable in such a tiny prism. Eye relief is about 19mm from the eyelens glass, 15mm from the rim of the rolled down eyecup. Apparent field seems to be a little larger than spec, around 37-38 degrees, which for some reason doesn't feel all that narrow in a device like this.

Perhaps the most interesting thing I found is that the real magnification changes significantly with focusing distance. This is really to be expected in an optic that focuses by changing the distance between the objective and the eyepiece, but here the difference is huge because the close focus is extremely close. The magnification is about 3x for infinity focus but increases to almost 6x at the closest focus (about 8" for my eyes). This has implications for its use as a binocular magnification booster. By varying the focuser position of the Tripler it can be used to boost binocular magnification from as little as about 2.8x (farthest focus setting past infinity) up to about 3.8x (closest focus setting). The binocular focuser has no trouble compensating for the differences in the Tripler focuser setting.

In use the Tripler mostly gets out of the way optically and just allows you to see how good your binoculars are at higher magnification. This may not be a pleasant experience for the uninitiated. We're used to the forgiveness of low magnification and stopped down objectives in daylight. It can be a shock to see how crummy the image looks at full aperture and higher magnification. Still, I think this device will be $100 worth of fun, both as a focusing loupe and as a last resort for ID's that are impossible at binocular magnification.
 
Yes, indeed, who buys these things--doublers & triplers? Swarovski makes them also so you’d think there must be some demand. I don’t think I’ve ever met a birder with one—I’ve certainly never encountered a birder using one.

But, they sound like interesting toys. If the Swarovski version should ever turn up for $99, I think I’d probably get it for my EL.
 
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Yes, indeed, who buys these things--doublers & triplers? Swarovski makes them also so you’d think there must be some demand. I don’t think I’ve ever met a birder with one—I’ve certainly never encountered a birder using one.

But, they sound like interesting toys. If the Swarovski version should ever turn up for $99, I think I’d probably get it for my EL.

My friend got the Swarovski doubler as a novelty item. used it for a couple of trips, then stay in the drawers for ever. So I guess they still sell a good number of them. But people may find it less useful in the field.
 
when the local Sportsman's Warehouse went out of business
I tried a doubler on my ELs that was 1/2 price, but
just seemed like too much trouble to use

edj
 
the tripler is very expensive here also , around £250.
mine was a bargain , got it and the adapter ring for free !...
 
Henry,
Even your smallest optical adventures are good reads and instructive. And man this has got to be the smallest.
Ron
 
I was always interested in this for my 10's but I don't have a tripod mount so that pretty much ends that.

And did you say boosted to 15? Did you have those hooked up to a a pair of 5x? Did I read that wrong?
 
Ron,

I think this little guy has found a permanent home in my pocket. Quick access to extra magnification is additive.

Nessus,

I don't use a tripod, just look around for a handy prop.

To evaluate the optics of the Tripler requires placing a booster behind the Tripler rather than in front of it, so I placed a 5X25 finder scope behind the Tripler's eyepiece (see photo), thus quintupling the Tripler to 15x.

Henry
 

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Renze,

It gets the job done. I can resolve line pairs to about 3 arcsec with the 8x56 boosted to about 30x (Tripler set at closest focus). At 8x the best I can do is about 11 arcsec, tripod mounted, and maybe 14 arcsec hand holding. However, the image quality is not very good at 30x. It's quite soft from spherical aberration and there's obvious chromatic aberration too. The 30x image is much cleaner if the binoculars are stopped down to 40mm.

Henry
 
Currently, I have the Zeiss 3x, the Swarovski 2x, and the Bushnell 2.5 x extenders, Both the Zeiss and Bushnell have the rubber cup to aide temporary placement. The Swarovski is pretty well limited to only the Swarovski binoculars and then not all models. I actually find 2x to be more practical since the exit pupil shrinks so dramatically with the extenders,making eye placement more critical. not to mention brightness. Absent of windy conditions and having plenty of time plus a steady platform, the extenders can be useful. But I seldom use them. Still they are fun, like Henry said, to use.
John
 
The Swarovski is pretty well limited to only the Swarovski binoculars and then not all models.

Because it is such a hassle to remove eyecups when using a doubler, I use the Swarovski doubler without doing so. I just hold it up to the collapsed eyecup by gripping the junction of the doubler and eyecup with my thumb and forefinger wrapped around them. It so happens that my neck strap length is just right to help brace everything when I hold the rig up to my eye, so it is quite comfortable and stable. The same technique works for using the Swarovski doubler on most other binos.

--AP
 
The zeiss 3x fits perfectly in the leica trinovid 10x32, never really used this device much, but it has me wondering what else it will fit...
 
Great to have fun with something that is useful at the same time. What sound even nicer is that you will be able to always keep it on hand, and nothing beats that.
 
Has anyone actually used one of these gizmos for birding?
In theory, it would be wonderful to have the extra power so readily available, but no reports from the field leaves me wondering whether the utility is there.
Could anyone who owns one please fill the rest of us in on the plusses and minuses?
 
Early magnification multiplier

In the former GDR, mainly for availability and economy reasons, combinations as a CZJ 10x50 with a CZJ Tellup galilean minitelescope as booster were used, mainly for astronomy.

For more on the Tellup see Website of Ulrich Zeun:
monocular.info/tellup.htm
 
That is a useful input, Hans. At least it proves the combination works in the field.
It makes sense that the lash up could be effective as a do it yourself astronomy telescope alternative, to observe static or near static objects in space.
Barring someone's experience to the contrary, it seems less suited for birding, because the targets for birders are unpredictable and elusive.
 
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