Accessories and other items

Barlows and Image Amplifiers

TV 2x barlow, Celestron Ultima barlow, TV 2.5x Powermate, and Takahashi Extender-Q

I believe that most amateur astronomers have a "love-hate" relationship with barlows. Some of this comes from the early days of barlows and image amplifiers when they were not taken seriously by the community and were considered a "poor mans" tool.  Times have changed and the level of performance achieved by some of the newer optical designs and manufacturing techniques have changed the barlow into a standard tool for the amateur astronomer. Also, the popularity of fast short focal length scopes of excellent quality, creates an environment where multiplying the magnification of an eyepiece set is almost a necessity. To make a long story short, today's quality barlow and image amplifiers are very good and a worthwhile investment for any amateur with a short focal length scope. 

Denkmeier Standard Bino-Viewer

Denkmeier Standard Bino-Viewer mounted on a Takahashi FS-78

Denkmeier Standard bino-viewer with Self Centering Diopter Adjustment

I had to give world of bino-viewing a try. The Denkmeier Bino Viewers were highly recommended and the BV I had was an excellent tool. After several months of use, I decided that my eyes (after cataract surgery on both) just do not adapt very well to bino-viewing  I will say that the lunar views I have experienced through the Denks and my Tak refractors were VERY impressive. As you have most likely read (or experienced), matching up a bino viewer to the different types of telescopes can be a bit of a pain. The set I picked up included the necessary optical corrector and paraphernalia required to adapt the bino-viewer to refractors. I was able to adapt the system to a MN-56 with some success using a Celestron Ultima barlow. Perhaps the biggest issue to overcome with the bino-viewers is balancing the OTA with the additional weight of the unit and eyepieces. Once you have achieved a proper balance it is necessary to re-balance the OTA any time you switch from bino-viewing to "Cyclops" mode.   

I have tried several types of eyepiece pairs and found that, for my eyes, the old classic smooth side TV plossls provided some of the sharpest views I have experienced. I also used a pair of old TV 19mm Wide Fields which provide a very nice view.    

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