New scope & saved eyepieces from previous scope.

[Glenbo58]

Just purchased a Lunt Engineering 102 ED refractor along with a lightly used AVX goto mount. My Lunt is similar to a TS Optics 102ed or a Starview Ascent 102ed. I sold my previous scope a Celestron Ultima 8 SCT & kept my eyepieces. Of course my new scope is a very diffrent animal than my SCT was so I want your opinions if my collection is sufficient to at least get started. I went from an f/10 scope to an f/7 with half the aperture so I'm sure there are adjustments to be made. I enjoy viewing lunar, planetary (Jupiter, Saturn) & DSO'S mostly Nebulas & star clusters & Andromeda.
I have a short attention span when it comes calculating magnification, pupil exit so here is what i have so far. Just a visual guy for now, but astro down the road.
William Optic 2" dielectric diagonal, Orion Q70 38MM 2" eyepiece, Meade Super Plossl 26mm, 1.25", Orthoscopic 18mm. 1.25", Antares 12.5 mm. Plossl 1.25", GSO 2.5X barlow 1.25", (more like a 2.1X according to testing) Mainly want to know if I have a combination that will give me a satisfactory view of Jupiter & Saturn? Will the Q70 38mm. perform well in observing Andromeda Galaxy & Orion Nebula?

[Bigzmey]

Congrats on the new glass! 102mm ED is one of my most used scopes. Your range of EPs will work nicely with 102ED. Eventually, I would add a couple of short FL EPs. On an average night I use 5mm EP on planets and Moon in my 102ED. On a good night 3mm EP delivers even better views. For now you can barlow your Antares 12.5mm to get an equivalent of 5-6mm EP, but you don't have any options of getting to 3-4mm range. One good option is to get 7mm Ortho and barlow it as needed to ~3mm.

Q70 38mm should be a good match for your scope for wide field low power views. Pleiades, Beehive, Double cluster and Andromeda Galaxy will be nicely framed. For Orion Nebula I prefer 15mm.

[Glenbo58]

Thanks for the input, very helpful. is your sugestion of barlowing a 7-9mm to achieve a 3-4mm focal length helpful for eye relief? Is there a good alternative to a short focal length ortho or plossl that is easier on the eyes but still offers a sharp view?

[Lady Fraktor]

You can do this to preserve the eye relief of the 7-mm eyepiece.
The Vixen SLV series of eyepieces all have 20mm of eye relief, the Celestron X-Cel LX has about 15mm of eye relief and is a bit less cost.

[Bigzmey]

SLV suggested by Gabby is an excellent choice. They are a sharp as Orthos but wit 20mm eye relief. 4mm and 2.5mm work nicely on planets in my 102ED, no barlow needed.

X-Cel LX 5mm or 7mm and Meade HD60 4.5mm or 6.5mm are another good choice. They have nice eye relief and 60 deg FOV. They are a bit less sharp than Orthos or SLVs, but still quite good. Don't get X-Cell LX 2.3mm. It is a flop in otherwise good EP line.

[Glenbo58]

I have heard the same thing about the Vixen SLV eyepieces, after much research. I got a great deal on a lightly used 5mm. SLV. I already have a GSO 1.25 X 2,5 barlow that has worked very well for me. However I just bought another GSO barlow a 1.25 x 2.0. This one you can screw off the bottom element & screw it on to your eyepiece & allow for 1.5 x magnification. This will turn my Vixen 5mm into a 3.5mm -3.25mm about the max threshold of my scope for planetary viewing.

[Bigzmey]

I have heard the same thing about the Vixen SLV eyepieces, after much research. I got a great deal on a lightly used 5mm. SLV. I already have a GSO 1.25 X 2,5 barlow that has worked very well for me. However I just bought another GSO barlow a 1.25 x 2.0. This one you can screw off the bottom element & screw it on to your eyepiece & allow for 1.5 x magnification. This will turn my Vixen 5mm into a 3.5mm -3.25mm about the max threshold of my scope for planetary viewing.

Nice find, congrats! Most of my EPs bought used, the savings add up over time.