Customer Reviews

Meade PL 4mm Eyepiece (1.25")

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There might be be some confusion over the power (magnification) that an eyepiece will yield. Under the list of "Features", it states that this eyepiece renders high power, and that its use requires steady conditions. Those statements are indeed correct. You should know however, that eyepieces are not manufactured with only a specific brand of telescope in mind. This eyepiece will function perfectly well with any brand of telescope in 1.25" format.

However, under "Product specs" (as of Feb 17, 2001) it states that this 4mm eyepiece will yield 68 power. Be advised that the power of an eyepiece cannot be established (or stated) without considering the focal length of the telescope it is used in. To state that this eyepiece will render 68 power assumes that the telescope associated with it has a focal length of only 272 millimeters. Considering the intended use of this eyepiece, that would make for an unlikely (though not unheard of) combination.

This eyepiece will in fact render much more than 68 power in the average backyard telescope. For instance, in a scope with a focal length of 1000mm it will yield 250 power (1000mm divided by 4mm). In a scope of half that focal length it will yield half that much, or 125 power. Furthermore, the user of a scope with a 500mm focal length would utilize a 7.3mm eyepiece to get 68 power (500 divided by 7.3 = 68).

Because this eyepiece is intended for high power applications, it will be useful only under extremely dark and stable skies supplemented by better than average "seeing" conditions. If you should experience such a fortuitous combination, this eyepiece in conjunction with a quality telescope will render very good views of planetary subjects, and some very impressive lunar detail. It would also be useful for "splitting" double stars.

Be advised that if you normally wear eyeglasses to observe, you will have some difficulty using a high power eyepiece of this standard variety. Eye-relief with this component is severely limited. Eyepieces of short focal length with the luxury of longer eye-relief are available, but at a substantially higher cost. If you don't wear eyeglasses to observe, and if you're lucky enough to experience dark and steady skies, this eyepiece will do a very good job at a very competitive price.

This is certainly a useful tool, and is extremely well suited for its intended purpose. Therefore it gets 5 stars, and deserves to be recommended for the practiced amateur who is looking for that righteous combination of bang for the buck.

Be carefull. This Eyepiece is meant for the ETX-60 and ETX-70 scopes. I bought it for my ETX-125EC and had to return it. The ETX-125 and ETX-90 should use the Meade SuperPloss Series 4000 ocular lenses. Otherwise this is a good lens to use for planetary and lunar observation if you can get a steady mount and calm skies. The eye relief is a bit short though. If you wish to get close up views of the planets you definately need this lens.

Overall, we really like the Meade telescope we bought. But this eyepiece probably won't be used very often.

First of all, the viewing hole on the eyepiece is TINY. It's tough to find anything through it.

Secondly, the loss of light when using this piece is so significant, that it's more worthwhile to just view it at a slightly lower magnification.

You're better served buying one of the lower magnification lenses, and using a 2x or 3x Barlow lens with it.

Brings things right up close and personal. It is about as far as you would like to take the magnification for the 60mm scope but it works very well. You have to scan the moon to see all of it. The only down side I see is the 4mm is a pretty small hole to keep in the focus of your eye. It requires a steady head. It might be better to use the barlow lens and a larger objective to realize similar magnification. But I have no complaints.

this is a pretty good eyepiece, great magnification (with my DS-90) and perfect for amaetuer astronomers looking at the moon. some not-so-good things are its low-light collection. and its really hard to find things with it unless you are experienced with aiming your telescope.

To determine the power any eyepiece will provide divide the focal length of the scope by the f.l. of the eyepiece. As an example A scope with a focal length of 915mm using an e.p. of 4mm will result in a power of 915/4 = 228x. The same scope with an eyepiece of 6mm would be 915/6 = 152 power.