EYEPIECES REVIEWS Last updated: 27 September 2005

Subject:	Nagler Type 6 13mm and Televue Powermate 2.5
Sent:	Friday, September 23, 2005 18:55:34
From:	Eric Theblack (divinitysaga@yahoo.com)
The Nagler Type 6 13mm has a slight learning curve. 

But once you master it, you will never look back. 
When I first looked through the eyepiece, it did not
look all that different from an ordinary eyepiece
except for the slightly wider field of view.  The key
here is to learn how to train your eye and your body
to remain focused and still (which is really a key of
celestial observing anyway).  One method, btw, is to
inhale and hold your breath while viewing.  This is
akin to the method used by snipers when they fire
(controlled breathing), where they inhale and exhale
and then squeeze the trigger before breathing again to
remain steady.  

Once you focus through the Nagler, the spacewalk feel
starts to kick in.  The edges of the eyepiece, that
round portal surrounding your field of view, start to
disappear.  I was looking at the moon (with a Lumicon
ND 25 filter) and bam!  It hit.  I saw the moon and
some of the dark space on the side of it (remember the
view is really wide now)... I felt that I was in a
space ship hovering several miles above, glancing down
on its surface.  I am not kidding.  I really felt like
I was there.  It was quite a rush.

I slapped in the Televue Powermate 2.5X.  This is a
great instrument.  It works just as well with any
eyepiece and the view is only slightly darker due to
increased magnification.  There is no image
degredation whatsoever.  Another home run for Televue.
 With the Nagler 13mm, I was looking at a mountain
ridge and some surrounding craters.  The moon began to
drift because I did not have my tracking motors
engaged.  This was good as I felt like I was in an
Apollo lander drifting down over the surface!  Simply
amazing.

They worked just as good on Mars but since Mars is
such a small target, despite drawing closer due to
opposition, it wasn't quite like the feeling of
landing on the moon or hovering over the moon.  Still,
the wide view looks like you're in a rocket ship
heading straight for Mars.  You have to see it to get
what I am talking about.

I was using an ETX 125 PE w/ UHTC.  The Nagler Type 6
retails for $280.  The Televue Powermate 2.5 sells for
$190.  Quite a bundle costwise but well worth it in
the long run.

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