Edmund Scientific RKE 28mm

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Brand and Model:Edmund Scientific RKE 28mm
Price ($USD):$39.95
Type:Kellner
Focal Length:28.7 mm
Barrel Size:1.25 in
Apparent FOV:45.0 degrees
Field Stop Dia.:23.3 mm
Eye Relief:25 mm
Elements:3
Weight (lbs):0.5
Description:

Vote Highlights Vote
Edmund Scientific RKE 28mm
One of my favorite eyepieces. Images appear to be brighter than through others of similar focal length and views are very sharp. It is also light weight. My only concern are the blackouts due to the long eye relief. This may be a problem for some users but can be overcome with practice in positioning your eye.

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:9 Value:10
Weight: 20 (Notable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=577049

Edmund Scientific RKE 28mm
I am amazed how well all the Edmund RKE (Reversed Kellners) perform for me. I recently bought all the focal lengths twice (for my TV binoVue), and I sold most of my widefields (2002).
In my TV binovue I find the FOV surprisingly large, certainly sufficient. They are clearer, more transparent and sharper
than other famous and expensive eyepieces. Slightly softer at the edge, but nothing objectionable. The 28 mm comes with rubber eyeguard, excellent ! (I had to wash the rubber with soap and water to get rid of old powder-like substance.)
Overall: Highly recommended.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Value:10
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=141405

Edmund Scientific RKE 28mm
I've owned the complete set of RKEs for over a decade. They are well made and threaded for filters. They are sharp edge to edge, no noticable distortion and bright. These are not kelner type eyepieces, I have two kelners and the RKEs are far superior. They are nearly identical to the plossels I have, a bit brighter and a little more eye relief, but a slighty narrower field of view. All said, I think these are the cheapest good quality eyepieces available and a good value.

Overall Rating: 8
Optics:8 Value:9
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=123695

Edmund Scientific RKE 28mm
These eyepieces give very good clear views but are not well corrected for fast scopes--that's why some reviewers seem them as not corrected at the edge and some do.

I have compared the RKE 8 and RKE 12 to Pentax XW7, XW10, and TMB monocentric 10mm. (Sorry can't get exact match ups of focal length).

It is a fully comparable eyepiece to these higher end alternatives delivering crisp detail and lovely color saturation.

The XW28--even though perhaps not ideal for a fast scope--does very well on a Star Blast to my taste and gives a better view than the typical cheap 32mm plossl.

I would definitely consider RKEs for binoviewing.

My one reservation about them is what they share with all 1.25 inch eyepieces: on a big SCT like a c11 or c14 you're going to bang your head unless very careful about standing off to one side. You won't have this problem with a two inch eyepiece!

These are superior to the Chinese junk plossls and fully comparable to UO orthos. Regrettably the RKE series stops at 8mm which means that, without a barlow, you can't get into "planet magnifications" on scopes with short focal lengths.

If the world had not invented wide fields of 65, 70 degrees and more this would be the eyeiece series that I would own. Note however that the 32mm is pretty by contemporary standards.

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:10 Value:10
Weight: 5 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=577395

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