Pentax SMC-XL 14mm

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Brand and Model:Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
Price ($USD):$227.50
Type:Misc Wide Angle
Focal Length:14 mm
Barrel Size:1.25 in
Apparent FOV:65.0 degrees
Field Stop Dia.:0.0 mm
Eye Relief:20 mm
Elements:6
Weight (lbs):0.8
Description:

Vote Highlights Vote
Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
This is my most used mid-high power eyepiece in my 5" MAK and medium power in my 4" APO. The Pentax XL's are so easy to use compared to some of the other eyepieces with short eye relief and more critical eye position.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Value:10
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
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Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=155428

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
I think this is the perfect mid-power eyepiece for nearly any scope. I've used it in our 10" f/5 Dob, our 90mm f/11 refractor, an 8" f/10 SCT, and a 20" f/5 Obsession. It provides nearly perfect images in all of them.

The 65 degree field is also just about perfect. Any wider, and you have to move your eye around constantly to take in the view, but with the Pentax XL, it's comfortable to view the whole field at once.

The 20mm eye relief is ideal, whether or not you wear glasses to observe. The eye cup works very well, and there's never a problem finding the exit pupil, unlike the Tele Vue Radians.

There is minor lateral color, but it's much less noticeable than with a Radian. The view is sharp to the edge, even at f/5. The contrast is superb. Better than any other premium eyepieces I've used. Better than the UO orthos. Premium orthos like the Zeiss and Pentax may have slightly better contrast, but I've never used those so I can't judge.

This is the most comfortable eyepiece I've ever used. With some eyepieces, like the higher power Naglers and Panoptics, the eye relief is much too short, and blackouts are a problem with the Radians. With the Pentax, eye positioning isn't critical. You just put your eye to the eyepiece and see a wonderful image.

I love these Pentax XLs. I'll be buying more of them.

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=69503

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
This 14mm works great in both my Pentax 80mm ED spotting scope and my CR150HD refractor. It works great with my 2X barlow also. Great day or night with no blackouts like the UWA eyepieces.

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=47116

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
After searching for ever I finally found an eyepiece that compliments my Coronado PST. You get to view the entire disc with great detail. This is another superb Pentax eyepiece that can be attained for about $170 to $200 on the used market today. The optics are fantastic and provide a sharp contrasty image across the entire FOV. The eye relief is amazing and the eyecup is easy to use. I love the Pentax XL line and would recommend it without hesitation.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Value:10
Weight: 5 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=590936

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
I bought mine used and love it. It is very comfortable to use in both my xt6 and 10" f/5. Highly recommended!

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Value:10
Weight: 5 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=507064

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
The sharpest eyepiece i have ever used. They are incredibly sharp all the way to the extreme edge. We compared them side by side with a televue 14mm radian and the pentax was a bit sharper mainly noticeable at the edges. A truely unbeatable eyepiece the most comfortable i have ever used.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 4 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=42963

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
This is one excellent eyepeice. Stars are sharp to the edge with no flaring. The light throughput and contrast is excellent. Although this may not be a fair comparison, but in general I prefer the 14mm Pentax XL over the 27mm Panoptic. The Pentax shows much better contrast and is consistently sharper across the entire FOV and at almost twice the magnification at 128X with the Intes MK67D. Globulars through the Pentax are a treat. I prefer the rotating eye cup to the sliding eyecup of the Radians. My experience with the 14mm turned out much better than my poor experience with the 40mm Pentax XL.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 4 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=42961

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
This is an excellent eyepiece. I compared it with 17 and 9 mm Nagler Type 4s in mid-March at a great dark site under good seeing conditions. The scope was a 8" Dobsonian with a University Optics primary and secondary, ~ 1/10th wave, well-collimated. Under these conditions and with the equipment described, I observed the following. On the up-side, the Pentax came to a crisper focus than either Nagler. Diffraction spikes were less intense for the Pentax, and as a result more detail was visible on Jupiter and Saturn than with either Nagler. The Pentax provided a darker field than either Nagler, perhaps consistent with the focus/diffraction spike observations noted above. When observing galaxies in Leo, for example, I could see NGC 3628 (near M65/66) with averted vision using the Naglers, but could stare straight at it using the Pentax. On the very slightly down side, the Pentax seemed slightly less sharp at the extreme edges of its FOV than the Naglers. In this context, it should be noted that the Naglers offer a significantly broader FOV up-front. My conclusions: the Naglers are fantastic for wide FOV (particularly important for large or dim objects such as nebulae), but the Pentax is fantastic for high contrast and low internal scattering. You would be delighted with either, and ecstatic with both.

Overall Rating: No Vote
Optics:10 Value:8
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=75455

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
See my remarks for the 10.5 mm and 5.2 mm Pentax SMC XL. These perform like a Panoptic but with flat fields and extremely sharp views across the field. And they are easier to use than a Radian or most Naglers - no blackout kidney beans to baffle newbies looking through my TV 85. I use mine without any eyecup adjustment, which is easy to use if I wanted it. I still can't get over how nice they handle - no tricks with eye alignment. Seriously, you can't go wrong with this eyepiece. I am thinking about buying the 21 mm, but I have a 22 mm Panoptic. If you see my Panoptic for sale on Astromart, you know what happened - stay tuned.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=42966

Pentax SMC-XL 14mm
Unlike the post two slots above, I've actually tried all three. I wish he/she would have at least given reason for the 1-2-3 setup. Anyway, I found all to provide equal performance. The Meade will give a slightly greater FOV because it IS an UWA. I personally liked all three but chose to buy a Pentax because of that wonderful eye relief.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=42964

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