celestron ultima 2X barlow

The application for this barlow on my 8i/GPS SCT/XLT was to gain higher magnification options from longer focal length and eye relief eyepieces (ELux and Xcel 25-18-15mm)and stay in modest price ranges for everything. COMMON TESTS with the barlow vs. short focal length eyepieces to 8mm was most favorable: a) using both common and wide angle FOV eyepieces and b)testing with and without eye glasses while c) viewing Polaris double, Jupiter & moons and the Moon. Seeing conditions were poor (Dallas, summer, early evening sky with a lot of Moonlight.) Never the less I am pleased with both the Celestron Ultima 2X barlow and the strategy and therefore I "recommended". Shipping was prompt - much better than prior experiences with amazon.com - improvement so noted.

Inexpensive but great addition for your viewing pleasure

This particular Barlow, along with the Orion Shorty, is highly recommended on several of the astronomy forums on the internet. I got this one instead of the Orion simply because Amazon was offering it at about $52 at the time.

I've found that I enjoy using the Barlow when viewing planets and a few DSO's. It provides an economical way to virtually increase the number of eyepieces in your collection. It does introduce a little light loss with my eyepieces (maybe this is normal with all eyepieces), but it is not troublesome.

I certainly recommend this Barlow for those of you who want to cheaply expand your eyepiece collection.