TeleVue Nagler Type 4 12mm

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TeleVue Nagler Type 4 12mm
A very good eyepiece, but I found this Nagler to be the worst of the Type 4's, 5's & 6's when it comes to kidney-beaning, so it required a more critical eye placement.

But even moreso, I also found that I preferred both the 12.5mm UO Ortho, and the 14mm Leica over this eyepiece. The UO & Leica, despite having a lower resulting magnification, definitely had better resolution & contrast. I could see more stars, both in clusters & in the background, with either of these than I could in the 12mm Nagler T4, which surprised me a bit.

The 14mm Leica simply gave me better views, more stars visible, & sharper images with zero lateral color. The color purity in the Leica was also better than the 12mm Nagler, so I finally sold the Nagler.

As much as I love Naglers, I just found that the 12 T4 was not up to the level of the 22mm & 17mm T4's, and I think there are better alternatives out there in this focal length range, such as the 13mm Nagler Type 6, or the 14mm Leica.

Overall Rating: 8
Optics:8 Value:8
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
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Link to this vote: http://excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=354782

TeleVue Nagler Type 4 12mm
My first Nagler. After weeks of intense research, I settled on this eyepiece as being the best one to have in my 8" f6 Dob, the reasoning being: ideal 2mm exit pupil and 100x magnification at which I have found that I spend most of my time, and 17mm eyerelief due to my glasses.
After one look through the 12t4 (in an st80 f5 at the shop!) I literally lost my balance as I actually experienced the sensation of "falling into the eyepiece". I needed no more convincing than this to make the purchase.
I have since found that I prefer to use this eyepiece without wearing my glasses, as it seems that with a 2mm exit pupil my astigmatism is negligible, and the viewing experience is radically more immersive.
I did find that I required more outfocus travel than my dob's focuser allowed to use this eyepice in 2" mode, and needed to buy a 2" generic extension tube (very cheap vs TV extension tube).
I prefer to use this eyepiece as a 2", whilst still being able to use the less expensive 1.25" filters (UHC, NPC etc). Although I did originally think that using the 12t4 in a 1.25" diagonal in my shorttube refractor would be an added bonus, I found that the weight and bulk of this eyepiece tends to preclude this option; anyway, this eyepiece's excellence screams for a telescope with better resolution and light grasp.
I actually like the Instadjust feature, as it is quite positive in its click-stops, and places my eye (with or without glasses) at the optimal position.
It may seem foolish that I chose to rate the value of my 12t4 at a solid 10, as it is quite expensive, perhaps even moreso than many telescopes themselves, however, as we only live once to appreciate the beauty of the heavens, do we not owe it to ourselves to do so with eyes wide open (82 degrees!)? I always thought that the eyepiece was the least significant component of the optical train, but have since realised that it is in fact paramount to extracting the best performance from whatever OTA you have.
Remember, you may go through many scopes during the life of your astronomy hobby, but you will no doubt keep your best eyepieces for life. Feel free to learn from my mistakes.
Can't stop grinning!

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Value:10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
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Link to this vote: http://excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=416727

TeleVue Nagler Type 4 12mm
When I ordered it, I thought "Wow! My first Nagler". First night out I was very disappointed: a lot of internal glare and not very sharp. Yes a wide view, but what good was that to me? I got an RMA and sent it back to Televue for an evaluation. They charged me $10 for return shipping and said it performed to specs. :(

I quickly sold it and bought a Pentax 10mm XW. A *world* of difference! The Pentax is very sharp, and has great contrast. I also bought 15mm, 23mm and 50mm Axioms... all of which give a much more pleasing experience than the 12mm T4.

I believe many others have Naglers they really like, but I would NOT recommend the 12mm T4.

- Roger

Overall Rating: 4
Optics:4 Value:2
Weight: 5 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=437539

TeleVue Nagler Type 4 12mm
Being a fairly inexperienced observer my comments are mainly to do with the general veiwing characteristics
rather than the optical performance. My telescope is an Orion Optics (UK) 6"/f8 reflector, for which the 12T4 gives 100x. I also have a Panoptic 22mm, 9mm Nagler T6 and a Pentax XL 5.2mm.

Initially, I was rather disappointed that when I put my eye close enough to see the whole FOV I found annoyingly large amounts of the much talked about Kidney Bean blackout. I often said to myself 'if it wasn't for these blackouts these views would be fantastic'. However, over time I've learned to use the instajust to set the eyepiece at it's natural 'operating point' where the on-axis performance is about as comfortable as the 22 Panoptic and I can move my eye around to see the extremes of the FOV without significant blackouts. For me this means the instajust is 4 'clicks' out with the rubber eyecup folded back. This gives similar operation to the 9mm type 6 with its eyecup folded out. The only problem I have is when viewing the moon, where the blackout effect is strongest - stable eye position required. I would say there is slightly less kidney beaning with the 9mm type 6, which initially can also feel rather small and cramped compared to the big eye lens 12mm Type 4 � although after I get used to the 9 again this feeling tends to disappear.

In this setup, even though the entire FOV is not visible in one go, I find there is still plenty of the characteristic Nagler feel to the image compared to a 68 degree eyepiece. The image has a very natural feel to it. It is clearly wider and also feels closer whereas the 68 degree designs in comparison have a slightly distant and 'tunnel' like view. The Nagler image seems to 'hang in the air' rather than 'sit on a screen'. Now I've got the hang of this eyepiece I'm starting to like it a lot. I also find the big eye lens nice and comfortable to look through.

I hope these comments are useful to those concerned about the Kidney Bean effect in this eyepiece. As far as the competition is concerned, comparison should be made with the Meade 14mm Ultrawide (of which I've no experience) as this eyepiece gets consistently good reviews.

Overall Rating: 8
Optics:9 Value:8
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
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Link to this vote: http://excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=51570

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