Gary Russell 1.25" 15mm Super Wide Angle Konig w top dust cap

This is a 2001 Gary Russell (USA) 1.25-inch Super Wide Angle Konig 15mm. It will come with an aftermarket top dust plug, which fits quite well.

**The last (2) photos are views through this eyepiece in my 1981 Celestron C80 at 61x. The spruce tree in my backyard is used as a very high albedo index, which will immediately fish-out secondary spectrum if it is to be discovered in both the ocular, the refractor, or both. Sharpness is very well defined to within about 5% of the peripheral edge. Secondary spectrum is beautifully controlled and as we can clearly see, this konig by Russell will NOT introduce any secondary spectrum. The effect of depthness seen in the view with only one eye is immediately apparent, which is why some of the needles are blurred**

These eyepieces, like the Paul Rinis and the sensational Sieberts are a group of unique oculars designed and hand-crafted in the USA; made most widely popular with experienced telescope users in the 2000-2015 years. They are small scale production oculars when we consider the number of their surviving/continuing examples versus oculars released by the big brands; Celestron, Meade, Orion, Tele Vue, Vixen, ect.

The Gary Russell oculars are highly unusual in that their ocular bodies are fashioned of hard polyvinyl plastics, yet the optics within are exemplary; particuarly when you consider the performance they yield for the price paid new. The plastic construction is not cheaply fashioned, but, rather, the optics, retainers, spacers, and the plastic body all fit in perfect harmony for a precisely-made, hard-hitting eyepiece at the star party.

By hard-hitting, I mean this 15mm SWA Konig, for example, placed in the Takahashi FS-152SV, OTI Quantum 6, Tele Vue Pronto, or Meade 826C will rival the performance wrought in my several times more expensive Meade Research Grade 15.5mm Wide Angle. And the Russell konig is far more robust in construction, larger in size, easier to grip, and literally the same weight; 2.7 ounces versus 2.3 ounces for that Meade.

Performance of this konig follows the classic attributes and properties of our favorite zebra-era University Optics konigs; large exit pupil, bright images, wide field, exceptionally sharp resolution, and that sharpness percentage across your visual plane grows as the telescope's figure grows. F/11 or longer refractors LOVE konigs; as do your f/12 to f/15 maksuovs.

You also get moderately tight eye relief. The eye relief in this konig will be right at about 9mm. Russell fashioned outstanding rubber eye cups for these oculars and they will help you position your eye at the PERFECT distance needed to get the entire field in while blocking-out extraneous light. Eyeglass wearers out there; you may need to have the ability to take them off while viewing, otherwise you will have to sacrifice some of that 60-degree fov. And yes, the eye guard does fold down to flush.

I have greatly enjoyed this ocular for city birding in my Celestron C80, Tele Vue Pronto, and Meade 1037. It is pefect in your 6-inch to 12.5-inch reflector for all things planetary nebulae, double clusters, and definitely galaxies. It is very good on the Moon, but false color will be seen in most achromats; as you can see in the photos I provided. Sharpness and resolution is NOT wasted at any time in these konigs!

Fully coated optics
Exit aperture is 20.1mm
Threaded to work with nearly all filters from Japan, Taiwan, and China.

Cosmetics are very excellent on all of this eyepiece. Rubber eye cup is supple and flexible with no dryness. The entire pvc body is free from sunlight fading. NO deep or numerous dimples, no scratches, no cracks. The optics are exceptionally clean; very excellent in the least, with no internal contamiants to worry about. NO swirls issues or pittings.

This is ready for immediate enjoyment in your telescope of choice.

All nations welcome to bid.