Eyepiece rec's for a F/5 Portaball?

I'm expecting delivery soon of a 10" Portaball, and I need eyepiece recommendations to fill a gap in my collection. I currently own a Televue 32mm plossl, a 20mm TV plossl, and a 3-6mm Nagler Zoom, so I need something in the 10-12 mm range. Because of balance and weight issues, I don't want a 2" eyepiece. It should be able to handle the F/5 light cone with aplomb. A wide field of view would be nice but not necessary, since the Portaball will be on an equatorial platform. My inclination would be to get a 10 or 12mm Radian, but I was hoping to spend $150 or less. The TV 11mm plossl is a possibility, but it has only 6mm of eye relief, kinda short even for someone who doesn't need to use glasses. Would a UO 9mm or 12.5mm Ortho fit the bill? Is the Radian worth the extra money? Any other suggestions?

Well, if it works balance-wise, a 2.5x Powermate would convert your 32mm Plossl into a 12.8mm and your 20mm Plossl into an 8mm, both falling in the gap between the 20mm and 6mm and keeping the super and ultra-wide sickness at bay for a little longer. A UO ortho will also work okay, but with a slightly smaller apparent field of view. Right now everything you have is 50 degrees, and there is a certain efficiency in keeping that.

Unfortunately, with such a fine telescope, I'm afraid your future assimilation into the cult of super- and ultra-wide eyepieces is a foregone conclusion. Resistence is futile, but there's no need to rush headlong into it, either. ;-)
--
Mike

Ask Pete Smitka about the balance issues in using a Powermate, like Mike suggests. They aren't too heavy, but you might end up with the weight sticking too far out radially for the Portaball. If it works, it's a great suggestion - you'll get the equivalent of 2 new eyepieces with no loss of eye relief, and the 2.5x Powermate is a really nice unit.

On the other hand, Mike's probably also right about the inevitable assimilation, so go for a Nagler 11mm Type 6 and start selling off your possessions now...

Ed,

I have a 12.5" f5 Portaball. My current eyepiece set is as follows:

35mm Tele Vue Panoptic
32mm Tele Vue Plossl
19mm Tele Vue Panoptic
13mm Tele Vue Nagler
9mm Tele Vue Nagler
3-6mm Tele Vue Nagler Zoom

Based on these eyepieces and all other eyepieces that I've tried with this telescope, I've found the 13mm Nagler to be the one that I reach for most often. It has a wide enough field to frame many objects nicely, and enough magnification to see lots of fine detail in many deep space objects. Of course, YMMV.