Zhumell 1.25 Inch 8-24mm Zoom Telescope Eyepiece

Comments about Zhumell 1.25 Inch 8-24mm Zoom Telescope Eyepiece:

The Zhumell Zoom is securely suspended in a heavy plastic cylinder. It can be dismantled ( I didn't) for cleaning etc.There is a removable rubber eyeguard and good eye relief. The zoom mechanism is sufficiently smooth. The structure is sturdy and well built. Mounted on a Sky-watcher 100ED refractor the optics are outstanding. Clear with good contrast over entire zoom range. Slightly non-parfocal requiring fine adjustments only. Should be mentioned that the Skywatcher is F9 and is very forgiving. A faster Telescope might bring out some optical weaknesses. The price for what you get is remarkable.

Comments about Zhumell 1.25 Inch 8-24mm Zoom Telescope Eyepiece:

I called to try to find an eyepiece for an old telescope. The man I spoke with was polite and extremely helpful. We found what I needed and it was delivered very quickly. This company was really nice to work with.

Comments about Zhumell 1.25 Inch 8-24mm Zoom Telescope Eyepiece:

We bought this as a gift, so don't have first-hand usage knowledge. It came highly recommended by a friend.

Comments about Zhumell 1.25 Inch 8-24mm Zoom Telescope Eyepiece:

Love it!

Service and delivery comments:

Delivery was quicker than I expected. Very happy with the lense and service.

Comments about Zhumell 1.25 Inch 8-24mm Zoom Telescope Eyepiece:

It's been rather cloudy since the Zoom eyepiece arrived, with some breaks, but for the most part...cloudy.

Looking out the window, I see that the skies have cleared somewhat and really anxious to try out the eyepiece, I donned winter gear - and fighting a cough from a throat cold....I venture to the garage observation site.

A nice Moon and Jupiter presented themselves for testing.

I did not want to set up the C11, but instead grabbed the portable tripod and set up the C5...

I did not power it up for this quick and manual test.

It was decent.... :)

At the 24mm position, the full orb of the Moon was easily within the FOV with plenty of space around it. Popping in a 25mm Celestron Plossel, the views were identical. Sharp and detailed.

I slowly turned the knurled ring and increased the magnification thru the range up to 8mm. This zoom is not parfocal throughout the range, as I had to stop twice to refocus while twisting...

At 8mm, it's maximum setting, the view was good. But by this time some upper atmospheric haze had crept overhead and made testing tough. But when I did get a clear steady patch, the view was good. A bit of fuzziness was observed, but without clear conditions, hard to tell from where it was coming from.

I then slewed over to Jupiter, in close proximity. Returning the eyepiece back to the 24mm setting, all five satellites were easily observed. Cranking up the power, the Jovian bands came into view with good detail...but again - with the haze, fuzzy.

I dismounted the C5 and brought out the trusty 90mm refractor...

Here I used the 2" right diagonal and with the 1.25" adapter on the refractor. as opposed to the all 1.25" set-up on the C5.

Still on Jupiter, the views were similar to the C5, perhaps a bit sharper, (The C5 does need a collimation). And as I turned the ring, Jupiter grew in size, bringing the banding into view. And again a bit fuzzy - so it isn't the scope but could the the air or the eyepiece. A clearer night will determine this.

Primary Evaluation:

In comparison with straight dedicated mm eyepieces, it held it's own - with close/equal sharpness and detail. Turning action was smooth, even in the mid 20's temperature of the evening.

I examined the lunar terminator with the Zhumell, and found that I got sharp contrasts and defined details - best at 24mm and good at 8mm.

I attempted to take some images, but without power to the mount, the pics would not be presentable. And also, my Canon Powershot S3 adapter, (which normally fits all 1.25" eyepieces), was too small to fit over the this Zoom eyepiece, :-/....even with the eyecup removed. Another approach will be found.

Good and worth the purchase. For those who would like several eyepieces, this Zhumell zoom would fit nicely in an Astronomer's accessory case. It fills the gap of 16 eyepieces and saves the cost of purchasing several or just for plain convenience. Of course, a dedicated stand alone mm eyepiece is superior, but this is nice to have and just about as good.

I may have this as a permanent eyepiece in the ride-along 90mm refractor finder scope to the C11 or get another one for use in the Binoviewer.

A more in-depth evaluation soon - on a clear night.

Pics can be found at the Chicago Astronomer website.

Astro Joe