If you have a Meade or Celestron long focal length Schmidt-Cassegrain (the scope I purchased this for is an f/10 8 inch Meade LX-90), and if you want to use a small chip CCD camera like the Meade DSI series, then run, dont walk to buy this accessory.

Without a focal reducer, youll find that the DSI is basically useless for imaging anything other than planets, planetry nebula, or lunar close-ups.  With no focal reducer, youre imaging with effectively a 6mm eyepiece - lots of luck finding, much less imaging, your targets.  With the 3.3 reducer, youre at an equivalent 18mm, which allows you to center and image a much greater range of deep sky targets.  The added benefit of reduced exposure times and field flattening offered by this accessory are also welcome.  My first night out with the reducer, I imaged M13.  W/o the reducer, I was hard pressed to center the cluster in my field of view.  With it, the globular filled about 2/3 of the field of view, and a handful of 30 second stacked exposures produced a very acceptable result.  

The reducer comes with a Meade screw-top plastic case, a T adapter for mounting a standard 35mm camera, and a variable length nosepiece for varying the focal reduction in fixed increments.  

I have not tried using the reducer for visual work, though I understand that it is NOT suited (nor designed for) this task.  But for DSI imaging, I couldnt live without it.

From: | Created on: 10/16/2009 1:48:52 PM

Ditto my comments from my review on the Meade 4000 series f/6.3 Reducer...1 exception, this version is strickly for Photograhic or Imaging use...Tried one for visual, but couldnt make it work...The same quality and see through bolt case as the 6.3, but this version gives you that added edge with a faster F ratio...J.E.

From: | Created on: 10/16/2009 1:48:48 PM