Agena 1.25" Super Wide Angle (SWA) Eyepiece - 20mm
Brand | Agena AstroProducts |
Part Number | E-AG-SWA20 |
Availability | available |
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Product Info
Manufacturer Description
Looking for $400 performance in an under-$100 eyepiece? Then you can look no further.
With features like a wide 70 degree apparent FOV, five elements of fully multi-coated high-index glass, beautiful black anodized body and barrel, the Agena Super Wide Angle (SWA) eyepieces are as close as you can get. These eyepieces will give you crisp and wide views of the Moon, planets, galaxies, nebulae, and star clusters, rivaling the performance of much higher priced eyepieces.
Features:
- 70 degree apparent field of view, for that immersed in space feeling
- Available in 1.25" (10, 15 and 20mm focal lengths) and 2" (26, 32 and 38mm) formats to cover a wide range of magnifications and true fields of view
- Super sharp, with excellent aberration correction and extremely high resolution rivaling higher-priced eyepieces
- Blackened lens edges, anti-reflection threads for maximum image contrast
- Fold-down rubber eyecups, rubber grip rings for comfort and safety
- Sleek black barrel with safety undercut to reduce the possibility of the eyepiece slipping out of the focuser or diagonal
- Light in weight for their size, thus minimizing or eliminating the need to rebalance your telescope
See why Erik Wilcox, reviewing the Agena SWA 2-inch eyepieces for Astronomy Technology Today magazine [Oct. 2007, pp. 36-38], said:
All these three eyepieces offer a great value, with a lot of "bang for the buck." Agena AstroProducts has really raised the bar with this line, and in the under $100 category, I feel that it would be difficult to find another line of 2-inch eyepieces that offer better performance for the price.
Reviewing our 20mm 1.25-inch SWA eyepiece on Cloudy Nights [Jun. 2007], Nathan Melendez concluded:
"Excellent performance in an inexpensive package. Highly recommended whether you wear glasses or not. These are great all purpose eyepieces...an incredible buy!!"
Reviews
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Mar 23, 2019
Great eyepeice
Pros: Cons: Comments:The 20mm SWA is awesome. I'm fairly new at Astro observing. I've only been telescoping for about 3 years. But, I know a good product when I see one. Of all the eyepeices I have, the Agena is right at the top. I wear glasses and with the long eye relief it is a joy to use and quite affordable. Shipping was quicker than expected. Recommended.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Mar 26, 2018A great wide field eyepiece for my long refractors.
Pros: Cons: Comments:I have found this eyepiece to work very well in my long refractors. The image is good all the way to the very edge.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Jun 26, 2015A bargain
Pros:Accurate,Quality Lenses,Lightweight,Strong Construction,Easy to Use
Cons: Comments:70 degrees is nice. Any more field and you would have to press your eye against the eyecup. The extra field makes it much easier to find objects and keep them centered. This one is sharp out to the edge.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Oct 27, 2014Great eyepiece
Pros:Accurate,Easy to Use,Strong Construction,Quality Lenses
Cons: Comments:Well made eyepiece with excellent coatings. Sharp to the edge in f/8 & f/7 refractors.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Oct 17, 2014Agena 20mm SWA Eyepiece
Pros:Lightweight,Quality Lenses,Strong Construction,Easy to Use
Cons:None
Comments:Got this so I could do eyepiece projection prominence photography with my Ha solar telescope. I also have the SWA 15mm but wanted the wider field of view this 20mm eyepiece provides.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Aug 15, 2014Not as good as other agena wide angles.
Pros:Easy to Use,Strong Construction,Lightweight,Compact
Cons:Difficult To Focus,Difficult to Use
Comments:Lot of coma at the edges. Very small portion in the middle is good. Works well with slow scopes f/8 or higher. I would not use this EP for f/6 or f/5s.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? NoThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Jul 12, 2014Test run in f/5 scope, and compared to ot
Pros:Lightweight,Quality Lenses,Strong Construction,Compact
Cons:Difficult to Use
Comments:I bought this recently from AgenaAstro. It arrived a few days after order. When I first got it, I thought it was hard to see the full field of view. However, after getting my eye placed just right, I now see that it is indeed 70 degrees or clearly larger than my 60 degree binoculars. I can see about 90% of the field of view with my glasses on, which eat up 18mm.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? Yes
Seeing the full field of view from different angles is much easier in my Plossl. However, even looking through the SWA with the wrong eye placement and seeing only part of the field of view, it is still much larger than that of the Plossl.
Eye placement in my 60 degree binoculars is much easier, as is seeing the full field without glasses. My binocular edge can black out a bit when I try to look at it directly, but I don't feel as tempted to look there because I can see it more easily in my peripheral vision being closer to the center. With glasses, I see less than 50% of the field of view in my 60 degree binoculars. It takes some looking back and forth and finding the right eye placement to see that the 70 degree is larger than the 60 degree, but once found, the 70 degree clearly is better.
I've looked through 82 degree eyepieces before, and felt them getting bigger as I got closer until I was not sure if I should get closer. I've also looked through 100 degree eyepieces. The eye relief on those is too short to see the full field of view. But you can see the edges just fine simply by moving to the side and looking at an angle. I can even do that a bit with the 70 if I get in the right location. I looked through a Panoptic 35mm and found it much more immersive than this 20mm SWA.
As for sharpness, I have not yet done a star test. I put it in an f/5 refractor on a tripod, 80mm x 400mm, and looked at the moon and Saturn and some tree leaves. The moon looked plenty sharp in the center. When I moved it near the edge, it was much softer, and there was some lateral chromatic aberration. However, these were only noticeable when I looked at it directly. I could not tell with my peripheral vision. The edge sharpness is plenty good enough to find your way around the stars and not be distracted. At 20x, I could not tell that Saturn has rings in the center of the view, though I was not expecting to at 20x. My 25x70 binoculars just barely show ears. With other eyepieces in longer scopes, I've seen Saturn as a tiny ball in a tiny ring at 35x. Finally, the distant tree leaves. The leaves looked very good in the SWA.
The eyepiece is small and light and sturdy. It looks good quality. I looked inside, and the field stop is as wide as the inside of the barrel. Basically, I see a big lens, not a field stop, same as my 32mm Plossl. The reflection control is excellent. I can see far less of my reflection in this eyepiece than in my coated binocular objectives. The inside is very black. For the price the quality is very good.This review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Paul Schofield New Member
- Skill Level
- Unknown
- Time with Product
- Unknown
- User Notes:
- Review by Paul of North Carolina.
Jun 9, 2014Quality at a great price
Pros:Quality Lenses,Easy to Use,Accurate,Strong Construction,Compact,Lightweight
Cons: Comments:I am pleased with the quality of construction, coatings, and performance of this eyepiece. It is sharp to the edge in my f/9.3 and f/11.4 refractors. The image is great nearly to the edge in my f/6.6 Newtonian. Lightweight, easy eye placement, and good contrast make this an enjoyable eyepiece to use. With my 3x barlow it also becomes a 6.7mm SWA. Great price and service from Agena. Thanks again.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Dec 7, 2013Good eyepiece at a good price!
Pros:Accurate,Strong Construction,Quality Lenses,Compact,Lightweight
Cons: Comments:Exactly what I was looking for. A nice quality wide angle eyepiece that is easy to use, inexpensive, and easy to focus.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? NoThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Dec 6, 2013Good value for long focus scopes
Pros: Cons: Comments:Good budget conscious choice for SCTs, Maks and slow refractors. Decent eye relief. Nice coatings. Very lightweight. A lot for little money.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? NoThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Aug 2, 2013Good lens
Pros:Quality Lenses,Accurate
Cons: Comments:This lens is better than most expensive lenses out there ... I hate paying for name instead of quality ... for the price this eyepiece is better than most more expensive eyepieces
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
May 12, 2012MY FAVOURITE EYEPIECE
Pros:Easy to Use,Accurate,Compact,Strong Construction,Quality Lenses,Lightweight
Cons: Comments:I Recently bought this Agena SWA 20mm 70
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
georgetatsis New Member
- Skill Level
- Unknown
- Time with Product
- Unknown
- User Notes:
- Review by AstroGeorge of Europe.
Jun 8, 2011Great Value
Pros:Strong Construction,Accurate,Quality Lenses
Cons: Comments:I'm a beginner and heard about Agena's EP's at Cloudy Nights. This wide angle piece is a great value.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Dec 7, 2009Great quality at a good price.
Pros:Compact,Strong Construction,Accurate,Quality Lenses
Cons: Comments:This is a great eyepiece. It's very solid construction, excellent light scatter control, a good wide field and good eye relief without any kidney beans or any other nasty effects. Only minor problem it has is when used in Newtonian fast (under f/6) scopes. Then you see a bit of coma on the edge of the FOV extending for 10%. It's not much and I find it acceptable, specially if you consider that to get read of this you need EPs that cost 5 to 10 times as much. It's very comfortable to use. It's one of those EPs that seam to "get out of the way" between you and the target you're observing. If you have an f/6+ scope you'll be 100% satisfied. With a f/6- they still perform great and are a great value for you money.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Jul 19, 2009Solid eyepiece for the money
Pros:Well built, huge field of view, very bright, easy to see DSO's
Cons:edges out of focus in 4.5 reflector.
Comments:I bought this eyepice for use in an 80 mm refractor and starblast 4.5 reflector. The eyepiece is well built and feels solid. Filters thread onto it very well. The eyepiece has great relief and huge field of view. Viewing through it causes no eyestrain at all. In the 80 mm refractor the images are crisp all the way to the edge. In the 4.5 reflector the images are out of focus at the edges. It still focuses crisply in the middle, you just loose a little on the edges( this is the only minimal drawback I found). Overall I love this eyepiece and would recommend it to a friend.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesMay 28, 2009SWA eyepiece
Pros:Accurate,Strong Construction,Quality Lenses
Cons:I cannot find any major
Comments:I am using this eyepiece in a Nexstar 6'' scope, and it is one of my favorite oculars. I am an optician, and have been an amateur astronomer for a long time! This ocular is very sharp, showing 6 of Saturn's moons at about 75x.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
TransPecosDob New Member
- Skill Level
- Unknown
- Time with Product
- Unknown
- User Notes:
- Review by rekterx of Alpine, TX.
May 26, 2009Tremendous Value
Pros:Accurate,Strong Construction,Compact,Quality Lenses
Cons: Comments:I use this in my Celestron Omni XLT 102 and it is a match made in heaven. I get a reasonably wide view in an 1.25 diagonal that is very clear to almost the edge of the field. I plan to get more of these. Great all round eyepiece.
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Nov 22, 2008Agena AstroProducts SWA 20mm
Pros:Clear bolt case,No false color,Parfocal
Cons:End cap won't fit in case
Comments:I bought this Agena 70* 20mm used but it was in new condition! The color corrective coatings are very good! The eye relief is great! Since I do a lot of imaging and viewing, parfocal is a must and this has that! So I can say by using this for the past 2 months, I am very pleased with the views!
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesThis review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
AstroGuy1 New Member
- Skill Level
- Unknown
- Time with Product
- Unknown
- User Notes:
- Review by nam2525 of Washington.
Nov 19, 2008Excellent quality and stunning views
Pros:Excellent quality,Great performance,Large AFOV
Cons:Slight off-axis color,For medium to slow scopes
Comments:I got the Agena Astroproducts SWA 20mm eyepiece to compare directly against the William Optics SWAN 20mm. I sold the SWANs and kept the Agena Astro eyepieces and here is why:
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? Yes
The Agena had truly blackened lens edges and very little stray light from the eyepiece barrel. The coatings were well applied, and the quality was excellent. It came with a bolt case and had a black, reversible barrel which comes in handy for binoviewer use in my Burgess binos.
The Agenas do well for both low power viewing and high power lunar and planetary observing. There is some lateral color when you try to view something like Saturn near the edge of the field, but this is expected in a wide angle eyepiece...some sacrifices had to be made. However, as long as you can keep the object fairly centered in the field of view, there is no lateral color at all, and the views are excellent. There is some field curvature present, but in my F8 scope I did not find this annoying or even really noticeable at all. However, these eyepieces are not really for a fast scope, and in the ST80 which is an F5 scope, the stars turned into lines starting at about half-way out from center of the field of view. For a fast scope, stick with a plossl or some other eyepiece with a flat field.
To sum up, these eyepieces are of excellent quality and provide wonderful views in medium to slow scopes. Highly Recommended!!!This review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com
Jun 30, 2007Agena AstroProducts SWA 20mm
Pros:No false color; parfocal; clear bolt case!
Cons:The tops lens cap won't fit inside the bolt case, but it's nice to have!!
Comments:I bought this Agena 70* 20mm used but it was in new condition! The color corrective coatings are very good! The eye relief is great! Since I do a lot of imaging and viewing, parfocal is a must and this has that! So I can say by using this for the past 2 months, I am very pleased with the views! It comes with a nice clear bolt case which makes it very easy to see the size of the EP!
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? YesJun 30, 2007Excellent quality and stunning views
Pros:Large AFOV, excellent quality, great performance
Cons:Slight off-axis color. Really intended for medium to slow scopes
Comments:I got the Agena Astroproducts SWA 20mm eyepiece to compare directly against the William Optics SWAN 20mm. I sold the SWANs (which cost about $80 each) and kept the Agena Astro eyepieces and here is why:
Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? Yes
The Agena had truly blackened lens edges and very little stray light from the eyepiece barrel. The coatings were well applied, and the quality was excellent. It came with a bolt case and had a black, reversible barrel which comes in handy for binoviewer use in my Burgess binos. To see all the things wrong with the William Optics SWAN, just see my review here on Astronomy Ratings and also on Cloudy Nights.
The Agenas do well for both low power viewing and high power lunar and planetary observing. Unlike what was stated in another review here, there is some lateral color when you try to view something like Saturn near the edge of the field, but this is expected in a wide angle eyepiece...some sacrifices had to be made. However, as long as you can keep the object fairly centered in the field of view, there is no lateral color at all, and the views are excellent. There is some field curvature present, but in my F8 scope I did not find this annoying or even really noticeable at all. However, these eyepieces are not really for a fast scope, and in the ST80 which is an F5 scope, the stars turned into lines starting at about half-way out from center of the field of view. For a fast scope, stick with a plossl or some other eyepiece with a flat field.
To sum up, these eyepieces are of excellent quality and provide wonderful views in medium to slow scopes. Highly Recommended!!!Sort bySpecifications
Apparent Field of View 70° Barrel Size 1.25" (31.7mm) Bolt Case Included Yes - Free Agena Eyepiece Container Bolt Case Size Agena 42x80mm Coatings Fully Broadband Multi-Coated Height (with Eye Guard) 2.73" (69.3mm) Height (without Eye Guard) 2.41" (61.1mm) Max Width 1.39" (35.2mm) End Caps 2 Eye Relief by Design 16mm Filter Threads Standard 1.25" Filter Thread (M28.5 x 0.6) Focal Length 20mm Lens Elements 5 Lens Groups 4 Rubber Eye Guard Yes Blackened Lens Edges Yes Manufacturer Agena AstroProducts Eyepiece Focal Length 15.1mm - 20mm Eyepiece Field of View 61 - 70 degrees Eyepiece Series Agena SWA Barrel Type With safety undercut Parfocal No Eyepiece Weight 4.20oz (119.07g)