Pentax Eye Pieces
High-performance, wide-angle eyepieces for use with high-grade spotting scope.
XF-Series
- Designed for use with the PENTAX PF-65EDII and PF-65EDAII spotting scopes, the smc PENTAX XF8.5, XF12 and XF Zoom Eyepiece 6.5mm-19.5mm feature multi-coated optical elements, an American-standard 31.7mm (1.25 inch) sleeve and focal lengths ideal for outdoor viewing and bird watching.
- The XF8.5 and XF12 are standard unifocal eyepieces, offering a focal length of 8.5mm and 12mm and a magnification of 46 and 32.5 times, respectively, with a 60-degree apparent field of view and a long 18mm eye relief. They also feature an extendible eyepiece ring with four click-stop positions.
- The XF Zoom Eyepiece 6.5mm-19.5mm features a focal-length range of 6.5mm to 19.5mm for a magnification of 20 to 60 times, with an apparent field of view of 42 to 60 degrees and an eye relief of 11mm to 15mm. It also offers a user-friendly rubber eyepiece ring that never becomes too cold to touch while minimizing the risk of scratching the observer’s eyeglasses.
- These eyepieces also come with a filter-mounting screw and an adapter-mounting screw.
Pentax has responded to two demands with its new XF eyepieces:
The first demand came from many users of binocular attachments who, unfortunately, cannot use the excellent XW eyepieces for this application because the required eye relief of at least 61 mm cannot be achieved by many users due to the width of the eyepiece.
The other requirement was determined by the deflation-shaken market. People have less and less money in their bags. These eyepieces are affordable for a wide range of buyers without compromising on quality.
So what could be more obvious than to meet these requirements by launching the new eyepieces together with the newly developed PF-65ED and EDa spotting scopes?
When developing the SMC Pentax XF eyepieces, the focus was on achieving maximum sharpness, transmission and contrast, avoiding optical aberrations such as distortion at the edge of the image field, and ensuring ease of use reminiscent of the XW eyepieces. The use of special ED glass (lanthanum), the blackening of the entire interior and all lens edges to prevent reflections were standard features, as was the innovative technology of partial coating of the cemented glass-air surfaces.
For example, the design of the sliding eyepiece cups, which are rubberised to protect against cold shocks and scratches, also makes use of the synergy effects gained in the production of binoculars. These can be locked in four positions.
The eyepieces have the standard filter thread for 1 1/4", but for cost reasons are no longer waterproof. However, they do have an eyepiece-side adapter thread for connecting accessories such as digital cameras, including the new zoom eyepiece. In addition, each eyepiece is given a serial number for the first time, which greatly simplifies quality control and makes grey imports more difficult.
The eye relief of the two fixed focal lengths is still a respectable 18 mm with a field of view of 60 degrees, making them ideal even for eyeglass wearers.
