Lumicon O-III vs. Other Brands

Hi - I've got an old 1 -1/4" Lumicon Oxygen III filter I originally purchased new in the 80's. Still a great performer but I need to go to the 48mm or SCT version since I've moved to mostly 2" EPs. In the 80's Lumicon was the sole source for these filters. Now TeleVue, Celestron, and others are marketing "O-III's." There's a big price difference - and yeah, I know, "you get what you pay for." But has anyone here had the opportunity to compare the Celestron O-III with the Lumicon or TeleVue? Or others? TIA for any info! - Chuck

Hi Chuck,
I recenly had the opportunity to compare two of the 2" filters side by side in a 12.5" f/6 scope on a night of very good transparency. Doing A/B on a Lumicon O-III and an Orion O-III, I found the Veil nebula to be slighly brighter through the Orion filter, but I could see somewhat more detail through the Lumicon-more "braiding" in the Veil,etc. The differences were slight, to be sure, but perceptible. If I had to buy one of these filters, based on my observations that night, I would spring the extra cash and get the Lumicon.
Larry Seguin
Taos, New Mexico

One of the major magazines--Astronomy or Sky and Telescope (I dont' recall which one right off hand)--did a nice comparision of various filters. I think the review appeared sometime during the last year.

Ron