Astronomers Without Borders 5-inch Reflector

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mikemarotta
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Astronomers Without Borders 5-inch Reflector

#1

Post by mikemarotta »


I joined Astronomers Without Borders. They have a portable 5-inch reflector made by Celestron and sold for USD 200 as "cost plus" to fund their international giving programs.

On their discussion board (open only to members) they are looking for comments from owners. One of the moderators posted links to videos about unpacking and set-up, as well as a couple of favorable reviews. It seems like a nice telescope. Any opinions here?
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Michael E. Marotta
Astro-Tech 115 mm APO Refractor Explore Scientific 102 mm f/6.47 Refractor Explore Scientific 102 mm f/9.8 Refractor Bresser 8-inch Newtonian Reflector Plössls from 40 to 6 mm Nagler Series-1 7mm. nonMeade 14 mm. Mounts: Celestron AVX, Explore Twilight I Alt-Az, Explore EXOS German Equatorial
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Gfamily Wales
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Re: Astronomers Without Borders 5-inch Reflector

#2

Post by Gfamily »


Mrs G has the Skywatcher Heritage 130P, which is a clone of the AWB.
Almost without qualification it's an excellent scope, the optics are very well designed, and the collapsible dob design makes a lightweight compact scope.
There are two qualifications, one is that the primary mirror is fixed, so there is little that can be done for collimation, but on the other hand, the scope rarely seems in need of collimation.
The other qualification is the helical focuser, which is often a little slack. Wrapping plumbers' teflon tape around the thread is an easy improvement.

Out of interest, I can report it pairs very well with the Svbony 7-21mm zoom.
LS8 Meade SCT, SW 127 Mak, 72mm Lightwave Refractor
Star Adventurer
AZ Gti mount
www.midcheshireastro.co.uk for astro company
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