A Tale Of Two Refractors

Discuss your refractor type scopes here.
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Lady Fraktor Slovakia
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A Tale Of Two Refractors

#1

Post by Lady Fraktor »


This is a re-posting of a thread I made at AF.net
It is my first posting about the Bresser 102mm f/13.2 refractor, a followup afterwards and a few new comments at the bottom.



I am going to call this a non-review and just list my impressions of the refractors and the specifications.
I will not compare the two against each other as they are built to two completely different price points so cannot fairly be done.
Instead I will just discuss the individual things I did and did not like about them.

Teleskop-Service 102mm f/11 Fraunhofer Doublet

Aperture: 102mm (4”)
Focal Length: 1100mm (43.3”)
Focal Ratio: f/11
Collimatable steel lens cell
Focuser: 2” - 2 speed non-rotating crayford focuser with 1:10 reduction
CNC aluminium tube rings
Retractable dewshield with press fit dust cap
Telescope weight: 5.5kg (12lbs)
Cost: € 525,00

Accessories required for use:

Diagonal
Finder and base*
Dovetail plate**

About the telescope:

Fit and finish of the telescope is excellent, and optical alignment did not need to be adjusted.

The rings are heavy duty anodized aluminium with the usual 5 on top/ 3 on bottom tapped and drilled accessories holes.

Internal blackening is evenly applied with no light areas showing and no light leakage around the baffles/ tube wall.
Baffling is the standard 3 with front and back paint also evenly applied.
The focuser drawtube internals and tube front appear to be blackened as well as there is no glint from the black anodizing which is a nice touch.

Objective coatings look smooth with no visible flaws, and present a nice deep Aqua when viewed from a slight angle.

The dewshield slides firmly and stays in place with no issues, if you install the dust cap and try to retract the dewshield it will be difficult due to the trapped air so a case of retract then install the cap so as not to damage the felt sliders.

* In the ad copy there is not actual mention of the telescope coming with a base for the finder and it seems to be a hit / miss item. Some people have had a Vixen style base attached and some (like mine) had no base included.
A very minor item as I have a few in the parts drawer.

** The telescope does not come with a dovetail plate and out of curiosity I tried it with a standard 200mm (8”) extruded aluminium Vixen plate and at higher magnifications (100+) could see vibration when moving the telescope or focusing.
Vibrations were in the 2-3 second range.
I then used a 280mm (11”) solid aluminium Vixen style plate and the vibration was essentially gone.
I do recommend the longer solid dovetails for these long focal length refractors to help reduce some of the vibration caused by the weaker extruded dovetail that are normally included.

The single speed focuser is rated for 2.3 kg (5lb) and is surprisingly smooth, comparable to my Moonlite crayfords.

Thoughts on the Teleskop-Service 102mm f/11

Though I have had this telescope for a few months, opportunities to give it a good test have been minimal with the recent weather when I am actually home.

As per the Sidgwick CA ratio (1:3) a 102mm should be f/12 (CA ratio of 3) to be colour free, at f/11 this refractor has a CA ratio of 2.75 and daytime viewing of high contrast targets have shown views with very minimal CA.

Star testing with a 7mm Pentax eyepiece (40x/ inch) shows a very pleasing set of rings inside and outside focus, turning to the Moon the terminator is showing as a etched line drawn on the lunar surface.
Switching to a Siebert Optics 5.4mm (50x/ inch) terracing inside craters are showing crisp lines between light and dark zones with no visible softening of the view.
No colour fringing along dark edges.

M13 was a quick target of opportunity with the horrid sky conditions lately.
Using an Edmund Scientific 12.5mm Hastings triplet, the GC was moved out of the FOV and allowed to drift across.
As the outer stars started to appear they were pinpoints on a dark black background and it seemed like you could keep counting down to the bright core.
I love doing that, a definite treat for the eyes.

On my last trip home I managed a few views of Jupiter finally.
Conditions were excellent and the planet was putting on a fine show.
The main bands were quite prominent and as the atmosphere settled the northern and southern bands could be picked out as well as the polar regions.
In the south temperate belt whorls could be seen as well as a some lighter turbulence in the north equatorial band. Unfortunately the GRS was not due to show up.
There is a very slight bit of CA visible but it must be looked for, it does not detract from the view in any way.

Would I recommend this refractor? Definitely!
Overall I have been very happy with the performance of this refractor.
Depth of focus is good and fine focus is easily achieved with the single speed focuser and a 2 speed would be an unnecessary option in my opinion.
With the 1100mm focal length it benefits from a solid dovetail and I would say the absolute minimum mount you would want to use it with would be a EQ-4.
If you were using a mount such as the Skywatcher EQ-3/2 goto I would actually step the slew speed down a step or two just to be kind to the motors.
A EQ-5 would be a preferred minimum mount size though.

This telescope has been available for quite a few years, manufactured by Sharpstar and imported by various vendors in Europe/ UK and is a popular choice for a long focus refractor.

In North America, Stellarvue used to sell these when they first started business.
It was sold as the “Planet Killer” and can still be found on the used market.
When Vic Maris started producing more ED and apochromatic refractors he quit importing these and Gary Hand of Hands On Optics became the main USA importer of them and sold them as the Astro.
Pacific Instruments of Richmond, BC (pre Skywatcher/ Synta) and Canadian Telescopes were the importers to Canada.

Altair Astro (UK) markets an “upgraded” version of this telescope called “Starwave”
which is also available through Ontario Telescopes (Canada) and Cloud Break (USA).
This upgraded version has a 250mm solid aluminium Vixen style dovetail, automotive grade metallic red paint, chrome accents on the dewshield with a screw on dust cap and a 2” two speed rotating crayford focuser.
Teleskop-Service sells for $500USD, the Altair Astro version for $750USD


Bresser Messier 102mm XL f/13.2 Fraunhofer Doublet

Aperture: 102mm (4”)
Focal Length: 1350mm (53”)
Focal Ratio: f/13.2
Non- Collimatable lens cell
Focuser: 65mm (2.5”) rotating, single speed, rack & pinion. 2 speed option available
Cast aluminium ring cage/ carrying handle with extruded aluminium dovetail
Telescope weight: 5.3kg (11.7 lb)
Cost: € 270,00

Accessories required for use:
None, the telescope comes with ring cage, Vixen style dovetail plate and a 31.7mm (1.25”) diagonal as well as a 6x30 straight through finder.

The telescope is well packaged and upon opening I found the refractor enclosed in a black nylon storage bag. An unexpected but nice item.

*Initial focuser and optical alignment check will be discussed further on.

The refractor comes with the standard Bresser/ Explore Scientific cast aluminium ring cage with handle and an attached 200mm (8”) extruded aluminium dovetail with the stainless steel side plate. I always liked this little touch on Bresser telescopes.

Internal blackening was evenly applied throughout but more of a medium grey than black.
The standard 3 baffles with only one small spot on the front baffle showing light leakage between the tube wall and baffle edge.
Looking down the tube the anodizing of the drawtube is easy to see so could use some blackening.

Overall fit and finish of the telescope is reasonably good, I do prefer the Bresser dewshield in comparison to the Explore Scientific oversized dewshield on their achromatics.

The 65mm rotating Hexfocus looks quite solid.

Objective coatings are nicely applied and appear a deep blue.

The dewshield is a plastic tube but firmly pressed into place over the lens cell.

The 6x30 finder itself is quite good though a straight through version which I do not prefer.
Unfortunately the finder stalk is very thin plastic and is not up to the task even for a lightweight 6x30.
The two nylon screws used to hold the finder in place will distort the stalk with only light pressure.

Thoughts on the Bresser Messier 102mm f/13.2

As soon as this refractor was shown I wanted one. Did I need another long focus refractor? No, but I was going to get it anyways!

A point to ponder before we continue,
How does a 102mm f/11 with only a set of tube rings weigh more than a 102mm f/13.2 that includes a diagonal, ring cage, dovetail plate, finder scope and is longer?

As soon as the refractor was removed from the packaging it was taken outside for a spontaneous viewing session.
No mount, just some padding on the patio handrail and sitting in a chair to get a quick view of the Moon.
Using a Vixen 25mm SLV (1.9mm exit pupil, 13x/ inch) the view is good.
Not great, just.... good.
The focuser feels bit rough and does not snap to focus. Some image shift noticed.
Changing to a Vixen 10mm SLV (0.76 exit pupil, 34x/ inch) obvious focuser shift in all 4 cardinal compass directions and..... I cannot achieve focus....

The 65mm Hexfocus comes with adapters for 2” and 1.25” eyepieces.
Rack & pinion focusers automatically tend to shift a bit to the side due to the helical cut grooves on the rack.
One screw holding the rack in place was loose allowing movement and once it and the rest of the focuser was adjusted the focuser worked quite well.
The drawtube slides on 4 grooved Teflon slider pads which eventually do flatten out and allow slop/ image shift in the focuser so these will be getting replaced with solid PTFE strips.

The ring cage/ handle/ dovetail is a nice touch and well made but I really do not like short extruded dovetails on long refractors so the stock dovetail was replaced with a spare 330mm solid aluminium Vixen dovetail I had in the parts box. A handle will be worked out later.

How to save weight on a refractor? Plastic, lots of plastic!
The complete lens cell and dewshield are plastic which normally is not an issue, many refractors have lens cells made from plastic but the problem with this one is the plastic is very soft and thin.

Typically the flint element sits on a ledge about 3-4mm wide and has little movement in the cell.
The 102mm issue is that the lens has quite a bit of movement and the ledge is only about 1mm which the lens can slide off of, putting the flint on an angle.

Flexible plastic sheeting 1mm thick was cut into 10mm wide strips and blackened, then used to eliminate any movement of the lens in cell.
A layer was also applied below the flint to widen the ledge more.

The strangest part of the lens cell is a 6mm wide thin plastic spacer used to air space the crown and flint.
Quite bizarre for a Fraunhofer to have such a wide air gap!
The spacer ring was again very thin and soft so a new ring was made by layering the plastic sheeting and another strip to keep the crown from moving to much.
The bottom of the retainer ring was sanded down and made square to the lens and then lightly tightened into position.
People have reported on a few forums of the frustration trying to tighten the retainer and either having it or the lenses pop out of position from the excessive clearances.
Since modifying mine, there have been no issues in that regard.

Currently the refractor is working, definitely not as well as it could be though.
On an average night of seeing the limiting factor is not the skies but the lens.
Mine seems to be in the middle of the pack as some are reported as worse than mine and others are having no issues at all.
I have been following a couple of people that have telescopes performing similar to mine. One has removed the 6mm spacer and replaced it with a 4mm to test it and I am now waiting to hear how that has gone.

A couple Bresser employees have been taking part in a lot of online conversation about the shortcomings of the refractor so hopefully the next batch of these will be fixed and perform as they should.

There are still a couple of modifications I can try, in the meantime I have a telescope that looks like a Ferrari and drives like a Yugo.

I almost forgot... would I recommend this refractor?
Not at this time, maybe in a few months
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Addendum:

Bresser Messier 102L f/13.2

After spending more time with the refractor some improvements have been made and it now is operating quite well.

Main issue:
The lens cell material is of soft thin plastic, which can be malformed by hand pressure.
The cell tolerances were course enough to allow the lens to tilt and the retainer ring threads to come apart allowing movement.
To be clear, there are many refractors that have the use of plastic cell but the material is of a stronger quality and better tolerance so does not become an issue in use.
The cell is quite similar in style to the one used for the Celestron 102mm f/6.5 which is good in execution.
I originally made a stiffening/ retaining ring but have now ordered made two rings of stainless steel 0.7mm thick to stiffen the two cell halves from a local shop.

Secondary issues:
Lens spacer ring, this I believe to be a manufacturing error as mine arrived with a 6mm wide spacer and others have received rings of different sizes.
The proper spacing was supplied from Bresser to be 3mm so a new ring was made and installed.

Another issue from the manufacturing is that some of the lens are not placed properly.
After checking my lens set it was found that the crown was installed reversed!
(A fellow observer found his crown to be reversed but the flint was also reversed)

Aligning the two lens to each other was needed and after some early morning testing using Venus the “red on top, blue on bottom” has been significantly reduced to a more acceptable level for now.
I will try to adjust this more when I install the lens cell stiffening rings.

Conclusions and thoughts:
The refractor seems to be working quite well after the alterations and adjustments that needed to be done to it. Testing will continue when I return home next.

While I had the cell off of the tube I also resprayed the interior a dark flat black as the original colour was more of a grey.

Bresser has been following and participating in online discussion and personal emails about potential fixes for the lens cell issues and have been looking at possibilities for corrections without raising the cost significantly.
Time will say how that resolves.

Would I recommend this refractor...?
Well that answer is still a yes and no.
Many people have received theirs and have had no issues, which to me means one of three things:
1. The refractor was assembled properly at factory.
2. They have not yet accidentally knocked the lens cell from alignment yet.
3. They do not have the experience to tell the difference.
This is not meant to insult but there are many beginners (first time buyers) who do not have the experience to know how it should be operating properly.
The lens set is quite good so if you do not mind repairing some parts then for 259,00€ you may be quite happy with this offering.

If Bresser does change the lens cell then I would recommend this telescope, until then I would say order it with the understanding that you may have to return it if you are not up to repairing it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Addendum II

I am again considering this telescope (against a Bresser 150mm Maksutov) and from various new reviews that have been posted it is showing that the newest releases of these long focal length refractors are working as expected.
A member of CN (Bomber Bob) has done some excellent testing of one with posted results over time at CN.
He has also posted his images from his DPAC tests of the optics. (Double Path Auto-Collimation)
If anyone is considering this refractor I would suggest looking at his in depth review.
https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/6555 ... %20bresser

If I do decide to re-acquire one of these I will post my thoughts for a comparison of the above review.
See Far Sticks: Antares Elita 103/1575, AOM FLT 105/1000, Bresser BV 127/1200, Nočný stopár 152/1200, Vyrobené doma 70/700, Stellarvue NHNG DX 80/552, TAL RS100/1000, Vixen SD115s/885
EQ: TAL MT-1, Vixen SXP, AXJ, AXD
Az/Alt: AYO Digi II/ Argo Navis, Stellarvue M2C/ Argo Navis
Tripods: Berlebach Planet (2), Uni 28 Astro, Report 372, TAL factory maple, Vixen ASG-CB90, Vixen AXD-TR102
Diagonals: Astro-Physics, Baader Amici, Baader Herschel, iStar Blue, Stellarvue DX, Takahashi prism, TAL, Vixen flip mirror
Eyepieces: Antares to Zeiss
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#2

Post by notFritzArgelander »


Thanks for importing this useful information!
Scopes: Refs: Orion ST80, SV 80EDA f7, TS 102ED f11 Newts: AWB 130mm, f5, Z12 f5; Cats: VMC110L, Intes MK66,VMC200L f9.75 EPs: KK Fujiyama Orthoscopics, 2x Vixen NPLs (40-6mm) and BCOs, Baader Mark IV zooms, TV Panoptics, Delos, Plossl 32-8mm. Mixed brand Masuyama/Astroplans Binoculars: Nikon Aculon 10x50, Celestron 15x70, Baader Maxbright. Mounts: Star Seeker IV, Vixen Porta II, Celestron CG5
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#3

Post by Voyageur »


Thanks, Gabby, this is very useful to me.
Scopes: Vixen VMC200L, D=200mm, F=1950, f/9.75; Televue 2" Everbright diagonal. Coronado PST; AstroTech EDT 80mm, F=480, f/6.
Mounts: Vixen SXW/Starbook (original); Stellarvue M2C alt-az.
Eyepieces: Televue: 55mm Plossl, 22mm Panoptic, 17.3mm Delos, 13mm Nagler, c. 1980, 11mm Plossl, 7mm Nagler, 5mm Radian; Meade 15mm Super Plossl; VERNONSCOPE 2.4X BARLOW
Binoculars: Leica 8x32 Trinovids, circa 1997; Orion Megaview 20x80, Orion Paragon Plus mount.
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#4

Post by Makuser »


Hi Gabrielle. A very concise and in-depth analysis of these two refractor telescopes. You have provided very much useful information here, and possibly applicable to other brands as well. Thanks for your post Gabrielle, and the best of regards.
Marshall
Sky-Watcher 90mm f/13.8 Maksutov-Cassegrain on motorized Multimount
Orion Astroview 120ST f/5 Refractor on EQ3 mount
Celestron Comet Catcher 140mm f/3.64 Schmidt-Newtonian on alt-az mount
Celestron Omni XLT150R f/5 Refractor on CG4 mount with dual axis drives.
Orion 180mm f/15 Maksutov-Cassegrain on CG5-GT Goto mount.
Orion XT12i 12" f/4.9 Dobsonian Intelliscope.
Kamakura 7x35 Binoculars and Celestron SkyMaster 15x70 Binoculars. ZWO ASI 120MC camera.
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#5

Post by Refractordude »


Lady Fraktor:

Nice, and thank you. How does your Celestron 150mm f/8 refractor do on the planets/moon with and with out an aperture mask/filter?
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#6

Post by Bigzmey »


So, what happened to your copy of 102mm XL f/13.2 at the end, Gabby? Did you send it back?
Scopes: Stellarvue: SV102ED; Celestron: 9.25" EdgeHD, 8" SCT, 150ST, Onyx 80ED; iOptron: Hankmeister 6" Mak; SW: 7" Mak; Meade: 80ST.
Mounts: SW: SkyTee2, AzGTi; iOptron: AZMP; ES: Twilight I; Bresser: EXOS2; UA: MicroStar.
Binos: APM: 100-90 APO; Canon: IS 15x50; Orion: Binoviewer, LG II 15x70, WV 10x50, Nikon: AE 16x50, 10x50, 8x40.
EPs: Pentax: XWs & XFs; TeleVue: Delites, Panoptic & Plossls; ES: 68, 62; Vixen: SLVs; Baader: BCOs, Aspherics, Mark IV.
Diagonals: Baader: BBHS mirror, Zeiss Spec T2 prism, Clicklock dielectric; TeleVue: Evebrite dielectric; AltairAstro: 2" prism.
Filters: Lumicon: DeepSky, UHC, OIII, H-beta; Baader: Moon & SkyGlow, Contrast Booster, UHC-S, 6-color set; Astronomik: UHC.

Observing: DSOs: 3106 (Completed: Messier, Herschel 1, 2, 3. In progress: H2,500: 2180, S110: 77). Doubles: 2382, Comets: 34, Asteroids: 255
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

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Post by Lady Fraktor »


Refractordude wrote: Fri Jan 24, 2020 10:35 pm Lady Fraktor:

Nice, and thank you. How does your Celestron 150mm f/8 refractor do on the planets/moon with and with out an aperture mask/filter?
I rarely use aperture masks and filters depending on the object viewed.
I did knock it down to 140mm for a while just to see the difference but appreciated the larger aperture more.
See Far Sticks: Antares Elita 103/1575, AOM FLT 105/1000, Bresser BV 127/1200, Nočný stopár 152/1200, Vyrobené doma 70/700, Stellarvue NHNG DX 80/552, TAL RS100/1000, Vixen SD115s/885
EQ: TAL MT-1, Vixen SXP, AXJ, AXD
Az/Alt: AYO Digi II/ Argo Navis, Stellarvue M2C/ Argo Navis
Tripods: Berlebach Planet (2), Uni 28 Astro, Report 372, TAL factory maple, Vixen ASG-CB90, Vixen AXD-TR102
Diagonals: Astro-Physics, Baader Amici, Baader Herschel, iStar Blue, Stellarvue DX, Takahashi prism, TAL, Vixen flip mirror
Eyepieces: Antares to Zeiss
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#8

Post by Lady Fraktor »


Bigzmey wrote: Fri Jan 24, 2020 11:01 pm So, what happened to your copy of 102mm XL f/13.2 at the end, Gabby? Did you send it back?
Once I had it operating well I sold it.
The new owner and his son are enjoying it quite a bit and have come back to view with it twice now. :)
See Far Sticks: Antares Elita 103/1575, AOM FLT 105/1000, Bresser BV 127/1200, Nočný stopár 152/1200, Vyrobené doma 70/700, Stellarvue NHNG DX 80/552, TAL RS100/1000, Vixen SD115s/885
EQ: TAL MT-1, Vixen SXP, AXJ, AXD
Az/Alt: AYO Digi II/ Argo Navis, Stellarvue M2C/ Argo Navis
Tripods: Berlebach Planet (2), Uni 28 Astro, Report 372, TAL factory maple, Vixen ASG-CB90, Vixen AXD-TR102
Diagonals: Astro-Physics, Baader Amici, Baader Herschel, iStar Blue, Stellarvue DX, Takahashi prism, TAL, Vixen flip mirror
Eyepieces: Antares to Zeiss
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

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Post by terrynak »


Thanks for the reports, Gabrielle!

Quality Bresser scopes are hard to get a hold of from a local distributor here in the States, but I was lucky to get one (Bresser Messier N-150 OTA) a few years back.
Scopes: Reflectors, refractors, and 1 catadioptric. Ranging in aperture from 50mm to 150mm.
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#10

Post by Lady Fraktor »


A few Bresser telescopes can be purchased through Explore Scientific and most of the others can be purchased through Teleskop-Service in Germany.
See Far Sticks: Antares Elita 103/1575, AOM FLT 105/1000, Bresser BV 127/1200, Nočný stopár 152/1200, Vyrobené doma 70/700, Stellarvue NHNG DX 80/552, TAL RS100/1000, Vixen SD115s/885
EQ: TAL MT-1, Vixen SXP, AXJ, AXD
Az/Alt: AYO Digi II/ Argo Navis, Stellarvue M2C/ Argo Navis
Tripods: Berlebach Planet (2), Uni 28 Astro, Report 372, TAL factory maple, Vixen ASG-CB90, Vixen AXD-TR102
Diagonals: Astro-Physics, Baader Amici, Baader Herschel, iStar Blue, Stellarvue DX, Takahashi prism, TAL, Vixen flip mirror
Eyepieces: Antares to Zeiss
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#11

Post by notFritzArgelander »


Since I’m dithering on the ED versions (Altair vs TS) of the f11 this is a very useful reminder of the details of the build.

The intended use is binoviewing lunar, planetary and small DSOs.
Scopes: Refs: Orion ST80, SV 80EDA f7, TS 102ED f11 Newts: AWB 130mm, f5, Z12 f5; Cats: VMC110L, Intes MK66,VMC200L f9.75 EPs: KK Fujiyama Orthoscopics, 2x Vixen NPLs (40-6mm) and BCOs, Baader Mark IV zooms, TV Panoptics, Delos, Plossl 32-8mm. Mixed brand Masuyama/Astroplans Binoculars: Nikon Aculon 10x50, Celestron 15x70, Baader Maxbright. Mounts: Star Seeker IV, Vixen Porta II, Celestron CG5
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#12

Post by Lady Fraktor »


I did not use my binoviewer with the Bresser but do use them with the TS 102mm f/11 with no issues, very comfortable viewing.
I keep eying the advertisement for the new MaxBright II for 425€ but still not available, and I am amazed at how quickly the Mark V sold out at 1275€!!
Obviously there are many people richer than I! :)
https://www.baader-planetarium.com/de/z ... offer.html
https://www.baader-planetarium.com/de/z ... kular.html
See Far Sticks: Antares Elita 103/1575, AOM FLT 105/1000, Bresser BV 127/1200, Nočný stopár 152/1200, Vyrobené doma 70/700, Stellarvue NHNG DX 80/552, TAL RS100/1000, Vixen SD115s/885
EQ: TAL MT-1, Vixen SXP, AXJ, AXD
Az/Alt: AYO Digi II/ Argo Navis, Stellarvue M2C/ Argo Navis
Tripods: Berlebach Planet (2), Uni 28 Astro, Report 372, TAL factory maple, Vixen ASG-CB90, Vixen AXD-TR102
Diagonals: Astro-Physics, Baader Amici, Baader Herschel, iStar Blue, Stellarvue DX, Takahashi prism, TAL, Vixen flip mirror
Eyepieces: Antares to Zeiss
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notFritzArgelander
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#13

Post by notFritzArgelander »


Lady Fraktor wrote: Sat Jan 25, 2020 1:35 am I did not use my binoviewer with the Bresser but do use them with the TS 102mm f/11 with no issues, very comfortable viewing.
I keep eying the advertisement for the new MaxBright II for 425€ but still not available, and I am amazed at how quickly the Mark V sold out at 1275€!!
Obviously there are many people richer than I! :)
https://www.baader-planetarium.com/de/z ... offer.html
https://www.baader-planetarium.com/de/z ... kular.html
I used to have the MarkVs which were nice on both the MK66 and the 9.25 Edge. Ah, the sorrows of downsizing.....
Scopes: Refs: Orion ST80, SV 80EDA f7, TS 102ED f11 Newts: AWB 130mm, f5, Z12 f5; Cats: VMC110L, Intes MK66,VMC200L f9.75 EPs: KK Fujiyama Orthoscopics, 2x Vixen NPLs (40-6mm) and BCOs, Baader Mark IV zooms, TV Panoptics, Delos, Plossl 32-8mm. Mixed brand Masuyama/Astroplans Binoculars: Nikon Aculon 10x50, Celestron 15x70, Baader Maxbright. Mounts: Star Seeker IV, Vixen Porta II, Celestron CG5
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helicon United States of America
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Re: A Tale Of Two Refractors

#14

Post by helicon »


Great review of the scopes. I'll have to pick up a longer focal length doublet at some point.
-Michael
Refractors: ES AR152 f/6.5 Achromat on Twilight II, Celestron 102mm XLT f/9.8 on Celestron Heavy Duty Alt Az mount, KOWA 90mm spotting scope
Binoculars: Celestron SkyMaster 15x70, Bushnell 10x50
Eyepieces: Various, GSO Superview, 9mm Plossl, Celestron 25mm Plossl
Camera: ZWO ASI 120
Naked Eye: Two Eyeballs
Latitude: 48.7229° N
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