Straight Spotting Scope???

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Colorado Luckydog
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Straight Spotting Scope???

#1

Post by Colorado Luckydog »


I had no idea I was going to develop a taste for star gazing and I just bought a straight spotting scope. It's a Vortex Razor 27-60X85. What would be the best way to use it because it's a fantastic scope. Or is a straight scope just impossible to use?
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Ylem United States of America
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Re: Straight Spotting Scope???

#2

Post by Ylem »


Well, my favourite "scope" for stargazing is a pair of 9x63 binoculars mounted on a photo tripod.

I put the legs all the way up and sit in a lawn chair.
Quite comfortable for me, of course I can't look up at zenith (higher points in the sky) but there's plenty of stuff to see while sitting comfortable.

Have you tried using it at night yet?
Clear Skies,
-Jeff :telescopewink:


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helicon United States of America
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Re: Straight Spotting Scope???

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Post by helicon »


Colorado Luckydog wrote: Thu Mar 24, 2022 12:46 pm I had no idea I was going to develop a taste for star gazing and I just bought a straight spotting scope. It's a Vortex Razor 27-60X85. What would be the best way to use it because it's a fantastic scope. Or is a straight scope just impossible to use?
Congratulations on the new gear. Have fun with it.
-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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pakarinen United States of America
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Re: Straight Spotting Scope???

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Post by pakarinen »


Colorado Luckydog wrote: Thu Mar 24, 2022 12:46 pm Or is a straight scope just impossible to use?
Not impossible, but you might find it less than comfortable when observing objects high in the sky.
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I drink tea, I read books, I look at stars when I'm not cursing clouds. It's what I do.
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AT50, AT72EDII, ST80, ST102; Scopetech Zero, AZ-GTi, AZ Pronto; Innorel RT90C, Oberwerk 5000; Orion Giantview 15x70s, Vortex 8x42s, Navy surplus 7x50s, Nikon 10x50s
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Re: Straight Spotting Scope???

#5

Post by Butterfly Maiden »


@Colorado Luckydog each type of scope has its merits.

My partner and I each have our own spotting scope. We both have the same brand - Nikon D82 Fieldscope, with a 30x/45x/56x eyepiece.

My eyepiece is straight, but Sophia's is angled.

I find using her angled eyepiece is easier for stargazing, but if we use the straight eyepiece you need to be a bit more creative. Using either a sun lounger or a chair that angles backwards are good options. At least the more comfortable options.
Vanessa

Nikon D82 Fieldscope with 30x/45x/56x angled eyepiece.
Olympus DPS-1 10x50 binoculars.
Leica 8x32BN binoculars.
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Bigzmey United States of America
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Re: Straight Spotting Scope???

#6

Post by Bigzmey »


Spotting scopes are good for astronomy to. As others indicated straight version is harder to use but still doable. Me and my daughter observed quite few targets (including planets) with a simple straight 60mm Bushnell spotter on a photo tripod before getting a "real" telescope.
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: Straight Spotting Scope???

#7

Post by Colorado Luckydog »


I also have a pair of Steiner Observers 25-80 binos. They are bad ass. I was going to sell those but maybe not now.
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pakarinen United States of America
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Re: Straight Spotting Scope???

#8

Post by pakarinen »


Colorado Luckydog wrote: Fri Mar 25, 2022 2:21 am I also have a pair of Steiner Observers 25-80 binos. They are bad ass. I was going to sell those but maybe not now.
Steiners? Um, yeah, you'd probably want to sell those to me. :whistle:
=============================================================================
I drink tea, I read books, I look at stars when I'm not cursing clouds. It's what I do.
=============================================================================
AT50, AT72EDII, ST80, ST102; Scopetech Zero, AZ-GTi, AZ Pronto; Innorel RT90C, Oberwerk 5000; Orion Giantview 15x70s, Vortex 8x42s, Navy surplus 7x50s, Nikon 10x50s
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Re: Straight Spotting Scope???

#9

Post by JayTee »


Those binos will give a stunning image of whatever it is you're looking at. Look into what's called a parallelogram mount for those binos. At 20x you won't be able to hold them by hand to give a steady enough image that's pleasurable, so a tripod is definitely necessary, but a parallelogram mount is a much better option.
∞ Primary Scopes: #1: Celestron CPC1100 #2: 8" f/7.5 Dob #3: CR150HD f/8 6" frac
∞ AP Scopes: #1: TPO 6" f/9 RC #2: ES 102 f/7 APO #3: ES 80mm f/6 APO
∞ G&G Scopes: #1: Meade 102mm f/7.8 #2: Bresser 102mm f/4.5
∞ Guide Scopes: 70 & 80mm fracs -- The El Cheapo Bros.
∞ Mounts: iOptron CEM70AG, SW EQ6, Celestron AVX, SLT & GT (Alt-Az), Meade DS2000
∞ Cameras: #1: ZWO ASI294MC Pro #2: 662MC #3: 120MC, Canon T3i, Orion SSAG, WYZE Cam3
∞ Binos: 10X50,11X70,15X70, 25X100
∞ EPs: ES 2": 21mm 100° & 30mm 82° Pentax XW: 7, 10, 14, & 20mm 70°

Searching the skies since 1966. "I never met a scope I didn't want to keep."

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Richard South Africa
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Re: Straight Spotting Scope???

#10

Post by Richard »


Though not ideal any scope can be used for Astronomy , spotting scopes , the quality ones are good , but looking up makes it uncomfortable , I wonder if a parallelogram mount as used for large binos could be fitted , that will make it much easier
Reflectors GSO 200 Dobs
Refractors None
SCT C5 on a SLT mount
Mak 150 Bosma on a EQ5
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