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After NEAF, before catching our plane home, we visited Al and David Nagler at their premises in Orange County.  Together, they gave us a tour of their facility. We left with a renewed respect for what they do.  Some thoughts, observations and learnings from our visit, in no particular order:  Tele Vue is a family-run company headed by Al, his son David and David’s wife Sandy.  Al Nagler’s enthusiasm, curiosity and drive are palpable and inspiring. He is not simply a figurehead.  I have been pronouncing Nagler wrong. It is pronounced N’ay’gler (like Nay or Nay-sayer). Although, they pronounce coffee c’oi’ffee. So, hey, what do they know 😄 They are obsessed (in a good way) with QC! They will reject an eyepiece or telescope with the tiniest mark or imperfection. I noticed a rejected telescope dew-shield on the shelf with a barely visible, insignificant 2mm blemish in its anodising. I haven’t seen QC done to this level anywhere else.  Tele Vue eyepieces must surely be the most copied—especially their Ethos series. There are now multiple copies of the Ethos. So many that, ironically, the copies are competing against each other!  The Chinese copies are copies. They are NOT the same. They are made using Chinese equivalent glass types and optical coatings. (I wondered if one of Tele Vue’s manufacturers had been naughty, but no. The copies are not related in any way to Tele Vue or their manufacturers).  People say copying is a form of flattery. I sense the Naglers disagree (and I don’t blame them).  The building was explicitly designed for Tele Vue. I.e. entrances/exits are lined up so that when all the doors are open, they provide a very long path for optical testing.  Their optical testing and assembly rigs are all made in-house! I didn’t take photos because I felt that wasn’t appropriate. But they were fascinating. I could easily lose a whole day playing! Tele Vue's staff don’t wear nuclear fallout suits or masks (neither do we when we test optics), but they are very strict about separating clean and dirty processes.  Interestingly, though their eyepiece and telescope designs are modern, their admin and procedures are old-school—mostly pen, paper, and lots of cross-checking. I sense Al’s influence here. If it isn't broken, don't fix it.  Whilst Tele Vue is known primarily for premium eyepieces, their telescopes are also designed, assembled and QCd in-house to a very high standard.  The telescopes have also benefited over the years from numerous incremental improvements in design, materials and glass.  The NP101is astrograph has matured into an especially impressive telescope! We will add one to our demo stock, lend it to Gary Palmer for testing and then send it to our remote observatory in Spain.  Tele Vue's focusers are also designed, assembled and QCd in-house. (For years, I suspected Starlight Instruments made Tele Vue's tubes, focusers, and hardware. But I was wrong. They are designed and assembled by Tele Vue).  Tom (on the left of the group photo, behind David Nagler) does most of the telescope assembly. His enthusiasm for his role and the telescopes is palpable.  Tele Vue will happily repair and restore a TV eyepiece or telescope, regardless of age. So if you accidentally damage yours, please get in touch with them or your supplier.  Most members of the Tele Vue team have been with the company for many years (i.e., Tom has been with them for over twenty years).  Rick (fourth from the left, behind Sandy and Al Nagler) has a wicked sense of humour and makes excellent ‘New York Black & White’ cookies!  Tele Vue’s newest optical designer (not in the photo) mentioned that new products are in development. We are guessing that at least one will likely be released in the next month or two.  We sincerely thank Al, David, Sandy, Rick, Tom, and their colleagues for the tour and hospitality. We look forward to seeing you again next year 🤗  

Hello. Are you by any chance from the Netherlands? I'm trying to calculate the total cost of imports so I can plan my budget in advance

Great stuff. Anything on a mono version of the 585?

I turned the noise reduction dial of Graxpert 3 to "11".

Couldn't answer some of the computer stuff as just use a computer I don't analyse it.