When did Orion Optics introduce Hilux ?

[John]

Does anyone know when Orion Optics started to use Hilux coatings on their mirrors ?

I picked up a 300mm F/5.3 OO tube today. It's one of the SPX series and the Zygo reports seems to show just shy of 1/9th wave PV and a strehl of .987

The Zygo report dates from August 2005 so I'm wondering if Hilux coatings were standard on the SPX range back then ?.

The mirrors are in excellent condition - unmarked apart from a little dust.

[andrew s]

Why not contact them and ask? I have always found them very helpful. Andrew

[John]

Why not contact them and ask? I have always found them very helpful. Andrew

I will try. I've not found them that helpful in the past to be honest. Perhaps it depends who you get on the line ?

[Moonshane]

you swine. I must have seen this just after you bought it! that's a superb buy mate at the price.

I am pretty certain it will have HILUX. usually they add a sticker to the side of the mirror. drop it out and have a look - with that figure I'd be amazed if you don't have HILUX coatings.

first dibs if you ever sell

[Mark at Beaufort]

I see John you decided to get a bigger Newt. Was it on Astro B&S?

Mark

[John]

I see John you decided to get a bigger Newt. Was it on Astro B&S?

Mark

Yes Mark.

I'd sworn off 12" scopes because of portability issues but the OO is one of the lighter solid tubed OTA's around - this 300mm F/5.3 weighs just 16kg which I think is light for a scope of that specification.

I was also attracted by the slower optics (easier collimation, less coma) and the relatively high spec of the primary, according to the Zygo report that is.

The price was just too much to resist too I have to admit

For a 7 year old scope it's in fine condition. A few marks on the tube here and there and the tube rings / dovetail need a touch up but the optics look pristine

It has some nice features such as the twin ring style secondary supports to reduce diffraction effects. The secondary is the same size as my 10" F/4.8 OO so thats a 21% obstruction - it should be a pretty good planetary / lunar scope under decent conditions. The focuser is a GSO crayford I think which frankly seems better than the OO crayford on my 10".

I figured it has to be a good way to have a crack at the 12" aperture niche again without major risk.

I'm going to use a dobsonian mount so I'll be eyeing up Shanes design. The OO option looks nice but runs out at nearly £400 for a 12" !

[Moonshane]

serious bargain that John. if you want any info or other pics on the mount, just ask. it's an easy project. the trickiest bit would be making flat blocks with a radius on the inside - you can buy these from OOUK for about £10 x 4.

I'm intrigued by the secondary support description. can you upload a pic please?

[Mark at Beaufort]

John that sounds like a great bargain. I have always fancied a 12" Newt but worry about transporting the extra weight. There are times when you need that extra bit of aperature - I will be interested in seeing the scope in the future and also hearing your review in due course.

I did think of buying a separate OTA and getting the Orion metal Dob base but as you say with the tube rings,friction brake and VAT it is over £400.

Are you keeping the 10" Orion - or has the wife given instructions to sell

Mark

[Damo636]

Congrats on the new addition John, some nice specs on that baby! It's pretty lightweight for a 12", my ota is 19.5 kilos. Looking forward to your first light report :-)

[Mike73]

Werent OO the first company to make hi-lux coatings? I know they were well ahead of there competitors as Huygens are still trying to perfect there hi-lux now!

I also saw that ad on AB+S, I think it was listed next to my 12" SW but at nearly half the cost of mine!

[John]

In answer to the questions:

@ Shane: I've attached a couple of very hastily taken pics below, one showing the secondary supports and the other comparing the tubs sizes of the 250mm F/4.8 and the 300mm F/5.3. The tube rings are off the 12" scope to have the paint touched up but are white to match the tube. Thanks for the offer of advice re: the mount.

@ MarkC: If the 300 works out then the 250 will need to go I'm afraid. Continued marital harmony does have something to do with this

[Moonshane]

I'd be interested to hear how you rate the secondary support in terms of views etc and diffraction effects once you have had a butchers.

[Damo636]

Am I right in saying that curved spider vanes create little or no visable defraction effects?

[John]

I think they reduce the diffraction a bit Damo and what is left does not form the familiar "spikes" but is more dispersed. I've never looked through a scope with vanes of this design though so I'm very curious to see what effect they have too

[cantharis]

Ooooo - that´s a big one !!! Good luck with it.

[Moonshane]

as far as I know the diffraction effects are still there but 'smeared' across the view rather than concentrated around the spikes. my understanding is that this creates a more pleasing view, possibly with the same contrast but due to no diffraction spikes you feel as though you see more. this is based completely on a couple of bits I read online and no personal knowledge.

I trust John's judgment and hence my keenness to hear what he thinks.

[John]

A quick update: I've managed to answer my original question. The primary at least has the Hilux coatings - it has a small sticker on it's edge stating the fact

[Moonshane]

nice one John - I refer you to my earlier post

[nightfisher]

Nice scope John, you should be out there looking at lunar detail and Jupiter tonight

[John]

nice one John - I refer you to my earlier post

Happy to give you the credit Shane

Not wanting to actually remove the primary cell (I've not figured out how to do that safely yet) I used a small mirror to look around the edge of the primary and came across two stickers, one giving the date of manufacture and the batch number and the other has "Orion Optics - Hilux" printed on it. I also discovered that the cooling fan in the centre of the primary cell works.

@ Jules (Nightfisher): The scope isn't mounted as yet. I'm tidying up the tube rings / dovetail bar etc at the moment and this ones going to be too big for my Giro-style mount I strongly suspect so I'm going to need to fabricate a dobsonian of some sort. Very windy here tonight as well - much more a refractor night I reckon

Looking down the drawtube, checking the collimation, the circular secondary vanes give a rather unfamiliar view. The collimation looks to be pretty good though, despite the 70 mile return journey from Dorset.

It's nice having a new toy

[nightfisher]

It would be a funny site on the AZ4

[Matthew]

Hi john Your scope is a very similar spec to mine,you've made a excellent choice ( i am trying to be unbiased ),to remove the mirror cell safely you have to have 3 steel brackets.You remove the primary mirror lock nuts and bolt these brackets in the holes,they are the exact distance to the end of the tube.You can then safely undo the screws on the cell brackets and lift the tube off.I have got the fitting and removing instructions i will scan them and email them to you.If i set my scope up later i will take some pics to show you.