dweller25

Well thats x100 per inch which is Tak territory, so if anyone can do it Mike can 👍

That story made me go quackers 😂

The Vixen AP has a maximum loading weight of 6kg, the M180 weighs 6.2kg. The old Vixen GP had a maximum loading weight of 7kg so may be a better option ?

If I could only have one scope it would be the TSA120 the OP mentioned, but I am visual only 👍

Welcome to the Tak club @Nicola Fletcher 👍

It is a GP-DX (10kg rating) and holds the FS128 well. Personally I would not put a TSA120 on a GP (7kg rating), but the GP-DX would be fine.

Bumpers - wife had ankle surgery and then caught it on the protruding foot plates 😔

Nice scopes these FS128’s......

Great video ”More possibilities for Fluorite lenses” ? Hope it’s an lightweight FC128DZ.........

Both scopes are good but It’s worth saving a little longer for the 8” F/6 telescope as it is a better allrounder.

Check from the front of the scope very carefully for any screws touching the mirror

You can add a short extension tube between the diagonal and the eyepiece holder ....

@johninderby Looks like you are in luck - clear evenings Thursday and Friday 👍 Looking forward to the review......

Turned the 4” refractor onto Mars this evening at 18:00UT and was surprised to see dark surface markings on a sharp disk - albeit on a very small disk at x160. As an experiment I changed to my highest power eyepiece giving x384 and was surprised even more that the view was still sharp and Syrtis Major could clearly be seen in the middle of the planet, along with some limb haze too. I only went out to look at the Moon - which was great - as I thought Mars was long past showing anything other than an oval fuzzy orange blob !!

This may help.... http://scopeviews.co.uk/TeleVueMounts.htm

Great project 👍

@Aquavit sounds like you have an itch to buy an 80mm ED - they do make great grab and go scopes and the TS option you linked to is nice 👍

Personally I quite the look of diffraction spikes on stars 🙂 Of course that will not be an issue with DSO’s.

I know you are looking at a refractor, but honestly a 6” Newtonian will do all the things you want, it will give truly apochromatic views and will be much cheaper too.

Great Vixen GP advice 👍

It must be a UFO...... Unidentified Fumes Overhead 🙂

Heat plumes are bad news for any telescope. Possible a combi boiler going on and off giving variable results between your scopes ?

f/4.5 wow that’s fast.

It might help if you explained......

Hello @Craig F and welcome to SGL. You have made a good scope choice. To get the best out of your scope..... 1. Cool it down well before use - leave it outside for at least 45 minutes in the shade before use. 2. Don’t view over heat sources like central heating outlets or rooftops - the rising heat will spoil the views. 3. Learn how to accurately align the two mirrors - collimation - easy once practiced. Enjoy.....