dweller25

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.....

Thanks for the link, landing process starts at 20:48 GMT and landing is at 20:55 GMT.

I had a star allocated to me - it’s in the southern hemisphere and magnitude 14 - it’s the thought that counts 🙂

As others have said.... 1. Ensure scope is fully cooled 2. Ensure scope is collimated 3. Enjoy 🙂

Hello Gerry, Sadly not - Saturn was very low last year, will try this year - but Saturn will still be low 🙁 Results were very similar with Mars last year. But you have the TSA120 so a 100DZ would bring rapid cool down grab and go to the party.

Witch kind of a doctor ? 🤣🤣

Joking aside - It makes we wonder about all these optical diagrams because when I compare the TSA102 with the FC100DZ I see no difference in planetary detail and there is no CA in either scope. Whilst Takahashi do state that the TSA has 1/3rd the CA of fluorite lenses (the FS range at the time) I suspect the real world difference at the eyepiece at focus is minute. Either side of focus my FS128 shows CA but at focus there is no visual CA - and that’s where the focuser is set when I observe 🙂 The only difference I see at focus is tonal with Jupiter in particular looking whiter and colder in the TSA. To me the big advantage fluorite brings is it’s ability to deliver great views with just two lenses which keeps the weight of the scope down, which has allowed me - with an ever worsening back - to go out and observe more since I bought the DZ last year.

Change of plan as it seems the TSA102 is x3 better than a fluorite scope like for example an FS102 😉

Nice scope Fedele 👍

In my dreams 😂😂😂😂 it’s the latest image from the UAE satellite.

Hey, don’t knock flourite 🙂 here’s the latest image through my 4” 😉

Looking forward to the reviews on these 125mm APO’s.......

Hello @Phil gillespie and welcome to SGL. The more aperture the better, so at a minimum you would need a 4” but a 5” will show more. However the 5” will be heavy and will need a bigger mount so may get used less so bear this in mind.

I know someone who has too many Taks, but has put a handle on the only one he uses - maybe he will sell his TSA120 cheap .... 😂😂

@Robindonne Another thought - have you thought about a used Takahashi TSA120, a superb triplet and much easier to carry and mount than a 6” F/8.

@Robindonne This FPL53 doublet looks interesting.... less money than the FPL51 triplet and according to the above graph almost the same performance, lighter too 🙂 https://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p12046_TS-Optics-Photoline-150-mm-f-8-FPL53-Lanthan-Dublet-Apo---2-5--Focuser.html

Hello @AdamJ never heard that before. In what ways is fluorite worse than FPL53 ?

25%

@JeremyS Is that a handle on the FS102 ? ! 😱😱

Wow - cannot believe how small the TSA120 is 😱

I have owned both, as you would expect the Tak was better in terms of contrast, sharpness and build quality and was able to go to much higher magnifications, but the SW100ED is great for the price.

It’s not for sale at the moment @Sunshine as I am still mulling things over - I would definitely wait for Coronavirus issues to reduce before doing anything.

That looks like a great scope John, possibly a little better than the SW 120ED, similar performance to an FS128 perhaps ?