Cjg

What a great thread, I loved seeing the Questar, you get what you pay for and how old is it? I couldn't see my Celestron Nexstar mount lasting 45 years!! Here's part of my travel friendly kit! A Tamrac 5793 Telephoto case (since superseded) holding my Tak 76. The case has more than proved it's worth when I slipped over on ice whilst carrying my Tak inside at Seething. Battered shoulder and bruised hip, but the scope was unscathed! It's just cabin friendly, though I've purchased a seat for it next month when I travel with Ryan Air. The Manfrotto tripod and head are going in the hold though.

Mine taken last night at Seething, too bright for anything other than looking for double stars. But still managed to find my favourite; Kemble's Cascade.

I've wanted a Vixen Porta11 mount for a while now. They have been in short supply. Am email enquiry to FLO was replied to within a couple of hours, they let me know that a shipment was due to reach the importer last Friday. This week, on Monday another email to say that a small quantity had been delivered to Exeter, if I still wanted one....I ordered from the FLO site before I replied to their email! On the day I'm working (not so much) from home, the DHL van arrived as promised and here it is. Highly recommended, great communications, delivered on the day we arranged. Thank you! Chris

It's always a pain when you gear fails. My Nextstar 5 Mount has had a lot of use over the past four years. It's been awash with dew more times than I can remember, and occasionally gets rattled and bumped in the back of my Mini (Cooper) so wasn't a total surprise when the altitude motor started to sound strained and move at a very slow speed. FLO have made the process of getting it repaired / serviced and back to me painless. They got a quote for the work within a few hours of my asking,arranged for the collection by Fed EX (at less cost than I could arrange or post)sorted out the repair and arranged delivery back to me promptlyThe icing on the cake I guess is that as FLO have been charged less than quoted by the importer, they have passed that reduction onto me. Anyone can be good pre-sales, but the level of aftercare once the sale is made shows just what a great company they are, so "thank you". Chris

After three years the battery in my Skywatcher powertank would not hold a charge - am a little surprised; I've never left it overnight in a cold boot or garage floor, have regularly charged it up after each use or each month in the Summer and winter...researching the web, it seems that the supplied charger delivers a full charge, irrespective of the state of the battery; I've probably cooked the supplied SLA batttery by overcharging it! Anyway, two questions answered the same day via FLO's website regarding the Tracer battery, one order placed and delivery via Fed Ex today. The price for the Tracer is excellent too. Thanks all. Chris

Worth visiting these folks? http://www.oasi.org.uk