Gonzo

Great picture, thanks for sharing.

Nice simple cable management there John.

That's what this hobby is about really, tinkering...

Thanks Dave, if I get this scope I will dismantle it entirely before using it. Glad to hear you're getting ready to test it. Looking forward to your pictures.

Dave, I think there is a way to keep the mirror perfectly centre in the cell, however it will require some machining work. I've found the following thread over in CN where you can see detailed pictures of a Takahashi Epsilon 180ED mirror cell. And from the blog I've linked earlier I do think it might be possible to drill one or two threaded holes on the side of each of the three vertical support, then use some grub screws. You can use the grub screws to precisely position the mirror dead centre in the cell and of course lock it in.

From what I read, the collimation is a bit fiddly at this f/rate, not quite an issue, I guess you just need to be patient and accurate. What I'd like to know is how often do you really have to redo it? If I get such scope, it will be for my remote observatory which is very remote (I'm talking at least 8 hours drive via several countries...) I would hate having to re-collimate "at every use" really...

I want to believe this scope is worth the price tag, lately our clear nights are getting rarer and rarer. And I hate looking at the forecast now... it's just cloud cloud cloud. Hence I'm ready to step into the complicated world of super fast scopes, oh look 1 hour clear night. booom... target acquired !!!

Are you still thinking the same now, or is it ok?

I used Kstars/Ekos for the acquisition (equipment used is in my signature) and Pixinsight to stack and stretch it. 44x 180s lights 15x 180s dark 50x bias using clear glass

I do not use a Raspberry pi, I use an Odroid C1 board in V2. In V3 I will have the Odroid C4.

This one has managed to separate it https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/663055-new-sharpstar-15028hnt-initial-impression-with-pics/page-4#entry9578548

You can do a similar box with a 200PDS scope if you want, I think I have in this thread a picture showing just a wood frame to visualise the size. It's one thing on paper but another when you actually see it... V1: it was big, too big. All made of wood with too many design flaws and my knowledge of wood working was quite limited. V2: this is a much more compact version, super light wood frame with strict minimum amount of screws used (youTube videos have helped me a lot in getting ideas for the wood working part), the panels are Dibond (aluminium composite sheet). I did u

Final picture, stacked and auto stretched in Siril. 44x180s

DIY isn't something I'm scared off But I'm more thinking about the price of the scope itself vs the work that you have to put into it...

Dave, have you had much luck with this telescope yet please? Would you recommend it or would you say: stay away from it... I'm currently contemplating upgrading my current observatory telescope (Megrez 72 f6.0) for something seriously faster and this scope is interesting. I have read all the threads here and on CN about it, from what I can see the quality control isn't on par with a Tak (I have no experience with a Tak, so it's based on what I read).