garryblueboy

Have used several over time on various Taks All ok now I use the More Blue version just as good and a bit cheaper

I think it would go well with the 120 ED I have been fortunate to have owned all the HD range right up to the 14” and the 8 is perfect for that bit extra you can get Star sense to work on the AZEQ6 there is a skywatcher version or was .

It would be my TEC140 it’s a perfect weight and aperture for most things really

Your correct Steve the APM is a wonderful scope also I have had one and would highly recommend one or as I’ve said the 140 is also a little gem although on a good night the Little FS102 is hard to beat on contrast and sharpness but I have luxury of owning a more premium scope than that I’m surprised the original poster hasn’t considered APM 152 or the 140 as they are reasonably priced and a steal on the used market .

I’d say for sure the Esprit is a step above not significantly the 150ED but Costs 3 times the cost as would The Tak150 which I also owned is a tad better than the Esprit at 3 times the cost but both the Esprit and Tak 150 are a heavy scopes if your setting up and tearing down nightly and the View from my TEC 140 is better than my Takahashi FS102 but it’s still a close thing on planets size is relative but so is setting up etc if I had an observatory I’d still have my Tak150 and my C14 Edge but life gets in the way sometimes and as I’m getting older I want less hassle. But that’s me everyone’s mileage will differ.

I prefer the whole field of view to be in focus and stars pin point which the non HD do not basically in centre not much difference but going outwards the HD has more sharpness to it plus for Astro photography it already has a flat field but my imaging days are over I’m now about visual .

Looking at your Scope line up and Budget you probably won’t find a refractor to beat a C9.25 there but there are some that can but cost a lot more also the pictures of Saturn you refer too are these taken in the uk as Damien Peach most of his are in Places like Barbados I have had three C9.25 and really didn’t think they lived up to the hype .

I have owned 3 and let them all go for me they didn’t live up to the planet killer every one boasts about as heavy as C11 nearly I have had up to a C14 which is a beast but now happy to settle with my C8HDEdge .

Having owned all of the scopes in the original post I would say the Tak gave the best views the 150 ED was a fine scope optics very good and yes image larger but still lacked the sharpness of the Tak the 120 I had was a very good equinox model and was in my opinion close to the Tak but I had another 120 which was not I have had several C9.25 and didn’t think they gave me any more than the C8HD edge Having tried most large apertures from top brands and Chinese makers there were two that really impressed me the Altair 130 EDT and the APM 140 which ultimately led to me obtaining a TEC140 which is now perfect size to handle I still own a Tak FS102 which gives sublime views and a great grab and go scope for me obviously other people have different opinions we all get the aperture bug but quality still outperforms quantity as I found the bigger scopes were more hassle to use and I didn’t use them as much as I do know but it was a fun and expensive journey .

Looks like pinched optics

These are just superb and really give you the wow feeling the moon just pops

Hi Rob the TEC case I have is not to bad quite robust definitely not worth there price tag the Amazon one shown is made by a company quite close to me called Allendale they do quite a good range on there website only thing is it’s not pluck foam so you need a sharp knife they do sell a pluck foam on there site but it puts the price up to around £100 , I have a nice padded soft bag for TEC which I brought for anther scope I had so I can always use that if I need I’m also about cashed out now been an expensive six months 😂😂

I never tried I always take my finders off when storing them but for the money it’s a great case to keep it safe

You can get a hard case for around £60 like this one

I Did miss this for a while not the bad back pain though but now I have the TEC140 ED in its place it’s every bit as good and half the weight