Sirius Bizness

Saw a set go on ABS in June with asking price £2500 so they fetch good money. That was as new where as buying these presents somewhat of a risk given you can’t view and minimal info. Strange no lens caps but that may just have been a convenience thing for use given they are stored in a box.

I’d love to try some but lack of ER may be a challenge for me as I have really long eyelashes!

This little beauty turned up last week. Got it off a chap in France. Condition looks as new so was very happy. Only down side was the import duty. Still less than they were new but you can’t buy them anymore so was irrelevant. Looking forward to having a play down to 2-2.5mm in my frac when seeing allows. 
 

I was tempted by this eyepiece as I’ve been looking for one but put off by the ‘small spot’ on the barrel side lens. I took it as a damage mark but could be anything.  Was I being too fussy? I don’t think it will have any affect in views at this power but for me it’s a lot of money to spend on something not optically perfect. None of my eyepieces have anything like that so felt it would have niggled me. Interested to hear others thoughts as my experience is limited so maybe I missed out on a bargain on something I’ve been looking for for a while. 

Maplins case all in one and my evolving EP collection. I started out thinking the 8 & 25mm BST and a Barlow was all I needed...then I got the 12mm Nagler and can see what all the fuss is about.

Not liking the 32mm Panaview much so far so thinking of trying a 31mm Nagler but it is expensive!

Although the BST 8mm is an amazing EP for the price I am looking to upgrade here with a similar Pentax XW or Delos. The Pentax sounds very good but I am waiting to hear more reviews on the Delos first.

Operation clean complete!

Following the guide that James posted up I went ahead and gave my refractor lens a clean. I will say that the lens probably didn't need it at this point in time but as the scope was used and new to me I wanted to get off to a fresh start.

Blower brush & Baader cleaner.

Before and after shot.

The blower brush did a great job of removing the dust but it then left smuge/swirl patterns. The Baader cleaner then removed these surface contaminants. It did leave drying marks which were then removed lightly using the cloth as a finish.

I can now see two tiny reflective marks on the lens as referred to in the guide. I am not fussed by them. I am very pleased with the result and I shouldn't be needing to do it again for a very long time.

James - just had a look through the links you sent and they are exactly what I am after. Really good written and video guides. Thanks.

I am going to do this once to make myself happy and then leave it at that. I think the common message has been less is more.

doublet...haha...should have guessed! Is the dust I am seeing on the back of the second element or can it get inbetween the two?

James, I will have a read and watch the video. Thanks.

I have just bought the Baader cleaner and also a blower/brush. The brush is ultra fine. Is it ok to use this or can the brush damage the optics.

I will leave then alone once done (for a long time), I just want to get the glass back to a clean standard now it is in my ownership.

Sorry for the stupid question but how many bits of glass or lenses are there in a doublet refractor. A lot of the dust is on the inside face from what I can see. Is there any glass after the front cell or is it dust coming in through the focusser that is landing there. Is there anyway to clean the inside without dismantling?

I think you are right as I can't find anything on the internet about the coatings. There is lots about the glass but not the coatings. I found some good information on cleaning, which is inline with what you suggested, in a TMB telescope manual. I do not have a manual with my 120ed. Do skywatcher scopes come with one? Is there anywhere I can download one from as I have tried serching but couldn't find anything.

The manual i read online suggested cleaning only 1-2 times a year maximum in order to preserve the coatings.

Thank you for the advice John...really appreciate it. Glad I asked before doing anything stupid.

How durable is the coating? I am wondering what it would take to damage it and what would it look like? Do they wear with repeat cleaning? On a side note...what exactly is it?...I am an engineer and these things interet me (bit geeky I know) but can't find anything about it other that the glass is referred to as FPL53.

Keiran, I have had the ED80 for a few months now and I just picked up a 120ed today .

The dust etc makes absolutely no difference from what I can see since using the ED80 so I will just leave it be for now. I am just being fussy as the Equinox 120 is beautiful and I couldn't stop looking at the green effect in the lens (whilst being slightly iritated by the dust).

Out of interest, would this have more of an effect on AP as that is what I am working towards.

Thanks again

Martin

I have an ED refractor that has dust and dew spots on the outside lens face. I want to clean this face but not sure if I might damage it. Does this face have any coatings on it or is it sensitive to cleaning? What is the best way to do it?

Thanks

Martin