DirkSteele

Fantastic report.  Sounds like you have a real gem.

I don't duel-wield often but it is fun. Not much benefit from the photos as both scopes are LZOS made triplets with only 10mm aperture between them but in this case I was running a side by side comparison.

That is a fantastic idea and removes the biggest concern one can have when purchasing a scope at the lower end of the pricing spectrum.  I would suggest that for the peace of mind, that small cost is minimal compared to the protection and lack of stress it provides.

Beautiful scope t0nedue.  I am not jealous.....much 

But continuing the Takahashi theme that seems to have dominated this thread over the last few pages....  I posted photos of all but one of my refractors many pages ago, now here is the FS-60Q, a 60mm f/10 quadruplet.

Loving the Tak FC-60.  Never seen one in the wild.  Not very common as I understand.

I decided I would like a new 2” diagonal and the Baader BBHS-Sitall seemed like it fit the bill.  A quick Google search did not turn up many stockists in the UK, but 365Astronomy were showing one remaining in stock.  I placed my order at around 10:30am on the 11^th April.  I received a confirmation of my payment processing shortly thereafter.  This morning (2 days later) the diagonal arrived, very well packed and via Special delivery though I had not paid anything for shipping.  A quick and easy transaction.  The only improvement would have been an email to state that the package had been dispatched.  Cannot wait to try it out and compare its performance to the other diagonals I have.

I recently ordered a 2” Baader BBHS-Sitall but needed the 2” to 1.25” adaptor.  I am rather fond of the Baader click-lock mechanism since using it with my Herschel Wedge so did a quick search on FLO and found they had just what I was looking for in stock.  Placed my order in the morning, received a confirmation email and then another email perhaps only an hour later stating the order had been completed.  It arrived the next day and was waiting for me at home when I finished work.  Simple and easy.

I placed an order for a few small items with FLO on Friday morning.  Not long after I received an email notifying me that the items had shipped.  The next morning the package dropped onto the doormat.  Straight forward and simple as it should be.

1 hour ago, cs1cjc said:

Note that AOKSwiss has an AZ mount in this class, the AYOmaster and that encoder versions are available:

http://www.aokswiss.ch/index_mont.html

 

That is a nice looking mount and provides another option for heavy weight scopes.  Perhaps slightly lower capacity but certainly a similar order of magnitude.  I wonder if you can switch out the vixen style clamps for a Losmandy mounting system?  From reports I have read about the Argo Navis digital setting circle system, it is a very accomplished piece of equipment.  I suspect if one were more technically minded than I am, it might be possible to retrofit an Argo Navis to the AzMax Load, but unlike the AOKSwiss model you mention, cables etc would be on the outside.

On 2/28/2016 at 14:58, Stu said:

Good to see you back Matthew, nice review.

I may consider one of these in future. I was a little confused about the options for dual scope setup, whether you could have the mount configurable to have either the counterweight bar, or a second clamp?

I am not actually sure how the two arm model functions.  Certainly not clear whether you can switch between the two.  On my older Tele Optic Giro II, the second arm could be taken off (loosen a couple of hex bolts) and it exposed a connection for a counterweight bar.

On 2/28/2016 at 15:47, Chris Lock said:

I enjoyed your review Mathew, and what an impressive mount! 

Were you ever tempted to buy something like an EQ8 or G11, and live with it being an EQ mount rather than the commonly prefered Alt/Az for visual?

Not so much for visual, but dare I say it, my mind is now wandering towards an EQ mount as i am currently looking to sell my house in central London and move to the countryside.  And you know what that means..... Darker skies and possibly a permanent observatory!

On 2/28/2016 at 17:30, John said:

Great review Matthew !

I thought about one of these when I had my 6" F/12 Istar refractor. Unfortunately the mount costs about 50% more than the scope had cost me and my budget would not stretch that far.

I wonder how the Maxload would compare with the new Losmandy AZ8 alt-az mount ?:

http://www.losmandy.com/AZ8.html

It looks like the Maxload has a higher weight capacity for a starter.

Thanks John.  I recalled you mentioning your interest when I first posted pics of the APM 180 on SGL.  I had not heard of the Losmandy Alt-Az mount before.  Looks rather nice.  Different weight class for sure, but at that price including a tripod it looks like to could be rather good value if it performs as good as it looks.  Will have a Google and see if anyone has reviewed it.

Many of you will recall when I purchased my APM LZOS 180mm triplet a couple of years ago I wanted to mount the scope on an Alt-Az but at 23kg for the barebones OTA and more than 1 metre in length, there was very little choice available that was up to the job.  Fortunately APM themselves actually manufacture a seriously heavy duty Alt-Az mount called the AzMaxLoad.  At the time a number of SGL members expressed some interest and more recently I have received a couple of PMs asking about it so I have finally got round to committing my thoughts into a review (work seems to have taken over my life over the last year, hence my inactivity on SGL).

You can find the review on my astro-site on the link:  http://alpha-lyrae.co.uk/2016/02/27/apm-azmaxload-mount-review/

To give a flavour of the size, here is the AzMaxLoad (on the left) next to my very capable Tele Optic Ercole (18kg OTA capacity).  Quite a bit bigger isn't it!

I currently use the Takahashi clamshell TKA20420Q with my FS-60 though it is intended for the FC-76DC (same tube diameter).  While it is perfectly fine for the job, it is larger and heavier than it needs to be and with another trip to Africa coming up and limited weight allowance I decided I wanted the lighter weight TKA20420 clamshell which is specifically designed for the FS-60.  I emailed True Technology about the clamshell with a couple of questions including the possibility of attaching it to a vixen-style dovetail.  Within an hour I received a response from Nick, answering the questions and quoting me a price for the clamshell, dovetail and screws.  I confirmed my interest, and made the payment (by which time it was past business hours).  Nick confirmed the package had been dispatched the following morning and it arrived the day after, very well packed with plenty of bubble wrap.  A good transaction.

A follow up on my recent transaction with Tring Astronomy Centre.  Hit by a bit of bad luck, the Tracer Powerpack failed to charge and with no additional Tracer charger I was unable to determine if the problem lay with the charger or the Powerpack.  I discovered this on Saturday (15th) afternoon so dropped a quick email to Neil at Tring explaining the situation.  He replied quickly apologising and offered to send a replacement immediately and arrange a courier to pick up the faulty unit.  He email again Monday (17th) morning to confirm dispatch and informed me he had tested the unit before sending.  I received an email and text notification this morning (Tuesday 18th) detailing a 10am-11am window for delivery.  Package arrived at 10:05am.  Any retailer can be struck by a faulty item but how it is dealt with is the real indication of how good they are.  The response was exactly what I would hope for and leaves me a satisfied customer.

I have decided to travel very light to this coming Astrocamp in Wales in September so the large and heavy Maplin power pack I use for dew prevention was out.  Decided to give a Tracer Lithium Polymer battery a go.  Placed an order for one with Tring Astronomy Centre on Tuesday 11^th at around 10am.  I received a confirmation email immediately acknowledging receipt of my order.  At 1:30pm the same day I received another email confirming dispatch of my order and that it would arrive the next day with the option to change delivery date if I was not in to sign for the package.  The following morning I received another email and text confirming the delivery window of 10:44 to 11:44.  Package arrived at 10:59am.  25 hours from order to being in my hand.  A smooth and easy transaction.

N8Allen, I am rather jealous of the mount (and the great scope perched on top of it)!  Perhaps we should start a show us your mount thread!

Hi Mel, hope you are well:-)

Loved your pics of the Polarex 114 but have to disagree ref the performance.. I had two of these and both were little belters. Sure, the eps have narrow fields but I found my objectives to be excellent when used with modern plossls and orthos..and as for the mount, I loved it, an engineering marvel, and quite stable given the long tube of the scope.

Each to their own I guess:-)

Dave

Seems there may well have been some pretty variable QC in some of these older scopes.  I have read from reviews people who definitely know what they are talking about who have had widely differing experiences with these scopes.  Probably means if one comes across an older scope for sale, best bet would be to have a look through it to make sure it is a peach and not a lemon.

Last year I utilised the custom build offering of Teleskop Service to make a solar filter for my APM 105 triplet (not trusting my own Blue Peter skills!) using Baader AstroSolar Safety Film and the end product received was finished to a high standard.  In anticipation of the International SunDay on June 21^st this year I decided to place an order for a new custom solar filter for my Takahashi FS-60 as it is far easier to carry across London than the 105.

I submitted my order on May 25^th and quickly received an email confirming receipt of my order.  However, by June 15^th I had not received any updates and with SunDay less than a week away I followed up.  A response arrived the same day stating that they expected a further 10 days before dispatch.  Sadly too long for the SunDay.  At the bottom of the email was a short passage which explained why.  Teleskop Service was moving its business to a new location from the 24^th to the 27^th of June which I can only imagine was delaying many workshop orders (my 105 solar filter took little more than 2 weeks to arrive).  I may well have missed a notice on the website about the move but it is a shame that potential delays were not prominently forewarned.

The filter was eventually dispatched on June 30^th though DHL took seven days to deliver it.  However, the filter is now in my possession and just like the 105 filter, the quality of the finish is excellent.  So overall, a slightly disappointing delay, but highly satisfied with the final product.

Family picture. L to R -->Zeiss 5x10 MIniQuick, A-P 80mm f11 guide scope (nice little achromat), A-P 92mm f4.9 Stowaway, A-P 92mm f6.6 Stowaway, A-P 105mm f5.8 Traveler, A-P 130mm f6 EDF, A-P 130mm f6.3 EDFGT, A-P 155mm f7 EDFS, A-P 175mm f8 EDF, A-P 254mm f14.6 Mak-Cass.

Wow!  You must be on Roland's Christmas card list with that lot! 

Remarkable collection of fracs Matthew!

You kind of have a look on your face which says 'how much money have a spent   ' Please try and describe what the views are like through the APM LZOS 180? I imagine it to be magical.

I try not to think about quite how much money has been spent on that lot.  However, they bring me great enjoyment and will hopefully last me a lifetime.

Without too much effort I imagine I could write thousands of words about the APM 180, and one day I probably will in a review.  In an attempt to be a little more succinct I would offer up the following.  Imagine the most wonderful views you have had through a first class four inch apo, the classic pin point jewels on black velvet, with a purity of image not rivaled by other telescopes designs, and wonderful contrast that allows the finest details to be seen, and then scale that up several times over.  It really is just like using a big 4" Apo, that just goes deeper and reveals even more of the heavens.  The planetary views on nights of great seeing are extraordinary.  And I believe the extremely good contrast allows details to be seen that slightly larger scopes fail to show on DSOs, though the image is not as bright due to the smaller aperture, if that makes sense.

I bet the finderscope on that big boy is even bigger than my 70mm frac. 

Ha, actually you are right.  I now have an 80mm finder for it!

Given the scopes that are listed in my signature, it was only a matter of time till I joined this thread.  As a refractor nut, I might have been known to say mirrors are for shaving! 

The APM TMB 105/650

The TMB 115/800

The Takahashi FS-60 and FC-76 objective upgrade

The big one, the APM LZOS 180/1260 with the APM 105 for scale (and me at 5 foot 11 inches).

Not shown is the Takahashi FS-60Q, a quadruplet f/10 60mm refractor.

I might have a bit of a problem.  Is there a refractors anonymous meeting I can attend?  "Hello my name is Matthew and I am like refractors.....A lot"

I have added the Vixen SG 2.1x42 binoculars as the chance to observe the Milky Way under the magnitude +7 skies of the International Dark Sky Association gold rated reserve in Namibia (where I head in a week) was too much to pass up.

It was pointed out to me at a recent astro club meeting that if ever I was going to get the most out of the Vixen SX 2.1x42 Binoculars, it would be my two weeks of stargazing in the International Dark Sky Association Gold rated reserve in Namibia which I head to in a few weeks.  I had to agree.

I emailed Tring Astronomy this past Friday to enquire as to availability and they had received a new shipment that day.  I promptly placed an order on the website and received an immediate confirmation email.  Later that day I received another email informing me that the item had be dispatched by Special Delivery (despite paying no P&P) and it arrived Saturday morning.

Very easy transaction.  Now I cannot wait to try scanning the Southern Milky Way.

I somehow managed to misplace my Cheshire Collimating Eyepiece and needed it to check the collimation on one of my refractors which had taken a knock before a trip to a dark sky site.  Despite turning the house upside down, I was unable to locate it so turned to FLO for a new one with the usual quick delivery.  I placed an order for the Premium Cheshire on the website at 10:50am, received an email immediately confirming my order and then another email at 4:18pm the same day informing me the item had been dispatched.  It was waiting for me in the next day when I arrived home from work.

Smooth and reliable as always.