Nakedgun

The Lubyanka breakfast too good for 'em, I say!

2 hours ago, Alien 13 said:

Its hard to find a decent terrestrial spotter, I have been looking for one for years, 

Alan

Really?

I've been satisfied with these products for more than 20 years:

https://www.kowaoptic.com/

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This morning I watched this launch from my driveway as it cleared the hills west of me and tracked SSE, following it with a spotting scope till disappearing below a neighbor's roofline:

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Non-astro delivery yesterday.

Recent release from Pentax, full-frame 21mm Limited lens:

First image with it:

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Hmm, need? That is difficult to assess because it gets easily mixed up with want.

In my case I suppose it is 15 (astronomical-type) since that is how many I have just now.

I think reason is (finally) beginning to prevail over emotion, as recently I've become much more resolute in entertaining the idea that there will be no more refractors delivered here, that it really is time to stop, that I need no more.  OK, then, that's better, pleasant thoughts now...

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I had one of their smaller capacity mounts several years back, yours is considerably more robust.

Let us know your thoughts once you've had time under your belt with it.

Mid-90s I struggled with my first scope - a Meade 4.5" Newtonian on a wobbly GEM complete with indecipherable instructions. I gave up on it by the late 90s and bought a real scope, the Intes MK-67 imported by Orion (California). They came painted black, and were quite good, optically. I mounted it on a Manfrotto tripod with mini geared head and it served me well. If I have a photo a search will be necessary to uncover it.

I have found their tripod and ball-head products an excellent value for price. My wife and I use them for photographic purposes.

Good luck.

I've toyed with the idea of owning this scope ever since looking through Al Nagler's at RTMC (now defunct, alas), and it may yet happen.

Congratulations!

>Non-astro related<

Although, it should be great for wide-field MW shots.

Went on sale ($150 off), so I bought it ahead of the Pentax K-3iii I'm planning to buy, and use it with, before Christmas, disasters notwithstanding.

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till someone ruined my plans!

You have a great arsenal, there.

3 hours ago, F15Rules said:

Andrew, my FS128 weighs 7.5kg, about 2kg less than the Agema I think?

The Tak has a large tube, about 165mm at the dewshield and c 145mm for the OTA IIRC, but is actually very pleasantly lightweight, but solid.

And of course the other big difference optically is that my FS128 has the fluorite element at the front of the doublet, hence the FS (Front Surface) moniker.

The Agema looks like a lovely, high end scope and I wish them all success with it👍..but my FS128 will not be going anywhere 🤗😊.

Dave

F15Rules,

When I "downsized" some years ago, selling my 18" newt, two triplet refractors and G-11 mount, I also, quite foolishly, included my FS-128 with that group, regretting the decision to this day. Not wanting to buy used,  Agema has come to my rescue.

Sometimes, one must learn the hard way.

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7 hours ago, Andrew_B said:

That is a gorgeous looking telescope and reminds me of Astro-Physics, being almost over-engineered with every component custom made in-house right down to the focuser. Is it heavy relative to other scopes that size? It looks so solidly made that I'd expect it to weigh a lot.

Great to see another company making fluorite refractors and especially that they're offering large doublets which seemed to have gone out of fashion since Takahashi stopped selling the FS-128 and FS-152. The longer focal ratio is a nice change too in a world full of fast scopes aimed at imagers and let's hope they do well enough to encourage other manufacturers to offer similar products of their own.

Andrew B,

It's right at 19lbs. without diagonal/ep, and my GM-8 with Losmandy 8lb. counterweight handles it without issue.

Your thoughts regarding doublets resonates with me. I sold my triplets some years ago.

On 23/07/2021 at 06:26, StarGazingSiouxsie said:

 

So, aside from Lunar observing, and assuming no planets have risen yet, what do find yourself looking at when the Moon is up?

 

Siouxsie 

TV. 😄

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Meanwhile, on the non-imaging front....

Last night I used my 12.5" dob to track down Pluto from my backyard, but could not tease it out of the gloom, alas. Last month's New Moon weekend was clouded out.

This marks two summers in a row, now,  with negative results from my place.

Will have to travel for next summer's attempt, apparently, as population growth in this area continues.

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Last night - first light.

The gas giants were impressive - sharp and detailed.

Happy camper, here.

Delivered today, just in time for the New Moon weekend.

Clear skies forecast.

Tonight, the planets will be mine!

18 hours ago, Stu said:

Wonder if they will make a 130mm version? Would love one of those!

And, here is someone's review of the 130.

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9 hours ago, Stu said:

Yes, that was part of the 😱😱! 🤣

In many ways I would prefer a fluorite doublet 130mm to a triplet due to weight and cooling but not for that price gap!

Here is the price for the 130, on their webpage.

17 hours ago, John said:

That looks a lovely scope !

Interesting that they seem to manufacture the objectives themselves. Not many manufacturers actually working with fluorite these days. Takahashi and Vixen have replied on Canon Optron for their fluorites.

A comparison between the Agema 120 and the Tak TSA 120 would be very interesting - I wonder if anyone has done one yet ?

This is their first production run for the 120, so, no comparisons, yet.

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...from Agema Optics in Colorado that the SD-120 fluorite doublet I have ordered, #003, is just a week or two away from shipping.

Former TEC Mak-builder Eduard Trygubova is the creator, here (I have a TEC MC-150 and can attest to its build quality), so I'm optimistic.

I've owned triplets in the past, but now only doublets. They provide me with the satisfying views I desire as I do no imaging. 

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A great choice for an SCT, in my (biased) view!

I don't know if the CF tube saves much weight in the size range, but I've always been concerned over cool-down times vs. aluminum (no matter the scope type).

I don't remember if CF was even offered when I bought this:

Nice find.

OPT was within driving distance from me. Ever since Weatherwax sold the business the new operating model (phone/internet orders only, no showroom) has not produced satisfactory results for me on the occasions I've tried them. YMMV.