Owmuchonomy

It is all beautifully encompassed in the book 'Magic Furnace' by Marcus Chown.

Camper van to Spain and the Pyrenees.

Planets and double stars, how about a 150mm MAK or an SCT. You need more focal length. Of my scopes, the planet choice is my 9.25" SCT. For doubles, I'm fortunate enough to have an ED150.

Lunt's own zoom EP is very good. I wouldn't normally recommend a zoom EP but with solar observing the seeing plays a dramatic role. Having a zoom option helps you find the sweet spot on any given day. I used one with my Lunt 50. I also have to hand either my 14mm or 20mm ES 68' EPs. They are excellent for the price.

That's really nice.

Not yet but with an incoming 400mm ODK I'll put it on the list!

No, the focuser standard doesn't affect the optics it's just a bit basic. No I can comment on comparative performance for double stars. Sirius is too low in the sky really.

They are two completely different tools, that's why I retain both. If I'm observing I would probably go to the ED150 every time, although I have imaged with it too. The resolution during a visible observing experience is unbeatable in my set of kit. It also does not need any collimation, but the downside is the very basic focuser and I also did a post some years ago demonstrating the poor range of back focus. Observing high altitude objects needs some forward planning too just because of the length of the thing. The C9.25 is my planet killer and imaging go to scope for use with my high frame rate planetary cameras. It also has a Featherlite R&P focuser upgrade which helps tremendously. Horses for courses but in my book they are two separate entities and each has its place.

I own an ED150 (and an SCT 9.25) and have owned an ED120. The views through my ED150 are excellent and so were those with the ED120. That extra aperture makes a significant difference though. The ED150 is the only scope I have owned where I can definitely say that I have OBSERVED some objects from my location. For example the Rosette. The ED150 is not a heavy telescope per se; it weighs the same as the SCT 9.25, but it is unbalanced. Whatever possessed SW to put a metal lens hood on the end beats me. Knowing how much glass is located there why not use a composite hood! The stock focuser is also just that, stock. As far as I know there is no upgrade available as yet. That said, the ED150 beats everything I own at the moment for pleasurable observing. I mount it on an AZ EQ6 for obvious reasons and you need a long tripod!

It's a while since I owned a Lunt 50 so hopefully Lunt has improved the design but imaging with it was difficult for two reasons. Firstly the helical focuser was rubbish, certainly not capable of holding a camera too well and secondly I couldn't get back focus. The only way to do it for me was to use EPP (eyepiece projection). I quickly upgraded to the Lunt 60 which is designed more for imaging. Hopefully someone will come along with their more recent setup.

No it isn't. That's with the ASI174.

If you wish to image just the Moon and Sun in Ha then a mono camera is the best bet. I use two, an ASI174 and an ASI290.

I have owned a Lunt 50, 60 and 80. The issue with the 50 is the difficulty in getting prime focus for imaging and the original request was for phone imaging. I'd be surprised if you would get a decent phone image to come through using a dedicated Ha wavelength scope. The helical focuser was also dreadful. The Lunt 60 is a big leap in quality of viewing and focuser. It is also much more capable as an imaging scope if you go for the bigger blocking filter. The 80, well that's just another leap in capability. If you are stuck with phone imaging I would suggest you may wish to go the white light route as discussed above especially whilst the Sun is close to maximum spot activity.

Easy spot on Friday night with the ED80. I was doing a gig at Broughton Hall and the visitors loved it. I would estimate mag 6 ish. Faint tail.

Excellent choice for Planets, AP and Planetary Nebulae. It's ok for fuzzies too especially if a SN is present (see below SN 2014J type 1a). Dew shield a must and I upgraded the focuser to a Featherlight R&P. I have also used with a diffraction grating for simple spec work. It's the second scope I purchased back in 2007 and I still have it.