Cleetus

With a telescope like that your choice is between the Berlebach or a Takahashi wooden tripod. Nothing else will do I'm afraid.

But isn't it easy to say "I've had my refractor for so many years and it's still working great"? What's the big deal? Refractors are supposed to be almost bomb-proof. Providing you don't let it drop on concrete it will last for decades. The surprise would be if it didn't. Now if we are talking about a Meade or Celestron go-to, with all those gubbins and electronics, then that's a different kettle of fish. There was a time when investing in one of these brands was a lottery. Anyone familiar with Martin Mobberley's trials and tribulations with his Meade? It makes painful reading. I bought one of these in 2002 and have kept it in a very cold and damp, or very hot, observatory for almost twenty years and, so far, it has never failed me. Some of the horror stories I've heard about these telescopes over the years has been eye-watering. I know that one day my Meade will give up the ghost and when that day comes I will probably de-fork it and carry on using the ota on something else. Let's hear from all those Meade and Celestron owners who, despite the odds, still possess telescopes still working after all these years.

Stuart, perhaps I didn't explain properly about my choice of paint so let me try again. A member on CN used this paint and was happy with the results. If I remember correctly he did say the match wasn't perfect but was near enough for him. So, faced with the choice of paying £29 or £1.85 I decided to go for the cheaper option. I had already decided that if I wasn't happy with it then I would go ahead and buy the Tak paint. It would mean I wasted £1.85 but I considered that a risk worth taking. After applying the paint I could also see it didn't match 100% but it was close enough for me and I am happy with it. Now, if sometime in the future, those cold dewy nights are too much for this paint and causes it to break down then I'm pretty sure I will buy the Tak paint. Fingers crossed.

Because it was/is a rip-off price. The paint I bought was a couple of quid so it made sense that was my first option. If it had been a disaster then I would have gone for the rip-off version. Not a 100% match but good enough for me. Paint bought from Amazon UK.

The problem with that telescope is that, as well as being expensive to buy, it's also expensive to keep. How much is a mount going to cost you for that beast? Also, it has to be an observatory instrument due to its weight. The 130 is less than £6000 (add on another £800 for bracket, finder and handle) - a huge saving for 20mm sacrifice. That would be my target if I was ever to buy another telescope. The big question though is would the difference in performance, over a 4 inch Tak, justify the outlay. A telescope will last longer than a car and take you on further journeys!

Looks fantastic. What's the weight you have on that mount Phil?

I have had dealings with them in the past and found them very helpful. Did you buy the tripod from them or from a UK dealer? I remember a discussion on a forum a few years back, not SGL, and there were contributions from some very technical members. Your question has reminded me of it. Basically, it concerned the maximum strength a threaded screw would have depending on the number of turns imparted. I think the conclusion was that maximum strength was achieved after about two full turns. So, although it might seem suspect you probably have nothing to worry about. Having said that, if I was in your shoes I would be thinking the same thing. Peace of mind and all that.

Would it not be easier to swap out the screw in the tripod for a longer one?

Thanks Mike. Yes, he was very helpful. Always got the impression he was mainly offering advice and selling you something was secondary.

On the subject of buying Takahashi telescopes does anyone know what happened to Trutek?

Here you go. Note the Dec axis the wrong way around!!!

I wasn't upset at all today.....but now I've seen that picture I feel traumatised. 🤣🤣

That's a great report Sir! Are you having second thoughts about replacing the focuser? How did you think it performed? Your skies are probably similar to mine (Enfield, just inside M25) and we have also recently had the new street lights fitted so was interesting to read what you could see.

Yes, the HD5 seems to be an upgrade on the previous versions. I never had one of those but I own the HD5 and I never had any problems with it. However, I have a very light and relatively short 4 inch refractor on top and placing something bigger, or longer, might prove problematic. TV say it was designed for 5 inch refractors. What it could do with is a handle. I agree about there being other options. It all depends on requirements though. I can easily lift the whole thing out into the garden when required. The other options probably wouldn't allow me that convenience.

Which Gibraltar are you referring to? Do you mean the HD5 or the older versions?

Cheap box, expensive foam and enough space for new addition.

Cloudy here (South east) I'm afraid.

I recently acquired a 22 year old Takahashi EM2 mounting for my FC 100 DF. I already had an al-taz mount for this telescope but wanted another option so decided to accept an offer to own this wonderful mount. My DF is over four years old and was bought as a package so it came with a clamshell. However, as I was using rings in my set up, I sold this a couple of years back. I was now wishing I hadn't. I decided to buy another clamshell but was disappointed when it arrived to discover Tak had changed the colour of their green - it was now a bluish-green and was no match for the mounting or the green on the telescope. After a bit of searching around I saw a post on Cloudy Nights discussing this change and suggesting colour Tamiya XF-21. This is for model painting and, coincidentally, manufactured in Japan. I decided to try this as it was only £1.85. As you can see from the enclosed pictures it is not a 100% match but it is very close. Another option would be to take part of the mount to a paint shop where they will mix up a more accurate match but there may be a minimum order for this - probably more paint than you want. For a 22 year old mount it was in excellent condition with only a few marks and scratches on the wooden tripod - the mount itself was blemish free. I decided to treat these with a wood dye - Jacobean Oak which matches the Tak colour exactly. The dye seeps in to the wood rather than lying on top like a varnish or woodstain.

Saw a really bright one last night when I was out on the patio having a smoke. About 10.30pm.

Thanks. No, it wasn't that one but very similar. The one I was referring to allowed you to click anywhere on the map, even the middle of the Atlantic, and you would then be presented with the Bortle scale for that particular location.

There was a website I used and it would tell you the Bortle count for any destination. I haven't used it in ages and have now forgotten what it was called. Anyone know?

Finally, the Full Monty (or the Holy Trinity): Televue, Takahashi and Berlebach!

Another two: Observers chair and Planet "short" with 12inch Meade on top.

Not sure exactly which Berlebach model this is. Televue HD5 on top.

I had the same problem last year. Was amazed at the prices here in the UK so bought mine from Agena in the US for about $90. Also available here for much less than UK dealers. https://www.astroshop.eu/handcontroller/meade-autostar-ii-handbox/p,49978