Peter Drew

Cheers Rick. I'm well aware of the "ins and outs" of binoculars/binoscopes having made them professionally for 40 years. I also have several models using refracting and reflecting optics from 50mm up to 300mm aperture. What I was looking for in the proposed SW50ED binoscope was one with minimal number of optics for straight through astro viewing for use on my modified zero gravity chair. The terrestrial application was simply because it's possible. ?

Thanks Rick, from reports by others it seems that a focus can be achieved without cutting if a suitable diagonal is employed. I am proposing to make a straight through unit for use on a binochair or terrestrially with diagonals and a tripod.

Thanks very much Derek, even keener to get a pair now.

A Sky90 came close but it was so short already that another way had to be found. Top cuts so far have been a Vixen 4" Flourite and a 7" Astrophysics.

Derek. Thanks for looking. The interest is because I'm hoping to make a better small astro binocular than those usually available, cementing often results in star images that look like fly impacts on a windscreen. I've contacted RVO concerning availability and they are out of stock until the end of July.

The most obvious sign would be 3 separator tabs but some objectives have a ring separator so does not easily show up. I'm hoping it's not cemented.

Any indication as to whether the objective is airspaced or cemented?

Just waiting for them to come back in stock to purchase a couple for a binoscope. I have a keen hacksaw and a lathe so it shouldn't be a problem.

Now that's what I call a playpen. ?

I have Micra wheels on my porch. ?

Grabbed my attention as well. Disappointed. ?

A Celestron NexStar SE GOTO mount and tripod. (Thanks Chris). ?

It already has a potential competitor, the Hiuni Smart Telescope.

I'm seriously considering making a straight through or 90 degree astro binocular from a pair of these so any performance feedback is of great interest.

I've had several Russian binoculars over the years including the 8x30, the 12x40 and the later "Tento" range, all have been of excellent quality and had a nice leather case with distinctive aroma. Good find for £10.

It depends a lot on what sort of performance you want. Double stacking enhanses the contrast considerably at the cost of a much dimmer image calling for a cover over the head to enjoy satisfactorily visually. DS is very good for imaging, particularly for full solar disc images. I prefer the larger high resolution single stack aperture the same amount of outlay will provide. YMMV.

Hello Markus, welcome to this forum. What you ask certainly can be done, I got close to finishing a similar project using an 18" F3.6 mirror. However, during a period of doing other things I read enough negative comments about this procedure that the project is now on hold pending a rethink. The main problems stated were the mounting of the camera, the effects of cabling, potential difficulties with focusing and heat from the camera. I was proposing to use an integrating video camera for near real time imaging to a monitor, it has a very small footprint and small CCD chip so off axis image distortion would have been minimal. The main advantage of the system seems to be not having to invest in a secodary mirror.

It seems to take a lot of aftermarket help to operate one of these Taks satisfactorily.

You get a choice between a 114 Newtonian and the 90mm Maksutov. I chose the 114 as I already had a few 90mm Maks. The 114 is a very capable little telescope particularly for wide field use. The mount is probably one of the best table top variety, it's much more stable than most and its defining plus is that both axes can be overidden manually without upsetting the drive.

I remember it as being the first time I was really pleased to see the eventual rain, I ran outside just to feel it again. Visitors from arid countries often envy our rainfall.

Scorpio?, you'll only find that in the tabloids.

Smoothe surfaces give smoothe movements, you just have to get the tension right.

I've spent most of my life and money on astronomy. I've seen so many wonderful things and met so many wonderful people that I feel that every minute and penny have been well spent.

The cheapest, easiest instant fix is to use a couple of rubber bands, one end fitted to the eyepiece locking screw and the other to a fixed part of the focuser. using the correct tension will keep the focusing action firm yet balanced.

For an opening post asking a few questions about a 4" Tak, this thread certainly has "legs". Perhaps time for a Tak users section?