Timebandit

I think a lot of the time it depends who you are buying from. There are "rogues" in all sorts of matters, and I suppose the astro community have these also. Which is a shame. But I have purchased numerous equipment used. Probably 95% of my gear is second hand. But I have had some great buys. There is equipment such as my OOuk 14" and my OOuk 8" that I would of never purchased new. But second hand I managed to acquire top of the range equipment for a fraction of the new price. Buying used has allowed me to be in a great hobby with some top of the range equipment.

Starting to get the hang of the 127 frac on the skytee I see, well done. I always do first light in the daytime. Always feels a bit more comfortable to me setting up and adjusting when I can see what I am doing and adjusting in the light. Not a favourite of mine using a scope for the first time in the dark. To worried about not getting the scope to mount properly or balance issues et. I always find initial set up best in the daytime.

I thought this was an April fools , but we are a bit off that date Have you a dog or cat. Stick a pet treat over the mirror and they will do the licking/cleaning for you. I am not sure what the RSPCA may say about this though😀

Hi welcome to SGL , a nice starter scope. My best two points of advice to you 1 Get yourself the book " Turn left at Orion " great book for a newbie 2 Get yourself to a true "Dark site" the DSO will just pop to the eyes , in light pollution areas you will have difficulties or maybe not see many fainter DSO. A Dark site is really Worth the effort 👍 Hope the above helps

Totally agree. I think a lot of wanabee or newbies to a reflector do have real concerns about collimation😱. Unless the alignment is really out , then something like cap or Cheshire(astro baby collimation guide was really helpful when I was a newbie) followed by a "star test" will usually do the job. This method has served me well for years. And luckily the OOuk mirror cells i have are really robust and hold collimation well, so my reflector rarely needs adjustment.

Nice scope choice👍 In my Equinox 120ED then the eyepiece of choice is the good old ortho BGO if I am in a tight observation mood. As optics are sharp and crisp , but eye relief and fov are tight. Then you have my favorite all round eyepieces for the 120ED. The Pentax XW range from 3.5XW to that 10XW , ortho like performance sharp as a tak on view ,great eye relief and fov of around 70d. If you want to treat your 120 and yourself ,then the Pentax XW 3.5 to 10XW are the ones to have in the eyepiece case

Thanks Steve That's what makes SGL and its members such a great place to be. You can sometimes see an angle that members may not of thought of and may be helpful to them. And learning and hearing of other peoples views and experiences can really tip the balance into an scope or eyepiece et that would possibly be more suitable for their individual needs. Happy to be of help 👍

Hi . I think you are going for the correct choice in a 120 ED for a one scope choice 120ED standard or Equinox ? Depends on how much money you have to spend and if you like a bit of bling in your scope. I don't think you will be disappointed with either. I do have the Equinox version. My understanding is that it has an extendable dew shield, a better focuser and a bling black and silver paint job. My scope was second hand and at a sensible price and that is why I went for the Equinox version. But the lens glass used are the same as I understand it. As mine was second hand then I did not mind having the added extras ,as it is one very good refractor at very sensible money. If you can find a nice used one either standard or Equinox from a member on SGL, then don't be afraid of buying a used one. You could make a great saving buying second hand and put the money towards some Pentax XW and a TV nagler 20mm like it did😉. But standard or Equinox 120ED version you will get a lot of refractor scope build quality and optics for your money. Hope this helps

I do aim to please 😀 Your skytee would probably be better than my AZ4 mount. My AZ is sat on 2" adjustable stainless legs then eyepiece height is adjustable depending how you like to observe. Standing or sitting. Personally with the frac I do mostly Luna , planets, and some doubles, so I prefer sitting. The CA seems to handle this very well. Its an ED lens with high quality scott/ ohara glass and personally it handles Luna observing very well. One other thing to mention. I have found this scope great for binoviewing also ,a real benefit from just Cyclops, especially true on long Luna session, very relaxing with two eyes and such a great view, people say more of a 3D type of experience. Hope this helps

If your going for one scope only and have your mind set on a refractor , and want to use on an AZ . Then have you thought about a SW120ED. These do come up second hand at very sensible money. Great quality build an great optics , superb on Luna ,planetary, doubles stars and aperture for some DSO. I use my SW120Ed on an AZ4 without any weight or size issues. Could certainly be worth consideration for a one scope only set up

Hi . I use a good old collimation cap to set up my reflector. But a good old "Star test" will show you the real test of how well your scope is adjusted

With the refractor, always seem to be seated as more comfortable as mostly Luna and planetary with the frac. The newt and dob always standing as seem to swing these around on various DSO , bit planetary if in view or a bit of Luna. So always seem to be standing with newt and dob The one exception is if I have had a port of two to many, or a few to many wines and then its always sitting🍾🍷😀

Nice eyepiece choice there John. I think many newbies or more experienced alike who are looking for a set of quality eyepieces will not go far wrong with your suggestions 👍

If SW can sort out the niggles, and produce a 150mm frac to the same build standard and optical standards as the ED 100 and ED 120 then I am sure they will be on to a winner with opening up the market to the masses with a quality 150mm refractor that the normal astronomer can hope to afford. 150mm refractor market has been just so expensive in the past ,that it is out of many peoples price range. But a well sorted build and optical standard 150mm refractor that SW have shown from other scope apertures they are capable of ,may change this.

I am sure John would love to do this, especially as he has a new mount😉 But if John did not want to try another SW 150 ED, then I am sure there would be numerous SGL members who would love to be a tester for this new sensible priced big refractor

Nice moon pic . It is surprising how good the old phone at the eyepiece trick works at times. I know I have tried this a few times in the past in the frac. Get the phone in the correct position at the eyepiece and keep the hand steady for a few seconds . Then you can get a real good pic and great detail. Good old mobile phones. Great for a bit of basic AP work 👍

Hi ,sounds like you have a nice reflector already and going to get a quality refractor also. I personally use my Pentax XW range 3.5xw up to the 10XW in my 14" dob reflector and my 120mm frac and they work great in both these scopes. Also there is the TV delos which I am sure would also be worthy of considering. These eyepieces are not the cheapest, but once purchased will be able to be used in a variety of scopes over many years. I hope the above helps.

A lot of people are in the same boat. Because you can see the constellations then they feel the Sky's are "dark". When you get to a true dark site and you see so many stars that the constellations start to be difficult to make out. Then you start to realise what a true dark site is. And those faint fuzzies that are difficult to see or spot from home then just pop to the eyes. Get to a true dark site and it will be a totally Woow experience.

Hi some nice snaps on your iPhone 👍 Personally when it comes to planetary and Luna observation, then I do this from home (even though light pollution) as I do not consider some light pollution to be that much of a problem with Luna and planetary observation. But when it comes to DSO then darkness ,as dark as you can get is where you need to be. The darker the better. Then I do think it is worth the effort and time to travel and go to a true dark site as the DSO just pop to the eyes Sooo much better 😵

Sorry Dave you did not find my banter helpful😉. Obviously a different sense of humour. But if I had a top quality frac like the Tak FS 128 , then I would not be stacking Barlows. I personally would have a set of Pentax XW 3.5 to the 10XW , for normal high power viewing, and a set of Vixen HR for the nights of exceptional viewing conditions (when we are lucky enough in the UK) . I think a scope like yours deserves top quality eyepieces to get the best out of it. As a scope is only as good as the weakest link in the optical chain.

Stacking Barlows on top of each other 😵. That's a new one on me ,and I thought I try different things. Your Tak FS128 deserves better. Stop being so tight and get some proper high power eyepieces😀

I have a OOuk 8" i think around F/4.5 newt with a high grade mirror and even though this is my grab and go for unplanned dark site use on DSO. I have also used it at home on Luna and planetary. Probably less problematic on the back compared to the frac, due to the focus position. Viewing wise the mirror is good , very good in fact(depending on the atmosphere, seeing conditions) But the newt in my opinion does not give that clear ,crisp view that a high end refractor gives on Luna, planetary, more of a softer image. If you are used to a high end refractor I think you will notice the difference on Luna and planetary. But my OOuk certainty gives very good views and I am sure a high grade mirror OOuk at 150mm will be likewise on planets and Luna.

Now that is a posh way to do some star gazing, In a life of luxury. You should of given me a shout as I am not far from Malvern. We could of had a Star party😀

The SW ED80 is a well respected and widely used scope for AP and gets very good results from what I have seen. And great value as they do come up for sale second hand on this site at very sensible money. May well be worth considering Hope this helps

My personal choice for Luna and planet observing (and splitting doubles) is a refractor. My eyes just seem to to see a clearer and sharper view through a quality descent aperture refractor than other types of scopes. With detailed observation like planets then the optical quality of the telescope is king IMO , with DSO then it comes down to light gathering ability (aperture). So IMO also considering the cool down time, I would stick with the Vixen refractor you already have. But as they say the best scope is the scope you use. So if you feel the C6 will get more use ,maybe this is the change you need to make? I hope the above helps