FLO

Hi John, you’ve tagged me into the conversation. Can I help? Steve

So far all the ones we have seen and sold have had the silver machined metal knob. Steve

The RedCat has Petzval optics so, if you haven't already got one, you need only a M48 to T2 adapter to attach your ZWO camera. The RedCat is intended for astrophotography but we hear WO are planning to release a diagonal sometime in April (they say). HTH, Steve

Others have found the same so we recently added this note to our product description page: * Some customers have found William Optics' Vixen style dimension a little too narrow for their mount's saddle so you might need to fit a different dovetail. HTH, Steve

From what I have seen and heard so far I don't think there is a problem. I will know more after Es' has checked it on the bench. Steve

I think it is my preference too. Opened one yesterday to make some photos for our website ?

It won't a problem either way. It has at least given us an opportunity to send one to Es' for assessment. If we had withheld one for any other reason I think we'd have been lynched! ? Steve

The few white RedCats we had were dispatched to customers yesterday. Whether they be Red or White we (we will happily accept either!) we are back to waiting on William Optics for another delivery. They say some will arrive early-April (Red, we think). HTH, Steve

I’ll mention that to Es’ when I next see him ? Steve

Only if it goes wrong ? I.e. if the elements are knocked out of alignment then resetting them can be difficult. A doublet is quite straightforward. Triplets are harder (quite a bit harder!) and the difficulty increases further with each additional element. HTH, Steve

Probably. Am not at my desk atm but will check when we reopen in the morning ? Steve

Yes. It should be returned. We have just reopened after the weekend so I will find your email this morning then will reply again to arrange collection. William Optics are struggling to keep up with demand at the moment so it will be some time before we can provide a replacement but because yours is the first RedCat to be returned we will happily send it to Es Reid for checking / adjustment. The RedCat is a new model so he is probably itching to have one on the bench. HTH, Steve

All back orders for these will be cleared today / tomorrow and, we finally have some in stock ready for immediate shipping ?

We have pre-emptively ordered a handful (there aren’t many available) of white RedCats in addition to the red RedCats already incoming (we hope!). When they arrive we will offer them to those still waiting for red ones ? Thank-you for your patience. Steve

RedCat telescopes are thin on the ground at the moment while William Optics struggle to meet demand. They say they have a small number of 'White' RedCats (a WhiteCat? ?) so if you have a Red RedCat on backorder and don't mind switching to a White model - please let us know. We found this photo on WO's Facebook page that shows the white model:

Also available here in the UK 🙂 ADM Dual Dovetail Adaptor for AZ GTi Steve

That was said back when I thought supply would be okay. Prior to today the only RedCats delivered to UK dealers (one to each dealer, we think) were for demo/review purposes. (We loaned ours to @RayD who is reviewing it for his Simplified Astro YouTube channel). I promise nobody has been left waiting because of myself or a colleague. We will have ours when supply has caught up with demand. Steve

Our first delivery of William Optics RedCat telescopes has just arrived. We should have them booked in by end of day so will begin dispatching them to customers tomorrow. Unfortunately because demand is exceeding supply we have received only a fraction of what was promised. Another delivery is scheduled to arrive later this week or early next but even then that'll still be less than half what we ordered. We are dispatching them to customers ASAP in first-come-first-served order. Promise ? Steve

We were advised yesterday sales have significantly exceeded supplies so RedCat telescopes are on 'allocation'. This means dealers will receive only a percentage of what they ordered. This frustrating situation does occasionally happen when new models are released but usually settles down after a month or two. Please don't shoot the messenger ? That one did arrive so was sent to Ray at Simplified Astro for review. HTH, Steve

No. The HitecAstro model you link to does not have the necessary 3.5mm 8V DSLR Power Supply Output for powering a DSLR. I am glad you asked the question because it gives me an opportunity to emphasise our Lynx Astro Dew Controllers are not related in any way to any other brand. They are entirely new products. We employed a UK electronics design engineer, with a background in military and industrial hardware, to design them from scratch to our specification. Every component has been assessed and chosen by ourselves. I.e. the PCB is manufactured in the UK, the cases are sourced from Japan and individual components (like bomb-proof Mosfets and premium control knob/potentiometers) are all carefully chosen for quality and performance. Final assembly is also done here in the UK at a modern manufacturing facility (the one that manufactures our Lynx Astro cables). Our emphasis on UK design and manufacture means they can carry the 'Made in Britain' logo (a company must first demonstrate something is made in Britain before it is allowed to use the logo). Lynx Astro Dew controllers are only the first of a range of new products designed and manufactured to the same high standard here in the UK ? Steve

For this first batch we are offering an introductory 20% discount off all Lynx Astro Dew Controllers ? Please use the Discount Code 'lynxastrodew' when ordering.

Lynx Astro have released some new 2-port and 4-port dew controllers. Both models feature Phono/RCA type sockets for powering dew heater tapes, easy to use (in the dark!) rotary control knobs and flexible silicone cables. They also have a Micro USB 2 socket so can be controlled remotely via a Mac or PC. The device acts as a USB-to-Serial interface. Software is provided. Both are available with/without a 3.5mm 8V DSLR Power Supply Output for powering a DSLR. (The necessary cables and dummy batteries are available separately). The four-port model also features 2x 2.1mm 12V DC Power Outputs for powering a mount, camera, etc. (Again, cables are available). Lynx Astro is a FLO brand so is designed and manufactured in the UK to a very high standard using premium quality materials and components. Compliant with all applicable British, European, RoHS & CE standards. We hope you like them ? Lynx Astro Dew Controllers

We are integrating some additional data sources into Clear Outside, next is the cloud data and seeing predictions from 7timer. This is experimental at the moment so you need to turn on 'Experimental Features' on the Clear Outside website, bottom right: This only works on the website at the moment. Our intention is bring as many different forecasts into Clear Outside as possible and give you the choice which ones to use / favour. If you are like us, then you use multiple weather forecasts (I use Clear Outside, Sat24, 7timer, MeteoBlue, BBC, Met Office...) so we are hoping by making Clear Outside a hub for all of this kind of data it will save you time and effort checking all the different places and make it easier to compare forecasts and making judgement calls. We are working on updated website and app designs to better integrate all this information and provide for these customisations - expect more news later in the year

No problem ? We will add some to our next WO order. Steve

Speaking with WO, it sounds like our first delivery of RedCat telescopes will arrive around the end of this month / early next ? We have arranged for one to be sent to us sooner so @RayD can kick its tyres. Steve