KP82

Afaik these are essentially the same scope from the same source in China. But each of these brands have their own minimum specs for the optics, focuser and the tube, carry out their own QA and include different accessories (e.g. bahtinov mask). My own experience tells me they are usually about the same quality wise, so I'd go for the cheapest although I'd probably exclude TS Optics due to possible custom charges.

Agreed. For a f/7.4 scope the user will be hard pressed to find any differences in performance between the ES68 24mm and Pan24.

That's why I suggested the Morpheus as I didn't want you to fall into the abyss of premium EPs so early😁. Honestly with your scope it's pretty much impossible to tell the difference between a TV N13T6 and Baader Morpheus 12.5mm. TV, Pentax and Nikon, these are the top dogs in EPs.

I remember I saw it yesterday and was surprised to see it was still there this morning. BSTs usually don't last more than 30 mins here. If the OP is seriously considering an ultra wide in £150 - £200 territory, a 12.5mm morpheus would be a good choice.

There is a BST 12mm in the Sales/Trade section atm. It's one of the best budget eyepieces.

An off-the-shelf solution is the Rowan AZ100 with encoders and the Nexus DSC. Or you could make your own with RPi 4B, RPi HQ camera, a SW 9x50 straight-thru finder and a finder to c mount adapter. Here are what this home made solution can do (I call mine eFinder): Alignment with the main scope. I wrote a short python script to start live stream of the picamera, broadcast it over http and then draw overlay of a reticule on it. The stream can be viewed in the browser on my phone. Using Kstars/Ekos on astroberry to perform GOTO with any mounts that are supported in INDI. The accuracy is guaranteed by plate solving. No 2/3 star alignment required. Highly accurate PA with Ekos PA assistant Plate solving guided Push-to. I attached a GPIO button to the pi and wrote a python script to perform Sync with Kstars through DBus when the button is pressed. The "Sync" moves the crosshair on the star chart in Kstars so I will know where my scope is pointing to and how far it is from the selected target. One downside of this solution is that the UI is presented through VNC. However there is a promising new app in the playstore called telescope.touch which could replace VNC with a more traditional mobile app UI in the near future.

vlaiv is mostly correct. The mount is actually called Hercules 2.5" Alt-AZ mount (the size of the main bearing). There are also 4" and 6" versions. They are all made by the same company in China. I bought mine from RVO as a package including the vixen clamp and weights. They are also available directly from the manufacturer through aliexpress. The build quality is very good. Its size and weight make it very portable. However unlike many conventional alt-az mounts that use a proper clutcher and worm drive for slow motion, this one has a belt drive with ball bearing rollers and friction based clutcher for slow motion. As a result it's quite sensitive to balancing. Also the advertised payload is way overrated. RVO states the mount is good for 10kg, but I wouldn't be comfortable with putting anything more than 5 - 6kg on it.

For widefield and terrestrial

The stars do look round to me. But to be sure try to take a defocused shot of a bright star like Carole has suggested.

You really need to zoom in and examine the star shape. If the stars are indeed triangular or in some other irregular shapes, it's pinched optics. The diffraction spikes alone caused by spacers aren't enough evidence to suggest that.

That 60 f/6 doublet is a decent scope and I'm sure you will get excellent results from it. The only 60mm better than it are the Taks, FS60 and FOA60. That's the same reducer I've got. It works very well with my 600D which has an APS-C sized sensor. Just one word of caution, the advertised backspacing on TS website are slightly shorter than the actual number. For example when I used it with my APM 107, the backspacing I've worked out is about 58 - 59mm rather than 57mm.

Mine weighs about 6kg. The 5.7kg might be for the 2.5" version. I'm not quite sure about 8.1kg because even with the FTF3035 (it used to be an option), the difference can't be 2kg. Maybe APM have reduced the weight of the optical tube itself and the 8.1kg is the original version? I remember some of the older APM models were like bricks.

Not quite sure. The only thing I've noticed is that the 107 is a FPL53 triplet whereas the glass types are no longer disclosed for the EDPH lineups.

Very impressive. Are the only scopes you have left now Tak APOs? I didn't get my first scope until 1998, a Tasco 60mm f/15. Used it throughout school and uni. Then I got busy with new jobs, starting a family and my newborn, so I didn't touch any scopes until 3 years ago. Contrary to many who get started (or get back in) with a 6" or 8" dob or SCT, I went for a 4" APO. Since then I've been building up my current collection of gears.

The APM 107 is a very nice scope made by Sharpstar. I've had mine for about 2 years. Solid construction, robust lens cell, fairly compact (580mm with dew shield retracted) and a quite beefy 3" R&P focuser. The new version now comes with a 2.5" R&P focuser instead but should be able to hold the same amount of payload. I've read Sharpstar have recently discontinued it in favour of their new EDPH lineup (The AL-107PH has been on the market for a very long time).

Nice buy! This reminds me that I still have my Tasco 60mm f/15 in the garage. I haven't used it since I replaced its focuser with a 1.25" unit about 2 years ago.

There is an Ex demo 76DCU on FLO at the moment. Very tempting...hehehe The FOA60Q is a niche scope, niche as in perfectionism.

For a lifer, definitely Tak over Borg. TSA120 or for imaging only either FSQ106 or TOA130N if you don't mind the size, weight and long cool down. My current lifer is a LZOS 115 f/7. I may get a 6" LZOS or 160 from either TEC or CFF if I ever get to build my own observatory. I simply can't imagine myself assembling/disassembling such a big heavy scope for every session.

Really sorry to hear about your poor experience with this particular seller. With all the extra hassles, delays and additional import charges at the custom after brexit, I'd strongly advise you buy from local retailers. Currently most scopes are out of stock everywhere, but if you don't want to wait here is one: https://www.firstlightoptics.com/telescopes-in-stock/sky-watcher-mercury-707-az-telescope.html This should give you comparable views to the Slokey 80/500 you had before. There is another scope currently in stock at FLO, the Explorer 130M. But don't get that one as it has an inferior spherical primary mirror. If you'd like a newtonian reflector (a 6" f/5 model would be my recommendation for beginners as a do-it-all type of scope with portability) similar to the 114 virtuoso, make sure you get one with a parabolic mirror.

It will be good if you could disclose the brand and model of your 60mm refractor. AFAIK almost every refractor intended as an astrograph with a built-in reducer or petzval lens configuration already produces a flat field. There is no need of an additional flattener. Generally speaking it will always be a good idea to get the dedicated flattener/reducer if there is one for the scope you have. It will make it a lot easier to get the correct backspacing. Otherwise go for a good general purpose FR/FF like the APM Riccardi, Hotech SCA and TS Optics 2"/3" 0.79x (I've got one of these).

It's the same with my SW 200P based on my own experience. I have to tighten each one of the 3 lock screws a little bit at a time rather than fully tighen one and then move onto the next one. Otherwise the collimation gets slightly shifted.

I normally leave the main scope and guidescope (if imaging) in an un-heated room with caps off until next morning. Then cap on and back inside the bags. As for eyepieces I usually put the caps back on as soon as I finish using one, so they all go back into the storage room as soon as the whole session ends. For the cheaper finderscope I normally don't worry about the dew and it goes back to the storage along with the eyepieces.

I've been using an Explore Scientific iEXOS-100 PMC8 for visual for about 6 months now. The mount is default operated by a tablet only app "ExploreStars". While its interface is pretty well polished and the mount WiFi signal is stable, I've switched to a custom solution that I created myself based on astroberry due to limited features and object database of the stock app. The RPi/astroberry solution offers great flexibility with what app you can choose to control the mount via WiFi. It can be adapted to any mount that is supported by INDI and turn the mount into WiFi capable. If you don't mind doing a bit of diy work, you can take a look at this thread and make one yourself.

You could try a UHC filter on some DSOs. They work well for emission nebulae, but not galaxies or clusters. If you're going with a Mak, maybe you want to pick up a GOTO mount so you don't have to worry about star hopping in light polluted London with limited fov of the Mak. The 102 or 127 Mak should work fine on an AZ-GTi. With a Mak you will need to give up on larger DSOs, but smaller ones like planetary nebulae and globulars are still within the reach. No, it's part of the desktop version and free.

The widefield views of the ST80 are enjoyed by many experienced astronomers. However they more than often also have other scopes to cover those areas where the ST80 falls short. You could always use Stellarium to simulate the brightness in eyepiece between a 3" and 4" scopes.