parallaxerr

I'm considering a wedge at the moment to use with my Vixen A80MF. I use that scope on an AZ4 and it's perfect weight and length wise.

Being F11.4 it also has a very well corrected objective, SA is very well controlled. There's one of these for sale at ENS optical, but even better there's a skywatcher version for sale on ABS for £50 listed as Skywatcher 80/910 (wish I'd seen it before buying mine, new). May be worth a punt for a comparison.

Of course, it wont offer any more resolution than your current scope but does offer a very well corrected lens and CA is a non issue with a continuum filter. It copes with X200 on the moon very well.

Despite currently trying not to make any more astro purchases, I always enjoy a little window shopping. My "theoretical" search for the biggest, all purpose refractor to mount on my AZ4 (considering what I know works with respect to physical size, weight and focal length) has bought me to this ED doublet from Omegon...

https://www.omegon.eu/telescopes/omegon-apochromatic-refractor-pro-apo-ap-110-660-ed-carbon-ota/p,55229

I can find nothing in the way of reviews though, apart from one Amazon review that says it's good, but no further detail. There has been talk of it on CN and it was apparently incorrectly identified as an Orion EON110 clone which received mixed reviews due to varying amounts of CA. This scope however is listed as having FPL53 glass over the FPL51 of the Orion and that's where the conversation ends.

So, what's the chances that anyone here has one, or has looked through one? I find it very appealing knowing how well I liked my ST120, but this of course has the ED glass and is a bit slower. It's also fairly light thanks to the Carbon OTA but it's a lot of money to take a chance on!

I'm not overly concerned with small amounts of colour, but I'd be interested to know how it performs in other areas such as SA considering it's still reasonably fast at F6. Is it the full 110mm clear aperture etc?

This would be strictly for visual use, I must add.

3 minutes ago, kirkster501 said:

I think astronomy is over if this lot appear like what we saw tonight.

Imaging certainly will be, but it will badly affect visual observation too. 

I don't know if it's the coronavirus pollution dip, but I've never seen so many satellites as tonight, notwithstanding the Starlinks. I felt giddy looking up at one point, trying to find a reference star and everything was in motion

33 minutes ago, Waddensky said:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlink

Re: the "criticism" section of this article. At least the IAU have objected the plans, but clearly it has fallen of deaf ears and lip service is being payed to reducing the impact on astronomers.

It's only going to get worse. Makes me sad....

2 minutes ago, John said:

Just been watching them passing beneath Leo. Dozens of the things and brighter than I was expecting as well.

 

For a moment, when I first noticed them, I was considering PM'ing you John to confirm I wasn't going mad as you're the closest astronomer I know of observing similar horizons to my own!

This lot is showing up in Stellarium

EDIT: I don't think these are the Starlink satellites. They are still showing in the same place in Stellarium, so must be geo-stationary but co-incidentally aligned with the Starlink trains trajectory. Goes to show how many are up there.

Yes, I'm seeing them too. Been freaking me out for a while, never seen anything like it, they keep coming!

7 hours ago, F15Rules said:

Have you seen the very rare ED130SS for sale on UKABS?

Yes I've seen it. Stop it, stop it now Stu 🤑

30 minutes ago, Stu said:

Question. What is the strap down to the ground for, helping to reduce vibrations?

Yes, stability and vibration damping. I originally came up with the idea when I was imaging and had an HEQ5 atop the pier extension with a 120mm imaging scope plus guide scope & cameras etc, it was quite top heavy. I was also leaving the mount out in reasonable weather (covered) to prevent the requirement for polar aligning each session. Basically a semi-permanent setup being the next best thing to a pier.

I've just got in the habit of using it now as the ground anchor marks out the best observing spot in the garden. It's ultra stable with the Vixen and my previous 4" frac. Tempted to try an Evostar 120 on it, I think it would be fine! An SD115 would be nicer £££

2 hours ago, F15Rules said:

That's a cracking looking setup..it just...works!😊👍

Dave

To be fair Dave, it does just that. It's very easy to get on with, the tube is light and it balances well with no clutches engaged. Best of all, no back bending 🙂

Nothing special by this threads, nor my previous scopes standards, but a frac none the less!

Vixen A80MF, impressed so far with the very flat field and good colour control. Looking forward to some high power lunar work in the coming weeks to see what it's capable of.

3 hours ago, mikeDnight said:

I began thinking that somebody somewhere is hell bent on stopping you from enjoying this hobby

It has felt that way a few times Mike. I sometimes think it's because I'm incredibly fussy, but then other forum members tend to agree with my feelings. 

Resisting buying and selling so much should help, I've learnt what's possible with certain kit now and how, for me, large investments didn't improve the views such as to justify the expenditure.

I need to be "happy with my lot" now and get on with some serious observing!

2 hours ago, JeremyS said:

Is that a four foot tripod, Jon?

 

🙂

 

Haha, very good Jeremy!

17 minutes ago, jock1958 said:

Sorry to read about your Vixen woes, it's definitely not what you would expect of a new item and vendors response is not good either!

Going back to your original post I'm sure on doublets to avoid pinched optics retainer rings are finger tight only (correct me if I'm wrong), I know my TAL 100RS retainer ring was loose when I received it.

The vendor has now offered a small gesture of compensation and has offered to exchange, should I so choose, but I'll stick with what I've got now.

Yes you're correct. It's what I meant by "adequate" torque I suppose, enough to hold the optics without pinching. They were definitely too loose on receipt.

Well I received a response from the vendor and they claim the scope was shipped to me as it was received from Vixen.

I've just responded saying that if that is in fact true, then it's a QC problem with Vixen in this case. I doubt they'll offer any form of compensation but it's not worth chasing. 

Just putting it down to bad luck, at least the lens is clean and collimated now.

14 minutes ago, wornish said:

Was the seller a company or an individual?

If it was a company it would be good to know the name so I can avoid them.

It was a company Dave, but I always feel reluctant to "name & shame" for some reason. Let's see what their response is first  

12 minutes ago, Rob said:

Glad your up and running. But you should not have to go through this situation with a NEW purchase. Lets hope the supplier sees fit to compensate in some way.. even a credit note / voucher for there store would be a nice touch.

Hope it serves you well mind.

Rob

My thoughts exactly Rob, I'm waiting to hear back from them today.

30 minutes ago, F15Rules said:

Vixen make fine scopes and I'm sure  now you've fettled it, it will meet or exceed your expectations 👍😊.

Hope so Dave, but I think their fine reputation comes only from the Japan made scopes 😁

Yes it was sold as new John. I 'll contact the seller tomorrow and point them to this thread, though they'll probably say any claim is void due to disassembling the scope.

The fact that the scope is of less value than my previous scopes makes me less stressed about it though and I'm not bothered about a replacement now that it's sorted. If it were more expensive, I'd have boxed it straight back up for a return. I'd be interested in what they have to say though, if they offer any comment at all.

EDIT: Just mailed the seller with a link to this thread. Let's see what they say!

Just recently after a shorter than planned absence from astronomy, I decided to purchase a new scope. I had previously sold up due to having too much invested in the hobby and I wasn't getting the time to use the equipment due to having a young family. However, I missed observing sorely and as Murphy's law would dictate, my youngest has settled into a decent sleeping pattern (touching lots of wood here) and the opportunity to observe presented itself on a few occasions. 

In order not to fall into the same trap again, I have purchased a new scope, entire EP case, diagonal, finder etc. but this time all for less than my previous scope alone cost. I still had my AZ4 mount in the loft due to it not selling previously.

I've always like a long achro, so I researched the available options. Having failed to buy several 4" scopes due to inaccurate reporting of stock levels by several vendors, I eventually pulled the trigger on a Vixen A80MF which was guaranteed in-stock. It was to come from Germany and it arrived earlier today along with all the other parts via various couriers.

I have previously grumbled on the forum about my terrible back luck with Astro purchases and the seemingly endless supply of faulty or sub-par goods......and at first glance it appeared this was to be a repeat experience 🙄

On the initial un-packing of the Vixen, all seemed relatively OK. I was immediately impressed with the paint on the OTA which is smooth, glossy classic Vixen white. I then noted that the dew cap was a particularly poor/loose fit, but hey ho, no biggy. Further inspection revealed a nibble to the dovetail bar...hmmmm…..this scope has been mounted before. Still, it looks like new, maybe a brief ex-demo? The accessories are certainly still sealed in factory wrapping, I'll forgive the vendor this little omission. But then as every new scope inspection goes, I turned to the objective lens......

FILTHY

INSIDE & OUT

…….SIGH......For some reason the phrase "some mothers do 'have 'em" entered my head. I now consider myself the Frank Spencer of astro purchases.

Enter thoughts of the hassle of returns, especially overseas, communicating by e-mail with a non-English speaker etc. etc. When will I learn!? I really can't be bothered with that lot, let's have a closer look. Remove dew shield....

Dust, lots and lots of dust. Grease marks and is that a chip and a scratch on the inside? To hell with it, this is a £200 scope and I know for a fact it has the same lens cell, or at least very similar to, the venerable ST80, which I have previously disassembled. Out it comes. Whilst removing, I notice that the retaining ring is not tight and the objective can be felt to move ever so slightly in the cell.

20 minutes later and what do you know, a clean, grease free objective. The chip was a flake of black paint and that scratch, well I don't know what it was but it isn't there any more....Relief. Re-fit lens cell and proceed to tube tap whilst re-tightening retaining ring to an "adequate" torque. I pointed the scope out the window to focus on some street lights a few miles away to see what I could make of the performance, only to note that the skies were clear! 10 minutes later I'm set up outside, but the scope coat goes straight on for a brief rain shower. After a little while I went back out to patchy but fast moving cloud for first light. 

Concentric intra-focal rings, nice airy discs in moments of good seeing and sharp images ensued. There was a hint of lens spacers nibbling at the out of focus star image edges but I expected this commonly reported (non) issue. A complete lack of spherical aberration that I could detect and excellent control of colour. Yay, a slightly dulled moment of jubilation. At least it's not a complete lemon.

A quick scan around the sky saw the scope present a lovely rich orange view of Betelgeuse, easily split Mizar and Alcor at low power, show a surprising amount of detail in M42 with a tack sharp trapezium and even pulled out Bodes Neb and Cigar Galaxy pairing. As for the scope mechanics, the focuser is a bit stiff but smooth enough and the depth of focus makes focusing easy. I didn't even unpack the supplied diagonal or finder, instead fitting my preferred altair astro items.

What a roller-coaster of an evening, excitement, denial, dis-belief, frustration and jubilation all within a few hours. I think I need a few days to come down now before I actually get the scope out again and get to observing and forget about the issues! I'm off to bed!

This is after cleaning the outside, showing the level of dust on the inside

After cleaning

28 minutes ago, mikeDnight said:

Give your dosh to me Jon, I'll spend it for you! 

Problem is, it wouldn't go far knowing your tastes Mike!

Oh well the good news is the EPs are not discontinued and are on order, so I'll get the full set eventually. There's just a manufacturing delay, probably coronavirus related.

Good grief, the curse strikes again. Ordered a set of eyepieces from an vendor online, only to receive a partial refund along with the dispatched notification. "Sorry, one of the items is out of stock". NOT ACCORDING TO YOUR BLEEDING WEBSITE IT ISN'T!

I wanted a full set too and I suspect they're discontinued now. Murphy's law, the one that's out of stock is the one I predicted to be the most used.

And can I get a response on the phone?...…..Can I heck

Grrr…...

It just goes to show how personal preferences vary so much. John, myself, Mike and Stu all using different solutions that wouldn't suit the other. I can't merge bino views for love nor money!

Many, including myself, prefer shorter focal length EPs as opposed to barlowing. Some say the less glass in the light path the better, but often short FL EP's have built in Barlow lenses, so that isn't always valid. What I have found though is that eye placement can become fussy when barlowing, but shorter FL EP's often retain the ease of eye placement that longer FL's in the same range have.

One example was my 16mm Nagler combined with Orion short plus barlow. Both had excellent glass in their own rights and the views were good, but maintaining eye placement was tedious due to kidney beaning.