Stu

For me there are too many reports both public and those which remain private of issues with OO kit. This is a premium brand charging a lot more than the Chinese manufacturers and they should have QA in place to avoid these problems. They pride themselves on optical quality, so whilst I can forgive some of the mechanical issues, astigmatism in mirrors and poorly put together cells is not on. Combined with their legendary attitude to customer service, if you have a problem then it can be difficult to resolve pleasantly. I think I've had 6 OO scopes now so I'm clearly a glutton for punishment! The only new one I bought was an OMC200 which always had a problem with collimation. I took it back to them personally (about a 6 hour round trip) and was basically fobbed off with a tweak of the secondary. Eventually, not long before I sold it, I was brave enough to open it up and found that the primary was unseated because it had not been held in place properly. I reseated it and then all was well but I should not have had those problems and wasted a number of years not getting the best performance out of it. VX10L, VX12L f6, VX12L and 2 x OMC140 have basically been fine optically as far as I could tell and the latest OO focusers seem very nice. If I were you I would just make sure you check the scope out thoroughly when you receive it and push back hard if there are any optical or mechanical problems. If I was going for a larger mirror these days (which I am not currently!) I would probably opt for a Nichol or one of the premium US brands like Zambutto but it would go in a truss dob. One thing I don't understand it that, I believe, the testing is done prior to coating. If there is a problem with the coating process, how is that picked up or is the Zygo done afterwards?

Very nice Shane. Having been away to Dorset for a few days, we had one day of wonderful, clear blue skies and the next was pouring with rain, like being inside a cloud! Strange old summer we are getting. That said, the seeing in White Light I got on the clear day was better than I've had for a long time.

Yes it does, provided you stay up very late or get up very early . Worth it if it's a good one.

Good to get out there Alan, they can't all be roaring successes and it's refreshing to see a report that reflects that Hope tonight is better!

I get the power supply issue, but being a non imager what is the problem with the offset and DSLRs?

Come on then Alan, what's the almost about? Seems great to me, nice to see Skywatcher coming up with some more innovative products.

Thanks Andrew, worth a look next time those pesky skies clear!

Hopefully @Pig can assist if he sees this

Does this help at all Gerry? The GIRO-Ercole mount differs trough the new radial/axial bearing without lubrication. Inside their are high quality plain bearings which counteracts the rotation and a lateral load. Furthermore the support points and length of bearing has been extended significantly. So the mount can carry more weight. Also the finish and some cosmetically changes completes the overall picture. http://alpha-lyrae.co.uk/2015/05/03/tele-optic-giro-ercole-alt-az-mount-review/

Works with SkySafari which is the main thing for me. Would be ideal with the Tak for travel.

Wonder if is available without the tripod? It says it has a 3/8" tripod fitting. Having said that the built in pillar looks neatly done, similar to what I made for my photo tripod.

Sounds awful Paul, I really hope your sight recovers after not too long.

Looks excellent, could well be tempted in future.

Strange, my original link still works for me..??

That one is not actually true, in large part because as the scope gets bigger, so does the focal length and the magnification so no more light enters your eye. That said, if you need a filter to feel comfortable observing the moon, use a filter