another telrad review (ish)

[a10ken]

I orderd a TELRAD last week from ALTAIR ASTRO as i was having trouble telling what star i was looking at through the supplied 50mm finder scope, a combination of 3 differing views was a bit confusing.(naked eye,refractor finder and newt ota )

So firstly, i chose altair because 1. they had it in stock.

2. it was the cheapest by £0.01 (inc p&p)

The parcel arrived quicker than expected so that was a bonus.

the TELRAD itself comes in an un-asuming plain and sturdy white cardboard box, upon opening you see that the box is padded out in 1cm +/- thick foam and sat in that is the TELRAD.

what a whopper!!!

first immpresions are that it looks heavy but it realy isnt, the whole thing is made from black plastic

also inside the box are some basic instructions on how it works and what you do with it, these are all you need.

slide the top cover back to expose the battery compartment and LED screen, insert 2 AA batterys (not suplied)

the construction of the unit is a bit basic with glue visible at the joints and small gaps in the main body BUT none of that matters.

this product is not trying to be a fancy high end bit of kit.

it is however..100% functional and simple to use and set up.

the unit is turned on by a rotating lever switch on the side this should be moved all the way to fully on as this controles the brightnes of the LED viewfinder, if you hold the unit at about 6 inch (150mm in new money) from your eye with the long end forward you will see the target lit up.

it is easy to understand how this works ( i had it explained to me on this forum befor i bought one) once you have read the enclosed instructions

fitting the removable base plate is easy, use the atached tape or dril and screw it on (newts only)

but first do a first fix with electritions tape just to find the right position for you.

when you have it fixed on then you can align the target.

first find a bright star through your scope and center that in your eyepiece.

turn on the TELRAD fully

and look along the scope and through the finder with both eyes open, you will see the target .

useing the on/off/brightness switch turn the brightness down to a comfortable level and you should now see your target and your star.

useing the 3 adjusters faceing you below the glass screen twiddle them slightly until the center circle is over your star.

BINGO job done.

i know i have gone on a bit hear but what an indispensible bit of kit and i think all scopes should come with one as standard.

they are so easy to use and make finding things a breeze.

well done to TELRAD:headbang:

[spaceboy]

Although I have had one a while it has been a refreshing read and one that will no doubt offer an insight into the telrad for any newbies. BUT.... wheres the pics

[a10ken]

Thanks SB. I know i went on a bit but i was so impressed. as for pics, i dont know how to do that yet.....(tecnophobe/luddite type):D:)

[John]

Nice review of a classic product

... as for pics, i dont know how to do that yet.....(tecnophobe/luddite type):D:)

Use the "Go Advanced" option (bottom of the screen), scroll down and look for the "Attach Files" options

[wrinkly]

A good, informative review

Mine looks good on the 150 mm Newt and ST80 but stupid on the 90 mm Mak.

[coopman827]

This and other red dot unity finders are not very useful if you observe in an area where the light pollution is bothersome, since you can't see many of the fainter naked-eye stars.