A choice: mid-FL refractors?

[rocketandroll]

Hi folks

So... now having the Megrez72 with a focal reducer running at about 350mm fl and f4.8, and the RC6 at 1.4m fl and f9 I am looking for something in between the two that won't break the bank.

The scope is just for imaging.... mainly nebulae and larger galaxies I guess.... but which one do I go for?

I have really kind of narrowed it down to two...

1: Ikharus 102 from Ian King: IanKingImaging's IKHARUS 102mm F7 ED APO Refractor with matched .8x Reducer and Field Flattener & Heavy Duty 3" Focuser from Ian King Imaging

2: SW 100ED DS Pro from FLO or anyone else:

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Evostar 100ED DS-Pro Outfit

Both scopes are just under £600. The Ikharus has the advantage of being a good deal faster with it's included focal reducer bringing it down to f5.6 and about 570mm fl. The SW is just f7.6 with it's (currently included in the price!) 0.85X reducer however does provide a bit more magnification at 765mm fl with the reducer in place.

The SW also comes in an aluminium case... which I guess is another advantage.

I've read reviews for the Ikharus and know there have been some issues with them arriving damaged or with dust in the optics.... I have however also had a bad experience with a SW ED80 which had a faulty focuser (though given most people's view of them I am happy to accept that was a one off issue).

So... over the next five or six months of pretty nebulae, then pretty (but small) galaxies... to image... which will frustrate me more... not having the speed to capture feint stuff in shorter subs, or not having the magnification to get detail out of smaller targets?

I'm somewhat stumped :-)

Ben

[ollypenrice]

Tricky, but the fact that you image with a DSLR makes it easier. You badly need speed because you can't do long subs uncooled. That would swing it for me.

I have FLs available of 85, 328, 450 and 980. I find 980 does lie a little in between the nebulae and the galaxies so is perhaps the least productive.

The Ikharos would not give so great a step up in FL as you might want but you would notice the resolution, I reckon, and if you have strong signal from a fast scope you can sharpen in post processing. If you lack signal, you can't.

Olly

[rocketandroll]

Thanks for the sound advice Olly.

I did manage a ten minute sub the other day, but I am pretty certain if I tried to do a string of them in a row... the heat build up would start to become a problem.

You may well be right that the Ikharus is the better bet for it's speed. Just gonna need to do a lot of cropping :-)

Ben