Skywatcher Dual-Speed Low Profile 1.25/2 inch Crayford Focuser vs moonlight CR2 vs..

[Madhatter]

An upgrade to the standard focuser on the 250px is deffinatly a modification i would like to make in the future.

2 options are standing out at the moment, i deffinatly want duel speed..

Skywatcher Dual-Speed Low Profile 1.25/2 inch Crayford Focuser

VS

MoonLite CR2 Dual Rate tri-knob Crayford Focuser for Newtonians

VS

Baader SteelTrack NT for Newtonians

All with quite different prices, does anyone have exsperiance with at least 2 of these focusers to compare the differances for the prices and what is the best value for money?.does the moonlight warrent twice the price over the skywatcher? would the Baader be a nice comprimise of the two? it seems a lot to spend compared to the price of the scope but if im going to keep the scope and they improve the exsperiance i think its worth it.

I have decided the 250px will always be part of my collection and its time to plan some mods:) i do say plan..these will be long term items to save up for.

[damp owl]

Did you ever decided which one to go for, I am looking at doing the same thing but not sure which to go for, especially as the Moonlite is nearly twice the price.....

Adam.

[sunshine185]

I wonder how much more " in travel" can be achieved with the sw low profile focusser?

[John]

I've recently got my 1st Moonlite having tried Skywatcher and WIlliam Optics crayfords. These were all dual speed and all with refractors but I have to say that the Moonlite is in rather a different league in terms of function and quality. Different league re: price too but I can see why now

The William Optics is pretty solid though but I was not impressed with the Skywatcher one I'm afraid. Like so much in this hobby, you get what you pay for.

[johninderby]

I've owned Moonlite, Baader Steeltrack, Feather Touch as well as the SkyWatcher replacment focuser. The Feather Touch was definately the best and it was so close between the Baader and the Moonlite that it would be difficult to pick a winner. Both would handle the same load. Another to consider is the Telescope Service Monorail focuser as it handles the same load as the Baader and Moonlite but doesn't feel quite as smooth but is cheaper. The SkyWatcher had issues and the built in extension tube had a lot of play.

John

[davies07]

I've owned both and, as has already been said, go for the Moonlite NOT the SkyWatcher.

I bought the Skywatcher and spent a year of my life trying to make it work for me. As John said, the extension tube is a poor fit and droops. The consequence is that you will never achieve collimation. It is useless for photography.

On the Moonlite, I would recommend you take care to get the correct base. I've been using a Moonlite on my Quattro 10CF and the Moonlite base is slightly under radius so that it touches the tube only at the top and bottom edges.

David