Thinking of getting ST80 for general AP... Any glad owners?

[Josh Wilson]

I recently decided to get a scope for general sun and moon AP or casual observing during the weekdays. I did some searching and landed my eyes on the Orion ST80 EQ with a mount and two eyepieces and a case. Has anyone else bought the package before? Is this scope good for AP? (can you include some pictures, if possible?) I have a T-adapter for both my Nikon and Canon. Will I even be able to reach focus? Any suggestions or comments are appreciated! Here's the link: http://www.optcorp.com/product.aspx?pid=11874

[Merlin66]

The ST80 is a good little scope, but it's an f5 achromat - not ideally suited for AP.

I use mine as an electronic finder/ guider.

[earth titan]

Agreed. Just not the right scope for AP. Too flimsy and the lens is not corrected for chromatic aberration.

You might get an image but it won't be even approaching average.

Guide scope only I'm afraid.

Typed by me on my fone, using fumms... Excuse eny speling errurs.

[Stu]

There is a thread running elsewhere on SGL which you may find interesting, some more images from an ST80 towards the end. As Merlin66 says, it's not ideal by any means but it is also quite amazing what people are able to achieve with kit like this if you are on a budget.

Cheers

Stu

[earth titan]

Wow. Those are some good images from that kit.

I'll take back my words. You CAN do AP with an st80.

Typed by me on my fone, using fumms... Excuse eny speling errurs.

[Drakester]

Hi Josh. I've got an ST80 as part of Orions "awesome auto guider package" which i use for guiding my main scope and whilst the optics aren't too bad, the focuser is very cheap and flimsy.

I would suggest trying to find a cheap secondhand APO refractor with a decent focuser as you'll soon outgrow the ST80 for AP.

Cheers.

[RikM]

I use an ST80 as a holiday scope and with a Baaderfilm white-light filter for solar imaging. I use a QHY5 camera but I have tried it with a DSLR and I found it very difficult as the focuser is not really strong enough. I had to use a barlow with the lens removed as an extension tube to get the camera to reach focus. If your budget is really tight, give it a go but it would probably be better to save a bit more and look for a secondhand ED80 instead.

[Rossco72]

Only thing to check is the price difference with the skywatcher and celestron equivalent scopes. They are all pretty much the same but Orion's do tend to be a bit pricier.

The good news is once you have dabbled you can re-use the scope as a guide scope if you upgrade to a better corrected main imaging scope.

[The Sailor]

Use mine mainly as a guider but have found it good as a general AP scope.

Jim

[Josh Wilson]

Thanks guys, for all the replies.

Rossco72: I have looked at both Celestron and Orion's scopes extensively and Celestron's seem to be quite a bit more pricey by a huge margin.

RikM: Neat picture! I am trying to do Sun and Moon AP and that is exactly what I am hoping to achieve. But if that is Baader Film, why is it orange?

[RikM]

... if that is Baader Film, why is it orange?

Photoshop