1.25" 90deg diagonal

[Russty]

Can any one recommend a good diagonal for my MAK as I'm still using the one that came supplied with OTA and I figure if I'm going to upgrade EP collection I might as well upgrade diagonal. I've seen this one at FLO http://www.firstlightoptics.com/diagonals/william-optics-125-carbon-fibre-dielectric-diagonal.html, but one of the reviews posted is shall we say a tad negative. Has anyone got this diagonal, is £65 for a 1.25" on the steep side? any comments will be gladly welcomed.

[Stargazer_00]

I'd expect that would be an awesome diagonal and one I would buy myself if I needed a 1.25"

[Russty]

Yeah Thanks just found this thread.

[Stargazer_00]

They do only make marginal improvements but they sure look swanky. Better than those 7 quid plastic piles of poop you can get (and I had before I got a meade 5k 2" dieletric diagonal).

I did definitely notice a difference upgrade my diagonal but then it went from a 1.25" to a 2" so maybe that just ensured more light made it up to the EP, I cant say for sure Im not that tuned to the scope (its also less than 2 months old which means ive used it very little).

being carbon fibre this one would be both strong and light, a winning combination.

[alan potts]

I have two of the 2 inch ones they are excellent. This Diagonal at 65 pounds is worth every penny, I was going to buy it for my findersope but it is a bit OTT, Tevlevue diagonal as well as eyepiece in a finderscope.

Buy it!

Alan.

[Russty]

I have two of the 2 inch ones they are excellent. This Diagonal at 65 pounds is worth every penny, I was going to buy it for my findersope but it is a bit OTT, Tevlevue diagonal as well as eyepiece in a finderscope.

Buy it!

Alan.

Bought it

[Stargazer_00]

Cool

[Dunkster]

I have one, nice build quality, and I prefer a compression ring to the little screwy things for holding my EPs

[alan potts]

Russty,

I was going to give you till midnight and I was in there. I can't believe it has not gone before now. that diagonal is about 170 pounds new it's give away for the best diagonal on the market. You will never better it so look after it you have yourself a very fine piece of kit.

Now it's time to start on the eyepieces

Alan.

[Galilean]

So many diagonals are misaligned carp. The best are Televue and Stellarvue.

[E621Keith]

So many diagonals are misaligned carp. The best are Televue and Stellarvue.

Have you used them? I have a Celestron XLT and a Stellarvue dielectric. The Celestron XLT is has less scatter than the Stellarvue and shows a darker sky background.

The WO is a good diagonal. You have to spend a lot more find a 1.25" diagonal that's only marginally better

[alan potts]

I know someone with a top level Baader diagonal, it was fairly expensive but nice. it was the 1/10 wave model. I have never seen Stellarvue, I thought they were USA only.

Alan.

[Russty]

So many diagonals are misaligned carp. The best are Televue and Stellarvue.

Yeah can't really justify spending £135+ on a diagonal for a 5" MAK , i'm a Yorkshireman, it brought tears to my eyes spending £65. Diagonal came today some nice weight to and it looks nice. Checked collimation and its spot on. So all in all am pleased with it ,although not tried it out on scope yet.

[alan potts]

Russty,

As I said they don't come any better than the TV diagonal but my are they a price new. There are a lot of very nice ones, WO that Keith mentioned, Astro Physics make a nice one at about don't ask price. Even my Meade 5000 that I have just sold is a real nice one. But as a Yorhshireman you will be happy to know it's always going to be worth 65 quid or maybe a bit more, so it's a good deal.

Alan.

[E621Keith]

I know someone with a top level Baader diagonal, it was fairly expensive but nice. it was the 1/10 wave model. I have never seen Stellarvue, I thought they were USA only.

Alan.

They are, mine came with my SV80s when I bought it from a guy who brought it back from the states. It's a nice diagonal, it's better than my Antares dielectric, and about equal to my Celestron XLT. It's better than the XLT in some areas but worse in others.

As Russty said, there is no point spending megabucks on the diagonal unless he has a top level scope. I think you need a VERY good scope, very clear sky and a very picky observer to see the difference between a good dielectric and a top level dielectric. No one in their right mind would spend £350 on a Astro-physics Maxbright and use it in a £150 scope with £30 plossl eyepieces.

[alan potts]

Keith,

Maybe these are for the one in a million that have an Astro Physics refractor. I know Televue gear is a price and indeed some of the kit you have but why is AP so expensive, it makes my APM look cheap and nasty and when I bought it I thought that was as good as it gets.

Alan.

[E621Keith]

AP has a reputation of being as good as it gets. The make some of the best refractors and mounts. It makes sense they equip them with the best accessories. Everything in the optical train counts when you compare top end optics. I'm sure they don't want to loose a comparison against a Takahashi or TEC because of a diagonal.

Actually, AP scopes are competitively priced against other top end APOs. e.g. A 130EDFGT cost just under $6k (USD), a Takahashi TOA130NS cost $6.5k, and a APM-LZOS 130 F6 cost $6.1-6.7k. The catch is you have to wait a decade before you can buy a new Astro-physics and that's the reason why they worth more used than new.

but I have a feeling people who buy AP scopes never looked at the price tag.