Takahashi 102 vs William Optics Flt 110

[Kai]

Later in the year i am going to purchase a nice high end refractor.

I 'think' it has come down to one of these two at the moment but i have had zero experiance on either of these.If you can suggest others then my budget will be around £2000.

I intend to use it roughly 75% of the time imaging

Now i expect them both to give high end performance but which one would you buy if it was your decision and why.

Over to you

[Whippy]

In a word Steve, wow! Nice to have the choice eh? I wouldn't like to say either way but I'm sure both of them would be top notch .

Tony..

[Cloudwatcher]

Later in the year i am going to purchase a nice high end refractor.

You better get a move on,the year ends in about 12hrs!

Seriously though,if the scope will be mainly used for imaging then I think the Tak will be your best bet, it is,after all, advertised as an Astrograph. Speaking of which,if you are not set on a refractor,you might consider the Tak Epsilon 180ED f2.8 Astrograph. Larger aperture,faster and at the moment only slightly over £2,000 for the OTA.

CW

[Andrew*]

Later in the year

Set yourself a tight deadline there. Like to get things done quickly, eh? Beat me to it

Good luck on the purchase - wish I would have the experience to help you out on your decision

Andrew

[spacemonkey]

I don't know if there's any brand loyalty here, but have you thought about a Televue NP101. They are universally ( ) regarded as the best 4" apo, and particularly suited for imaging as the petzval element guarantees a flat field. Have a look at this review -

http://www.televue.com/engine/page.asp?ID=4

I've got a TV102, which is more of a visual scope, and one of my friends has the 101. There is no difference in image quality, but the 101 has the wider field/faster f ratio which would suit your imaging needs. You should be able to pick up a used one either here or abroad for around your budget.

Having said that, when I was shopping for mine, I was so close to buying a Tak TSA 102, but the TV102 came up first so I can understand your dilemma.

Good luck, enjoy the scope.

Cheers, Dave.

[FLO]

MartinB has written an in-depth review of the William Optics FLT110 for Guidescope. I shall be posting it later this week but will email you the text ahead of that.

HTH

[barkis]

I would not presume to make a choice for you Steve. Perhaps if you have settled on one or the other which you mention, then Martin's appraisal may be a good yardstick to follow.

Are you sticking with the Atik 16 camera, or do you envisage a change there too eventually. You have had some great images with what you have already, but obviously setting your sights a bit higher.

I'm sure you will make the correct choice when the time comes.

Ron.

[radioactive]

Steve I am not going to try and sway you in anyway at all but you did ask for any other suggestions other than the two you have in mind well I like very much the look at the review of this Vixen ED115S Refractor here is the link for a cloudy nights review to me its a contender for the shopping list let me know your thoughts on it please

http://www.cloudynights.com/item.php?item_id=1640

[Kai]

Thanks all

More food for thought.