Triplet questions

[dmahon]

I think my next purchase will be a triplet wide field scope. I have three on the short list:

1) Takahashi FSQ85 f/5.3 £2998

2) WO GT81 (+ reducer/flattener) f/4.72 £864

3) Esprit 80 (+ flattener) f/5 £1109

Whilst the Takahashi would be excellent, is natively flat and can be reduced further (for another £509), the price is a bit steep. A lot of people are going for the new Skywatcher Esprit with its native f/5 focal ratio but it still needs a flattener (and hence backfocus requirements) so what does it have to offer over the cheaper WO branded scope - especially as WO has traditionally been thought of as a better brand than Skywatcher?

Has anyone tried a reducer on the Esprit?

[ronin]

Very likely no difference between the Esprit and the WO in real terms.

One aspect is that the WO flattener on the 102 (think it was that one), makes it in effect a longer focal length from posts made about a month back. I don't know about the 81, however you are not talking about the flattener alone for that scope.

Just wondering if the Espirit one does the same. It only say it flattens not that it reduces. So you may end up with a flatter field but a slower scope.

I see you mention a specific flattener+reducer for the WO so that would make it faster.

[ollypenrice]

If you are up for the Takahashi (which isn't a triplet but a Petzval quadruplet) then buy it. It is in a different world to the rest, both optically and mechanically. I still rate it as the best imaging scope I've ever used, better then the 106 in terms of quality per unit aperture.The focuser and camera rotator are first class. The control of bright stars likewise. And the image circle, while not quite big enough for the full frame Kodak chips, is far bigger than those of the others. And without the reducer there is no chip distance to faff with. With the reducer you are blazing along at F3.9 with a scope that just works. In my opinion the only astrographs faster than F4 which 'just work' are the FSQs. All the rest have to be made to work.

Had I not moved over to the full frame format I would still be using my FSQ85.

Olly

[lensman57]

I think my next purchase will be a triplet wide field scope. I have three on the short list:

1) Takahashi FSQ85 f/5.3 £2998

2) WO GT81 (+ reducer/flattener) f/4.72 £864

3) Esprit 80 (+ flattener) f/5 £1109

Whilst the Takahashi would be excellent, is natively flat and can be reduced further (for another £509), the price is a bit steep. A lot of people are going for the new Skywatcher Esprit with its native f/5 focal ratio but it still needs a flattener (and hence backfocus requirements) so what does it have to offer over the cheaper WO branded scope - especially as WO has traditionally been thought of as a better brand than Skywatcher?

Has anyone tried a reducer on the Esprit?

Hi,

I noticed that you already have the Equinox 80, to see a real tangible improvement the TAK is the only option if the price does not put you off. The WO GT81 uses the MK6 0.8 X  FF/FR and is different to the old WO FFs. As Olly mentioned the TAK is in a different league but  wether your imaging conditions   allow for the performance to come through is another matter.

Regards,

A.G