Pronto & AZ4 first light

[Pig]

Guys as promised a quick review of my first light with my Pronto & AZ4 mount

 

Scope - Televue Pronto 70mm Refractor - Focal Length 480mm - F6.8

 

Mount - Skywatcher AZ4 with Steel legs

 

Targets - Moon, Pleiades, Orion Nebula & the Double Cluster

 

Eyepieces

Nagler 3-6mm zoom giving 0.62 deg coverage, through to, 0.31 deg coverage

17.3mm Delos 2.57 deg coverage

31mm Nagler 5.32 deg coverage

 

Other Comments

This review is centred around the enjoyment/experience of using a different type and scope and mount.

The moon

Nagler 3-6mm zoom

Excellent views with very sharp crystal clear images, I was very impressed with the contrasting greys with some great views of the termination and craters being realised. I could not detect any distortion or false colouring as I moved across the lunar surface. The views through the Pronto continued to be excellent and focusing was a pleasure all the way down to and including 4mm

When viewing at 3mm focusing became a little bit difficult to achieve but once set the views were stunning. I would not want to take this scope any further than 3mm as focussing would become almost impossible.

 

17.3mm Delos

As expected the views of the moon were contrasty and the clarity excellent. However, at this power level the moon and its features were starting to get a little small and seemed a little pointless to me so I stopped at this point.

 

31mm Nagler

I don't know why I bothered with the T31 and as I suspected it was pretty much a complete waste of time because all the moons features were so tiny, clear and contrasty but more suited to an image on a first class postage stamp . One point of interest to note was a thin but very obvious yellow ring all around the circumference of the moon that was not noticeable when using the other eyepieces.

 

Orion Nebula & Pleiades

I did not bother with the Nagler 3-6mm mainly due to the time I had and I wanted to get a feel for some wide field views so I jumped straight in with the 17.3mm Delos.

Once again very satisfying views with hundreds of pinpoint stars, in fact after only ever using an SCT I didnt realise just how many stars there are in this nebula so this was a double surprise. The trapezium was tiny but still very distinguishable and separated but one can forget about seeing "E" & "F" ascensions in this scope at this power. There was not great amount of nebulosity but it was visible, given a bit more time I would have used the UHC filter to see if it would have made any difference and will make a point of doing so the next time I am out.

 

The Pleiades were a different ball game altogether and looked absolutely brilliant, It was worth buying the scope for this alone. All the main stars were visible in the FOV and shone like flawless, colourless, grade zero diamonds. I am starting to see what refractors are all about let alone their AP capabilities.

 

Double Cluster

In the main I used the 31mm Nagler for this target

What can I say other than what an absolutely blinding view, a stunning collection of over 20,000 solar masses at around 12.8 million years old, waiting for me see in this tiny snap shot of time and all crammed inside 2 inches of top quality glass. It was like the big bang in reverse. A crazy and sobering thought.

 

Summary

The AZ4 mount felt a little jerky to start with but notably improved the more I used it, vibrations were almost non existent once in position, even when using the 3mm setting on the zoom. The 3mm magnification on the moon is probably the toughest test I can throw at it and it passed with flying colours.

 

The Pronto is extremely well engineered telescope and is a joy to use , the focuser is extremely smooth and precise, the optics are excellent with only a tad of discolouration noticed on the moon at very low power. So all in all I feel I have a brilliant grab and go set up that will probably outlive me if looked after properly.

 

I now have another option to chose from that can only enhance my enjoyment and experience of astronomy. I must also confess that it is makes a pleasant change to see so many stars without having to slew around. I was also surprised at the number of satellites I saw, I guess this was due to the amount of sky I could see.

 

One point of controversy

I was also pleased with how I managed to find everything I wanted to see ( not just the easy targets used for the review) with simply the aid of an RDF and Stellarium, despite being a lazy good for nothing GoTo / Starsence user    

Had to edit the formatting !!!

[emadmoussa]

Nice write up. And you are officially part of the frac pack...now. Ditto

[Pig]

Thank you Imad - Just a Dob and solar scope left then

[RikM]

Lovely write up Shaun. Prontos really are nice aren't they

[Pig]

Rik,

I was very surprised at just how good they are, the detail on the moon is incredible 

[emadmoussa]

Thank you Imad - Just a Dob and solar scope left then

Yep indeed. If I can guarantee I can be in the sun for more than 10 minutes, then I will be considering joining the solar observers community. Until then, I will remain the night owl I'm

Did you find the frac field of view intriguing?

[Pig]

I certainly did Imad   I would imagine it is quite a nice experience just to sit on the ironing chair and slew around the night sky.

[John]

Very nice report Shaun 

Interesting how the Pronto gave you such a different perspective on objects you thought you knew. It's great to own such contrasting but quality instruments.

[Pig]

Very nice report Shaun 

Interesting how the Pronto gave you such a different perspective on objects you thought you knew. It's great to own such contrasting but quality instruments.

Yes John.

Humble pie does not taste so bad after all   Very different views compared to the SCT

[Stu]

Nice one Shaun, welcome to the Frac Pack :-). I do love the Widefield views and pin sharp, perfect stars you get with a good refractor. I agree with your comment on the moon, through my 76 I was amazed at the different shades of grey visible on the surface, really nice.

I guess I too am eating humble pie of my own currently. Having been a small scope person for years, biggest being my now sold Mak, I am really appreciating having some aperture to throw at things. The stars may not be as crisp but the views are lovely in a different way.

As said, nice to have different perspectives as it keeps the interest up.

Stu

[ChrisLX200]

The Pronto makes a great guidescope too   Really good focuser that locks up rock solid, and it's still very useful for wide-field imaging if you swap the camera over from the main scope.

ChrisH

[Pig]

Stu,

I couldn't agree more, I think you do need a variety of scopes and equipment to experience all that there is on offer  

The double cluster looks as great in the CPC 9.25 as it does in the Pronto but it is just different.

[Pig]

A very flash guidescope Chris