New User

[Dannae]

Hi Dan

Regards

Dannae

[HIP3802]

Hi, Dan, a warm welcome to SGL - and to the worlds of amateur astronomy!

[Jim Steele]

Hi Dan and welcome to SGL

Ben from Berkshire

[Bizibilder]

Hello Dan and welcome to SGL!!

[dmfdmf]

The first question I have though.......Does anyone have any experience with the Bushnell 78-9003 Telescopes?

Total newb here, been lurking for while but I finally joined to make this comment. Maybe its too late for Dan but I thought I'd warn anyone if they pick up one of these Bushnell scopes; it is total rubbish, so be forewarned and the bad online reviews don't really convey how bad it is.

I found a Bushnell 78-9003, unopened box, at a garage sale for $30 including some cheap binoculars. The instructions are horrible and the design is even worse. It is a telescope in form only, what I call a Platonic telescope. I fiddled with it and was able to get great views of the moon on my own but not much else. I took it to a local star party and got some assistance on how to use it but it has been a very frustration experience. With help I was able to get views of Mars, Venus and Jupiter and her moons. I even saw the bands on Jupiter so if you can get the thing aimed and focussed the view is not bad for a $30 scope. The two biggest flaws are that the (side) aiming scope is very difficult and frustrating to get lined up and the yoke tolerance is a joke for a precision instrument. Without being able to aim it the only thing I could get in view reliably was the moon (or, perhaps the broad side of a barn). With help at the star party, it took 4 hands to get the aiming scope aligned with the main scope but once that was done I could actually point it at planets without too much trouble. I am very mechnically inclined (and stubborn) so I imagine the average user (and kids) would give up in frustration long before actually being able to use this scope. Shame on Bushnell for ever selling this device and I am glad to see that it has been discontinued. The other major flaw is the yoke that mounts the telescope is so sloppy and bad quality that once you get something into view any attempt to adjust the aim to keep a moving planet in view results in going back to square one. More frustration. Finally, the reviews mention that the scope comes with a 4mm and 20mm EP and a 3X Barlow lens but the 20mm EP is really the only useable lens with this scope.

That said, Bushnell's crappy design has not driven me from the hobby just yet and I will probably be upgrading soon to a real telescope. To fix the aiming of the side scope I had to junk their mount and I replaced it with an adjustable gimbal off a broken GPS mount for my motorcycle. The gimbal sets the aim in any direction with one single and simple knob that can be done by one person. The biggest problem with the yoke is that the sides of the yoke don't even line up or aren't parallel with the mounts on the scope, so as it moves the point-of-contact moves about, sometimes contacting flat areas and sometimes contacting cylindrical areas. On top of that the contact areas are all powder coated in rough black paint that wears with every movement so repeatability is non-existent. To fix this I sanded the paint off the end of the telescope mount and inserted a brass washer to lift the mount away from all the other surfaces so the washer, mount and yoke are the only point of flat contact when the knobs tighten the mount. With a little grease this seems to be good enough that I can aim and adjust the aim without too much trouble.

Irronically, I happen to like my crappy scope because I am learning what I like and don't like and what features I will look for when upgrade to the next level. I'll probably continue to use this scope for 6 months or so then spend money on a real telescope but will have enough experience to pick a good one.

[hippie]

Welcome to SGL Dan   .

[danccat]

Welcome to SLG

[Zadoq]

Welcome to SGL

[wookie1965]

A warm welcome to SGL

[Dave Lloyd]

Hello and welcome Dan. The telescope that gets used is the one to have.