Best OTA for planetary imaging?

[Philip Benson]

I am mainly calling out to the planetary imagers out there with this one.   Given that the both have the same basic optical spec any preferences between a 14" F10 Meade LX200GPS with UHTC and the C14?  

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

I think the differences between the types on average may be smaller than individual scopes within each type.

[Dixie]

The Celestron OTAs are lighter than Meade and in my experience exhibit less focus shift - but optically not much to chose. The top guys do seem to use Celestron and read into that what you will. 

[ollypenrice]

The Celestron OTAs are lighter than Meade and in my experience exhibit less focus shift - but optically not much to chose. The top guys do seem to use Celestron and read into that what you will. 

This would certainly influence my choice.  The other factor woud be the quality of customer care, an area in which Meade have failed to distinguish themselves in the past.

Olly

[Steve Ward]

A C14 and ASI 174MM for Mr Peach pretty much answers the question methinks ... 

http://www.damianpeach.com/barbados15/2015_02_25rgb05.jpg

Mind you the Barbadian seeing may help a little ... 

[riklaunim]

I used C14 in a big city, Warszawa. I does work, but it's not an easy task. First of all it need active cooling or it will start lagging behind temperature drop during imaging and that will create air currents around primary mirror - and the end of imaging. Without a fan blowing air through the OTA I has like 1h before air currents would show up.

Aside of that good mount which you already have. Next would motocryford for fine focusing, and the classical imaging chain. As 14" gives high resolutions a atmospheric dispersion corrector will be a must quite soon as every planet will be lower and lower on the norther hemisphere for the upcoming years (even now ADC is handy).

[Dixie]

I had a chat with Damian Peach after a talk he did down at Walsall AS - what a nice bloke.

For the record there's no mystery about what he does. He has two C14s (one Edge), always uses Winjupos and ADC, plus electric focuser.  I've not used an ADC yet but I can see (as Piotr suggests) it will become a necessity whatever OTA you use.  We can get good seeing in the UK - but you have to put the hours in to benefit when it comes along.  Always thought Selsey might be quite good in this respect being surrounded by water on three sides.