Sky-Watcher Maksutov 150 mm ?

[Dave In Vermont]

Hi Folks -

I am wondering about the above telescope as I've pulled "The Trigger" on one. If you have any personal experience with these 150mm Maks, what should I be aware of? Such as: How is the focus on them? What sort of dew-shield do you use and suggest? How good is the contrast with these compared to whatever comparisons you know of?

To Wit - Any and all information you would have wanted before a box landed on your doorstep.

I will be most appreciative to any feedback you can toss in my direction.

Thank you -

Dave

[nightfisher]

Very good scope, im on my second 150 pro, yes you WILL need a dew shield for it, the longer the better (astrozap pretty good)

You will get a little mirror flop when focusing but just get used to it, give it time to cool down and dont ignore some of the brighter DSO`s with it.......Luna will blow you away and planets

[belfieldi]

Hi Dave,

I love my Mak 150 Pro, lunar and planetary views are outstanding, at times it can feel like you're floating a few miles above the surface of the moon .

​

Dew can be a problem, but nothing a good dew shield and heaters can't sort out.

I didn't get on with the focuser and struggled at times focusing, so I upgraded the focuser and now things are much better.

Enjoy your new toy (once the clouds clear after the arrival of your new purchase.!!)

Ian

[recceranger]

Dave,

Try this

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/241341-mak-attack/

[laudropb]

After changing the focussed it's a wonderful scope.

[Dave In Vermont]

Thank you one and all. It would appear I'll be taking the focuser to task. laudropb: What did you upgrade to for yours? And recceranger: Thanks for the link! I'll be looking into the Celestron C6 dew-shield. I was wondering what a good one would be. I bought a simple Alt.Az mount from Orion - just got a shipping notice telling me when to expect the plague of locusts and a tsunami or three to commence. I rather expected I'd be needing to replace the diagonal. I'll just grab one of my 3 WO 2" dielectric ones. I obviously like them as I have 3 on hand. I'll test-pilot the 8 X 50mm straight-thru finder and see if I will be needing another GSO RACI. Might be needing to put another mounting on it as the mount I have coming at me is a side-saddle one.

These SW Mak's seem to have quite the fan-club! This is a good thing. I have room now for the additional set-up. I just played Santa Claus and gave my 12" LX200 to my professor-friend as his very own to keep. That should keep him happy! Hiw wife, on the other hand, might be gunning for me!

Until later -

Dave

[recceranger]

Ian,

What brand of focuser did you upgrade to mate?

Rick

[Dave In Vermont]

Haven't as yet. What would you suggest are good options for the beast?

Much appreciated -

Dave

[belfieldi]

Hi Rick,

The first upgrade to the focuser was to attach a clothes peg to the existing focuser, whilst that did improve things a bit, I still wasn't happy, so I upgraded to a TS monorail from Telescop-Express http://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p3947_TS-2--MONORAIL-Dual-Speed-Focuser-for-SC-Telescopes.html.

Focusing is much easier and accurate now and there's no mirror flop.

Clears skies

Ian

[Dave In Vermont]

Thank you Ian! So essentially you swapped it out for a Crayford-style. Looks promising. I'll take a stroll about over here and see what we have that's similar. I'm also looking into the MotoFocus by JMI. I have two of these, one on my 127mm refractor & another on my LX90 12". Never had a problem with these:

http://www.jmitelescopes.com/buy_motofocus.htm#Sky-Watcher

All other ideas happily entertained!

Thank you,

Dave

[Steve Ward]

If it's anywhere near as good as it's big brother it'll be a fine bit of glass.

Just don't play with the three little screws on the back ... ask recceranger ... !

[Steve Ward]

One good thing to get for it is a thin lightweight waterproof cover , one that can be loosely draped over the tube and mount head to protect things while they are going through the cooldown.

That way you can set up and forget about it without fear of things getting too damp .

[Dave In Vermont]

Thanks for the idea for a cover, Steve. I hadn't got that 'covered' yet.

I've sent an email to JMI in Colorado asking which model of MotoFocus would be the best fit. They have 2 for Sky-Watcher Maks listed, but I'm a bit confused as to which model-number is right. I should hear back on Tuesday - Monday is a federal-holiday. It's for the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. - one holiday I do respect. But a JMI MotoFocus sounds good as I explained already. And while a Crayford sounds appealing, I can't seem to find an appropriate model over here.

What are these dreaded 3 screws? You've made me quite interested. I wish I could find the technical-specs on this creature. And I want to be gone with the stock finder-scope. I have my eye on an Antares 8 X 50mm RACI out of ScopeStuff.

My intention is to designate this Mak for solar-system objects - notable planets and the Moon. I understand the Moon is quite the sight through these Maksutovs. I'm looking foreward to Mars later this year. Maybe I'll spot the Martian Canals!

As the Sun orbits the Earth.....

Dave

[Ruud]

+1 for the astrozap dew shield. I use their flexible type on my 6" Nexstar. They come custom made for many kinds of telescopes. Mine has a cut-away section for the dovetail of the C6. It fits perfectly and doesn't sag at all. Actually, it fits so well that it might not fit anything but the C6!

From the looks of it, and the SW is a real looker, the flexible astrozap for the Orion 150mm might give you a better fit. Your scope's dovetail doesn't reach as far as the C6's so you probably don't need a cut-away section.

The SW Mak certainly is a handsome telescope! Congratulations.

[Dave In Vermont]

I have the Celestron 6" - 8" coming. It was on sale at my haunt for such. So there's some irony - you have a Celestron. I just bought a GSO 8 X 50mm RACI, I have one on my ST80 - works great, to any out there looking for a RACI.

I have an AstroZap for my LX90 12" and it's great - no flexure and much less weight on the front of the Monster. Had the metal one. Too much nose-heavy action. I have given that one to my professor friend.

Thanks all!

Yip! Yip!

Dave

[recceranger]

Lol,

Cheers for reminding me Steve - what a frightmare! We live and learn.

Incidentally- if anyone is thinking of upgraded focuser on the 150 just be wary. Some SCT's will hit the original MAK focus knob as you attempt to rotate. I don't believe this is an issue with the larger 180 but it's worth considering for the 150!

Rick

[Orion40]

Skywarcher 127 mak

[Orion40]

I have the same scope and use a home made dew shield, things to be aware of is to be sure that you level the scope, enter all required information accurately and it helps to add weight to the tripod. Focusing is quite touchy but will bring good focus. Hope this helps

[Dave In Vermont]

I have sorted out the focus issue. I got in touch with Jim at JMI in Colorado and asked him which MotoFocus fits these Maks. Jim pointed out that Celestron and Skywatcher are from the same place - Synta - so he suggested the same MotoFocus as for the Celestron NexStar 6 SE. So I pulled the trigger on another one of his great MotoFucus unit. I was wondering why I've hardly heard a peep on the MotoFocus in Europa. Then I found a price for them at TeleskopExpress - €283,00! No wonder.....

Over here, these extremely fine-focussing, hands-off focusers retail at $170. This is a little under £115.

Anyways - that's on the way. I have a tripod-mount for the time-being. I'm going with Alt-Az for now - Orion VersaGo II. That will hold me for now. Have a new William Optics 2" di-electric diagonal coming at me. A GSO 8 X 50mm RACI incoming. Dew-shield. And a hunk of white-fabric to cover it's front-end loosely while it sits outside to reach ambient temperature. Oh - and some Sorbothane®-pads for under the tripod-legs to deaden vibrations to under 1 second.

Now what am I missing?

Oh yes - Fun!

Thank you all!

Dave

[Highburymark]

this is the telescope Meade should have produced - nice aperture, beautiful optics, excellent value, very light and portable, easy to mount on simple alt-az - even though they are manufactured in big numbers in the Far East, they are superb. Congrats on your purchase Dave, hope it meets all your expectations

[Dave In Vermont]

Meade made one vaguely similar - and may still be. It's been awhile since I've read any ads from Meade. It was a 7" Mak in their LX200-series. I don't think they caught on as I don't recall reading any reviews of these from end-users like us. As a 7" scope in a sea of 8", 10", 12", & 14" SCT's - I think they shot themselves in the foot by placing them as the low-aperture scope on their Totem-Pole. And knowing Meade as well as i do, I'm sure there were several problems with the way they outfitted the scope. On the LX-series, the following need to be taken apart and rebuilt from kits: Focuser, Declination-Clutch, Visual-Back, Carrying-Handles, and a few smaller details. But I'll bet the optics were excellent - worth buying the needed kits and rolling up your sleeves for. I did - twice!

Thank you for your good wishes on my purchase. I'll be perceived as a beta-tester here in the US as Sky-Watcher is a brand that's only recently been offering a wide range of telescopes and other astro-goods. But I've been talking with people all over the globe for years and know quite a bit about their offerings. They have quite a large following of happy users. And the prices are very attractive compared to such better known creatures here as Celestron, Meade, and Orion.

Checked my tracking on the shipment. It will arrive later today. Then the fun begins.....

Dave

[Dazzyt66]

Dave, I been watching this thread with interest as I am (albeit a newbie) a Skywatcher fan. I started with a 150p Dob, have just purchased an ST80 and in a month or two will also be getting a 150 mak (Skymax of course!). If the mak is as good as the others are I'm sure I'll have a great addition to my set. I'm looking to get the whole eq5 GOTO version which will take my observing in a whole new direction as I've been finding my own way around the sky so far

Congrats on your purchase, it will be good to compare notes later!

[Dave In Vermont]

You'll enjoy the ST80! These are fun little achromats. There are those who think a trace of blue is heresy - but it never bothered me. Where else can you get a feeling of the immensity of the cosmos by cruising the dense starfields of Cygnus and Ophiuchus amid the sparkling jewels of the Milky Way - for around £100? I even decked mine out with a 10:1 Crayford focuser/visual-back which cost more than the scope! And the 'bling' factor of a BIG focus-wheel on the 10:1 knob.....

Now I'm checking out a BORG Helical-Focuser for the Mak that's coming in today. Between the JMI MotoFocus and a Helical-Focuser - the Mak will have focus sharper than a scalpel with no mirror-flop. This being the only weak point of these scopes from all my research. As you are thinking of also taking the plunge, I'll be happy to share my findings with you, Dazzy.

Watching the news & weather on TV. A blizzard is heading to the south of me. They don't know if it will take a turn north and come up here. But I know. Oh yes - I know.....

Now where did I put my snow-shoes and ski-poles...

Dave

[Tyson M]

These scopes do have sort of a following- id say almost more so than the 180 mak. A lot of positive reviews. Congrats and provide a first light when you can! 

Tyson 

[Aussie Dave]

Dave, I have the gold tube SW Pro 150 and have nothing but praise for it. The only issue I have come across is image/mirror shift when focusing/re-focusing which has already been mentioned. A very fine Mak optically indeed. It's my favorite scope atm for visual and imaging. For it's small size it packs a good punch and it outperforms my 8" SCT's and Mak203 especially in visual quality.

It's quite portable on a SW EQ5 to pickup and take outside your home as a complete unit. I would also think a very good travel scope to take the OTA off the EQ5 mount and put in the car separately to dark sky locations.

If I had the chance to buy the Pro 180 I would,  just to compare. If I was forced to sell all my scopes and keep only 1, it would be the Skywatcher Pro Series 150.