First Light with Celestron D70 Travel Scope

[BritAngler]

Seeing as my SW 200P & EQ5 Goto is a bit of a lump for those quick sessions or when you can't park up right where you will be observing from, a couple of weeks ago I took the opportunity to buy the Celestron D70. Normally priced at about £60, this will come with a case, diagonal, two eyepieces and camera tripod, but since the carrying bag was slightly damaged the seller decided to sell just the main 'scope and bag for the princely sum of £25, with a diagonal at the cut-down price of £5. I already own a very good tripod plus too many eyepieces so not having the rest of the gear was no problem. Apparently the tripod that normally comes with this 'scope is flimsy anyway, so would have been stuffed in a cupboard somewhere and never used....

On Monday night I went to one of the local astro-club meetings and had my first real chance to see how this thing performs. Using eyepieces ranging from 5mm up to 32mm, the views are nothing short of amazing given the price. First object to look at was the Moon with the 32mm. After locating it in the finderscope, it was not in vision through the eyepiece - the finderscope is,  to be honest, barely adequate and will soon be replaced by a regular mounting plate so I can fit a decent finderscope, red dot finder or my favourite, the Celestron Starpointer Pro. When I finally located the moon, the view was stunning. The craters, especially along the terminator, were well defined and sharp across the entire field, very good for an achromatic setup. Changing to the 5mm eyepiece, the view remained pin-sharp with one crater in particular standing out. Not sure which crater it was, maybe Purbach, was placed right on the terminator with the floor dimly lit, however a tall spike on the crater rim was casting a long shadow across the floor, something that was pointed out by a couple of the group members.

Next was the Great Nebula in Orion, one of my favourite objects and a true test for a 'scope. Starting with the 32mm eyepiece, the nebula became a nice compact object in the centre of view, just crying out for more magnification, so that's what I did next. With the 5mm eyepiece I was just able to split the Trapezium, the rest of the nebula glowing nicely around it.

Finally, I pointed the 'scope at Jupiter, just showing above some nearby houses. Being so low down, the viewing was far from ideal but I could still make out two of the main bands and three of the moons (the fourth being hidden behind the planet). It was only when I pointed at Jupiter that CA showed itself, but surprisingly for such an inexpensive 'scope it was kept well in check and hardly noticeable, it definitely does not detract from the viewing experience.

Then, with frosticles on our noses and eyelids threatening to freeze onto our eyes, we decided to call time and start packing up. Given the amount of cloudy nights we have had this year, I don't know when I'll next be able to take the 'scope out, but I'm looking forward to it already. Obviously, it does not perform as well as my SW 200P, but as a small travelscope it punches way higher than its price would suggest. If you are looking for a cheap and cheerful grab-and-go 'scope, you will not be disappointed with this one. Just dump the normal tripod that comes with it and replace it with something more sturdy.

 

Things to do - replace that finderscope. Replace the ball & socket tripod head with a pan & tilt version. Take a flask of tea when I anticipate an evenings viewing at an astro club, there's enough room in the telescope bag to hold one.

[Astro Imp]

You seem to have bagged a real keeper there and at an amazing price, well done.

[ngwillym]

Yep, excellent little scope - got mine for £13.99 off a well known auction site - now acting as my finder.

[laudropb]

Very nice report and a real bargain.

[happy-kat]

Nice report from a easy to use and get started with scope plus added advantages of dual use, what's not to like from a small refractor.

[Adamchiv]

Great report, glad it turned out good!

[BritAngler]

I forgot to mention that the mounting plate for the 'scope has three holes for the tripod so you can easily find the best balanced position, and is also wedge-shaped to fit regular mounts. When I get into astro-photography I could even use this one as a guide-scope or even use it for taking photo's through. The focussing tube looks long enough for you not to need a diagonal, will try that out when it stops raining.