Equinox 120 ED or TV 102??

[John]

Hello folks,

Thanks to everyone for offering their opinions. I have made a descision; I had to be honest about what I'm looking for- really. Both 'scopes offer excellent optics, but the Televue exudes pedigree - both optically and mechanically. It's a scope you can pass down to your grandchildren. If I have a problem, I can call Televue directly and talk to the guy who built my 'scope. It can be serviced many years from now. With respect, I am willing to forego the extra aperture and resolution of the Equinox for the smaller TV 102. For me, quality and ultimate value are the two criteria that override everything else. I plan to mount it on Gibraltar or some such alt-az mount. I hope I don't regret it, but I doubt I'll be disappointed.

Danny.

Good luck with that Danny - I'm sure you will enjoy owning the Tele Vue

As Steve says, you can always get an 8 inch dobsonian to go with it at some time for when you want more contrast, resolution and light grasp than the TV 102 can manage.

John

[Danny]

It must be nice to ask a question, when you have already made up your mind, and ignore the time taken by forum members to give "their humble opinion".

John

Now now John, That was uncalled for!

Danny

[Whippy]

With respect Danny, you've asked a question that you already had an answer for. Why did you ask in the first place?

Tony..

[Danny]

Hello Tony,

If you re-read my original thread starter I had narrowed it down to two scopes; the Equinox 120 or the TV102. It was NOT a rhetorical question. I've already thanked folks for their contribution but I just wanted to be sure. It was canuck's comments that resonated with my own thoughts and I apologise if I've offended anyone. Just thinking outloud I guess.

Danny

[spacemonkey]

Danny, you have made a most wise choice.

The TV102 will be a keeper, and I doubt you'd feel the same way if you got the Skywatcher. I was also in your position a while back - Williams Optics?, Skywatcher?, Stellarvue?, Vixen? e.t.c., and I went for the TV102. Short of paying twice that for an A-P, Tak or TMB, you will not get much better.

Look at it like this - Televue design and build their own refractors using their own technicians and parts, and they optically test every single one before it leaves the factory. Their quality control and after sales support is legendary. OK, so they don't tell you what type of glass they use in their objectives, but does that really matter so long as they perform as well as they do? They have earned their reputation because of their consistent quality for many, many years.

Somebody once told me that the reason they cost slightly more, is that you are not just buying one telescope, but helping Al Nagler pay for the 10 other ones that were rejected as not optically perfect when he made yours. I kinda like that.

Dave.

[GazOC]

Al Nagler makes 11 scopes in order to send one good one out? That averages out at less than £200 for each 4" scope......he's a very generous man!!

[spacemonkey]

Al Nagler makes 11 scopes in order to send one good one out? That averages out at less than £200 for each 4" scope......he's a very generous man!!

Yeah, and he sells the rejects to Skywatcher for £100, so they can sell them for £1000 !!! :laughing3:

[John]

Al Nagler makes 11 scopes in order to send one good one out? That averages out at less than £200 for each 4" scope......he's a very generous man!!

Yeah, and he sells the rejects to Skywatcher for £100, so they can sell them for £1000 !!! :laughing3:

How did Danny come to have a Skywatcher scope in his final 2 candidates then ?.

He must have thought them at least comparable. Quite a compliment to the Synta product as presumably he must have already considered and rejected other fine scopes in this niche by Takahashi, TMB, William Optics, Borg, Stellarvue etc.

John

[spacemonkey]

How did Danny come to have a Skywatcher scope in his final 2 candidates then ?.

He must have thought them at least comparable. Quite a compliment to the Synta product as presumably he must have already considered and rejected other fine scopes in this niche by Takahashi, TMB, William Optics, Borg, Stellarvue etc.

John

I don't know, maybe he could post back and let us in on his selection process. Maybe like you said earlier, resale value is a factor in this decision, or he's been steered in that direction by suggestions from others off this forum.

Maybe he wasn't aware of stuff like the Stellarvue SV-4 or the Tak TSA-102, like you say, both of which could be had for about (or less if you import from the US) the same price as a TV102. The trouble is, it's difficult to find examples of any high end refractors over here that you can objectively compare in side by side tests, so you have to rely heavily on reviews and personal recommendations.

You could argue about the merits of a particular brand until, well, the stars go out, but in this case I'm guessing that logic and reasoning was only a part of the decision making process, like Steve said earlier.

Regards, Dave

[Cloudwatcher]

I think the TV was chosen above others as it has a more interesting tube colour.

CW

[canuck]

While not wanting to throw fuel on the fire, I don't really see the issue in being 99% sure but wanting outside opinion in case information is offered that hadn't been considered?

If Danny had already decided (and had stated so in the thread), then I think the feedback offered would have been quite different.

Enjoy the Televue Danny, they are a pleasure to use. 8)

[Whippy]

In Danny's original post, he didn't state any perference for the other and the way I read it was it's either quantity (ED 120) or quality (TV 102). If we are talking about premium refractors then we'd be talking about FLT110 or TSA 102 etc etc not the Skywatcher even though it's a quality bit of kit.

Either way, if he's going for the Televue then fair enough. Enjoy .

Tony..

[GazOC]

Al Nagler makes 11 scopes in order to send one good one out? That averages out at less than £200 for each 4" scope......he's a very generous man!!

Yeah, and he sells the rejects to Skywatcher for £100, so they can sell them for £1000 !!! :laughing3:

I suppose that suggestion is more likely than Good 'Ole Uncle Al throwing just away 10 telescopes at a time. At the very least you'd have thought he'd have got the hang of making the things by now, that failure rate doesn't really inspire confidence.....

[Viking]

TV must have improved their "right first time" manufacturing.

Many in the US were disappointed when TV announced that they would not be selling seconds at this years NEAF. Same must be true then for their scopes.

John