Best grab and go combination

[PatrickO]

I'm looking for ideas for a good quality grab and go scope/mount for visual observation.  I'm not planning to do any astrophotography. 

I'm interested in both planetary and  DSO observing.  

Ideally I would like a setup which can be left assembled in my garage and carried out complete to the garden when there is a break in the clouds. 

Budget is around £1000-2000. I could go a bit higher, but don't want to spend money unnecessarily.

I'm thinking a good quality manual AZ mount /tripod with a good 5-7" Maksutov-Cassegrain or a good 4" refractor.  Probably manual rather than GOTO

I'd really appreciate people's thoughts. 

[John]

The Takahashi FC-100 F/7.4 refractors are superb and can sit happily on a lightweight alt-az mount such as a giro, porta mount etc. Much quicker cooldown time than a mak-cassegrain as well so you can be up and running straight out of the garage. Probably needs another £300 on top of the top end of your budget though.

There are plenty of less expensive options - I've probably suggested a "Rolls Royce" one above but I'm very enthusastic about these scopes - they are real "lifetime" instruments

 

[Knighty2112]

I'd probably go for a Porta II mount (allows for both push and shove movement, and slow motion control also), with an Evostar 120ED DS-Pro 'frac to use on it. That would leave you well under your £2k limit so you could get a few other extras too!  

[johninderby]

Stay away from a mak if you're interested in DSOs. Their long fl is great for planetary but the opposite of what you want for DSOs. An SCT is a better all rounder.

The old Skytee II mount is nice and solid and will handle a fair sized scope. I've used one on a Berlebach wooden tripod for sges and am very happy with it. 

A 4" APO refractor and Skytee II could be had for well under 2k or if you don't mind the cool down time a Celestron C8 SCT would be good. 

          John

 

C8 on modded Skytee II

[Knighty2112]

A Skytee II mount is a very good mount. Got one myself which I use my larger scopes on, but it does weigh quite a bit, so I normally have to heave it out first without the scope(s) attached (which is still quite heavy to do so), then re-attach the scope(s) etc. With my Porta mount I can easily lift up the mount and my ST120 'frac whilst on the mount and easily carry it outside with no problem ready to point at the sky. So for a true grab and go setup I don't think the Skytee II would really qualify unless of course you were Arnold Schwarzenegger!  

[kerrylewis]

I like the idea of 'grab 'n go' so that it is possible to take advantage of breaks in the weather and I have a number of available options:

1. A 100mm refractor (Skywatcher) on a Vixen Portamount. If, as you say, you only want manual operation then the Portamount is great option. I've had mine for years and, together with the SW 100ED it can be set up in minutes. For what it's worth though I wouldn't carry the complete set up but attach the scope after the mount is set up. Much easier to carry and safer.

2. You mention a garage; I have option 2 as my 350mm SW Dob. This is mounted on a small 4 wheeled trolley and be quickly trundled out of my garage and into the garden. This is a better option for DSOs of course, but is good for planets too. I occasionally use a homemade aperture mask to stop things down for planets. Storage in a garage means no problem with cool down. 

3. If you do want goto, I have my latest Option 3 which is my recently acquired Ioptron AZ Pro mount. This takes the 100ED easily and can again be set up in minutes with the advantage that you also have tracking - good for the planets. This morning was a good example: it was unexpectedly clear around 4 am and I was up and observing Jupiter very quickly. 

My ultimate set up would be to add a Takahashi frac,  as suggested by John, and I'm very tempted. This would take you well beyond your budget but if you bought a good frac now you could upgrade in the future.

So my recommendations would be the best frac that you can afford on a Portamount, or the best Dob that you can afford plus wheels! 

Kerry  

[johninderby]

Ultimate?

T-rex mount with a TEC140 although admittedly bit more than grab'n'go and just a tiny bit over budget. 

             John

[kerrylewis]

2 hours ago, johninderby said:

Ultimate?

T-rex mount with a TEC140 although admittedly bit more than grab'n'go and just a tiny bit over budget. 

             John

I meant 'ultimate' in the sense of my eventual aim. If you take 'ultimate' to mean 'the very best' then the sky truly is the limit. 

[Cosmic Geoff]

4 hours ago, PatrickO said:

I'm thinking a good quality manual AZ mount /tripod with a good 5-7" Maksutov-Cassegrain or a good 4" refractor.  Probably manual rather than GOTO

If you would be satisfied with a 5" Maksutov-Cassegrain, then the Celestron 127mm Mak (or its close equivalents from Sky-watcher etc) is a telescope of excellent quality (if you use better quality eyepieces), and very compact. This should absorb only a small fraction of your budget - the challenge being to find one as an OTA.  I use mine as a grab'n go outside, with an AZ-4 mount.

[Louis D]

Well, you could go for a Explore Scientific ED APO 127mm f/7.5 mounted on a DSV-2b Alt-Az mount on a Berlebach tripod.  All this would come in around £2000 excluding shipping.  Weight would be around 35 to 40 pounds, so still within the realm of grab and go.  A 127mm ED APO would be a very useful all around scope.

[Moonshane]

Your choice might be governed to some extent by your observing preferences, observing style and observing conditions at home.

E.g if you just like sketching solar system objects and observing double stars in a high light polluted garden then a high quality frac on a driven eq mount would would be good.

If you like zipping round faint fuzzies in your dark garden then your choice might be different.

Can you provide some background so we can help in a more targeted way?

 

[Alien_Photons]

Personally I wouldn't leave ￡2k worth of telescope in the garage.

Grab and go for me it has to be light. This implies a light tripod/mount. My own EQ5 is more drag and go with the weights and scope on it. There is nothing wrong with a simple small refractor permanently mounted and something better in doors to swap with it for when the conditions are good and time is on your side.

If its DSO it has to be a newt or a big refractor. Either way its less grab and go than you might want.

[GavStar]

On 06/03/2017 at 11:50, johninderby said:

Ultimate?

T-rex mount with a TEC140 although admittedly bit more than grab'n'go and just a tiny bit over budget. 

             John

I agree ? And it is relarively grab and go

[GavStar]

But I guess more in the spirit of the original question I think a 4 inch Tak on a porta 2 with the new app-tl130 tripod is a great combination 

[johninderby]

43 minutes ago, Gavster said:

I agree ? And it is relarively grab and go

Grunt and go perhaps?  

             John

[Dave In Vermont]

I'll let you all exchange "Love-Letters" about which telescope to opt for. But I will agree that the Porta II mounts are very nice indeed. I recently moved my 150mm F/12 SW Maksutov onto one - and never looked back!

Whether used as a "Push-To" or by the control-cables, it's a sweet AltAz mount. Just what I was looking for!

Serendipity,

Dave

 

 

[Stu]

I do agree that a Tak FC-100DC would be ideal for this, but it eats up most/all of your budget so may not be the best suggestion.

The ED100 would be a possible alternative. Very nice on planets, but a longer focal length which won't give you quite as wide a field for larger DSOs.

ED120 would give you that little bit extra in DSOs, would be very nice for planetary/lunar work. Might be a little heavy to carry out all in one though.

Shaun has a nice 110mm f7 triplet I think which may be worth checking into.

Mounts? Well an EQ5 would be quick to set up for visual and would give you tracking for planetary. A Giro II or III on a 2" stainless steel tripod would be even quicker to setup and personally I enjoy star hopping for more with a manual alt az than an EQ.

Finally, something like the iOptron AZ Goto might be worth considering to give you tracking whilst still being quick to setup.

[Pig]

Patrick, I have a 110mm Starwave (Altair) and the same mount as Kerry AZ Pro.

I leave it set up all the time and I can be up and running in as little as 5 minutes. There are no cables to snag or trip on and it has a built in battery that lasts around 10 hours. ( this is a goto mount ). I believe you can purchase this set up within your budget .... of course you will need some eyepieces etc... 

[Dave In Vermont]

You could also look into the new BIG achromatic refractors from Bresser. These look to be very nice refractors that would leave you with plenty of money left over for eyepieces and other things.

So far, every refractor suggested has been the triplet-lensed ones, or apochromatics. So someone needs to step-up and speak well for achromatic (two-lensed) refractor telescopes. Here's a thread on the new Bresser line-up:

Just scroll-up to the starting post and read away. They make me wish I needed one!

Happy Hunting!

Dave

[rockystar]

Hopping on the back of thread here, but I think it's relevant: Has anyone had any experience of the 80 and/or 90mm refractors from Rother Valley?

http://www.rothervalleyoptics.co.uk/rvo-80mm-f600-achromat-refractor-ota.html

I've been considering one of these, along with either an AZ4 or Porta2, as a grab and go option - I haven't scrolled back up to check the budget, but this combo will be between £400 and £600.

[Ags]

Well, I am still waiting for my ES Twilight I mount and the 150 PDS that's meant to sit on it. I'm kind of hoping it is the ideal grab and go combination... Although a nice frac to go on it too would be nice... Perhaps the SW 120 achro. But then again, I might save the money towards a Quark for my ST80...

[ronin]

OK not great on DSO's I suppose but for G&G it is small enough: https://www.facebook.com/William-Optics-464754920382/

Seems WO have a new Zenithstar 61 out at f/5.9, FPL-53 doublet. Airline friendly, looks like it would fit in a pocket . When not needed for G&G it would double up as a finder. Not sure I like the blue however. Seems to have a 2" focuser so eyepieces could literally be bigger and heavier then the scope.

Bet we never see it here in the UK however.

 

[Dave In Vermont]

Oh JOY!!

Now I've seen everything - detestable! The link Ronin posted above for William Optics demands I get on Farcebook to 'continue seeing' and link 'em up.

I've been watching WO go sliding downhill lately - but this rings all the bells! I never joined Farcebook in the first place. I never will. I've seen enough of the toll it's taking on the mentality over here (at least). And now this!? I used to like WO's equipment. Now I'll steer clear as though it was a dead Skunk on the roadway.

Over & Out!

Dave

 

p,s. - Thank you, Ronin, for posting it. Seriously! That's good data to have!

 

 

[rockystar]

they still have a website Dave, http://www.williamoptics.com/telescopes/zenithstar71_features.php

probably still got a paper catalogue they can mail you too

admittedly that is the 71 and not the 61 - but I guess it is easier to sick up a Facebook post than update the website.

[ronin]

It is one of those scopes that looks good for something, just a bit unsure what the something is. As G&G it certainly fits but the ZS-71 and old Megrez-72 are equally good. And just as portable since any will fit in a small rucksack nd most G&G with the use of a car.

Where the new one wins (I suppose) is if it is being taken on a plane. With a DSLR you can image wide field if visiting new areas like NZ or Aus for us in the far North. Even better I suspect is to add a ZWO OSC imager and go.

From what I can tell it is not on the WO site, I liiked, but only on Facebook. I do not have an account but you can at least see the thing. Seems to be a limited option and at some time WO say they will take pre-orders.

It is one of those that I know I would like one but not sure where it would fit in. Cheap "imaging" entry: iOptron SmartEQ, WO-61, DSLR. Suppose an option for someone that sort of plays with a bit on imaging but never intends to get serious (fair description of me). And as said good to take on a plane and head off to the Canaries and similar.

Anyway enough of sidtracking the OP's thread. But they did ask G&G.