To upgrade or not?

[Cjg]

Next year my little Tak 76 will be three years old. I'll have some funds to buy a bigger brother with more aperture. 

So with say £3K 'ish to spend what would you suggest? The plan is to keep the Tak 76 as that is so portable, when it comes to air travel.

The Tak 100 in any of it's guises, or perhaps an APM / Altair for similar money but more aperture? The EDF 125 looks tempting and not unmanageable mount wise.  The APM 140 would give great views, but looks a beast size wise....I drive a Mini, so transport is a consideration. 

Thanks,

Chris

[nightfisher]

how about the ED120

[Joe G]

Hi

Totally agree with Jules. I have only a Vixen ED81S telescope left , had a couple of 4" refractors & just bought an ED120.  The main reason is that 20mm is  not really a worthwhile upgrade for me. Over halfway to a 140 with a lightweight 120 doublet is a good compromise with enough good reviews out there to warrant a punt without spending big money.  Also as others have suggested,  stop it down to 100 f9  & it might help you to know whether to go up or down in aperture

[GavStar]

According to the specs online there isn’t much difference between the 125 edf and 140 apm in weight both around 8kg and length both around 85cm long. I think the 125 might have slightly better colour correction than the 140 due to longer focal length, but the extra aperture of the 140 is certainly tempting. On balance I think I would go for the 125 as only £2k compared to 2.8k. My 130mm refractor gives great views.

[mikeDnight]

There's a lot of sense in what's been said so far, but just to play Devils Advocate, I'd add that whatever scope you go for, think in terms of optical quality. Stopping down a good lens will not give you the same level of performance as going for a really top class lens in the first place. Much depends on your interests and preferred targets, but there are some drawbacks to large refractors as they tend to be relatively heavy and need heavier mounts. You may also find you use a large frac less than a smaller one.

Today I paid a visit to one of the UK's finest lunar and planetary observers and spent an hour or two chatting about observing and telescopes. He is an observer who's skill and observational drawings are on par with the late Harold Hill, and although he has owned large aperture scopes, his instruments of choice are a FS78 and a 100mm Borg. In part his choice is due to ease of use, but also because of the definition delivered by a high quality finely figured glass. 

Keeping within your financial constraints, I can think of nothing better that a FC100DL, DF or DC, but I am definitely biased! 

[John]

I agree with Mike on going for the best optical quality you can. Last year I had a good chunk to spend on a refractor. I ended up going for the best optical quality 100 and 130 refractors that I could find (one used and one new) and viewing through these scopes has been a wonderful experience each time I use them. I was tempted to go for a 152mm or 140mm doublet and could have afforded either, or maybe both but I'm glad that I went for the optical quality and don't find myself yearning after a few more mm of aperture.

In your shoes I would be very tempted to see if I could find a nice pre-owned Tak TSA 120 I think 

 

[Timebandit]

 

 

But surely a big 140mm or 150mm lens can be just as good as a high quality 100mm lens. The size of the lens does mean it's good or bad. It's the quality that is put into the glass and how well it is figured. If you already have a 76mm will you be happy spending 3k for an extra 24mm ??

A good BIG un will always beat a good small un. It's just a good Big un is more weight , bigger in size, and to get the high quality of bigger well figured lens will obviously cost more.

The Tak 100 DC and DL are fine scopes, but if I was going up from a existing 76mm and a budget of 3k then I think i would at least want a 120mm to make spending such an amount worthwhile proposition.

I do like a nice frac , so good luck with your choice☺

 

 

      

[Cjg]

Thanks all for your feedback. I'm going to discount the Skywatcher as the focusser on my Startravel was very wobbly after just a year of use.  Agree that the jump to a 100mm scope won't be much of a jump.  A used Tak 120 sounds good, New they are close to £5k with a clamp, dovetail and finder. 

Thanks,

Chris

[happy-kat]

Have you fiddled with the little screws that adjust focuser tension? That might be what your wobble is. Think there's a guide on YouTube.

[Cjg]

Thanks, I did, but made little difference. I've given that scope and mount away now.

Chris

[JeremyS]

Hello Chris,

not sure if you are wedded to a frac, but here's a different line of thinking. Get something that will complement your Tak 76. What about a C9.25?

I have a Takahashi FS102 which gives stunning views, especially of the planets. I was thinking of adding something larger for visual of both planets and DSO. I went for the C9.25 (on an altaz mount). My concern was that it would be difficult to handle as I set up from scratch each time. It turns out that the OTA is easily manageable for lifting and poutting on the back seat of a car if I need to take it away somewhere. The larger aperture differentiates it immediately for light grasp and resolution from the Tak, which it doesn't replace  - I suppose they are complementary to each other.

I own a C11 which is permanently mounted in a obsy and used for imaging and I know this, for me, is unmanageable for setting up each time. I also owned a C8 for 20 years, but the extra aperture of the C9.25 does make a different on DSO. I reckon is as manageable as a Dob, too.

Go well!

Jeremy

 

[Cjg]

Thank you Jeremy,

I've had a 5SE for many years, and have been tempted by the CPC 800, but I prefer the view through a refractor now.

Saw the Horsehead nebula through the C11 at the AstroFarm Observatory in France last March, great views, so capable scopes.

Best,

Chris

[Piero]

What about a 10" or 12" flextube dobson (e.g. SW) instead? It will offer a completely different experience about all the targets that you are already familiar. 

[John]

My guess is that you want what the Tak 76 delivers but somewhat more of it !

 

[ollypenrice]

1 hour ago, John said:

My guess is that you want what the Tak 76 delivers but somewhat more of it !

 

My impression as well, which means a premium but larger refractor - second hand. (I like second hand. I use almost nothing else! Edit. Typing this made me do a quick inventory and I need to correct myself. I don't use 'almost nothing else.' Every scope I use is second hand.)

Olly

[Cjg]

1 hour ago, John said:

My guess is that you want what the Tak 76 delivers but somewhat more of it !

 

I think that's exactly it, thank you ;-)

[Cjg]

2 hours ago, Piero said:

What about a 10" or 12" flextube dobson (e.g. SW) instead? It will offer a completely different experience about all the targets that you are already familiar. 

Oh no, thank you Piero, 

I had a 10 inch Orion Intelliscope for a couple of years, the tube took up all of the back seat and the mount all of the boot; and that was in a bigger car than my Mini...Collimating, two trips to load and unload. Perfect if I could observe from my home, but too much of a hassle compared to a 'frac on an Alt Az when you drive to the Obsy....Cannot say too much more in case the "Dob Mob" see this and get all cross, but mirrors are best for shaving or putting on make up!! 

Chris

[niallk]

You just haven't shaved - or erm - put on make up with the right mirror yet...!

[DaveS]

One of these?

http://astrograph.net/epages/www_astrograph_net.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/www_astrograph_net/Products/AGTEC130-737

In budget, and in stock, or one of these?

http://astrograph.net/epages/www_astrograph_net.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/www_astrograph_net/Products/AGTEC130-66

A bit faster if you want that.

[Bukko]

I have an 80mm Equinox and wanted another Frac - I got a WO 110FLT in Carbon as a step-up.

The improvement in views is stunning, as is the difference in size and weight. The FLT sits nicely on a HEQ5, but anything bigger would also really benefit from a bigger mount. In a Mini, if you include a HEQ5 or bigger mount, I guess you will be running into size limits...

Three Grand is a fair investment so I would suggest you take yourself off to London in February to visit the Astrofest exhibition and make a decision on what to get after trying these bigger scopes out for size...

Good luck with any choice you make.

 

Gordon.

[Cjg]

On 08/01/2018 at 10:39, DaveS said:

One of these?

http://astrograph.net/epages/www_astrograph_net.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/www_astrograph_net/Products/AGTEC130-737

In budget, and in stock, or one of these?

http://astrograph.net/epages/www_astrograph_net.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/www_astrograph_net/Products/AGTEC130-66

A bit faster if you want that.

@DaveS Thank you, I hadn't come across this brand before; looks similar to the Altair Astro telescopes too. I'll check them out.

@Bukko Good idea, I might make my first trip to the London AstroFest, good call.

Chris

[DaveS]

If you're coming to Astrofest, Astrograph will be exhibiting. Be worth having a chat with Rupert.

[Bukko]

Hi, Chris, If you have never been to Astrofest before, it is worth the trip.

There are so many exhibitors there ready and willing to take your money off you... From previous attendances, Friday is quieter and when the talks are on, the exhibition halls are much quieter, giving you more opportunity to discuss your needs. Saturday is probably more convenient so it is more crowded.

I will miss it for the third straight year, as i have been working abroad, but my two sons will attend with a shopping list...

Gordon.

 

[ollypenrice]

I can feel a TEC140 coming on. Good choice...

Olly

[Cjg]

1 hour ago, ollypenrice said:

I can feel a TEC140 coming on. Good choice...

Olly

At over €8K, I think not!  As nice a scope as it looks, too expensive for me. ?

You're almost correct with the name though, having thought long and hard about it, I shall probably go with another Tak. Just wondering whether the weather we have here would justify going with the 120 or if the 100 would be enough.

https://www.skypoint.it/en/apochromatic-refractors/takahashi/8620-takahashi-fc-100dl-doublet-fluorite-apochromatic-telescope-complete.html

Chris