The Telescope That You Never Got On With

[johninderby]

What telescope just never suited you and you sold it on?

Had a discussion recently about scopes that some love but that never impressed you or just weren’t right for your needs which is why I’ve started this thread.

Had an Equinox 120 that just never impressed me for visual use and was soon sold on. I know lots rave about how great a scope it is but always left me feeling disappointed after using it. Perhaps would have felt different if I had been into imaging.

Also had a Lunt LS50THa that disappointed. Had previously had a Lunt LS60TH that did impress me and maybe I was expecting too much of the 50 although it was fine...for a 50. Loved the PST though and will be getting another one I think.

I’m expecting lots of wildly varying opinions.  ?

           John

 

[Charic]

This could become quite a popular thread of  'what not to buy'

Celestron 127EQ Powerseeker for me.

For visual use, there's just to much adjusting in order to keep the eyepiece in a manageable position, then having to re-set and continue adjusting for every other single target change.
Even if a motor was fitted, I still think the image quality was limited, and why do folk insist you need to remove the  fixed lens inside the focuser to collimate the scope. Just set this scope up visually by eye, it wont get any better even if you use the 'best tools'.
Thats why I got rid of that scope. 

[Stu]

For me is was a Takahashi Sky 90. I was expecting lovely widefield views, but it just never performed very well in this respect. It was ok at high power but I didn’t buy it for that!

[Skipper Billy]

Altair Astro 8" Ritchey Chretien - gave it away in the end !!!!

 

[emadmoussa]

I guess in my case, I never been able to use binoculars (comfortably or adequately) and they always put me off. I nevertheless still keep a large pair which I use mainly to check the sky before committing to drag all my kit out into the garden. 

[John]

Thanks for selling me your "dissapointing" LS50THa John. Not what quite you said when you sold it

I had a PST for a short while and sold that but thats more because I don't find solar observing that engaging. Same reason that the LS50THa has moved on - the new owner is very happy with it though, which is good

I've had mixed fortunes with the TAL 100R - I had an early good one which I wish I still had and a later one which really did not perform. That went to the tip I'm afriad - I could not pass it on to anyone else.

I've not be that impressed with the Meade refractors that I've owned - a mint AR5 and a nice looking AR6. Just not as impressive to look though as they were to look at. The Bresser 127L on the other hand, which seems to be a clone of the AR5, was an excellent scope so I suspect production variations with these. Meade products have genereally failed to impress me to be honest

A Meade 12" Lightbridge that I had needed a lot of mods to become useful and even then was heavy and the mirror coatings were looking dodgy rather earlier than I'd have expected.

Generally I've found that scopes of less than 100mm aperture have not stayed with me for long but the TV Ranger might change that. I've not been a great binocular fan although my current Opticron Japanese 11x70's seem as good as any I've used so I'll hang on to them.

If I had paid the full price for my Orion Optics 10" F/4.8 and 12" F/5.3 I'd have been dissapointed with the build quality. Optically the 10" was fairly average but the 12" is a great scope to observe with now it's on a "Moonshane" mount

I suspect this thread will show a wide range of views rather than much consistency due to personal tastes as much as anything.

My ED120 Pro is an absolute gem - that one is not going anywhere !

 

 

[RT65CB-SWL]

My Prinz Astral 550, (c/w 0.965" e/p's and accessories), on an EQ1 clone. Optically it was ok. It was just the mount. It put me off GEM's until I purchased my Vixen GP mount from @rikroe666 a few years ago/one light-year ago. ?

[johninderby]

The LS50THA did disappoint compared to the LS60 although nothing wrong with it just that the more expensive 60 did give better views which is to be expected really. 

[Gina]

I have never felt the need to sell a telescope but I have a few gathering dust...

[swag72]

For me it was the Skywatcher ED120...... really didn't like that scope and never felt that it performed properly for imaging...... the focal length was betwix  and between leaving me in a no-mans land focal length I felt......

Was jolly pleased to be able to sell that I can tell you

[Charic]

11 hours ago, John said:

..............I've had mixed fortunes with the TAL 100R .......

You were one member who persuaded me towards the Skyliner, which was second choice to the TAL100RS
I've no regrets though I've never peered through the TAL. The only issue I have with the  Skyliner, I just wish my images were twice their size, though there is a fix

11 hours ago, Philip R said:

 ........just the mount. It put me off GEM's........

German Equatorial Mount, probably the same mount that adorned  my 127, though I thought my GEM was an EQ2, who knows, its gone now, sold it after it was stored outside in a tent for a good six Months or more. To be honest if someone local had wanted it, it was theirs for the taking, but I actually got my money back through a high street cash converter store, so didn't really feel  guilty selling something, that since owning one myself, will explicitly advise folk to avoid  that scope, but thats my personal choice, my decision. The next user may find its everything they ever wanted, especially if they just want to look at ships at Sea.

[scarp15]

Non really, I haven't had that many scopes but have enjoyed them all. Perhaps I did question quite early in use a TV Pronto, a brilliant scope, optically very sharp with deep contrast, beautiful mechanics, the purple colour fringing around the moon I could not get on with, became too distracting. 

[Moonshane]

For me it was a Meade 80mm s5000 triplet. Beautiful scope but it went out of collimation for no apparent reason and my hamfisted attempts to sort a poorly designed system resulted in me chipping the objective edges. In the end I sold it as a 'posh' ST80.

I tend to agree with John that 100mm plus is my minimum aperture requirement.

[Owmuchonomy]

I can feel the heat on my neck now but here goes. My Flextube 300P Dob with Synscan. Life was just too short to live with it and in my hands and under my skies it didn’t do any better than my 9.25”. It was a two man (willing child) job to collimate and to balance it was a feat in itself. I’m sure in the right hands it is a great scope. ?

[wookie1965]

Bresser 127L on the other hand, which seems to be a clone of the AR5,

I don't know how to quote just this part from John.

I've just got a Meade 127 focuser is rubbish I have now got a Skywatcher one with Mark at Moonraker having an adapter made.

I have read the Meade AR5 and Bresser are very nearly the same scope I just hope it is a good scope after all the trouble I've gone to get it working.

[niallk]

Thankfully I love my SW 250px, Obsession 15" Classic, and my LS50DS.  I haven't really looked through many other scopes, so ignorance may be my bliss

What I haven't gotten on with is my Celestron 25x70 Skymaster binoculars.  I bought an L bracket for my Az5 mount which I use for the Lunt: this may make them a bit more usable... but so far the views do nothing for me

[Paz]

I haven't had a scope I don't get on with yet, but of the scopes I have the C8 seems to get picked out for action the least. I think the issue is that if it's a light scope grab and go session my smaller maksutov or st120 gets picked and if it's full on session or a heavy scope grab and go session the vx14 gets picked and so the C8 is kind of in no mans land.

I have had good times with it though, a fine UHC filtered view of M42 and detailed views of the moon come to mind.

[Tim]

Hmmm, good question. I've had a fair few go through my hands but haven't really disliked any of them.

At the moment I have a 10" and 18" dob, a C11 Edge, a Pentax 75SDHF, and an Esprit 150ED, and if I had to choose just one as a keeper, it would be the Esprit.

[Charic]

Its a shame no-one is having any issues with their unwanted, ever-so heavy, mount requiring Oberwerk Ultra's or Helios Apollo's. You know the one's I mean! two little 70mm  tubes, hinged in the middle, made to look like binoculars, because I have a plan! ?

[Alien 13]

I like my scopes and even the cardboard one I had as a kid with plastic lenses but dont like the high magnifications they give even with 32mm eyepieces, I would bin them in a shot if I could get views like my rifle scope. 

Alan

[johninderby]

Speaking of telescope kits have a copy of a Japanese science magazine that comes with a telescope kit (plastic lenses and all) and will have to build it one day.  ?

 

[Hallingskies]

Celestron 4SE.  Used half a dozen times, now been in my loft gathering dust for the past five years.  Bought it as a grab and go but it never really went, as it were.

[philj]

Newtonians. Had several over the years for various reasons even built one, but always get rid and go back to refractors

[dweller25]

I don’t get on with achromats - had a Tal 100RS and a Tal 125R and sold both due to chromatic aberration.

I really like the performance to price ratio of Newtonians but my bad back does not ?

I like refractors, cats and Maks ?

[Alien 13]

Had a Charles Frank 6 inch reflector on an equatorial pillar mount with a full set of Swift eyepieces in my teens, lovely scope sold it to fund a motorbike as you do.

Later in life tried a Dob, what an awful back breaking experience that was, guaranteed to put the eyepiece in the most uncomfortable positions, soon got shot of that but still fancy another reflector with an EQ mount.

Alan