Baader Travel Companion - my new travel/grab and go refractor

[GavStar]

1 hour ago, Tubby Bear said:

 

and imagined the idea of taking a scope away (on a plane) with similar weights.

Although the 8kg mass felt manageable, i don't think i'd be too keen lugging it around for too long.

The 4kg option felt so much easier.

I think this hits the nail in terms of what I really like about the Baader - as an aeroplane portable scope it’s virtually unbeatable imo (although the tv85 is pretty good as well). The 95mm aperture gives enough for good planetary observing and the f5.9 ratio makes its a) compact for fitting into various different types of aeroplane bags such as my think tank airport accelerator b) great for widefield scanning of the skies. I’m a bit of a wuss and just didn’t like the idea of taking the focuser and dew shield off of my Tak fc100df but I know several SGLers are fine with this. I’m guessing the views between the Tak and the Baader will be quite similar - i will do a side by side sometime...

I’m hoping to take the Baader to the Southern Hemisphere next summer.

[Stu]

1 hour ago, GavStar said:

I’m a bit of a wuss and just didn’t like the idea of taking the focuser and dew shield off of my Tak fc100df

Yep, total wuss Gavin ? ?

In all seriousness, the Baader is pretty much the ideal scope for the reasons you've outlined. The Tak is just slightly too long in focal length for some of the largest objects and whilst removing the dewshield and focuser is perfectly doable, it is obviously less convenient than the Baader and would be a pain if having to pack it away every time.

[Space Hopper]

An unrelated question from the image looking at the optic if i may Gavin......

What i think is the end of the focuser drawtube appears to be bare metal.

ie not painted. Would that possibly be an issue causing unwanted reflections and scatter

when look ing at bright objects.....??

Its probably not an issue at all and just me worrying unnecessarily.

[GavStar]

1 hour ago, Tubby Bear said:

An unrelated question from the image looking at the optic if i may Gavin......

What i think is the end of the focuser drawtube appears to be bare metal.

ie not painted. Would that possibly be an issue causing unwanted reflections and scatter

when look ing at bright objects.....??

Its probably not an issue at all and just me worrying unnecessarily.

No bare metal - the end tube is painted black like the rest. It was just a lighter colour in the image from the camera flash due to the angle of the picture.

And from observing the moon on the first light definitely no reflections etc ??

[Space Hopper]

Thanks for putting my mind at rest.

I  have a year to save up for it now..........

[hoverge]

It looks so beautiful. Is it possible for me to get one anywhere? I have asked Baader a few times and was told they don't accept new orders...

[GavStar]

On 27/11/2018 at 17:54, Space Hopper said:

Thanks for putting my mind at rest.

I  have a year to save up for it now..........

Hi Space hopper,

I was out using my Baader 95mm scope last week and thought how unusual (and nice) this scope is. Since it’s been over a year, I wondered whether you got one from Baader by now?

Edited July 27, 2020 by GavStar

[Space Hopper]

@GavStar Hi Gavin, good to hear from you.

No, it never happened. I was totally stuck between 2 scopes : the Baader 95 and the APM 105.

I mentioned it to Rupert from Astrograph, and we had a chat and he persuaded me to opt for the 105. Aperture was the swaying point. I then cancelled my order with Baader for the 95.

The APMs LZOS lenses had become somewhat scarce a couple of years ago, but APM were able to source a new batch in between LZOS Russian military contracts.

Marcus at APM used a cheaper aluminium tube and focuser which brought the cost of the 105/650 down by well over £1000 and actually made it cheaper than the Baader 95 by the same amount.

A case, rings and dovetail + carry handle were all included, so with this and the saving i opted for the APM.

As well as the 105/650, LZOS also reintroduced the 100/800 and the 115/805. As you know, all have peerless optics.

I was very tempted by the 100/800, but really wanted the compactness of the 105/650.  No regrets, its a super little scope, and sits very nicely on my DM-4 grab/go mount.

Ok, it doesn't have the travel potential of the Baader 95, but for the time being with house arrest, quarantine etc its not like foreign travel is an option anyway for the foreseeable ?

I've also really wanted a Russian optic for a long time. This is an air spaced triplet design rather than the oil spaced design of the Baader Fluorite. 

But i already have one with my new TEC140FL, and thought it better to compliment that with an air spaced designed scope.

One thing i have noticed is that the TEC does reach thermal equilibrium that little bit quicker even with its much larger aperture : do you find that with your 160...??

 

 

[GavStar]

12 minutes ago, Space Hopper said:

@GavStar Hi Gavin, good to hear from you.

No, it never happened. I was totally stuck between 2 scopes : the Baader 95 and the APM 105.

I mentioned it to Rupert from Astrograph, and we had a chat and he persuaded me to opt for the 105. Aperture was the swaying point. I then cancelled my order with Baader for the 95.

The APMs LZOS lenses had become somewhat scarce a couple of years ago, but APM were able to source a new batch in between LZOS Russian military contracts.

Marcus at APM used a cheaper aluminium tube and focuser which brought the cost of the 105/650 down by well over £1000 and actually made it cheaper than the Baader 95 by the same amount.

A case, rings and dovetail + carry handle were all included, so with this and the saving i opted for the APM.

As well as the 105/650, LZOS also reintroduced the 100/800 and the 115/805. As you know, all have peerless optics.

I was very tempted by the 100/800, but really wanted the compactness of the 105/650.  No regrets, its a super little scope, and sits very nicely on my DM-4 grab/go mount.

Ok, it doesn't have the travel potential of the Baader 95, but for the time being with house arrest, quarantine etc its not like foreign travel is an option anyway for the foreseeable ?

I've also really wanted a Russian optic for a long time. This is an air spaced triplet design rather than the oil spaced design of the Baader Fluorite. 

But i already have one with my new TEC140FL, and thought it better to compliment that with an air spaced designed scope.

One thing i have noticed is that the TEC does reach thermal equilibrium that little bit quicker even with its much larger aperture : do you find that with your 160...??

 

 

Ok, thanks for the update. Yes portability was a key factor for me, I really like the ability to use the Baader on my Az gti mount whereas even the Tak fc100df struggled a bit on this mount (and hence got sold!)

Regarding cool down of my 160mm Tec, yes it does seem pretty quick,  I think this is a characteristic of oil spaced refractors.