Thoughts on the Vixen SD81S

[Stu]

10 minutes ago, Victor Boesen said:

Seems like most companies have set a limit at 550mm, but we’ll cross our fingers then;-) it is smaller on the other dimensions though so maybe that could help.

The risk is then that you end up being forced into checking it into the hold, so just need to be sure you would be ok with that. Otherwise another case or bag. The Accelerator is a very good option.

[Victor Boesen]

5 minutes ago, Stu said:

The risk is then that you end up being forced into checking it into the hold, so just need to be sure you would be ok with that. Otherwise another case or bag. The Accelerator is a very good option.

Yes it’s a tricky one.. “the accelerator” is it a case?

[Stu]

3 minutes ago, Victor Boesen said:

Yes it’s a tricky one.. “the accelerator” is it a case?

Yep, not cheap but good

https://www.thinktankphoto.com/products/airport-accelerator-camera-backpack

[Victor Boesen]

2 minutes ago, Stu said:

Yep, not cheap but good

https://www.thinktankphoto.com/products/airport-accelerator-camera-backpack

Ouch! It really looks nice though....

[marcus_z]

Please consider the same disassembly for cabin luggage as in the FC-76DCU and FC-100DC/DF. The length of the ED81SII is 585mm. If you unscrew the focuser you save approximately 100mm. So the ED81S is as portable as the mentioned Taks! Please also note that the ED81S has quite a lot of baffles to reduce straylight, which continue all the way into the focuser drawtube. From a quality point of view I would rather compare the ED80Sf to the TS and ES scopes. These are in a diffentent (lower) league. Having said that, the Tak FC-76DC is in my opinion a tad better than the ED81S. The question you have to answer for yourself is: For how many trips do you want to use the scope, and how much would you want to pay for this (probably small) number of uses? From a baggage allowance point of view, I think that the harder limit is the weight of the hand luggage. A hardcase, scope, diagonal and the eyepiece set in total under 8kg. That should not be taken too easy.

[Stu]

17 minutes ago, marcus_z said:

A hardcase, scope, diagonal and the eyepiece set in total under 8kg. That should not be taken too easy.

That point is one reason I chose the Airport Accelerator. I have a Pelicase 1510, but it actually weighs quite a slot itself, so is not practical for airlines with 10kg limits. There is a lighter version (1535 I think) which wo u ld be better but it was slightly too long for the 550mm limit Norwegian Airlines have.

I managed to get bang on 10kg even including a couple of 2" eyepieces and the Giro-WR mount.

[marcus_z]

56 minutes ago, Stu said:

That point is one reason I chose the Airport Accelerator. I have a Pelicase 1510, but it actually weighs quite a slot itself, so is not practical for airlines with 10kg limits. There is a lighter version (1535 I think) which wo u ld be better but it was slightly too long for the 550mm limit Norwegian Airlines have.

I managed to get bang on 10kg even including a couple of 2" eyepieces and the Giro-WR mount.

The weight of the 1510 is insane: 6,2kg with cubed foam. If you fly Lufthansa you have 1,8kg left for the rest of the stuff - that's a no-go. On the other hand I would never use a soft-case. Therefore I went for a Peli 1525 air (3.2kg with foam).

Here's my (almost complete) setup:

• FC-76D objective unit + FS-60CB tube + Starlight Instruments adapter A20-302 + FTF2025BCR-LW
• Borg 80mm Rings + Vixen Dovetail (#2662)
• Televue Nagler 26, 13, 7, 5, 3.5
• Baader Clicklock Diagonal + 1,25" Clicklock Adapter
• 2" Baader OIII + Astronomik UHC-E filter

The total weight is below 8kg, dimensions are 55.8 x 35.5 x 19 cm. But don't ask me for prices...?

[Victor Boesen]

7 hours ago, marcus_z said:

The weight of the 1510 is insane: 6,2kg with cubed foam. If you fly Lufthansa you have 1,8kg left for the rest of the stuff - that's a no-go. On the other hand I would never use a soft-case. Therefore I went for a Peli 1525 air (3.2kg with foam).

Here's my (almost complete) setup:

• FC-76D objective unit + FS-60CB tube + Starlight Instruments adapter A20-302 + FTF2025BCR-LW
• Borg 80mm Rings + Vixen Dovetail (#2662)
• Televue Nagler 26, 13, 7, 5, 3.5
• Baader Clicklock Diagonal + 1,25" Clicklock Adapter
• 2" Baader OIII + Astronomik UHC-E filter

The total weight is below 8kg, dimensions are 55.8 x 35.5 x 19 cm. But don't ask me for prices...?

Wow, that's a very nice solution. You mentioned unscrewing the focuser on the vixen which I haven't thought about. Are you sure it can be unscrewed?

thanks!

[marcus_z]

32 minutes ago, Victor Boesen said:

Wow, that's a very nice solution. You mentioned unscrewing the focuser on the vixen which I haven't thought about. Are you sure it can be unscrewed?

thanks!

Yes, it is definitely possible to unscrew it. The focuser of the ED81S has the same concept as the Takahashi focusers and similar performance. It has 60mm inner diameter.

[Victor Boesen]

12 minutes ago, marcus_z said:

Yes, it is definitely possible to unscrew it. The focuser of the ED81S has the same concept as the Takahashi focusers and similar performance. It has 60mm inner diameter.

Thank you so much! I guess it would the same with the SD81S? If I can cut off 10cm by unscrewing the focuser I could get the same case as you, and I would be a happy chap!

and merry Christmas!

[Stu]

On 25/12/2018 at 01:54, marcus_z said:

The weight of the 1510 is insane: 6,2kg with cubed foam. If you fly Lufthansa you have 1,8kg left for the rest of the stuff - that's a no-go. On the other hand I would never use a soft-case. Therefore I went for a Peli 1525 air (3.2kg with foam).

Here's my (almost complete) setup:

• FC-76D objective unit + FS-60CB tube + Starlight Instruments adapter A20-302 + FTF2025BCR-LW
• Borg 80mm Rings + Vixen Dovetail (#2662)
• Televue Nagler 26, 13, 7, 5, 3.5
• Baader Clicklock Diagonal + 1,25" Clicklock Adapter
• 2" Baader OIII + Astronomik UHC-E filter

The total weight is below 8kg, dimensions are 55.8 x 35.5 x 19 cm. But don't ask me for prices...?

That's an excellent setup. Yes, the 1525 makes alot of sense if you want a hard case.

I'm not sure I have the photos on this phone but will put up my FC-100DC kit which comes in under 10kg

Here you go. 10kg including a mount and a couple of 2" eyepieces isn't bad.