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HELP!! SLT or 127 SynScan??

NiteGawper

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NiteGawper

NiteGawper

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Ok, in my search for a reasonable but well priced portable GOTO scope, I had set my mind on the 130 SLT. I'd read good things about them and some people I know are happy with their's.

I was all but ready to place my order with FLO, but now the new Skywatcher Skymax 127 SynScan AZ GOTO has come on the market for not too much more money.

http://firstlightoptics.com/proddetail.php?prod=slt130

http://firstlightoptics.com/proddetail.php?prod=skywatcher_skymax_127_az_goto

Now, I have only ever owned Newt's (apart from small fracs when I was a lad) so I'd be venturing into new territory with the 127 SynScan!! Plus, they are new and there is not too much information about how good they are :scratch:

Given the choice of these two scopes, which would you go for?? (Please don't say NEITHER...!!)

:D:help::lol:

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dweller25

dweller25

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I used to own the Celestron SLT mount and it was very very good. I also now own a Skywatcher 127 Mak and it is very very good. The two combined make a brilliant lightweight portable combo well suited to lunar, Planetary and Messier viewing. The 127 is not a widefield scope though.

IMHO the new 127 Synscan combo will be brilliant - no sitting on the fence there !!

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Ben Ritchie

Ben Ritchie

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They're the same aperture, but one's a Mak with 1500mm focal length, the other's a Newt with 650mm focal length - quite a difference. What do you want to look at? The Mak's particular strengths are lunar/planetary viewing, and you'll need to pick up some widefield eyepieces to fit the bigger DSOs into the field of view.

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NiteGawper

NiteGawper

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They're the same aperture, but one's a Mak with 1500mm focal length, the other's a Newt with 650mm focal length - quite a difference. What do you want to look at? The Mak's particular strengths are lunar/planetary viewing, and you'll need to pick up some widefield eyepieces to fit the bigger DSOs into the field of view.

Hi Ben, from light polluted Swindon - Lunar and Planetary are my main targets. I have a really nice 40mm eyepiece that I could use for the DSO's that are "do-able" from my location...

I did notice there was quite a difference in the focal length of the scopes, but I'm leaning more towards the Mak...

Thanks for your reply :D

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  • 11 months later...
PhilBostock

PhilBostock

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Ok, in my search for a reasonable but well priced portable GOTO scope, I had set my mind on the 130 SLT. I'd read good things about them and some people I know are happy with their's.

I was all but ready to place my order with FLO, but now the new Skywatcher Skymax 127 SynScan AZ GOTO has come on the market for not too much more money.

SLT Series - Celestron NexStar 130 SLT

Maksutov - Skywatcher Skymax 127 SynScan AZ GOTO

Now, I have only ever owned Newt's (apart from small fracs when I was a lad) so I'd be venturing into new territory with the 127 SynScan!! Plus, they are new and there is not too much information about how good they are :scratch:

Given the choice of these two scopes, which would you go for?? (Please don't say NEITHER...!!)

;):) :)

I recently bought a SkyWatcher 127 with SynScan Az Goto. Couldn't make it align or GOTO anything. Thought it was me as I don't know the stars that well. But always seemed to fall short when I was certain eg Dubhe from Polaris.

I took off the telescope and put a bit of hardboard with quadrants marked and fitted a wooden pointer. Sure enough 90 deg azimuth movement read out as 132 degress! And 10 deg Altitude as about 15 degrees! Once round in Azimuth was 424 degrees.

I have contacted SkyWatcher/Optical Vision/Leisuretec, the supply chain, have been acknowledged but await a resolution. "..unfit for use..seek a refund." is my position, but I would be happy with a software fix. I have upgraded to latest firmware 03.07 but no better.

Has anyone else had this problem? Surely this is not a one-off. Regards, Phil

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jgs001

jgs001

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I think the mounts are pretty much identical, it seems likely given SW and Celestron are now both owned by the same company. I have a Skymax 102 mounted on my SLT at present, and they work well together...

Something to bear in mind, whilst these mounts are not designed for large scopes, they use a standard dovetail fit, so if you get the Skymax 127 now (which seems to be the best option for you) and want to use a wide field frac at some point, it's easy to swap the scopes around. I've use my SLT with an ST80, and my C80ED prior to the Skymax.

It's important to ensure that the mount is levelled properly and that the power supply is steady and consistent to get accurate goto. AA batteries don't have enough grunt to drive the mount for more than about 20 to 30 minutes, then it starts getting flaky.

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NiteGawper

NiteGawper

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Hi Phil,

I was a little surprised to see my thread from last year popping up :)

But sorry to hear you are having trouble with your MAK :hello2:

To be honest, I have not used the scope as much as I should this year, but in the times I have used it, I've usually found the aligning and GOTO to be ok-ish...

I think making sure the mount is really level is an absolute must (not too easy with the little bubble level on the tripod!!). The other thing I do is use a cross-hair reticule in the eye piece when doing the alignment, it's an old screw-in cross-hair that I had from my TAL Scope. It's non-illuminated, but I end up with something similar to this ScopeTeknix Classic 18mm Reticule Eyepiece (wide angle)

That way I can make sure the alignment star is bang in the middle of the field of view when aligning. When using the GOTO, it is sometimes a little of centre but never too far off ;)

Having said that, I'm not sure how to explain your findings with the quadrants and pointer :)

Please keep us informed of what Skywatcher come back and say.

All the best,

Andy...

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NiteGawper

NiteGawper

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Serves me right for not checking the dates :)... Phil... I'd suggest starting a new thread regarding your issues, and see if we can't help you out.

LOL ;)

Actually your advice was very timely John, as I'm looking to get a ST Refractor to use on the GOTO mount. I was thinking of the 102mm Skywatcher (as the 120mm is a bit on the heavy side for the mount)

And I agree with your comment about the AA batteries, I always try and run the scope off a power unit and will only use the AAs as a very last resort.

I know it's not the best mount in the world, but it does for my needs.

Andy...

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jarralad

jarralad

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hmm no one for the 130 slt,i have one,had it about a year now,must say for viewing cant fault it,seen a lot of the deep sky objects and still finding them.was at kielder at the weekend,had a covering of ice both nights,no problem.the only slight problem was power supply lead coming loose,lend of small screwdriver opened the pins on mount(common fault)no probs after that.set up is easy,3 star align(just point at 3 bright objects in sky).then away you go.

hope that helps.

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jgs001

jgs001

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LOL ;)

Actually your advice was very timely John, as I'm looking to get a ST Refractor to use on the GOTO mount. I was thinking of the 102mm Skywatcher (as the 120mm is a bit on the heavy side for the mount)

And I agree with your comment about the AA batteries, I always try and run the scope off a power unit and will only use the AAs as a very last resort.

I know it's not the best mount in the world, but it does for my needs.

Andy...

Andy, cool... The C80ED weighs about 2Kg, with a 5mm hyperion and barlow... you're probably talking something like 2.5Kg... about the same as with the 450d. That combo was good for 15 to 20 second exposures, so for visual use 2.5Kg should be fine, I don't know the weight of the ST range though (well except the 80 that is... :)). I've just had a quick look... I think you're right the 102 is 2.5 Kg, and that's probably up at the upper edges of the mount...

I like the little mount... it's lightweight, and quick and easy to setup... which is more than can be said for the HEQ5

Jarralad, I'm sure, from reports, and generally the 130 is a fine scope, but the Skymax is better for lunar and planetary, and therefore, in this case, fitted the bill better...

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