Will 102mm MAK be good for me?

[nikkoppernigk]

Hello everyone,
can somebody, who've had an experience with 102 MAKs help me, please? I'm just starting out:)

I live in a Bortle class 5-6 area of the city and I'm looking for a compact (so I can put it in a backpack or smth) scope for mostly planetary and bright DS observations.
I've read a lot about different scopes and thought that for the starters I should get  Levenhuk Skyline PLUS 105 MAK (https://www.levenhuk.com/catalogue/telescopes/levenhuk-skyline-plus-105-mak/#.XzMzYCgzZPY). 127mm MAK is out of my budget range and in the end I will have a lot of time to go for bigger aperture later. 

Will I be able to see, for example, bands in the atmosphere of Jupiter or Cassini division? Will such scope be useful for some DS observations (on rare occasions I can go to Bortle 4)?

Recently I've had a chance to see Saturn and Jupiter through Celestron PowerSeeker 80EQ and I really liked the way planets looked. And since then  I've been thinking of buying 105MAK... Since it has a bigger aperture than 80EQ, will the visible image be sharper/better? Will I be able to make out more details on the planets' discs? Can such scope even compete with Celestron 80EQ at all?

Maybe there are some alternatives to Levenhuk? Although I don't think Celestron C90 will do best for me.. Maybe some Sky-Watchers, but here in Ukraine there's not much choice among budget MCT:(

Thanks for taking your time to read that:))

 

Edited August 12, 2020 by nikkoppernigk

[vlaiv]

Hi and welcome to SGL.

I don't know much about Levenhuk scopes, so I can't say if that particular model will be good or not.

What I can do is tell you a bit about my experience with Skywatcher 102mm Maksutov. You will see good detail on the planets and the Moon. It is lovely sharp scope. In fact, here are images of planets taken with this scope (mind you, images at eyepiece will never be this sharp as this was processed 4-5 minute recordings that picked best frames from camera and then sharpened - but you can get the idea of what the scope is capable of):

Mak102 is nice little DSO instrument as well. Many people say that you have narrow field of view with it - but I don't think so. It is 1300mm of focal length and that is just a bit longer than 1200mm focal length of 8" F/6 dobsonian - no one will ever complain of that scope being narrow field of view (and field of view depends on focal length of telescope).

It will show you bright DSOs and some not so bright ones. For example, just a couple a days ago, I was out observing with some friends. We had 3 scopes with us 8" f/6 dob, this little Mak and another 4" scope - Skywatcher ST102 - refractor.

Mak showed pretty much the same image as ST102 on brighter targets like M13. Maybe even slightly better image. I managed to see NGC7331 with it as well - which was rather big surprise for me. With 4" of aperture you can see a lot under dark skies (and we were observing in only Bortle 4 and it was not that transparent).

[Whistlin Bob]

I have a Meade ETX 105 and would second what Vlaiv said. Lovely little scope.

Edited August 12, 2020 by Whistlin Bob
Autocarrot

[nikkoppernigk]

Thanks for your replies!
If I understood correctly..  If 127mm MAK is really out of my budget - it's not worth spending waay more for that inch?

[Cosmic Geoff]

I never heard of this brand before, so wondered if these models were any good. Here is a reassuring review: https://www.amazon.com/product-reviews/B00DBXBIK4?ref_=fsclp_pl_nr_2

In answer to the original question, a 127mm Mak would be better than a 102mm Mak, but if you can't afford the bigger one...  A 102 mm Mak should have a useful performance and work well on planets, showing some detail, and also work well on double stars and the like.  How much you see will depend on your observing skills, the 'seeing', and the quality of the eyepieces you get with it.

Few people have any complaints about the Chinese- made Maks from Celestron, Sky-watcher and Bresser, and the Levenhuk apparently comes from the same Chinese factories.

[A McEwan]

I've had the 105 and 127 Maks before, and can say they are both great scopes. Be sure to invest in (or make) a long dew shield for whichever one you get as they are dew-magnets. If you can afford the larger, go for the larger, but if you go for the 105, it will still serve you well. Nice an compact and easy to use. They can even be collimated fairly easily, once you find the instructions on how to do it!  It might need a little longer to cool down to ambient temperature (depending on where you store it and what your ambient observing temperature is) but it shouldn't take too long.  

[nikkoppernigk]

7 hours ago, vlaiv said:

Skywatcher 102mm Maksutov

Is this one any good https://www.olx.ua/obyavlenie/teleskop-sky-watcher-maxview-102-eq2-b-u-IDIQM8s.html#49bdc8ebe8 ? It's somewhere around 285$ and is a couple of months old 

[Alfian]

2 hours ago, nikkoppernigk said:

Is this one any good https://www.olx.ua/obyavlenie/teleskop-sky-watcher-maxview-102-eq2-b-u-IDIQM8s.html#49bdc8ebe8 ? It's somewhere around 285$ and is a couple of months old 

Yes, as far as I can see this the  Skywatcher 102 Skymax (Maksutov) on an EQ1 mount and as near matters the same the Levenhuk item asper your original post. The 102 mak is a nice scope, I have had the Skywatcher in the past and currently have the Celestron version of it. It works well enough on an EQ2 so can't say how it will be on the EQ1 although it is quite a light and compact scope. the 102 Mak works quite well on a decent photo tripod with a pan and tilt head or a reasonably heavy duty ball head  but fine adjustments a little trickier.

[vlaiv]

2 hours ago, nikkoppernigk said:

Is this one any good https://www.olx.ua/obyavlenie/teleskop-sky-watcher-maxview-102-eq2-b-u-IDIQM8s.html#49bdc8ebe8 ? It's somewhere around 285$ and is a couple of months old 

I'm not sure it is only couple of months old. Ad says it is on EQ2 while images show EQ1 mount.

Skywatcher has not been making blue telescopes for many years now, it is even very hard to find blue tube Mak102 images online.

If you can, get it on AZ-EQ avant mount. It should not be much more expensive than that model you found second hand:

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/sky-watcher-az-eq-avant/sky-watcher-skymax-102-az-eq-avant.html?currency=3

($360 at FLO - not sure what your import tariffs are).

 

[nikkoppernigk]

Thanks to everybody who've answered:)
I'll make up my mind in a couple of days and will write there about what I've bought and my impressions😁 

[nikkoppernigk]

38 minutes ago, vlaiv said:

It should not be much more expensive than that model you found second hand

Sorry to bother, but what do you think about this model? https://www.olx.ua/obyavlenie/teleskop-sky-watcher-bk-mak102azgt-synscan-IDIRwze.html
Is this goto mount ok? I think I could buy a AZ3 mount to observe without the goto mount (I've heard they can't be moved without a power supply)

[John]

34 minutes ago, nikkoppernigk said:

Sorry to bother, but what do you think about this model? https://www.olx.ua/obyavlenie/teleskop-sky-watcher-bk-mak102azgt-synscan-IDIRwze.html
Is this goto mount ok? I think I could buy a AZ3 mount to observe without the goto mount (I've heard they can't be moved without a power supply)

A few things bother me about the photos of that scope. The diagonal is missing it's eyepiece tube which seems to be attached to an eyepiece in another photo. The finder scope bracket is on backwards.

I wonder if the seller knows much about the scope he / she is selling ?

If the GOTO is not working properly, they might not be aware of it ?

[nikkoppernigk]

16 minutes ago, John said:

 

I wonder if the seller knows much about the scope he / she is selling ?

 

Hello, thanks for your reply:)
The seller is a busy guy, he doesn't have much time for astronomy and thus he may not know what's up with the scope. He told me that two eyepieces are ok and all the lenses are perfect. As of GoTo mount, I don't think I'll use it that often and I was going to buy AZ3 or EQ2 or 3 anyway. From his own words, everything, except some tiny scratches on the tube, is all right. The thing that I'm most interested in this ad is OTA, because it's practically as cheap as you can buy it in Ukraine. 

Edited August 12, 2020 by nikkoppernigk

[vlaiv]

54 minutes ago, nikkoppernigk said:

Sorry to bother, but what do you think about this model? https://www.olx.ua/obyavlenie/teleskop-sky-watcher-bk-mak102azgt-synscan-IDIRwze.html
Is this goto mount ok? I think I could buy a AZ3 mount to observe without the goto mount (I've heard they can't be moved without a power supply)

Price is very low at ~150e, and if tube is good it would be worth it.

However, like @John already mentioned - diagonal mirror is exposed to dust and missing top part. That top part is together with the 25mm eyepiece in one of the images - meaning it was screwed off - something that regular telescope owner would never do. Finder is mounted other way around and what worries me the most - there is no single image of optics.

Can you inspect the scope in person, is this second hand item somewhere near you?

If so, it might be worth to get it for the OTA alone. Working mount would be a bonus. Don't get AZ3 as it is not very good mount for astronomy. It is much better for terrestrial observation. Get AZ5 instead or if you can AZ-EQ Avant is really interesting mount - it can be used in AZ mode for simplicity or EQ mode for planets and simple tracking. It also can be upgraded with tracking motor rather cheap.

[johninderby]

Was about to mention the lack of photos of the optics myself. When someone selling a scope seems to know so little about it worries me as how would they know if it was working OK. Cheap enough though that you could throw the mount away as long as the OTA is a good one.

Definately wouldn’t buy until you have a chance to examine the OTA.

 

Edited August 12, 2020 by johninderby

[nikkoppernigk]

3 hours ago, vlaiv said:

Can you inspect the scope in person, is this second hand item somewhere near you?

Yeah, he can send it to me via post and I can return it if anything is wrong without any money-return issues (website's feature)
I've just written to him about taking some photos of a primary mirror. Now am waiting:)

Considering mounts, thank you, I will search for something

Edited August 12, 2020 by nikkoppernigk

[nikkoppernigk]

I bought the sky-watcher skymax 102eq2 for 250$ and it was indeed the eq2 (chrome wheel present), although there is one issue with this mount: the previous owner never got or lost an "adapter" for slow motion cable attachment. Does anyone one know what can I do or what should I buy to attach the cable? 

P.s. Yes, this is a cap from the ice-cream bucket (fits perfectly)

Edited August 17, 2020 by nikkoppernigk