Takahashi TSA102S refractor

[Sunshine]

This is all very interesting, the tube color on your Tak Floutite seems to be a brighter white, comparing to my 102 which is slightly more or a cream tone.

[JeremyS]

1 minute ago, Sunshine said:

This is all very interesting, the tube color on your Tak Floutite seems to be a brighter white, comparing to my 102 which is slightly more or a cream tone.

Now, this is the sort of detail I love when we get into deep Tak discussions 👍🏻😊

[Sunshine]

21 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

Now, this is the sort of detail I love when we get into deep Tak discussions 👍🏻😊

Lol, I couldn't scribble down one equation describing the propagation of light through anything, like some here can but, my eyes work well so I'll run with that 😆

[JeremyS]

55 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

This is all very interesting, the tube color on your Tak Floutite seems to be a brighter white, comparing to my 102 which is slightly more or a cream tone.

I think this might be a TSA thing? Perhaps they use it to differentiate TSA's a bit, like with the green letter instead of blue? I note that my TSA 120 is slightly creamy in colour compared to some of her brethren:

[Sunshine]

10 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

I think this might be a TSA thing? Perhaps they use it to differentiate TSA's a bit, like with the green letter instead of blue? I note that my TSA 120 is slightly creamy in colour compared to some of her brethren:

Now that you have them lined up like marching soldiers, notice the rather striking difference in colour between the focusers.

[JeremyS]

1 minute ago, Sunshine said:

Now that you have them lined up like marching soldiers, notice the rather striking difference in colour between the focusers.

Yes, the FS 102 and FS 60 focusers are in the original Tak green livery. The much more recently purchased FC 76 DCU and TSA 120 are in the current Tak baby blue. My FC 100 DZ focuser is also blue, and the tube is pure white. Perhaps I need to take another family portrait 🤔

[Sunshine]

I cannot produce a family portrait but, I do have a sweet image of the business end of mine, lol. Now we are just indulging in Tak porn.

[Stephenstargazer]

My 2020 FC100 -DF is creamy white with the lighter green focuser body and that matches the tube clamp OK. I dont plan to become a serial buyer though and in the dark they all match up dont they!

 

[JeremyS]

12 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

I cannot produce a family portrait but, I do have a sweet image of the business end of mine, lol. Now we are just indulging in Tak porn.

That’s definitely one for the “show us your lickable OG thread” 👍🏻
Just don’t show the pic to @mikeDnight

 

[dweller25]

48 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

I think this might be a TSA thing? Perhaps they use it to differentiate TSA's a bit, like with the green letter instead of blue? I note that my TSA 120 is slightly creamy in colour compared to some of her brethren:

Wow - cannot believe how small the TSA120 is 😱

[mikeDnight]

7 hours ago, Deadlake said:

I’m tempted too, but more around the time taken to setup each night. Just going out and powering it up is more attractive. Out of interest if you have an observatory why limit yourself to a 4”?

That's a good question!   If I still had my FS152 I'd be in astro heaven in an observatory. However, I'd still carry the tube assembly back into the house after every session. I think the worst place to keep a telescope is in an observatory.   Plus, with a 4" scope in a darkish observatory, where I'm comfortable and out of the wind, I can see a remarkable amount of detail both on the planet's and even in deep sky objects. I've often thought that if I had another lifetime to live, I'd still not be able to use a 4" to its full potential. The 4" is truly an amazing scope that is so pleasant to use and who's capability never ceases to impress, that the 10" F6 Dob rarely becomes my first choice. I recently sold an 8" F6 Newtonian, which although being a very nice telescope, just didn't have any meaningful advantage over the 100mm Tak either in planetary detail or image quality, to make its bulk and awkwardness worth the effort. I know I'm odd and it may seem totally illogical to many, but even when I started out in astronomy some 40 years ago, all I ever really dreamed of having was a 4" refractor in an observatory, so I think that's simply where my heart lies.

Nice ↘

Nicer ↘☺

[JeremyS]

14 minutes ago, dweller25 said:

Wow - cannot believe how small the TSA120 is 😱

My wife thinks it’s an FS 60

[dweller25]

@JeremyS

Is that a handle on the FS102 ? ! 😱😱

[JeremyS]

1 minute ago, dweller25 said:

@JeremyS

Is that a handle on the FS102 ? ! 😱😱

Sure is, it’s a John Handleby special 👍🏻

[JeremyS]

37 minutes ago, Stephenstargazer said:

My 2020 FC100 -DF is creamy white with the lighter green focuser body and that matches the tube clamp OK. I dont plan to become a serial buyer though and in the dark they all match up dont they!

 

Now that is interesting. I read that Tak switch from the green livery to blue in 2016:

http://scopeviews.co.uk/TakColours.htm

Also interesting that your tube is creamy.
Do you have a special edition?

[mikeDnight]

4 hours ago, Grumpy Martian said:

What a lovely telescope. I long for the night that I will get the chance to look through a Tak refractor. I have owned an ED 100 f9. The views were very good indeed. Wonder if there is an opinion from someone who has experienced the views of both and how much better the Tak is over the ED 100 f9? Or indeed how close the quality of view is between them. I would still like to own a Takahashi if the opportunity presents.

I've had an FS128, a FS152 and more recently a FC100DC and now a FC100DZ.  I've also had one SW black diamond 120ED Pro, two Equinox 120ED 's, one SW 100ED Pro and a Equinox 80ED.  I loved the SW ED's and have seen amazing things with them. My least favourite of the SW scopes I've had was the 100mm ED, but I'm not sure why.   My first impression of the SW ED occured when I looked through paulastro's old gold version many years ago now. I do remember being very impressed and thought it was very close to a Tak in performance.  I sold my NP101 IS costing over £3000 new the day after I looked through the SW ED.  I do believe a Takahashi is noticeably better, but feel the SW ED's not that far behind.  I certainly wouldn't lose sleep over the difference if I had a SW ED instead of a Tak.

In fact, the reason I bought one of the new FC's is because my 'friend' paulastro, phoned me one evening to tell me that Takahashi had returned to making fluorite doublet again, and that he'd placed an order. I'm a sucker for fluorite and thought if Paul's having one then so am I. To fund the Tak I'd need to sell much of my high end eyepiece collection, so I put up for sale my Naglers, Ethos and my refractors. Things sold within hours, and the following day Paul saw the ad's on AB&S and phoned me. He asked what I was doing selling all my gear. I told him that I was funding a Tak Fluorite, telling him that if he's having one then so am I. He went deathly quiet, then started to laugh.   "I was only kidding," he said. "I just wanted to see how you'd react"!   I can't remember my exact response but I doubt it could be written here. Paul was hysterical with laughter, and as laughter is contagious,  I was laughing too.  A few days later my FC100DC arrived from TruTec Astro and it was beautiful. My Equinox 120ED was still in my possession, and id kept my Pentax XW's, so that first night gave me a chance of comparing the view of Jupiter, which was high in the sky, in both scopes.  The 120ED was a good scope as was the view of Jupiter, but the view through the FC100DC simply popped! I remember exhaling a loud "WOW" at the view of Jupiter' through the FC.  The vibrancy of the little Tak made the equatorial belts almost jump out in stark relief, and festoons, garlands and white ovals were all easily seen.

Edited February 12, 2021 by mikeDnight

[Stephenstargazer]

1 hour ago, JeremyS said:

Do you have a special edition?

Not at all, it was stock from Takahashi EU. I have not checked the date from the s/n. Just looked again and decided that if you held it next to something greener you could say it was bluer. I had better again look in daylight as it was under warm LEDs !! The tube is a light cream not true white but not full Old English White (BMC) either.

This is worse than trying to tie down Aston Martin Racing Green, when they mixed a new lot every time.

Edited February 12, 2021 by Stephenstargazer

[Deadlake]

2 hours ago, mikeDnight said:

 However, I'd still carry the tube assembly back into the house after every session. I think the worst place to keep a telescope is in an observatory.   

Any reason why, you think humidity will compromise the scope? 

[mikeDnight]

55 minutes ago, Stephenstargazer said:

Not at all, it was stock from Takahashi EU. I have not checked the date from the s/n. Just looked again and decided that if you held it next to something greener you could say it was bluer. I had better again look in daylight as it was under warm LEDs !! The tube is a light cream not true white but not full Old English White (BMC) either.

This is worse than trying to tie down Aston Martin Racing Green, when they mixed a new lot every time.

I like the cream tube colour. It reminds me of Murray Mints. Yummy!

[mikeDnight]

2 minutes ago, Deadlake said:

Any reason why, you think humidity will compromise the scope? 

 With the cold damp, or moist warm air trapped within an observatory, there's the potential to promote fungal growth on the optics.  I kept a pair of 15X70 binoculars permanently in my observatory, and despite them being permenantly capped when not in use, after only one year both objectives had fungal spots. Even eyepieces can fall victim if they are left in an observatory, or boxed away while condensation is on the lenses. A friend once loaned me a pair of 18mm Tak LE's that he'd kept in his observatory. Both had fungal threads between the elements.

[Deadlake]

11 hours ago, mikeDnight said:

 With the cold damp, or moist warm air trapped within an observatory, there's the potential to promote fungal growth on the optics.  I kept a pair of 15X70 binoculars permanently in my observatory, and despite them being permenantly capped when not in use, after only one year both objectives had fungal spots. Even eyepieces can fall victim if they are left in an observatory, or boxed away while condensation is on the lenses. A friend once loaned me a pair of 18mm Tak LE's that he'd kept in his observatory. Both had fungal threads between the elements.

What about a case and some silica gel or similar to keep the scope dry? Walking the scope in is an opportunity to drop it, wet grass etc.

[mikeDnight]

3 hours ago, Deadlake said:

What about a case and some silica gel or similar to keep the scope dry? Walking the scope in is an opportunity to drop it, wet grass etc.

A case is a great thing to have, and silica tell would be an extra protection. What I've found though is that often my tube assembly is either wet or coated with ice after a night's observing, so I'd be careful never to lock a wet or frozen tube inside a case. I've always allowed the tube to dry off naturally in the house over night before putting the tube in a case.  With something as small as a 4" apo/ED, its quite easy to carry it securely in your arms. I did almost drop my FS152 when my back gave way as I lifted it into its G11. So the bigger the scope, the greater the risk.

[Deadlake]

2 hours ago, mikeDnight said:

A case is a great thing to have, and silica tell would be an extra protection. What I've found though is that often my tube assembly is either wet or coated with ice after a night's observing, so I'd be careful never to lock a wet or frozen tube inside a case. I've always allowed the tube to dry off naturally in the house over night before putting the tube in a case.  With something as small as a 4" apo/ED, its quite easy to carry it securely in your arms. I did almost drop my FS152 when my back gave way as I lifted it into its G11. So the bigger the scope, the greater the risk.

That is why I've limited myself too a 130 mm scope, due to mounting/unmounting all the time and need to move around the garden all the time to get around neighbours trees. What we are getting too is a case with a dehumidifier, maybe over kill, however given the cost of a scope maybe not. I wonder what @jetstream does, ice on the scope going into the case and out of it? 😀

Edited February 13, 2021 by Deadlake

[jetstream]

@Deadlake this is an issue...I try to wipe the frost off and sometimes leave the scope out in the seacan to let things disappear slowly, The 90SV is in there now like this.