Took a risk on a Mak 127

[Sadiestorm]

So, a local pawn shop has been advertising a Skywatcher Mak 127 on an AZ5 for a pretty good price. I went to have a look, being a bit wary of a scope with no background on it and turns out it was a steal. Took it out of the shop, focussed on a few things in the distance, checked the mirrors and all seemed pretty perfect. No scratches, focussed well. 

OTA is in perfect condition. Looks like it retains its stock 1.25" diagonal (labelled Dielectric coated 1.25" 90 degree mirror diagonal). 
The finder scope I think is a 9x50 sky-watcher right angle finder scope (same metallic sheen of the OTA) which is also in perfect working order.
Only comes with one eyepiece which might be one of the stock ones (Super 25 wide angle long eye relief) so will need to figure out the next best additions to use with it. 

The AZ5 deluxe mount is perfect except for one of the plastic adjustment knobs of which part is broken off but still works adequately and I am sure there must be replacements. 

For a first scope that I can grab and go to get to darker areas and set up quickly or take on holiday with me I am very happy. 
Definitely have a dew shield on the 'need sooner rather than later' list.
Does anyone have any eyepiece suggestions? I was thinking perhaps a good quality zoom eyepiece to start with so I can figure out what magnifications I most use?
Any suggestions are welcome!
The sky looks vaguely blue outside so I have everything crossed that I might be able to use it tonight. 

[Stargazer33]

That looks very nice. How much of a steal was it, may I ask? 

My first 'scope was the SW 102 Mak (off ebay), but on a cheap camera tripod. I had many 'WOW' moments with that little 'scope. Enjoy! 

[Sadiestorm]

@Stargazer33 I ended up bargaining them down to £330 from their £350 asking price. Which when compared with the new prices seems like a bargain for a perfectly functioning scope and AZ5, minus one eye piece. Can spend what I saved on an eyepiece or two or save up for the AZ Gti mount. 

[Pixies]

The finder and diagonal are upgrades to what normally comes with the basic OTA. Prob worth about £160 combined new.

Good find!

A 32mm plossl will be a good 'finder' eyepiece. As it's a 'slow' scope, you don't need anything too fancy. Lots of reasonable zooms available now. A search of the forums will bring back lots of suggestions.

Edited February 15, 2021 by Pixies

[Tiny Clanger]

Excellent lucky bargain ! You will have a great time with the 'scope.

As has been said, you have some quality extras there : the diagonal and finder in particular are very good upgrades. I have the same 'scope on an az5 and am very happy with it (even if I did have to buy my own upgraded diagonal and finder !)

I made a dew shield from black foam , cost me around £10 to buy a 2m x 1m bit (an oversized purchase, originally to make a light shroud for my dob, but who can resist an extra 1x1m for a bargain price, it's handy stuff to have around ... ) https://www.efoam.co.uk/closed-cell-polyethylene-foam.php

I'd also suggest some kind of cover so you can park it outside the back door to cool without worrying about a sudden rain (or snow) shower, a tough rubble sack type binbag would do the trick. Oh, and while you are in the kitchen, a clothes peg does duty as a fine focus device !

The 25mm eyepiece which came with it is the usual skywatcher one which is bundled with the 'scope, it's not at all bad, I'd keep it and use it for the moment. I've not used any zoom eyepieces , so can't give an opinion there, but the 8mm and 12mm BST starguiders work well in the mak, either would be a good purchase for the greater magnification end of the range .

Heather

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

Wow. Well done. A nice find. The dielectric diagonal and right angle finder are bonus items too. 👍

[AstroNebulee]

That's a great find, you'd be hard pushed now to get any scopes in the UK now. I have the sane scope and finder on my az gti mount, it's a beautiful scope, you'll get to see a few dso with it and double stars but it's built for planets and lunar imaging and it gives absolutley cracking views, I love mine. Like mentioned above a 32mm plossl, dew sheild as they are few magnets and probably a 10mm plossl bd a good start or a zoom lens, I have the 7.2-21.5mm hyperflex zoom on mine and works a treat. Remember to take the scope out to cool first when you have your first session, depending on where the scope is kept in your house. I generally let mine cool for 20 minutes, whilst I'm setting up. Most of all just enjoy the spectacular views you'll get. Clear skies 

[Nik271]

Well done, this is an excellent set up. The 127 Mak is very versatile and portable. Almost any eyepiece will perform well with it because at F12 the light rays converge very slowly and don't demand expensive corrective optics.

My advice is to get something with as wide field of view as you can at your budget. For example the 15mm StellaLyra has 68 degrees FoV and is well priced by FLO.

I often use a 10mm aspheric Svbony (63deg FoV) with my Maks which performs surprisingly well.Can be found for under £15 on eBay. Just stay away from the 6mm EP from that line , it's not good.

[SuburbanMak]

1 hour ago, Sadiestorm said:

So, a local pawn shop has been advertising a Skywatcher Mak 127 on an AZ5 for a pretty good price. I went to have a look, being a bit wary of a scope with no background on it and turns out it was a steal. Took it out of the shop, focussed on a few things in the distance, checked the mirrors and all seemed pretty perfect. No scratches, focussed well. 

OTA is in perfect condition. Looks like it retains its stock 1.25" diagonal (labelled Dielectric coated 1.25" 90 degree mirror diagonal). 
The finder scope I think is a 9x50 sky-watcher right angle finder scope (same metallic sheen of the OTA) which is also in perfect working order.
Only comes with one eyepiece which might be one of the stock ones (Super 25 wide angle long eye relief) so will need to figure out the next best additions to use with it. 

The AZ5 deluxe mount is perfect except for one of the plastic adjustment knobs of which part is broken off but still works adequately and I am sure there must be replacements. 

For a first scope that I can grab and go to get to darker areas and set up quickly or take on holiday with me I am very happy. 
Definitely have a dew shield on the 'need sooner rather than later' list.
Does anyone have any eyepiece suggestions? I was thinking perhaps a good quality zoom eyepiece to start with so I can figure out what magnifications I most use?
Any suggestions are welcome!
The sky looks vaguely blue outside so I have everything crossed that I might be able to use it tonight. 

Good choice! I am loving mine and am sure you'll get some great views.

On Eyepieces I went for the Baader Hyperion Fixed 24mm which gives a 68 degree field of view which translates to the 1.04 degrees apparent - which I am reliably informed is the most you can get on this scope. In real terms that is just about the whole of the main body of The Pleiades or both sides of the Perseus Double Cluster. 

In the other pocket I went for the Baader Hyperion Mark IV Zoom, 24-8mm which covers magnification up to 187X and I've found brilliant for finding the optimum magnification for splitting doubles, filling the field with star clusters etc.    Also with the matching 2.25 Barlow this can go up to really high power for the moon & hopefully in the summer, Jupiter & Saturn . 

The dew shield is an absolute must - on cool down time, I've got mine in a holdall and I just put it outside in that for a while, haven't noticed a huge problem with this .  That finder is awesome -  I got on much better once I swapped the Red Dot Finder supplied for the finder you have + a Telrad.  

Congratulations

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Zermelo]

An excellent find, congratulations.

As has been said, the longer focal ratio means you can use some eyepieces that might misbehave in faster scopes.
For zooms in particular, this one performs very well (and was even better value before prices went up).
This thread discusses some that are more expensive.

[Sadiestorm]

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions and support. Now I know a bit more about the upgrades I feel very lucky to have snagged this. 

I have been trawling through all the posts I can find when searching 'Mak 127' and finding some great stuff. What a resource you guys are!  I am sure I will have lots of questions in the future. 

[TerraC]

Brilliant - pleased its a good one.  I was looking at that a week or two ago online but couldn't justify the drive to London in lockdown to get it     It looked clean and tidy.   Have fun with that one.  

 

 

[Sadiestorm]

@TerraC thanks! Ha, I feel lucky you live a bit further away and hadn't come down to get it. It is a very nice little scope! The skies were clear early on last night so worked my way from the moon, to Mars and then over to Sirius, Rigel and through Orion's belt to get a feel for star hopping. 

[Tiny Clanger]

Glad it worked out for you, when folk think about this as a first 'scope I tend to say get something wider field to start off with because of the patience needed to find stuff , especially using the not very good red dot finder it comes with, but your upgraded finder will be a great help tracking down the fainter stuff. I have the smaller 6x30 finder on mine (and a rigel quickfinder too) , and sometimes realize I'm still looking through the 6x30 entranced, and really ought to go to view through the actual eyepiece !

Speaking of which: because the 127 mak is a forgiving f12 (ish) 'scope , it is not picky about eyepieces, so you don't need to spend loads. I have no  experience of zooms, so can't comment on them, but regular plossls of a decent brand from around 15mm to the max 32mm will be fine and set you back around £30. Below 12mm or so plossls are less easy to use , which is where spending a bit more on the much lauded BST starguiders is a good idea. I've found an 8mm BST a very handy thing, pushing the magnification any higher doesn't often yield decent results in our UK skies , so lower EPs than 8mm may not get a lot of use.

If you are thinking of ever changing telescopes though, and might one day get something a bit less easy on the eyepieces, forget the mid range plossls and just go for BSTs which you will want to keep , rather than plossls which you will want to upgrade. I went the other way, starting with a picky f5 before getting the mak, and the difference between a 12mm plossl and a 12mm BST in the f5 is well worth the difference in price.

Heather

[Sadiestorm]

@Tiny Clanger Thanks Heather. Yes, it was purely just luck that this scope came with the finderscope it did, I would have struggled a lot more if it didn't. I was looking at the sky and could only see the brightest of stars with the naked eye and then looking through the finder scope suddenly there were many more!

That's good advice about the quality of eyepieces. I do tend to be a 'buy once, buy right' person and luckily at the moment I have a bit more disposable income.

I am going to get as much out of this scope as possible and then perhaps for all the DSO's and Messier objects that are just too big for the FOV on the Mak I am thinking another scope to catch those. Before finding the Mak I was tossing up between it and a SW 150 explorer. If I catch the bug I am sure I will want something else. Do you find the Mak and the 150 dob a nice combination to complement each other?
 

[AstroNebulee]

1 hour ago, Tiny Clanger said:

I have the smaller 6x30 finder on mine (and a rigel quickfinder too) , and sometimes realize I'm still looking through the 6x30 entranced, and really ought to go to view through the actual eyepiece !

I'm the same when I look through my finderscope, I get lost just slewing to targets and observing through it. I love my 127 mak and I know Sadiestorm will love theirs just as much, be a belter for the planets later in the year, but most of all just enjoy it Sadiestorm 

Edited February 19, 2021 by LeeHore7
Spelling

[Tiny Clanger]

55 minutes ago, Sadiestorm said:

@Tiny Clanger Thanks Heather. Yes, it was purely just luck that this scope came with the finderscope it did, I would have struggled a lot more if it didn't. I was looking at the sky and could only see the brightest of stars with the naked eye and then looking through the finder scope suddenly there were many more!

That's good advice about the quality of eyepieces. I do tend to be a 'buy once, buy right' person and luckily at the moment I have a bit more disposable income.

I am going to get as much out of this scope as possible and then perhaps for all the DSO's and Messier objects that are just too big for the FOV on the Mak I am thinking another scope to catch those. Before finding the Mak I was tossing up between it and a SW 150 explorer. If I catch the bug I am sure I will want something else. Do you find the Mak and the 150 dob a nice combination to complement each other?
 

Good isn't it ?! I still get plenty of 'WOW!' moments 4 months on from receiving my mak.

My first love er, I mean 'scope was the Heritage 150 dob, and the pair absolutely make a great combination.  If the Moon is out, or there are planets to see, I take the mak out into the garden, if I need more light gathering on faint stuff, or want to see a wider field I take the little dob out , I made it a low 3 legged table from scrap wood to stand on because the garden table I thought I'd use is cast iron, weighs a ton , and I need to keep shifting my 'scope when neighbour's trees get in the way of the view !

The heritage 150 (or 130) can easily be put on the az5 , as all have a standard rail ( so do 'tube only' OTA 150 newtonian reflectors, so if you only wanted to use one 'scope at a time, they could share a mount) . The heritage dobs unique party trick is closing up to half length though , which makes for easy storage in small homes like mine !

Heather

[Stephenstargazer]

1 hour ago, Sadiestorm said:

for all the DSO's and Messier objects that are just too big for the FOV on the Mak I am thinking another scope

Nah! the Mak will show you nearly everything you want for a couple of years. Just get some moderate bins for the 3 or 4 silly big objects. Your first upgrade is to get a good star atlas (like S&T Pocket or turn Left at Orion) and a red torch. When you have worn those out you'll know where to go next!!

[Louis D]

Given the large increases in Skywatcher prices for equipment that does come in, that's a great deal.

[Sadiestorm]

1 hour ago, Tiny Clanger said:

The heritage 150 (or 130) can easily be put on the az5 , as all have a standard rail ( so do 'tube only' OTA 150 newtonian reflectors, so if you only wanted to use one 'scope at a time, they could share a mount) . The heritage dobs unique party trick is closing up to half length though , which makes for easy storage in small homes like mine !

Heather

That was my thought as the AZ5 is good enough to take a 150 if I need to. Although I have secret hopes that if I move like I intend to, to be able to get something that is a bit bigger like a 200 dob.

 

1 hour ago, Stephenstargazer said:

Nah! the Mak will show you nearly everything you want for a couple of years. Just get some moderate bins for the 3 or 4 silly big objects. Your first upgrade is to get a good star atlas (like S&T Pocket or turn Left at Orion) and a red torch. When you have worn those out you'll know where to go next!!

That is encouraging that it will keep my busy for a good while! I luckily have the S&T pocket already. Just waiting on a red torch! 

[Stephenstargazer]

You are going in the right direction, take your time and dont hurry! it's easy to think a bit of kit will change things, but honestly it is time under the sky that counts. Take every chance to look up, like you did with Andromeda, and always read about what you have seen. Best of luck (make your own!!!).😀