Small Fracs for viewing ?

[Stu1smartcookie]

Hi .. 

Today I will be in the enviable position of being able to purchase another scope . Don’t worry it’s not another “what scope shall I buy “ thread . 
I am looking at a lightweight , portable refractor to put on a lightweight portable tracking mount . So I am limited by weight .. up to say 3-4 Kgs for the scope . I have my eye on the WO ZS73 . It’s a well built scope and it’s a scope that’s actually in stock . I like to set up in a hurry and I like goto features , so , i will use either an Az-GTi or a star discovery mount the scope  fits the bill. If I am honest here I usually like looking at stuff rather than looking at a camera that’s looking at stuff , so I will be using the scope for a fair bit of visual . Now I know what some of you are thinking at this point ... “ crazy guy looking at planets through a 73mm scope” .. well , yep .. I get that the image of planets will be small , even bumping the mag up to a max 140 power but I also think the views will be very “clean” at say 100 x mag . ( thoughts on this please ) .But this scope is a great wide field scope and coupled with my 2”aero 30mm and my 2”GSO superview 50mm  I hope it will excel . ( thoughts welcome please ) Of course I will be adding a dslr and a flattener to this scope at some point .. it would be rude not to use it for a spot of photography but , as someone living under bortle 6 skies it’s nice to have the option to pack up a really portable rig and  just plonk it down basically anywhere. The scope , for me , is not a cheap one and I have done some research on it , but nothing beats first hand experience offered by people such as on this site ( bigged you all up there) 

I look forward to your comments either in total praise of my decision or to criticise my ( admittedly at times ) bad judgement 

Thanks for reading 

Stu 

[happy-kat]

There were a few observing reports from @Stuusing the skywatcher 72ED and on Jupiter. 

[KP82]

I've got the Altair 72EDF which is basically the same scope as WO ZS73. It's a wonderful little instrument, feeling very solid and well built. I've only used it for terrestrial, widefield and the Moon so far. The views were crispy with no false colours. I'll also be using it for widefield imaging with my TSRED279 reducer when I get a chance.

I've added the WO 120mm handle saddle myself and the whole package works out to be cheaper than the WO ZS73. The Altair Deluxe version also comes with a better 2.5" focuser. The scope is back heavy, so for balancing it has to be slided foreward quite a bit in the saddle to counteract the weight of the focuser + diagonal + eyepiece (or camera + flattener). The reason I've bought the saddle handle is that I can mount the guidescope/finder towards the front in order to make balancing much easier.

[johnst]

I have a WO Megrez 72d and a few years ago afte having issues with the focusser fitted a Moonlite focusser to it. I absolutely love it and it's a good all round scope for visual and now I'm trying imaging so you're certainly going down the right road👍

[mikeDnight]

5 hours ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

 I will be using the scope for a fair bit of visual . Now I know what some of you are thinking at this point ... “ crazy guy looking at planets through a 73mm scope” .. well , yep .. I get that the image of planets will be small , even bumping the mag up to a max 140 power but I also think the views will be very “clean” at say 100 x mag . ( thoughts on this please ) .But this scope is a great wide field scope and coupled with my 2”aero 30mm and my 2”GSO superview 50mm  I hope it will excel . ( thoughts welcome please ).

I look forward to your comments either in total praise of my decision or to criticise my ( admittedly at times ) bad judgement 

Thanks for reading 

Stu 

Hi Stu,

 It's not really that crazy to use a 3" ish refractor for planetary observing, and when its a good one such as the 73mm you're considering, then that's even better. A 73mm will show you the phases of Venus and if your eyes are sensitive to it, hints of the cloud tops. It will show you the belts on Jupiter along with more pronounced detail, the red spot hollow and with good seeing the red spot itself. You'll also see shadow transits.  Cassini's division is within the grasp of a good small refractor such as the 73mm, and albedo features on the surface of Mars are observable too.  The real awesomeness of such a scope though will be seen when you turn it on the Moon.  Id often take my 80mm Equinox out for just a quick look before bed, and find myself still sat on a hoarfrost covered garden bench an hour later. With a binoviewer, barlow, and a couple good 18mm ortho's or plossles, you'll find it hard to turn your eyes away!  DSO's are of course limited, but still very enjoyable, especially clusters and rich star fields. It's a great move you're making and I doubt you'll have any regrets. 

 

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

That looks like a really nice little telescope Stu. However, is this new instrument going to be your primary setup? If you're really visual but on rare occasions will have a go with a dslr, why not go for a short fl 80mm? You may be grateful for the extra aperture and focal length while still maintaining a compact set up.

FPL53, 2.6kg, 555mm fl & beefy 2.5" r&p focuser. 430mm with the dew shield retracted, still very grab n' go and the AZGTI will handle it easily. In stock.

https://www.altairastro.com/starwave-80ed-r-ed-doublet-refractor-telescope-466-p.asp

The Altair refractors are really nicely engineered. I fall a little more in love with mine every time it's used (despite the common as muck FPL51 glass 😉 ).

 

[Stu1smartcookie]

5 hours ago, ScouseSpaceCadet said:

That looks like a really nice little telescope Stu. However, is this new instrument going to be your primary setup?

Hi . Well as you know I am looking at another , er , larger scope for visual .  . But for now .. it’s all I need . 

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

Ahh... 😉😉 Then good luck with the 73mm.

[Stu1smartcookie]

5 hours ago, mikeDnight said:

Hi Stu,

 It's not really that crazy to use a 3" ish refractor for planetary observing, and when its a good one such as the 73mm you're considering, then that's even better. A 73mm will show you the phases of Venus and if your eyes are sensitive to it, hints of the cloud tops. It will show you the belts on Jupiter along with more pronounced detail, the red spot hollow and with good seeing the red spot itself. You'll also see shadow transits.  Cassini's division is within the grasp of a good small refractor such as the 73mm, and albedo features on the surface of Mars are observable too.  The real awesomeness of such a scope though will be seen when you turn it on the Moon.  Id often take my 80mm Equinox out for just a quick look before bed, and find myself still sat on a hoarfrost covered garden bench an hour later. With a binoviewer, barlow, and a couple good 18mm ortho's or plossles, you'll find it hard to turn your eyes away!  DSO's are of course limited, but still very enjoyable, especially clusters and rich star fields. It's a great move you're making and I doubt you'll have any regrets. 

 

Nice comments Mike .. thank you . You really inspired me ( albeit after I have bought it , er, to buy it lol) I only read the replies once I was home and on the way home I stopped off at the widescreen centre and bought it . It haven’t even unboxed it yet lol .. I also bought an az gti ( yep honestly this is my 5th one !!!! Don’t worry I will see a GP about this obsession) but I need a tripod . Fortunately @steviedvd is helping me out there . It’s such a portable mount . I now need the flattener , which I will pick up in a few weeks . Oh and an AdM replacement clamp , oh and a WO wedge . But they can wait for a while . Does anyone else hate putting marks on their dovetails ? I do .. so the clamp is a necessary purchase for me .

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

1 minute ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

Nice comments Mike .. thank you . You really inspired me ( albeit after I have bought it , er, to buy it lol) I only read the replies once I was home and on the way home I stopped off at the widescreen centre and bought it . It haven’t even unboxed it yet lol .. I also bought an az gti ( yep honestly this is my 5th one !!!! Don’t worry I will see a GP about this obsession) but I need a tripod . Fortunately @steviedvd is helping me out there . It’s such a portable mount . I now need the flattener , which I will pick up in a few weeks . Oh and an AdM replacement clamp , oh and a WO wedge . But they can wait for a while . Does anyone else hate putting marks on their dovetails ? I do .. so the clamp is a necessary purchase for me .

Red or gold?

[Stu1smartcookie]

1 minute ago, ScouseSpaceCadet said:

Red or gold?

I went for Red .. I’ve had a gold zs61 in the past which I liked but I felt like MR T when I went outside with it ! The red is nice because when I get the WO wedge it will match . 
Looking forward to when this lockdown officially ends . Your dob or a Mak is on my list ( wife permitting ) 

[Stu1smartcookie]

6 hours ago, johnst said:

I have a WO Megrez 72d and a few years ago afte having issues with the focusser fitted a Moonlite focusser to it. I absolutely love it and it's a good all round scope for visual and now I'm trying imaging so you're certainly going down the right road👍

Honestly I am really happy with this scope , just unboxed . Good quality , reassuringly weighty . 

[Stu1smartcookie]

6 hours ago, KP82 said:

I've got the Altair 72EDF which is basically the same scope as WO ZS73. It's a wonderful little instrument, feeling very solid and well built. I've only used it for terrestrial, widefield and the Moon so far. The views were crispy with no false colours. I'll also be using it for widefield imaging with my TSRED279 reducer when I get a chance.

I've added the WO 120mm handle saddle myself and the whole package works out to be cheaper than the WO ZS73. The Altair Deluxe version also comes with a better 2.5" focuser. The scope is back heavy, so for balancing it has to be slided foreward quite a bit in the saddle to counteract the weight of the focuser + diagonal + eyepiece (or camera + flattener). The reason I've bought the saddle handle is that I can mount the guidescope/finder towards the front in order to make balancing much easier.

Nice ,KP... 

there are so many positive reports on here , of course I knew about WO stuff being quality . All I need is  a clear sky .. missed out last night when the sky was sooooo clear but all my gear was packed up ready for selling today . And tonight ... zzz cloud . What tripod do you use ? 

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

43 minutes ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

I went for Red .. I’ve had a gold zs61 in the past which I liked but I felt like MR T when I went outside with it ! The red is nice because when I get the WO wedge it will match . 
Looking forward to when this lockdown officially ends . Your dob or a Mak is on my list ( wife permitting ) 

A 127mm mak and below wouldn't be worthwhile if you have a short apo. It will do the same job pretty much. A perfect condition & very cheap dob would give you access to aperture+ for those dimmer DSOs... no hard sell or anythin'. 😁

The reasons I kept my 102mm mak after buying the 102mm f7 frac are it's compact and will do for camping trips. Also getting the mak cheap as I did reduces the worry of having it stolen or broken on campsites. Otherwise the mak would be long gone.

Edited March 20, 2021 by ScouseSpaceCadet

[KP82]

31 minutes ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

Nice ,KP... 

there are so many positive reports on here , of course I knew about WO stuff being quality . All I need is  a clear sky .. missed out last night when the sky was sooooo clear but all my gear was packed up ready for selling today . And tonight ... zzz cloud . What tripod do you use ? 

I've been using it on a Hercules 2.5" Alt-AZ on top of a Manfrotto 055CL. Very portable. I can literally lift up the whole rig easily by grabbing the centre column of the 055CL with a single hand and move it anywhere.

Edited March 20, 2021 by KP82

[Stu1smartcookie]

I looked at a Gekeeto tripod as it has a 8kg payload and it’s a reasonable 55 pounds now . 

[badhex]

Hello Stu, 

A few weeks later I wondered how you were getting on with the new scope? I'm planning to build a similar grab and go setup with a TS 70ED which has a similar aperture and FL although obviously inferior optics. 

I wondered also what tripod you ended up with? I'm looking for something that folds down to about the same length as the scope (30cm ish). 

Finally, wondered what EP/Barlow combo you are planning to use for the planetary viewing? I currently have a BCO 6mm which only gets me about 70x so considering other options to squeeze a last few mags out of the scope when conditions allow! 

Edited April 20, 2021 by badhex

[Stu1smartcookie]

Hi Joe 

I honestly love the scope ( although i nearly had my head turned by a larger aperture scope ).. its such an easy set up and go system that i have . I now use the scope in AZ mode on the AZ-gti  rather than EQ as i find it a lot less troublesome . 

So i have the skywatcher tripod ( the one that usually is supplied with the AZ-Gti ) . This tripod doesn't fold down as much as i would like but its sturdy , for the scope i have . The tripod i have used in the past is the Geekoto 79" , it folds down to a really neat package and is supplied with a rather nice , chunky ball head .. its can be bought from Amazon for about £65 . 

I have invested in a couple of widefield 2" EP's , a 30mm and a 50mm , and a 2" 2 x barlow , from rother vally optics . For extra magnification i use a 6mm with the barlow that gives me around 140 x  . I've yet to use it on the Gas Giants but ion the Moon the views are fantastic . Obviously this scope excels at widefield viewing. Stars are pin point . 

[badhex]

Thanks for the feedback Stu! Really glad you're enjoying the setup. I will also be using my TS 70ED on either the AZ-GTi or the TS AZT6 push-to depending on what works best for that moment. I also have the SW tripod from the AZ GTi so will use that at home I'd imagine. I'm actually looking at a whitelabel tripod which packs down to 30cm for travel but a bit worried it might not provide enough stability. How did the Geekoto work out for the setup? Comparable to the SW or less stable?
Whilst at home I will use a 2" diagonal and EPs for widefield views same as you and currently debating my high power EP setup. Glad to hear that the 6mm + 2x barlow works well for you, although my barlow is 2.5x so likely to be too much of a push at 175x!

Either way it sounds like our two setups will have a lot in common so I'm glad it's worked out how you planned  

[Stu1smartcookie]

I love the fact that the scope takes 2" diagonals . 

The tripod is quite sturdy and can handle up to 8kgs ... although i try to keep my set up as low as possible to aid stability 

[badhex]

1 minute ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

I love the fact that the scope takes 2" diagonals . 

The tripod is quite sturdy and can handle up to 8kgs ... although i try to keep my set up as low as possible to aid stability 

This really appealed to me too with the 70ED. Can't wait to try out my Panoptic 41mm in it even if the exit pupil is huge and the EP is virtually the same size as the scope!