FS60CB A scope for four seasons

[MalcolmM]

The websites Alpha-Lyrae.co.uk and scopeviews.co.uk give much better expert reviews that I ever could but having used this scope now for four months and loved it I thought I would like to share my thoughts on it.

Why four seasons? Well, if Vivaldi made telescopes ...

No, actually, it's just because I use this scope in many different ways and guises!

I bought it as a travel scope but it gets used much more than I was expecting. It gives razor sharp views of the moon and gas giants and is surprisingly good at brighter deep sky objects. M13 and M57 were particularly well defined and surprisingly bright for such a small aperture.

I regularly use it with a 2.5mm TOE (giving about x140) and I feel if I had a barlow it could take much more magnification easily.

But what I like most about this scope is that it's tiny, light and very very easy to use. You can really grab every observing opportunity. I keep it permanently set up on mount and tripod and can be outside viewing in 30 seconds. A couple of mornings ago I noticed the moon up high and was able to grab 10 minutes observing before heading off to work. I was looking at Grimaldi and was really excited to see the mountains standing out on the limb. I'm not sure whether they were the Rooks or the Cordillera mountains. I was also able to easily see Lacus Autumni and Lacus Veris.

I use a Tak 28mm Erfle for wide field views. Wide? It's like looking through a pair of binoculars! Great for terrestrial viewing and Milky Way surfing! But I have found another use for this wide field configuration. I often end up crippling myself trying to look through the finder when using my bigger scope. What I do now is pair the 60CB with my 100DC on a Giro Ercole and I have a right angle finder  I enjoy the challenge of star hopping to the fuzzies and doing it this way is a real pleasure. And when I have found my target the wide field view puts the close up view in context.

And there's more.

It can be combined with the 1.7 CQ extender and immediately you have a more powerful lunar/planetary scope. The 2.5mm TOE now gives x240 and the scope (now an FS60Q!) handles the magnification easily.

And yet more again!

I spoiled myself and bought the FC76DC objective unit so I can now turn my FS60CB into FC76DC and an FC76Q!
That's 4 different scopes! Expensive? Yes, but in my case I do not regret one penny of the cost. It has already accompanied me to the West Coast of Scotland in 60Q mode and I can't wait to take it further afield; the whole FS60CB setup fitting easily into a carry on case.

I use all combinations of the scope on a Manfrotto Fluid Video head on a Gitzo Traveller tripod.

Here's some pics; compact and tucked away ready for a break in the clouds, a very expensive right angled finder and in it's biggest guise, 76Q mode.

 

[JeremyS]

Great write-up Malcolm. Really highlights the flexibility of this superb system 👍🏻

[MalcolmM]

2 hours ago, JeremyS said:

Great write-up Malcolm. Really highlights the flexibility of this superb system 👍🏻

Thank you!

And like I said before, it's thanks largely to yourself (and other Tak lovers in this forum) and the 2 websites mentioned above that I discovered these marvelous scopes

[callisto]

I was going to get one of these earlier in the year but I never... wish I did now 😪

[MalcolmM]

8 minutes ago, callisto said:

I was going to get one of these earlier in the year but I never... wish I did now 😪

It's never too late! I'm sure FLO would be delighted to help

[callisto]

1 minute ago, MalcolmM said:

It's never too late! I'm sure FLO would be delighted to help

Stop it!...😄

It was when they had a one on special with all the accessories 

[IB20]

4 hours ago, callisto said:

Stop it!...😄

It was when they had a one on special with all the accessories 

I was seconds away from purchasing that too, it was only the thought of saving to buy a 76DCU that stopped me. Reading this review I’m starting to regret it now!

[Andrew_B]

4 hours ago, MalcolmM said:

Thank you!

And like I said before, it's thanks largely to yourself (and other Tak lovers in this forum) and the 2 websites mentioned above that I discovered these marvelous scopes

I've also found that reading those websites seems to lead to a sudden influx of Taks and a reduction in one's bank balance! Those are some beautiful scopes and thanks for writing such a good summary of this remarkably capable and flexible system.

My setup is pretty similar to your and I think I might have the same or nearly same Manfrotto fluid head as in your first pic. I started off with an FC-76DCU plus extender but it was built from parts and due to use a Feather Touch focuser. That's still on back order and I couldn't cope with having most of a telescope and not being able to use it so when I saw an ex-demo FS-60CB on FLO I couldn't resist its allure.

I keep it set up permanently either on a tripod like yours or it sits in its clamshell and dovetail on a shelf in a little bookcase that's now become my shrine to Takahashi. I love every configuration and they all have their strengths such as the peerless high magnification performance of the FC-76 in Q-mode or the cuteness of the FS-60CB which never ceases to put a smile on my face with the views it gives. The FS-60Q makes the perfect spotting scope with the Baader Hyperion Mk IV zoom with its very useful 25-75x magnification range and the regular DCU is a brilliant and compact grab and go for the Moon and planets.

When the focuser arrives I'll be able to keep the FC-76DCU set up permanently but I'll still be left with an empty shelf on the bookcase. That FC-100DC is looking awfully tempting! 🤣

[callisto]

31 minutes ago, IB20 said:

I was seconds away from purchasing that too, it was only the thought of saving to buy a 76DCU that stopped me. Reading this review I’m starting to regret it now!

Yeah, I was hovering on the buy button all week 😕

[Dave scutt]

Have you won the lottery mark🤣

[callisto]

30 minutes ago, Dave scutt said:

Have you won the lottery mark🤣

I wish....It could be me 🤞  

😄

[MalcolmM]

An indulgent update! Got a quick chance to view the moon again this morning and configured the Tak as a 60Q for comparison. I couldn't use the 4mm TOE this morning; too much power in the bright low contrast sky. The Nagler zoom at 6mm gave the best views and this configuration definitely gave more detail than the 60CB mode with the 4mm TOE. Focus is also easier to achieve in this mode due to the shallower angle of the light rays I think with the increased focal length?

I have attached a pic of comparison sketches! I now have huge respect for those of you who post lovely sketches. It is incredibly difficult. The more you look, the more you see, the more you want to get down on paper and you simply can't, there is too much detail. As a mark of my ignorance you can see from the first sketch I thought I was looking at the Mare Crisium! A real crisis of seeing

Malcolm

[JeremyS]

3 hours ago, MalcolmM said:

An indulgent update! Got a quick chance to view the moon again this morning and configured the Tak as a 60Q for comparison. I couldn't use the 4mm TOE this morning; too much power in the bright low contrast sky. The Nagler zoom at 6mm gave the best views and this configuration definitely gave more detail than the 60CB mode with the 4mm TOE. Focus is also easier to achieve in this mode due to the shallower angle of the light rays I think with the increased focal length?

I have attached a pic of comparison sketches! I now have huge respect for those of you who post lovely sketches. It is incredibly difficult. The more you look, the more you see, the more you want to get down on paper and you simply can't, there is too much detail. As a mark of my ignorance you can see from the first sketch I thought I was looking at the Mare Crisium! A real crisis of seeing

Malcolm

Good to see your sketches Malcolm. 
After I got the Extender Q, I’ve pretty much left it in FS60Q configuration all the time.

[jock1958]

Hi @MalcolmM great write up, like you bought my FS60Q last year as a travel scope although it’s only got as far as the back garden....so far!
60mm of aperture doesn’t seem a lot but I reckon it punches well above its weight especially for such a small scope....oh and many thanks to Matthew’s @DirkSteele reviews for lightening my pockets 🤣🤣 

Edited October 2, 2021 by jock1958

[jock1958]

On 01/10/2021 at 11:52, JeremyS said:

Good to see your sketches Malcolm. 
After I got the Extender Q, I’ve pretty much left it in FS60Q configuration all the time.

Funnily enough mines in Q mode most of the time as well!  

[MalcolmM]

On 01/10/2021 at 11:52, JeremyS said:

Good to see your sketches Malcolm. 
After I got the Extender Q, I’ve pretty much left it in FS60Q configuration all the time.

Hi @JeremyS, am I right in thinking you also have an FOA60? How does it compare with the 60Q?

Malcolm

[JeremyS]

3 minutes ago, MalcolmM said:

Hi @JeremyS, am I right in thinking you also have an FOA60? How does it compare with the 60Q?

Malcolm

I have an FOA 60Q. This is an exquisite performer. It’s f/15 so not directly comparable to the FS 60Q. But they are both strong performers. I doubt that the FOA 60Q gets you much better than the FS 60Q, which is a lovely scope.

I could take out the CQ extender and use in the standard FOA 60 configuration, f/8.8, but I’ve not tried that.