EXPLORE SCIENTIFIC AR152 152MM F6.5 REFRACTOR

[johninderby]

It was an itch that was scratched. 😁

Had the AZ100 existed at the time probably would have kept it. 🙂

[Dr Strange]

On 22/10/2021 at 15:54, Sunshine said:

This has to be the longest post in the history of posted posts 😂

very informative, though.

Cheers. I modified and pasted a review I wrote on it. I work for the government and used to be in consulting. We never use one word when four to five are an option...  

[Dr Strange]

To be fair when I did this comparison I was very new to observing and I didn't pick targets that would put up strong CA. At that time, IIRC I did see it on the brighter stars I mentioned but passed it off.  Now I find I am actually quite sensitive to it and very bothered by it. To the point now where if I see it I will become very annoyed and it will ruin the moment. Since gaining more "experience" observing I will not buy a scope where I see it. It has caused me to seek out the best quality scopes I can and not get any achromatic ones. Even the ones marketed by manufacturers as ED APO's. If it has two lenses, it is achromatic. If it has three lenses it is apochromatic. 

It has driven my scope purchases accordingly. There is only one exception for me. That was my purchase of the FS-60Q.  I was very leery of buying the FS-60Q I recently did. I am happy to say that at f/10 there is so little that it is all but undetectable to me save on something very bright like Spica. I don't know if that is due to the long focal length or the fluorite glass or master opticians mating the two elements together or a combination of all three or two of the three by Takahashi but it is not a main scope for me and I can tolerate what little I see because it is for outreach and travel.