4" Tak vs Mewlon 180c

[MalcolmM]

3 hours ago, PatientObserver said:

So far I have resisted further advances of the disease known as Takitis ... I instead decided to place an order on an Agema SD 120. It was a little less expensive than a Takahashi TSA-120, and I get to spilt the cost into two payments. All the reviews I have read indicate it is a quality scope. I will have to wait for it to be built, but that will allow me to exclusively use my FOA-60Q for awhile. Although I am currently in remission from Takitis, I am aware that it may return in the form of a Mewlon in the future.

I have never heard of these before. Looked them up and they look fabulous scopes. It'll go very nicely with the FOA. You will have lots of great viewing with that combination. Congratulations!

Malcolm 

[PatientObserver]

14 hours ago, MalcolmM said:

I have never heard of these before. Looked them up and they look fabulous scopes. It'll go very nicely with the FOA. You will have lots of great viewing with that combination. Congratulations!

Malcolm 

Eduard (the owner of Agema) was the master optician for TEC for 13 years and he was in the business before then. He has 30+ (might be closer to 40) years of experience making telescopes. I decided I wanted to get one of his scopes before there was a waiting list like with Astro Physics.

[garryblueboy]

I’ve owned several Mewlons a 250 and a couple of 210 over the years they are excellent scopes but the intes 715 deluxe beats them hands down in my opinion 

[MalcolmM]

29 minutes ago, garryblueboy said:

I’ve owned several Mewlons a 250 and a couple of 210 over the years they are excellent scopes but the intes 715 deluxe beats them hands down in my opinion 

That's another nice looking scope. I'm glad I caught Takitis early on before knowing about all these other premium scopes; I struggle with too much choice sometimes

Malcolm 

[PatientObserver]

On 18/06/2023 at 03:05, garryblueboy said:

I’ve owned several Mewlons a 250 and a couple of 210 over the years they are excellent scopes but the intes 715 deluxe beats them hands down in my opinion 

I had not heard of Intes Micro (likely because I have spent most of my time researching refractors). I will keep the brand in mind once I decide to purchase a reflector.

On 18/06/2023 at 03:37, MalcolmM said:

That's another nice looking scope. I'm glad I caught Takitis early on before knowing about all these other premium scopes; I struggle with too much choice sometimes

Malcolm 

Finding a quality brand is one of the ways I prefer to limit my choices. Analysis paralysis is real.

[Deadlake]

Given the reports of the Mewlon not dewing up, and seeing the pictures presume no dew shield required. 

This is always required on the C11 to keep the front plate clear with a dew strap running.

The Mewlon just  needs fans to get to ambient temperature?

[dweller25]

55 minutes ago, Deadlake said:

Given the reports of the Mewlon not dewing up, and seeing the pictures presume no dew shield required. 

This is always required on the C11 to keep the front plate clear with a dew strap running.

The Mewlon just  needs fans to get to ambient temperature?

Correct, no dew shield required.

Cool down is it’s biggest issue but can be managed - I place a small usb computer fan on the front spider to cool the primary and also use a 40mm usb fan placed into a 2” extension tube in the visual back to pull cool air through the baffle - this is important.

My 180C continues to impress, it holds collimation perfectly and once cooled stars are very tight. But it’s the contrast it delivers that is the big surprise - for a scope with a central obstruction the contrast is very high.

And the mirrors are supposed to be 1/20th wave 👍

 

Edited June 21, 2023 by dweller25

[bosun21]

On 18/06/2023 at 08:05, garryblueboy said:

I’ve owned several Mewlons a 250 and a couple of 210 over the years they are excellent scopes but the intes 715 deluxe beats them hands down in my opinion 

I have also loved the Intes Maksutov scopes. My friend has a 715 and it’s the sharpest planetary scope I’ve ever looked through. Ed Ting sings its praises on his review of one 👇

 

[garryblueboy]

6 hours ago, bosun21 said:

I have also loved the Intes Maksutov scopes. My friend has a 715 and it’s the sharpest planetary scope I’ve ever looked through. Ed Ting sings its praises on his review of one 👇

 

Yep that’s the one great scope I had to part ways with mine to be able to afford the TEC  140ED  definitely the best MAK- SCT  I have ever looked through and I have had many 

[JeremyS]

11 hours ago, Deadlake said:

Given the reports of the Mewlon not dewing up, and seeing the pictures presume no dew shield required. 

This is always required on the C11 to keep the front plate clear with a dew strap running.

The Mewlon just  needs fans to get to ambient temperature?

Not needing a dew shield is one of the many Mewlon pleasures 

I’ve not used a fan on my M210 as I store at ambient temperature. Though I can see their use. Long cool down is a bit of a myth, though I can see it could be an issue in climates where the day-night temperature drop is large.

[PatientObserver]

I admit it, I am a Takaholic. I found a Mewlon 180C for a price I could not refuse. Now to figure out how to collimate it ...

 

[JeremyS]

1 hour ago, PatientObserver said:

I admit it, I am a Takaholic. I found a Mewlon 180C for a price I could not refuse. Now to figure out how to collimate it ...

 

Collimating a Mewlon.

I found post 11 most useful https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/283204-mewlon-210-finally-arrived/

post 2 here also good https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/354729-best-ever-collimation-video/?p=4548838

It’s relatively straightforward . No drama needed.

Do remember to loosen the screw upside the one you tighten.

[JeremyS]

1 hour ago, PatientObserver said:

I admit it, I am a Takaholic. I found a Mewlon 180C for a price I could not refuse. Now to figure out how to collimate it ...

 

 

Oh,  and you can never have too many Taks 😊👍🏻

[PatientObserver]

5 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

Collimating a Mewlon.

I found post 11 most useful https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/283204-mewlon-210-finally-arrived/

post 2 here also good https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/354729-best-ever-collimation-video/?p=4548838

It’s relatively straightforward . No drama needed.

Do remember to loosen the screw upside the one you tighten.

Thanks! I already had the first link bookmarked, but I had not seen the second thread yet.

4 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

Oh,  and you can never have too many Taks 😊👍🏻

Next Takahashi purchase should be a second FOA-60Q so I can build a binoscope. Though I am not sure when I will be able to begin that project.

[MalcolmM]

That's a beautiful setup @PatientObserver. Great views on a clear night, and a great view just sitting in the corner of the room when it's cloudy 🙂

Malcolm 

[MalcolmM]

Having just re-read this thread thanks to @PatientObserver and @JeremyS bumping it (if that's the correct expression), I figured I should answer my original question having owned both scopes for a while now.

As others have said, when the conditions line up (cooling,  seeing etc) the Mewlon gives very noticeably better lunar and planetary views than the 4". On deep sky, if you can ignore the smaller FOV, the Mewlon's extra light grasp makes for much more spectacular views. 

Despite being a bit heavier, it's just as portable as the 4" thanks to the clever finder/handle and is easy to lug around and attach /detach to/from mounts.

The only areas where the 4" beats it (in my experience) is cool down time and tightness of the stars; it's a fabulous scope, but it's not a refractor  🙂

Malcolm 

[PatientObserver]

1 hour ago, MalcolmM said:

Despite being a bit heavier, it's just as portable as the 4" thanks to the clever finder/handle and is easy to lug around and attach /detach to/from mounts.

I was surprised how light it felt. It was very easy to mount in the AZ75 V Saddle.

[PatientObserver]

Having used it for a few nights I can say I am very satisfied with my purchase. The views of the Moon have been amazing. Thanks for helping me decide to purchase a Mewlon 180C.

Despite the horror stories I was told elsewhere, no collimation was needed.

[MalcolmM]

4 hours ago, PatientObserver said:

Having used it for a few nights I can say I am very satisfied with my purchase. The views of the Moon have been amazing. Thanks for helping me decide to purchase a Mewlon 180C.

Despite the horror stories I was told elsewhere, no collimation was needed.

I'm glad you like it. It has a reputation of being a planetary/lunar scope but I find it great as a deep sky scope too,  with  2" eyepieces. It has given me some 'wow' moments, with much brighter views than the 4". Double cluster (which just fits in to the FOV), Orion Nebula, M13 and Wild Duck Cluster being particularly notable. The only disappointment was the Pleiades not quite fitting into the FOV despite a FOV calculator suggesting it would. 

Malcolm 

[PatientObserver]

4 hours ago, MalcolmM said:

I'm glad you like it. It has a reputation of being a planetary/lunar scope but I find it great as a deep sky scope too,  with  2" eyepieces. It has given me some 'wow' moments, with much brighter views than the 4". Double cluster (which just fits in to the FOV), Orion Nebula, M13 and Wild Duck Cluster being particularly notable. The only disappointment was the Pleiades not quite fitting into the FOV despite a FOV calculator suggesting it would. 

Malcolm 

The FOV is narrow. That is one reason a refractor is such a good complement to it (that and I can use the FOA-60Q while I am waiting for the Mewlon to cool).

I am looking forward to pointing it at the Orion Nebula. I have not tried yet as Luna is reflecting too much light. Only the brightest stars have been visible the last few nights.

[MalcolmM]

19 hours ago, PatientObserver said:

The FOV is narrow. That is one reason a refractor is such a good complement to it (that and I can use the FOA-60Q while I am waiting for the Mewlon to cool).

I am looking forward to pointing it at the Orion Nebula. I have not tried yet as Luna is reflecting too much light. Only the brightest stars have been visible the last few nights.

I see, from another forum, you have done some comparisons with the TLPs. I get the feeling, from all I have read, that they are very good eyepieces but not necessarily a huge step up from any other premium eyepieces. Would you tend to agree? I suspect they would be excellent in the Mewlon, but I can't believe I would find them noticeably better than my Tak Abbes or Masuyamas (but I'd love to be proved wrong 🙂 )

Malcolm 

[JeremyS]

1 hour ago, MalcolmM said:

I see, from another forum, you have done some comparisons with the TLPs. I get the feeling, from all I have read, that they are very good eyepieces but not necessarily a huge step up from any other premium eyepieces. Would you tend to agree? I suspect they would be excellent in the Mewlon, but I can't believe I would find them noticeably better than my Tak Abbes or Masuyamas (but I'd love to be proved wrong 🙂 )

Malcolm 

Think you need to do some tests, Malcolm. EPs are very personal 🤣

[MalcolmM]

5 hours ago, JeremyS said:

Think you need to do some tests, Malcolm. EPs are very personal 🤣

I've used the next ten year's astronomy budget. Need help here 🙂

Malcolm 

[PatientObserver]

7 hours ago, MalcolmM said:

I see, from another forum, you have done some comparisons with the TLPs. I get the feeling, from all I have read, that they are very good eyepieces but not necessarily a huge step up from any other premium eyepieces. Would you tend to agree? I suspect they would be excellent in the Mewlon, but I can't believe I would find them noticeably better than my Tak Abbes or Masuyamas (but I'd love to be proved wrong 🙂 )

Malcolm 

I bought my eyepieces out of a need (I had a turret to populate), not as an upgrade. I compared them to the Pentax XW as I already owned them. I think I lack the experience (or maybe the seeing) needed to notice the subtleties of the differences between premium eyepieces. The views through my Pentax and TPLs are both excellent. So it comes down to other features for me. The TPLs are much smaller and have less mass. This makes them perfect for my turret. The Pentax XW have an adjustable eye guard, and are very easy for me to use.

Others have noticed improvements between the Takahashi Abbes and the TPLs. I cannot says as I have never looked through them. I have not seen any reports mention the Masuyamas yet. I may try those once I build my binoscope, but I do not not how long that will take me to complete.

My opinion is that the eyepiece forum on the other site often turns into fandom battles. People shout the praises of their preferred manufacturer, and look down on anyone who makes the slightest statement against an eyepiece from their favorite brand. Honestly, it is one of my least favorite forums. So yes, in my limited experience, I tend to agree that most premium eyepieces are good, and it is the subtle differences and/or brand loyalty that drive our preferences.

Edited September 30, 2023 by PatientObserver

[JeremyS]

The TPLs have yet to appear on this side of the Atlantic.

There are hopes that @Highburymark  might be an early tester 🤞🏻😊

Edited September 30, 2023 by JeremyS