First Light Vixen AP and Berlebach UNI8

[MalcolmM]

I have been out of action for a week with a bad back and ironically the skies have been pretty good!

Lost patience last night, and dosed up with prescription painkillers I thought I'd give my new Berlebach UNI8 and Vixen AP a go.

In summary they were a joy to use.

I made 4 journeys outside to minimise the weight I had to carry. Tripod, then Vixen, then FS60CB and finally eyepieces and Starbook One controller. All very manageable individually. The mount went onto the tripod very easily and I did a very rough polar alignment. I then attached the scope and balanced it ... again very easy.

The UNI8 feels very solid and in truth is probably capable of more than I will ever put on it. It is also a thing of beauty I now appreciate why there are so many fans of this make on this forum. The UNI8 does not extend very high and I was aware of this when I bought it. But I was prepared to compromise this for the smaller collapsed size and slightly lower weight. I think for a long refractor though I would need an extension pillar; or maybe a cushion on the ground would suffice

I really love the Vixen AP. It runs off batteries so no power leads needed (though it can run of a USB power pack). It's max slew speed is only x60 so you are not going to be power slewing from one part of the sky to another. However, there are no clutches to do and undo, you just manually move the telescope to your next target  and you can use the controller for fine tuning. It really was a joy and easy to skip from one target to another. It kept everything in view nicely despite a very rough (by eye) polar alignment. I took a couple of pics with a DSLR attached to the scope. Only 15 second subs but the stars look pretty tight to my untrained eye. I have attached one of M36 and M38.

I took it out again this morning to do a bit of solar viewing. Again I was struck at how easy it was to take the rig out in bits and assemble in situ, despite having to move very carefully with minimal twisting and bending! A complete guess this time for the polar aligning! But despite that, it tracked the sun for an hour with very minimal tweaks.

I think I am going to really enjoy this combination of tripod and mount. I do not need it to carry very heavy scopes. I do not need it to track accurately for AP (though I'm told it's very capable at this with polar alignment accessories and error correction capabilities). It's grab and go light, though I have yet to attempt this! It could sit on a Berlebach Report tripod quite happily which would make the setup even lighter. It would also provide an excellent light setup for bundling in the back of a car and taking to a dark site.

I know this mount is very expensive and I have no experience of other EQ mounts but I feel it exudes quality and is very simple to use and, importantly for me, is a real pleasure to use. 

Malcolm

[JeremyS]

Looks a great setup Malcolm. The BB tripod and Vixen AP look like a marriage made in heaven 

[F15Rules]

Beautiful Mount and Tripod!👍

Dave

[dweller25]

Very nice setup 👍

[Justin P]

Great looking set up ! 
 

Incidentally how did you choose the BB Model itself ? They produce such a large range it’s a little overwhelming ! 
 

 

[MalcolmM]

Thanks all!

@Justin P I went round the houses a few times on the choice of BB. I was originally going to get one of the Vixen tripods but various posts and pictures from @JeremyS (and others) persuaded me I simply had to get a BB! A Report was my first choice (and I still suspect it might have been a better choice as the mount is quite light) but I felt I wanted the option of putting a bigger scope on and having a rock solid base so a UNI seemed the next step up. I didn't want too much height so it came down to the 18 or the 8 and the 8 was a bit lighter and had a smaller fold down size. I must admit their range is a bit bewildering. I'm still not sure I can see the difference between the UNI 4 and 8. 

FLO were very good and ordered it for me even though it was not listed on their website .

Malcolm

[Justin P]

16 hours ago, MalcolmM said:

Thanks all!

@Justin P I went round the houses a few times on the choice of BB. I was originally going to get one of the Vixen tripods but various posts and pictures from @JeremyS (and others) persuaded me I simply had to get a BB! A Report was my first choice (and I still suspect it might have been a better choice as the mount is quite light) but I felt I wanted the option of putting a bigger scope on and having a rock solid base so a UNI seemed the next step up. I didn't want too much height so it came down to the 18 or the 8 and the 8 was a bit lighter and had a smaller fold down size. I must admit their range is a bit bewildering. I'm still not sure I can see the difference between the UNI 4 and 8. 

FLO were very good and ordered it for me even though it was not listed on their website .

Malcolm

Great thanks for the info. I’m some time off buying one but it’s the end goal ! I have been looking at the Planet - I’m intending to only ever buy one and so this seems a fairly good way of future proofing the purchase. Will take another look at the model you went for though. Incidentally, do you not find yourself ‘stooping’ to reach the eyepiece ? I went out last week with a friend and found it quite difficult to keep steady when stooped down leaning into the telescope if that makes sense - so assumed a larger tripod perhaps with a small pier would be the most comfortable option.

[MalcolmM]

40 minutes ago, Justin P said:

Great thanks for the info. I’m some time off buying one but it’s the end goal ! I have been looking at the Planet - I’m intending to only ever buy one and so this seems a fairly good way of future proofing the purchase. Will take another look at the model you went for though. Incidentally, do you not find yourself ‘stooping’ to reach the eyepiece ? I went out last week with a friend and found it quite difficult to keep steady when stooped down leaning into the telescope if that makes sense - so assumed a larger tripod perhaps with a small pier would be the most comfortable option.

I try and do all my observing sitting down where possible. I use an old bar stool that has adjustable height (though I'd love one of those BB observing chairs!). That being said, I have yet to use a long refractor on this mount/tripod (only received it a week ago) and I suspect the eyepiece will be very low when looking at objects high in the sky!

So yours is a valid concern and I may yet regret not going for a taller option!

I have heard nothing but good reviews of the Planet but it was heavier than I wanted. I think it is ~11kg. The UNI18, which I considered, is ~8kg. The UNI8 is only 6kg and that is what swayed me.

It's all a compromise

Malcolm

[Joacim]

On 01/03/2022 at 23:00, MalcolmM said:

Thanks all!

@Justin P I went round the houses a few times on the choice of BB. I was originally going to get one of the Vixen tripods but various posts and pictures from @JeremyS (and others) persuaded me I simply had to get a BB! A Report was my first choice (and I still suspect it might have been a better choice as the mount is quite light) but I felt I wanted the option of putting a bigger scope on and having a rock solid base so a UNI seemed the next step up. I didn't want too much height so it came down to the 18 or the 8 and the 8 was a bit lighter and had a smaller fold down size. I must admit their range is a bit bewildering. I'm still not sure I can see the difference between the UNI 4 and 8. 

FLO were very good and ordered it for me even though it was not listed on their website .

Malcolm

Great looking kit you have there

 

Not an Expert on berlebach models but I think the difference on the Uni 4 and 8 serie is following:

4 is for "photo" and 8 Astro. But the 4 can also be had in "astro mode" with the spreadstop and tray but always with 1/4" or 3/8" screw mount and the 8 series you can choose all of the different mounts.

The number before the model is how tall it is so, 8 < 18 < 28. 

Same with the Report serie.

The first number is height, second is mount module (0, 1, 4, 7) and last is model. so a 212 is taller then 112, have a 1/4" or 3/8" center screw and is model 2. 

 

 

 

 

 

[osbourne one-nil]

I know this is an old thread but lovely to see one of these in use. How are you enjoying it?

I've just bought myself one, but it's only got a drive on the RA axis. I've bought it to primarily act as a portable camera tracker or to take unguided shots with my Redcat51 and Fuji X-T3. I know it's massively expensive, but based on my experience with a SXD2 mount, I know how great Vixen stuff is. If it's anything like its bigger brother it will perform flawlessly in an understated and simple way. 

The polar scope in my SXD2 is redundant these days as I only use it for imaging and therefore polar align using my ASIair. I can swap that into the AP-SM mount when it arrives and I'm pretty confident I'll be able to get some great tracking. 

[Franklin]

It's a great little mount, you won't be disappointed.

 

[MalcolmM]

@osbourne one-nil, I second what @Franklin says, it's fantastic and I have nothing negative to say about it. I've even loaded it up with a Mewlon 180 (6kg, needed extra counterweight) and it seemed fine though the skies have been so cloudy I have not really tried that combination in anger yet.

Malcolm 

[Franklin]

1 hour ago, MalcolmM said:

I've even loaded it up with a Mewlon 180 (6kg, needed extra counterweight) and it seemed fine

I put the SD103s (5.5kg) on when in APZ mode and that setup is an absolute pleasure to use. In AP mode, it will handle the 103 but at high mags it starts to get a bit wobbly. The SD81s was made for the AP, I love it so much I've even had the crazy idea that I should get a focal reducer and a OSCC.......... Oh no!!!!!

[osbourne one-nil]

Lovely stuff! I’m strangely excited to receive something so simple and, objectively, over-priced. But I think it’s cheaper in the long-run for me to go with Vixen stuff because it just works without compromise. 
 

I initially thought about a star tracker, but I’d be limited to photography and the tracking accuracy might frustrate. I thought about a CEM26 as it has goto, but I think it wouldn’t work without power and you’d have to rely on the handset to slew. The AP seems to offer great tracking or completely manual use if I so wanted. 
 

I wonder if I should get a nice 3” frac for visual fun?!

[osbourne one-nil]

4 minutes ago, Franklin said:The SD81s was made for the AP, I love it so much I've even had the crazy idea that I should get a focal reducer and a OSCC.......... Oh no!!!!!

That’s precisely what I’m pondering!!

[Franklin]

22 minutes ago, osbourne one-nil said:

I wonder if I should get a nice 3” frac for visual fun?

My SD81s on the AP/APZ has revolutionized my observing, I'm out at every opportunity. Can't fault it in any way, yes it's pricey but I picked mine up with the DEC motor used for 1/2 price, best astro purchase I've ever made. Dual axis, single axis, completely manual, EQ, Alt-Az, travel mount with the APP-130 or big boy on the SXG130 and half-pillar and of course you can just use the RA axis alone for a very posh star-tracker. You can even rig it up to a Starbook10 for fancy Goto as well. Some folk think that Vixen brought this out to replace the famous GP mount, I think not, I have a GP2 and it's a fantastic EQ mount but the AP is a totally different product that is completely unique, there is nothing else on the market like it. I heard people knocking this mount because of it's price versus it's capacity and yes it's no heavyweight but the quality of the engineering is something else. It's built like a Swiss watch and cannot be compared in any way to a budget mount that has the same capacity. IMO anyway.

Edited July 14, 2022 by Franklin

[osbourne one-nil]

But you only need high weight capacity if you're loading it up. I won't be loading it up!

I love my SXD2 - it's fantastic, but I sometimes feel it's underutilised doing astrophotography as the Star Book Ten is redundant* other than as a way to connect everything, and most of the time I'm not involved in the process at all. The AP gives me another option - either with DSLR photography, remote photography/observing or purely visual. I suspect I'll be very happy!

 

*I don't think I'll be able to redeploy the Star Book Ten as it's the only way the ASIair can communicate with the mount; there's no EQMod option for this one!