Pst or Lunt 50

[Neil H]

Hi everyone this has probably been asked before , at the moment I do white light with my bresser 127 and Lacerta wedge , I now want to move into HA , i don't have a huge budget so it's down to 2 scopes a PST with double stack or the Lunt 50 Tha b600pt,  if I add a double stack it doubles the price so it's well out of range  , so my question is would the Lunt without the double stack give me better views than the PST with a double stack ??

I will keep looking at second-hand  market for a Lunt with double stack at a good price but they don't come up very often

Kind regards Neil

[Highburymark]

There’s a double stack filter for the Lunt 40 being launched - don’t know if that would be in your price range but I’d take that over a PST double stacked if possible.
If that’s too pricey, then personally, I’d go for a Lunt 50 SS over a PST DS, and wait to save up in the future for a secondhand Lunt 50 DS filter, no matter how long it takes. In the meantime you’ll still get nice views - in particular of prominences, which are stunning in single stacked scopes, although you’ll get less detail of surface features like filaments. But the Lunt 50 will also give you more resolution than the PST - and it’s considerably better built. The PST is really showing its age now, and the customer support from Meade is patchy since the company’s financial problems a couple of years ago. So my decision would be to go for the Lunt 40DS if affordable, and if not, LS50, with a view to double stacking in the future.

[Alan White]

Neil

I can reccomend the addition of Ha I did this late last year or a tight budget and am very pleased.
I bought the B600 version of the Lunt 40 and most pleased with a single stack.
Having looked through PST, the B600 LS40 is a brighter and slightly larger image.

 

[Neil H]

Thanks guys that's answered my question the Lunt does look a better made scope , so is the 40 better than the 50 ?  

[Peter Drew]

Difficult to give a definitive recommendation due to several variables.  I have had ss PST's that gave better images than ss 50mm Lunts, I was initially unimpressed with a ds PST and ruled out ds on small apertures as not being worth the considerable extra expense.  However, I recently double stacked a PST with a Lunt 35mm etalon and the results are amazing, the only drawback being it running out of light by about 40x.  My interest lies in high magnification/high res closeups of solar detail for which a larger (and cheaper) PST mod provides.  I'm happy with my 35mm hybrid ds though as a great g&g unit.   🙂

[Highburymark]

That’s the problem Neil - every etalon is different, as Peter has highlighted. I’ve seen some single stack scopes that perform like double stacks. It’s become a cliche but it’s luck of the draw. The best advice if you’re buying new is to choose a retailer with a good returns policy like FLO, just in case you get a lemon - though these are pretty rare these days, particularly with Lunt. The LS40 seems to be a particularly good scope going on forum reviews alone. 

The other option is to wait for the right secondhand scope to come up, which they do fairly often. This also gives you the opportunity to try before you buy, so you know what you’re getting. 

[Carbon Brush]

+1 for @Highburymark suggestion. Also @Peter Drew Yes etalon performance does vary.
If you can see the results from a 2nd hand scope you are looking to buy, that is ideal.

I used to own a PST. For 'go outside and look immediately' it was very good. But it didn't take long to find the limits.
My LS60 (pressure tuned) has a bit more setup but produces more.

I found a Solarquest mount really good. You don't have anything like the alignment/levelling of other mounts.
It comes in handy when you leave a scope out all day and you have to move around the garden to avoid shadows.
Though you can persuade your night time tracking mounts to look sunward to save some money.

HTH, David.

[Neil H]

Hi I always try 100% to buy from FLO , they don't do the 40 Lunt they start at 50 so if I get the Lunt I will have to save up for the double stack if it needs it which is one question ? If the PST which already have the double stack is about same price of 50 Lunt with no double stack is that better ? Hard question I know 

I trust the members on here to send me in the right direction 

[Neil H]

1 minute ago, Carbon Brush said:

+1 for @Highburymark suggestion. Also @Peter Drew Yes etalon performance does vary.
If you can see the results from a 2nd hand scope you are looking to buy, that is ideal.

I used to own a PST. For 'go outside and look immediately' it was very good. But it didn't take long to find the limits.
My LS60 (pressure tuned) has a bit more setup but produces more.

I found a Solarquest mount really good. You don't have anything like the alignment/levelling of other mounts.
It comes in handy when you leave a scope out all day and you have to move around the garden to avoid shadows.
Though you can persuade your night time tracking mounts to look sunward to save some money.

HTH, David.

Hi I was going to buy the SW solar mount with the telescope , just a bit lost what one to get 

[Carbon Brush]

Forgot to say.....

In the days when I had my PST, attaching a cameara was all but impossible.
The image focus was too close to the scope. I manages something using an eyepeices and adapters to DSLR - not a good option.
I heard of people cutting things down to allow focus. Also the scopes differed in focus.
I would hope - but maybe someone knows - that today's PST is more camera friendly.
The LS60 by comparison is no problem.

[Carbon Brush]

Hi Neil.

I use the solarquest, extension and tripod. That is what I bought (new) and it handles the LS60 weight.
The mount works really well. The tripod is somewhat under engineered in my opinion.
However, you are not looking for long exposure photos so a bit of twist and shake is acceptable.
I am thinking about putting mine on a heavier duty tripod.

[Neil H]

I think I read somewhere it's still a hard job to attach a camera to the pst , I was hoping for an easy answer but looks like that's not as easy to answer , the Lunt must be better due to its price but is it ??

Solar quest mount is the one I was going to get my HEQ5Pro does not track the sun well 

Edited March 12, 2023 by Neil H
More info

[wookie1965]

31 minutes ago, Neil H said:

I think I read somewhere it's still a hard job to attach a camera to the pst , I was hoping for an easy answer but looks like that's not as easy to answer , the Lunt must be better due to its price but is it ??

Solar quest mount is the one I was going to get my HEQ5Pro does not track the sun well 

If you use a compass and point the mount bang on North with that the handset has a solar tracking setting on it. Only need to tweak every now and again. I tracked mercury from one side to the other no problem. 

[Neil H]

Hi Paul I know what your saying but was going to make a solar set up  that's Grab and go

[IB20]

There’s a Lunt 60 on ENS for a decent price.

https://ensoptical.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=14591

Edited March 13, 2023 by IB20

[Neil H]

Yeah I did look at it but not saved enough yet, shame 

[Elp]

Imaging with a PST:

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/383486-coronado-pst-imaging-focus-issues-with-zwo-224mc-or-dslr/

 

[LDW1]

The SW SolarQuest with the HelioFinder is the best with both my Lunt 40 and now my Lunt 50. It finds and tracks dead on. Not cheap but there is nothing better, when it is set up, levelled and tracking I doubt if there is any movement in the legs, I would be more worried of a wind blowing. The first 2 is the 50mm and the last was my 40mm.

Edited March 13, 2023 by LDW1

[LDW1]

I loved the great views from my PST but the Lunts even more so. because of their design / features / accessories. I wouldn't shy away from any of them !

Edited March 13, 2023 by LDW1

[LDW1]

Not long ago on CN one or two of the better solar photographers posted some pretty nice full disc photos using the relatively new Lunt 40, pretty nice !

[Carbon Brush]

Dug this out from 12 years ago.
I think it was my solution to putting a Baader Hyperion & DSLR on a PST.

Not a good solution as it puts a lot of glass (to cause reflections) into the light path.

[tico]

Hello, 

I've the Lunt 40 b600, really a great solar scope, comparatively with a PSt, very old and a good Lunt 50 b400, I like more the Lunt 40 image, in visual mode, why? 

I Don't Know!! 

All above is my humble and personal opinión!! 

Thanks, 

Tico

[Peter Drew]

I'm not completely surprised.  Solar telescopes at this level are subject to quality of performance variations which can lead to a smaller aperture at times outperforming one of slightly larger size.    🙂

[Owmuchonomy]

I don't know if it has been improved in recent times but the only drawback with my Lunt 50 was the terrible helical focuser.  I quickly saved up for a Lunt 60 and thus a much improved R&P unit.

[Neil H]

That's a bit of a worry as they still come with that focuser , can you remember what the problem was with it