A (fair) battle of the titans 😉

[Stu]

Having done a couple of very unfair comparisons between entry level and high end kit, I thought I would give this a go; ST80 vs a dismounted StarSense LT80AZ. f5 vs f11 achros of similar standard just to show the differences.

I have just received some more 90mm tube rings and a longer dovetail for the LT80 so can now mount both side by side. I’ll try them with original kit and then with decent diagonals and eyepieces because I suspect the optics are actually fairly decent once you get those cheap accessories out of the way.

Pics here of the setup, will have to wait for a clear sky coinciding with some spare time which seems to be at a premium lately.

Watch this space….

[John]

Hope you get some clear skies to compare them under soon Stu.

My zoom comparison is proving hard work - hard in the sense of getting much observing lately !

 

[RobertI]

Looking forward to this Stu. I was all set to do a comparison between my Celestron 70mm F10 ex-Starsense Achro and my 66mm F6 ED, but haven’t managed it yet. I was quite impressed with first light with 70mm though, I managed to see some small bright planetaries, easily see M81/82 and split some close doubles. Can’t ask for much more from a small cheap achro with a plastic tube.  

[Stu]

Haven’t forgotten this one, will get to it as soon as a convenient clear night happens to coincide with me being home, not tired or with anything else on my list….. 🤪🤪

[Bugdozer]

I expected this to be the JWST versus a Meade ETX with a scratched mirror. WHO WILL WIN?

[John]

I know which one would win the "shows the whole of the Veil nebula ?" category 🙂

 

[bosun21]

On 09/08/2023 at 00:29, RobertI said:

Can’t ask for much more from a small cheap achro with a plastic tube.  

I’m pretty sure that the LT70 I bought for the Starsense unit had an aluminum tube albeit thin aluminum.

[Stu]

Just now, bosun21 said:

I’m pretty sure that the LT70 I bought for the Starsense unit had an aluminum tube albeit thin aluminum.

Yes, the LT80 is lightweight but a thin metal tube. Feels quite nice for the money, apart from the mount!

[DaveL59]

1 hour ago, Stu said:

Yes, the LT80 is lightweight but a thin metal tube. Feels quite nice for the money, apart from the mount!

Is the focuser a bit sloppy too? I was able to improve that somewhat with some teflon tape - food prep/heat-seal variety - applied to the outer focuser body ribs having removed the plastic silvered inner.