Retailer's checks

[Scosmico]

Hi, 

Which Telescope(refractor) retailers in the UK check your purchased telescope (e.g. collimation) before shipping?

 

[DirkSteele]

First Light Optics have at least certain models professionally checked before they ship.

 

I know Astrograph check over the APM LZOS scopes though I do not know if that extends to other makes.

 

The Widescreen Centre definitely checked  over my Tak FS-60 and FC-76 scopes.

 

Others may also do so but I have not bought scopes from other retailers (at least ones that still trade).

[Mandy D]

12 hours ago, Scosmico said:

Hi, 

Which Telescope(refractor) retailers in the UK check your purchased telescope (e.g. collimation) before shipping?

 

Rother Valley Optics check some of their scopes (including refractors) before shipping and have a very nice optical bench in a clean room with an interferometer. Having said that, my latest telescope from them, the 300PDS, was collimated before they delivered it to me, but on receipt the collimation was significantly out, but that was very likely down to having been transported.

Edited September 27, 2023 by Mandy D
typo

[Carbon Brush]

Certain scopes (and related items) are not handled by the retailer.
Items are often drop shipped from a central warehouse.
I believe a significant number of Skywatcher products come direct from the OVL warehouse.
Then of course if you buy from the 'long river company'.....Well there are threads on SGL about that.

[Mandy D]

@Carbon Brush Long River Company? A search brought up nothing for me. I guess your quotes mean the phrase is perhaps not literal ...

[DaveS]

The emporium that begins with "A", named after that long river in South America.

[Mandy D]

7 hours ago, DaveS said:

The emporium that begins with "A", named after that long river in South America.

D'oh!

[John]

If I was purchasing a triplet refractor then I would probably arrange to pick it up myself rather than trusting it to a courier, even if it had been checked prior to sending. 

[Greymouser]

On 27/09/2023 at 22:32, John said:

If I was purchasing a triplet refractor then I would probably arrange to pick it up myself rather than trusting it to a courier, even if it had been checked prior to sending. 

If you don't mind @John could you expand on this please? I have been considering getting a triplet, from FLO of course, but Exeter is a bit far from me. Is it so much more risky than getting a doublet delivered? Might have to reconsider things...

[John]

50 minutes ago, Greymouser said:

If you don't mind @John could you expand on this please? I have been considering getting a triplet, from FLO of course, but Exeter is a bit far from me. Is it so much more risky than getting a doublet delivered? Might have to reconsider things...

I might make an exception with FLO because of their service record 🙂

More generally though, I know what I am doing with doublets but triplets are, to me, somewhat more challenging and, if the collimation gets a knock, diagnosing the issue and then sorting things out can be a much more complex affair. 

With the best will in the world, one can't know how a package is treated when it gets into the hands of a courier. It seems to me a risk to have a triplet checked and tested at before the start of it's journey, then subject it to the uncertainties of a courier. 

I'm probably over cautious on this though. I have only owned one triplet and I was able to collect that and bring it home myself from a seller whom I knew and trusted.

 

Edited September 29, 2023 by John

[Greymouser]

Thank you John. Food for thought.

[JeremyS]

On 27/09/2023 at 19:51, DaveS said:

The emporium that begins with "A", named after that long river in South America.

What is the reason that some don’t like using its name in full? I can guess why, but it seems to be a feature of this Forum.

[johnturley]

On 27/09/2023 at 22:32, John said:

If I was purchasing a triplet refractor then I would probably arrange to pick it up myself rather than trusting it to a courier, even if it had been checked prior to sending. 

I am planning to get a Takahashi 100 DZ Refractor after selling my Celestron CPC 9.25 (selling due to back problems), and although I usually buy most of my Astro stuff from FLO, I will probably get the 100 DZ from Rother Valley Optics (who are just 15 miles away from me), so that I can pick it up in person, so as to avoid the risk of any possible damage or misalignment of the optics, due to rough handling by the courier. When I purchased my Esprit 150 (from FLO), this was 'drop-shipped' direct from OVL (the UK Skywatcher distributor) to ES Reid for testing, and I arranged to pick up the scope direct from ES (whom I know personally) after testing.

I will however, probably buy the tube clamps and saddle plate to attach the 100 DZ onto my AZ-EQ5 from FLO, as they offer a better choice which are more competitively priced. FLO also appeared more knowledgeable than RVO in so much as they  pointed me towards an adapter bar to enable the attachment of the Takahashi cradle to the AZ-EQ5 mount, whereas RVO said that it wasn't possible. Utilizing this adapter bar with the Takahashi Cradle, however works out more expensive than the StellaLyra 95mm tube clamps, and I gather is also less stable. 

John 

Edited September 30, 2023 by johnturley

[John]

On 30/09/2023 at 11:02, johnturley said:

I am planning to get a Takahashi 100 DZ Refractor after selling my Celestron CPC 9.25 (selling due to back problems), and although I usually buy most of my Astro stuff from FLO, I will probably get the 100 DZ from Rother Valley Optics (who are just 15 miles away from me), so that I can pick it up in person, so as to avoid the risk of any possible damage or misalignment of the optics, due to rough handling by the courier. When I purchased my Esprit 150 (from FLO), this was 'drop-shipped' direct from OVL (the UK Skywatcher distributor) to ES Reid for testing, and I arranged to pick up the scope direct from ES (whom I know personally) after testing.

I will however, probably buy the tube clamps and saddle plate to attach the 100 DZ onto my AZ-EQ5 from FLO, as they offer a better choice which are more competitively priced. FLO also appeared more knowledgeable than RVO in so much as they  pointed me towards an adapter bar to enable the attachment of the Takahashi cradle to the AZ-EQ5 mount, whereas RVO said that it wasn't possible. Utilizing this adapter bar with the Takahashi Cradle, however works out more expensive than the StellaLyra 95mm tube clamps, and I gather is also less stable. 

John 

I can see the sense in that. Taks are packaged better than most other scopes though. My FC100-DL (purchased from Ian King) came triple boxed with expanded polystyrene struts supporting and separating each layer. Very impressive.

 

 

[mikeDnight]

On 30/09/2023 at 11:02, johnturley said:

I am planning to get a Takahashi 100 DZ Refractor after selling my Celestron CPC 9.25 (selling due to back problems), and although I usually buy most of my Astro stuff from FLO, I will probably get the 100 DZ from Rother Valley Optics (who are just 15 miles away from me), so that I can pick it up in person, so as to avoid the risk of any possible damage or misalignment of the optics, due to rough handling by the courier. When I purchased my Esprit 150 (from FLO), this was 'drop-shipped' direct from OVL (the UK Skywatcher distributor) to ES Reid for testing, and I arranged to pick up the scope direct from ES (whom I know personally) after testing.

I will however, probably buy the tube clamps and saddle plate to attach the 100 DZ onto my AZ-EQ5 from FLO, as they offer a better choice which are more competitively priced. FLO also appeared more knowledgeable than RVO in so much as they  pointed me towards an adapter bar to enable the attachment of the Takahashi cradle to the AZ-EQ5 mount, whereas RVO said that it wasn't possible. Utilizing this adapter bar with the Takahashi Cradle, however works out more expensive than the StellaLyra 95mm tube clamps, and I gather is also less stable. 

John 

I've bought several Tak refractors over the years, all but one has been delivered by courier. I've had no real issues, and the scopes were very securely packaged deep within the triple boxing. As far as the tube clamps are concerned, I have heard it implied that the Tak clamp isn't as rigid as rings, but it really is. So over all I wouldn't worry too much about either issue.

[John]

On 01/10/2023 at 17:04, mikeDnight said:

..... As far as the tube clamps are concerned, I have heard it implied that the Tak clamp isn't as rigid as rings, but it really is. So over all I wouldn't worry too much about either issue.

I can only agree with this. My FC100-DL is F/9 (so longer than the DZ) but the Tak tube clamp does an excellent job of holding the tube really securely. If folks prefer tube rings for other reasons then so be it but the Tak tube clamp is a very effective, reliable and robust item that has been proven over decades of Tak owners.

 

[JeremyS]

I tried rings. Once. Stick with the Tak clamshells 😊

Tak know what they are doing.

[johnturley]

41 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

I tried rings. Once. Stick with the Tak clamshells 😊

Tak know what they are doing.

Would that be the case however, if the Tak was mounted on a Skywactcher AZ-EQ5 using the following:- 

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/takahashi-other-accessories/takahashi-tkp71423-dove-tail-male-for-mewlon-210.html

One review suggested that it wasn't an ideal solution, and works out more expensive than the StellasLyra tube rings when you add on the cost of the Takahashi clamshell

John 

 

Edited October 3, 2023 by johnturley

[John]

7 minutes ago, johnturley said:

Would that be the case however, if the Tak was mounted on a Skywactcher AZ-EQ5 using the following:- 

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/takahashi-other-accessories/takahashi-tkp71423-dove-tail-male-for-mewlon-210.html

One review suggested that it wasn't an ideal solution, and works out more expensive than the StellasLyra tube rings when you add on the cost of the Takahashi clamshell

John 

 

I use one of those bolted straight onto the Tak clamp with M8 bolts. 

It's survived fine the past 7 years on a succession of mounts.

[mikeDnight]

4 hours ago, johnturley said:

Would that be the case however, if the Tak was mounted on a Skywactcher AZ-EQ5 using the following:- 

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/takahashi-other-accessories/takahashi-tkp71423-dove-tail-male-for-mewlon-210.html

One review suggested that it wasn't an ideal solution, and works out more expensive than the StellasLyra tube rings when you add on the cost of the Takahashi clamshell

John 

 

The Tak dovetail bar is slightly narrower than the standard Vixen/Skywatcher version, so if the locking screws are on the short side they may not securely hold the dovetail bar. I found the small secondary locking screw on my GP mount was too short to reach the bar, so I replaced it with a longer one. I'm sure some have used the Skywatcher or Vixen dovetail bars instead of the Tak Mewlon dovetail. They're much cheaper too!

[John]

14 minutes ago, mikeDnight said:

The Tak dovetail bar is slightly narrower than the standard Vixen/Skywatcher version, so if the locking screws are on the short side they may not securely hold the dovetail bar. I found the small secondary locking screw on my GP mount was too short to reach the bar, so I replaced it with a longer one. I'm sure some have used the Skywatcher or Vixen dovetail bars instead of the Tak Mewlon dovetail. They're much cheaper too!

I've just looked at mine - it turns out that it is an Altair !

Nothing more annoying than slightly narrower DT bars. William Optics did something similar a few years back for some reason best known to themselves