Question for Mewlon Owners

[JeremyS]

2 hours ago, Doctor D said:

Just an FYI. The open tube of the Mewlon's means it will be harder to acclimate them passively because cooler air falls down the tube and makes immediate contact with the warmer primary substrate and as a result, a boundary layer can occur which becomes more problematic if observers are setup in a climate with high deltas from day to night. 

What you describe is just the same as with a Newtonian reflector. So no more difficult with a Mewlon. 
 

The challenge with a Mewlon is acclimating the baffle. Easily dealt with by opening the front and back of the tube (main aperture and eyepiece holder).

[Doctor D]

No worries, you don't need to convince me about Mewlon's. I love them and post on them all the time on CN, particularly the baffles. These are just a few of countless threads I have on them.

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/894095-a-night-with-the-mewlon-180/

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/466960-takitis/page-56

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/920928-mewlon-250-just-acquired/#entry13425968

 

 

[JeremyS]

2 hours ago, F15Rules said:

I have read all of the above with interest.

I think I will stick with refractors.😉

Dave

Don’t believe it all, Dave. Refractors are great, as I can testify, but Mewlons are a bit special 😊

[JeremyS]

28 minutes ago, Doctor D said:

No worries, you don't need to convince me about Mewlon's. I love them and post on them all the time on CN, particularly the baffles. These are just a few of countless threads I have on them.

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/894095-a-night-with-the-mewlon-180/

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/466960-takitis/page-56

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/920928-mewlon-250-just-acquired/#entry13425968

 

 

Great video 👍🏻

I think I saw this was the Temma 2 ver of the EM200. Is that right? Does the Temma 3 have any additional capabilities? Presumably you can control both via SkySafari on an iPad?
 

[Doctor D]

11 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

Great video 👍🏻

I think I saw this was the Temma 2 ver of the EM200. Is that right? Does the Temma 3 have any additional capabilities? Presumably you can control both via SkySafari on an iPad?
 

 

Actually the Temma 2 was nicer than any other Temma's in my opinion. I had the later model pictured right and even the newer models had some features I didn't care for. 

[dweller25]

7 hours ago, John said:

Would insulating the tube work with Mewlons ?

Or does that only work with closed optical tubes such as SCT's and mak-cassegrains ?

No

Yes

👍

[MalcolmM]

6 hours ago, Doctor D said:

No worries, you don't need to convince me about Mewlon's. I love them and post on them all the time on CN, particularly the baffles. These are just a few of countless threads I have on them.

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/894095-a-night-with-the-mewlon-180/

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/466960-takitis/page-56

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/920928-mewlon-250-just-acquired/#entry13425968

 

 

Very interesting video, thanks for posting. 

Malcolm 

[MalcolmM]

7 hours ago, JeremyS said:

Hang on a mo. I think myths are being perpetuated. Well have the one about them being difficult to collimate next. 😊

Mewlons aren’t that difficult. In UK the temperature swings aren’t that difficult to acclimate to. I’m a refractor man, but the Mewlons are great (if you don’t mind diffraction spikes). The resolution on planets with my M210 is significantly greater than with my Tak TSA 120.

Agree wholeheartedly! In my case, the views in the 180C are significantly better than the 100DC.

Malcolm 

[dweller25]

@John

I find the Mewlon 180 a really interesting scope, it matches the TSA120 in planetary detail but gives a brighter and more colourful planetary image at the same magnification. It’s also fairly light.

As the eyes get older I find the extra light gathering becomes more important.

However, overall the TSA120 cools quicker and will be useable on more nights in my poor seeing area.

I suspect the above may scale up to the Mewlon 210 and 130/140mm APO.

 

Edited May 17 by dweller25

[F15Rules]

2 hours ago, dweller25 said:

However, overall the TSA120 cools quicker and will be useable on more nights in my poor seeing area.

Just for the record, I made my tongue in cheek remark about sticking with fracs precisely due to my local seeing. We live at the bottom of a hill (in Lincolnshire!!🤦‍♂️😂), a hill which rises from the bottom, where we are, at just over 100 feet above sea level,  to c 440 feet just a few hundred yards up the road.

This may not sound much, but it does cause regular temperature inversions which often play havoc with seeing into the early hours, after which time it does steady down a bit.

When we moved here I didn't know about this micro climate phenomenon, but was tempted by the Bortle 4 skies vs Bortle 5 back in the Midlands. In practice, since we lived here, this has definitely and regularly reduced my opportunities to observe in good seeing conditions.

Lovely though our rural location is, knowing what I know now, if and when we move again, my first astro priority will be a level location, with good southern horizon and no very close by tall trees and conifers!

I do agree that the Tak 180 Mewlon is a very interesting scope..it's light, compact, a nice aperture, and I just love the way the finder stalk doubles as a carrying handle (seriously, Jeremy!)..that feature alone speaks to superb, high precision engineering by Takahashi..👍

Dave

[PatientObserver]

My solution was just to pair the μ-180C with another scope I enjoy (in my case a Takahashi FOA-60Q) and use that until the view in the Mewlon exceeds that of the other scope. In the future, I plan on actively cooling it, but for the time being I am content with what I have.

[Doctor D]

Nice, little combo. 

[dweller25]

1 hour ago, F15Rules said:

Just for the record, I made my tongue in cheek remark about sticking with fracs precisely due to my local seeing.

That is the right strategy, I am also a frac man and have two. The Mewlon is the outlier due to it’s slow cooldown, although @JeremyS does not find that to be a problem…

But he does wear Tak tinted glasses 🤣

Edited May 17 by dweller25

[Deadlake]

On 17/05/2024 at 01:36, JeremyS said:

 I’m a refractor man, but the Mewlons are great (if you don’t mind diffraction spikes). The resolution on planets with my M210 is significantly greater than with my Tak TSA 120.

How does the Mewlon compare with a C11 planets. Presume you’ve given your C11 time off from spectro duties to compare? I’d expect the Mewlon to be sharper then the C11 as the mirror has a higher MTF, but how sharp compared to your TSA120?

[JeremyS]

I’ve not used my C11 visually.

The M210 is about the same as my C9.25 on planets, but not done side by side comparison. On stars there is no doubt: the Mewlon puts up far better images, more refractor like than SCT.

Edited May 18 by JeremyS

[Mr Spock]

Surely, as with all closed tube Cassegrains, all you need is a fan attached to the draw tube to extract air through the baffle tube? 

Not difficult to do. Just get a cheap 2" extension and glue a 12v fan to it. I can see a 50mm silent fan for £4.99...

[dweller25]

5 minutes ago, Mr Spock said:

Surely, as with all closed tube Cassegrains, all you need is a fan attached to the draw tube to extract air through the baffle tube? 

Not difficult to do. Just get a cheap 2" extension and glue a 12v fan to it. I can see a 50mm silent fan for £4.99...

Yup, thats the best way to cool the baffle down in the Mewlon 👍

Edited May 18 by dweller25

[Deadlake]

4 hours ago, JeremyS said:

I’ve not used my C11 visually.

The M210 is about the same as my C9.25 on planets, but not done side by side comparison. On stars there is no doubt: the Mewlon puts up far better images, more refractor like than SCT.

C9.25 is meant to have better contrast then the C11 as a smaller corrector, but not surprised star test is better for the Mewlon. I use the C11 is low power mode, however where it wins is larger image scale then APO's.  
I suspect the Mewlon is the same when compared to smaller aperture scopes.

[Doctor D]

If you know how to acclimate each scope, the Mewlon's consistently throw up cleaner air discs at high magnifications compared to SCT's based on my side by side experiences with all of them. 

[dweller25]

1 hour ago, Doctor D said:

If you know how to acclimate each scope, the Mewlon's consistently throw up cleaner air discs at high magnifications compared to SCT's based on my side by side experiences with all of them. 

Careful Daniel, you said acclimate not acclimatize, so this English site is affecting you 🤣👍

Edited May 18 by dweller25

[Doctor D]

You are absolutely correct. 😂

[Doctor D]

I forgot to mention the owner of the C11 now has an M250. 

[JeremyS]

Hmmm those M250s must be good…..https://www.astrobuysell.com/uk/propview.php?view=214871

[Deadlake]

35 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

Hmmm those M250s must be good…..https://www.astrobuysell.com/uk/propview.php?view=214871

Mewlons are not meant to good  near the coast due too sea salt carried in shore on the wind.

Any photos from Damien of C11/4 vs Mewlon 250?

Surprised Takahashi have not shipped one to him...

Edited May 19 by Deadlake

[dweller25]

2 hours ago, Deadlake said:

Mewlons are not meant to good  near the coast due too sea salt carried in shore on the wind.

Any photos from Damien of C11/4 vs Mewlon 250?

Surprised Takahashi have not shipped one to him...

No scope is going to be safe near the coast 😱

Edited May 19 by dweller25