Meade LX850 12"

[Adrian1664]

Hello everone,

I would be gratefull for some advice please.

I have inherited a Meade LX850, tripod, counter balance, lenses, tube etc etc.

I have attached photos.

I intended using the kit myself but now I have it I have realised it is way too fancy for my limited experience.

It is all unused and lots of the boxes/packaging are unopened.

My question is, where is the best place to get it aprased, valued and sold? I'm based in the north west of England.

Any help will be greatly received.

Tia,

Adrian.

 

[Ratlet]

Not sure about where to get it valued, but are you sure that you've got the 12" scope there?  I see what looks to be a massive refractor in one of the boxes.

Maybe ENS or either valley optics can help?  

Depends on what you are looking for in terms of money.  If you want to move it on quickly a reseller can probably help but you'll get less (as they'll need to make a bit of money of it when they sell it).  Alternatively you could see if there is someone who can help appraise it and you can sell it on yourself.

[Cosmic Geoff]

Apparently the LX850 was a mount, which was bundled with a range of Meade SCTs.

Meade 14" f/8 LX850 ACF Telescope with StarLock and Tripod

Apparently the Starlock is a refractor guide telescope attached to the main one. Visible in photos?

You would be advised to get an expert valuation.

If you can figure out what exactly you have got, using the Meade site, just divide the price of a new one by 2 for an approximate valuation.

Edited March 2 by Cosmic Geoff

[John]

It certainly looks like a refractor telescope in the hard case - maybe a 127mm Explore Scientific triplet refractor like this: ?

 

 

Edited March 2 by John

[Louis D]

Try to get some pics of the scope's markings in the case so we can properly identify it.  It alone might be worth thousands in like new condition.

The mount when new was about $7500, pre-inflation.  I don't know what the secondary market demand for such a mount is today in your neck of the world since you didn't specify a location.  They appear to have recently sold in the US on Cloudy Nights classifieds for between $2500 and $3500, so quite a hit to the new price.  These Meade mounts don't hold their value like AP, Parallax, Paramount, and other low volume, custom made mounts that can be difficult to buy new in a timely manner.

[Naughty Neal]

The Black ES carbon  refractor in the long box will be quite valuable even as a used item, somewhere likely between £1500 - 2k.

The Meade would have been valuable  but depends exactly what you have there,  If you also have a 12"  Blue OTA in the tall cardboard box then you have some quite expensive gear there.

All told you have some pretty costly telescopes/parts there and we don't yet know what eye pieces  there may be, if there are eye pieces then going by the quality of the telescope /mount  then one can expect the eye pieces will be top notch as well.   Some one must have thought a lot of you to leave such a valuble inheritence.

It certainly needs proper evaluation and pictures of everything left to you, a top notch used eye piece can be £200 or more.

If one wanted to keep any of the items to use then ES carbon refractor would be a keeper along with any eyepieces.

 

Edited March 2 by Naughty Neal

[Naughty Neal]

UK LX850 starlock with tripod price new is £7.9k.

ES carbon 102mm ed is £2k new.

Es Carbon 127mm ed is  £2.6k new.

Edited March 2 by Naughty Neal

[Naughty Neal]

Starlock and lx600 12"  currently on ebay for nearly £7k so gives one an idea of possible value.

[Louis D]

Based on recent "Sold" CN classifieds, if this LX850 comes with a 10" ACF scope, figure about $4500 with the mount.  If a 12" ACF, about $5500.  The 14" package ranges more broadly from $6500 to $7500.  This is in the US.  If you're in Europe or elsewhere, the market price could be far different.

[Naughty Neal]

The inheritence to SGLers is like a small Aladdin's cave.

[Cosmic Geoff]

I don't think the OP is going to return and enlighten us.  If you look on the Meade website, it pictures the 'Starlock' as a sizeable refractor/guidescope, comparable in length to the main OTA. Astonishingly, the setup includes a third optical assembly, for detecting widefields. I wonder what it all does. If I had a country property, a rollon/rolloff observatory and a wad of money, I'd be tempted to get one.