Is this scope any good? OPTISAN-150 150mm (6") f/750 Newtonian Reflector

[tenbyfifty]

Here's is the link:

http://www.sherwoods-photo.co.uk/sky_watcher/skywatcher_newtonian_reflectors.htm

its £50 cheaper than the similar size skywatcher but this makes me suspicious - anybody round here ever bought one?

[John]

I have never owned one but the rumours are that the Optisan scopes don't have a parabolic primary mirrors and therefore won't perform well - especially working at a focal length of 750mm (F5). I would definately find the extra for the Skywatcher equivilent which are good scopes.

John,

North Somerset

[The Warthog]

Not that the description of the Optisan says "Newtonian Reflector" and the description of the SkyWatcher says "Parabolic Newtonian Reflector."

Spend the extra £50.

[crepitis]

Having been there with a "Bargain" 8" reflector only to find out, the hard way , that the mirror was

not parabollic and wasnt even fit to use as a shaving mirror, I would advise likewise...save up the extra

cash, or wait for a price cut on the parabollic morrored scopes.

Cheers, Bob.

[tenbyfifty]

Thanks guys thats all the info I need.

There is a site - (ace cameras) where you can buy it for £130 so they must be pretty desperate to unload it.

What's the skywatcher six inch like on planets - can it really go to 300x effectively?

[The Warthog]

A friend of mine has a Skywatcher 6" dob, and it is very good on planets, but he uses Pentax eps, too. I think the newt is f/5, so it may be a little different story, however I can go to 300x with my 6" f/5 Celestron and get more detail on a good night. Still, I tend to use it at 100x or so most of the time. I did most of my observing this weekend at 37x.