A couple more 'fracs

[John]

The first one is my ED100 on an EQ5 sitting on a Tele-Optic ash tripod. The finder is an Antares 50mm RA which I have just got from Gordon. As you can see this tripod really gets the eyepiece up to a decent height and is very steady (even with the 150mm on board).

Next we have the Helios (Synta) 150mm f8 with the same mount / tripod / finder combination. I need to add some more weight to the focusser end to get a more even balance on the tube - as supplied they are very "top heavy".

Cheers,

John,

North Somerset

[geppetto]

Very nice setup John

Love that tripod 8)

[GordonCopestake]

Looks great John! Love that tall tripod! Where did you buy it from? Glad you got a bracket sorted for the finder. Looks good!

I may have to consider re-purchasing the ED100!

[John]

Hi Gordon,

I got the tripod used from UK Astro Ad's. I paid £85 plus petrol to go and get it - I think they are around £300 new - Bray Imaging do them. The pictures don't really do it justice - it weighs about 8KG and is really solid - a huge improvment over the standard alu tripod especially (for me as a big bloke) in getting the scope up high so that kneeling in the mud to view the zenit should be a thing of the past - when set up as shown in the picture (not quite a max) the top of the tripod is around 1.6 meters high.

I managed to get the finder to fit the mount by sanding off the rough spots on the inside of the mount ring, at the front. The finder now just about squeezes in - not too much room for movement though so I hope I don't need to adjust it too much to get it lined up with the scope.

Having owned both the ED80 and the ED100 I'm a great fan of them - I'm tempted to get an ED80 again to compliment the 100 but I'm all spent up at the moment !!.

Cheers,

John.

[FLO]

That tripod really looks the biz 8)

(Ash is fantastic for suppressing vibration; it's why they use it for hammer handles)

[GordonCopestake]

Ahhh yes, i think i've asked you about the tripod before. It DOES look fantastic though. Great setup.

The ED100 is a great scope it's a shame it's not a little faster, if it was f/7.5 like the ED80 and still had the same colour correction it would be fantastic

[FLO]

The Skywatcher (Synta) 150 f8 is a scope I have often considered for myself.

I remember Tom had one and rated it very highly:

http://tinyurl.com/hvb6q

[John]

Any reports on those Skywatcher ED120's yet ? - they are f7.5 I think.

I'm still "feeling my way" with the 150mm frac - I may not hang onto it for too long due to it's sheer size and weight but it's great fun when it's set up - the moon looked fantastic tonight - the terrain on the terminator was bright white etched against inky blackness - just how a refractor image should look I think.

John,

North Somerset

[GordonCopestake]

I've heard some initial reports that say the ED120 is actually better than expected. The colour correction isn't as good as the ED100 (which isn't as good as the ED80) but still pretty good. Although for the new price I would stump up the extra for a ZS110