Anonymous
Unregistered
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It seems to me that the LX200 12" is a handful to mount, compared to the 10". While I would like to have the larger aperture, I have reservations about its weight and my ability to mount it up each night. Can anyone comment or give me their thoughts.
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jrcrilly
Refractor wienie again
Reged: 04/30/03
Posts: 22464
Loc: NE Ohio
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I agree completely. I had the 12" and only used it at home on the deck; loading and unloading it became too much like work very quickly. I had a 10" and used that one as my portable - worked out great.
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John C
Urban Observatory
Tele Vue Pronto
A&M/Astreya 76mm F/6 APO
TMB/LOMO 80mm F/7.5 APO
Tak FSQ-106N F/5 APO
Meade 152ED F/9 "APO"
152mm F/10 achromat
Tak CN-212 8" F/12 classical Cass/ F/4 Newt
Teeter 20" F/3.8 truss Newt w/ServoCat
LXD750, EM-200, CI-700
ST-10XME
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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My fear is that the work of setting up the 12" would get old fast, and therefore limit scope use.
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Echo
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/29/03
Posts: 3320
Loc: So Cal
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Mark,
The 12" is quite the beast as the tripod alone is over 50 pounds. The 10" is a piece of cake to set up alone as the scope swings down inside the forks.
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Queen of GOTO
Life is short.... get a massage!
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jrcrilly
Refractor wienie again
Reged: 04/30/03
Posts: 22464
Loc: NE Ohio
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Yup. I don't mean to start a Blue v. Gray controversy, but if portability is really important I'll comment that I found my Nexstar 11GPS much easier to transport and set up than either the 10" or the 12" Meade.
All three are great scopes and represent excellent value for the price. I never was able to decide that I prefer one brand over the other.
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John C
Urban Observatory
Tele Vue Pronto
A&M/Astreya 76mm F/6 APO
TMB/LOMO 80mm F/7.5 APO
Tak FSQ-106N F/5 APO
Meade 152ED F/9 "APO"
152mm F/10 achromat
Tak CN-212 8" F/12 classical Cass/ F/4 Newt
Teeter 20" F/3.8 truss Newt w/ServoCat
LXD750, EM-200, CI-700
ST-10XME
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stuart
super member
Reged: 11/09/03
Posts: 121
Loc: Australia
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G'day Mark i just recived my Lx200 10" and it's a lot heavier and big than you would think , although it should be allright for most blokes {and ladies, a member here Echo seems to have no trouble}I found it a bit tricky to attach it to the tripod , I guess with practice things well get easier . I reckon the 10" is on the verge of being portable for one person , the 12" {without seeing one }you would think would require at least 2 people to set up safetly. I haven't got a wedge yet for mine but attaching that could be interesting.
Stuart
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Echo
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/29/03
Posts: 3320
Loc: So Cal
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John,
I totally agree. I got a chance to see a couple of the Nexstar 11s in Arizona and was quite pleased. I would be very hard put to decide between the two if I were in the market for a scope.
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Queen of GOTO
Life is short.... get a massage!
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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Furthermore, it seems to me that just getting the 12" into a car for night veiwing would be difficult!
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Echo
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/29/03
Posts: 3320
Loc: So Cal
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Mark,
I would not want to try it! The 10" OTA in a JMI case weighs 90 pounds. It's the limit of what I want to wrestle into the trunk tired and in the dark.
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Queen of GOTO
Life is short.... get a massage!
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stuart
super member
Reged: 11/09/03
Posts: 121
Loc: Australia
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Mark when i got home with the new scope i found it difficult to get it out of the SUV because of the angle and limited room for leverage so for a 12" you would probarly have to take it out from the car first and than unload it from the storage box.Btw the scope comes in a neat package with foam matched to the Ota , when i first lifted the Ota the tube came loose from the locks , even when moving the whole scope the tube moves , so it's a bonus the tube fits inside the fork arms when moving.
Stuart
Ps:One thing I was worried about when deciding to purchase the 10"was the feild tripod , would it hold the weight. After using it to me it's fine , my first night with it was cloudless{incredable} but windy but the LX proved to be very steady, very impressed .
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Echo
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/29/03
Posts: 3320
Loc: So Cal
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Stuart,
Loading the scope on the tripod can be quite a hassle if the tripod isn't somewhat level.I just purchased a cheap little round bubble level to sit on the tripod to help level it out.
I hated trying to handle the shipping box so I bought the JMI case. Even though they are expensive, it has been worth it's weight in gold as far as hauling the scope in and out of the car and across the parking lots at viewing sites.
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Queen of GOTO
Life is short.... get a massage!
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stuart
super member
Reged: 11/09/03
Posts: 121
Loc: Australia
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I found when i unloaded the tripod and set it up , the spreader arms towards the bottom kinda of got a bit twisty and i wasn't sure if i should go the full extension, I was following the instructions so i continued slowly , once extened it was fine but the plate at the top looked a little uneven {i had it on fairly level carport}once the ota went on it looked okay.I've only put the Ota on the tripod once , i'll have aheart attack if i try again to soon ..lol. The box is a bit hard to handle and pretty much takes up the space in the car, i wonder what the Meade soft cases are like ?
Cheers Stuart
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Echo
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/29/03
Posts: 3320
Loc: So Cal
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Stuart,
I've seen a 12" soft case. They seem to hold up well. The proportions are the same as the box as they are designed to hold the foam the scope shipped in if I remember correctly. I like the fact that the JMI is hardsided and can take a bit of a beating.
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Queen of GOTO
Life is short.... get a massage!
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Anonymous
Unregistered
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Echo,
I saw the JMI cases in the recent Sky & Tele mag. It does seem pricey...but handy. Is the outer shell thick enough plastic so it doesn't flex too much? And do the wheel retract in some fashion so you lay it flat on the wheel side?
It sounds as though (and I appreciate your advice regarding person-handling a heavy scope and mount late at night with a tired body) the aperture gain of the 12" over the 10" is not "worth" the aggravation of setting it up. Additionally, I understand the fork used for the 12" is the same as the 10". Which, of course is the reason it does not swing down between the forks.
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JerryWise
Postmaster
Reged: 12/26/03
Posts: 6876
Loc: Lexington, SC
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I have a 10" with the little table thing on the top of the tripod with bubble level, aligning pegs (so the scope slides into proper position for threading the tripod bolt into) and a place for the controller. Love the scope but if you add much to it (diagonal, weight set, etc.) it can be tough to handle. Maybe it's just me, but I get real paranoid moving a heavy piece of delicate optical equipment like that. Granted, to take it to star parties I have to take it down four flights of stairs (one is attic fold down type). I am 6'2"/200 and that little exercise is like running 4 miles.
Finally gave in (when I saw a good deal on a new one on EBay) and bought a Celestron 8" GPS for Star Parties and Dark Sight gatherings. It's a lot more portable. I think most of the difference is in the handle positions. You can get one hand low and one hand high on the Celestrons which gives you a little more control with the top heavy scopes. I would bet Echo and the others have a better procedure than I do for controlling the scope while setting up. Could you go through how you setup the tripod, take the scope out of the Jimi and put it on the tripod head kinda in detail. Like where you grasp the scope lifting it out and how you carry it? Do you do everything holding the fork handles or grab the bottom somewhere? I do it all with the fork handles and it's tough on the wrist after awhile.
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Jerry
LX200ACF 14", Tak FS 152 & TOA 150
AP-1200 & Mach1
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stuart
super member
Reged: 11/09/03
Posts: 121
Loc: Australia
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I share about the same porportions to you Meddyn so I kinda feel embarrased admiting the 10"is a handful , going up four flights of stairs is a big effort. I'v e seen the scopesaver accessory plus the spring mod that keeps the centre bolt below the top of the tripod and the body strap that connects the ota close to the body, I guess if Mark goes for the 12" some of these options might make it easier to set/transport with.The JMI case looks great but pricey $400us double that and add a couple in Aus currency.
Stuart
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JerryWise
Postmaster
Reged: 12/26/03
Posts: 6876
Loc: Lexington, SC
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I hadn't seen the body strap yet. Stuart, not to deviate too much from the thread, but what are your skies like down in Australia?
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Jerry
LX200ACF 14", Tak FS 152 & TOA 150
AP-1200 & Mach1
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Echo
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/29/03
Posts: 3320
Loc: So Cal
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Meddyn,
I only have to haul the scope out of the closet and into the car! The wheels on the JMI case are inset so the scope can lay flat. I just lift/carry the OTA by the handles. It isn't that hard to swing it up out of the case onto the tripod. BTW, I'm from Greenville, S.C.
Stuart,
Sorry, I did not realize you were in Australia. That would really increase the price of the case. Big ouch!
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Queen of GOTO
Life is short.... get a massage!
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stuart
super member
Reged: 11/09/03
Posts: 121
Loc: Australia
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The skies round my hometown of Perth Western Australia are'nt to bad ,mediterran climate {I've heard it's similar to San Diego S/Calfornia}we have a pretty good ratio of clear nights vs cloudy nights.Typical city situation with light pollution but there's a range of hills {500m max}east of the city that has a large forest belt that provide cover from the city glow and offers great sites to set up {probarly 40 min from home to site}.Have't had a chance yet to try the new scope under darker skies but will the Easter break, Orion still visible , Southern cross up high, LMC/SMC and Scorpius later in the evening with galaxy hunting in between, you beauty.I think i saw the body strap on the LX200 or Lx200gps yahoo group , don't sure if it's a commercial product or someone's concept but it looks like a nifty idea , it seems to free up your hands to tighten the central bolt and insurance against making a slip.
At the moment the Aussie dollar is trading ok against the greenback {.74c} which made the Lx real attractive to buy {i brought it for $5600, i think it's just above $2000 us}about a year ago the price was up near the $7000 mark for a 10". It's pretty much double and add half for gear here , Aus just does'nt have the same competition that i think exists over there in the US.
Stuart.
Ps:How's Arnold going over there in Calfornia as Gov
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JerryWise
Postmaster
Reged: 12/26/03
Posts: 6876
Loc: Lexington, SC
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Sounds like a great area Stuart. Always wanted to see the Southern Cross. Maybe one day. The body strap makes sense. Basically, anything that could slip through the handles would be good as long as you didn't secure it around your neck. Sorry about the cost of things there. I bet shipping for vendors is pretty rough. I just sold a CR150 on EBay and a fellow from Aus. asked about shipping. It was pretty heavy.
Echo, those wheels make sense. I got one of the Jimi cases for the Celestron 8". It looks fine but it is made out of some kind of super slick plastic. I tried to set a lens on it and it shot off the top into the carpet. Oh, I graduated from Wade Hampton. Live on Lake Murray now.
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Jerry
LX200ACF 14", Tak FS 152 & TOA 150
AP-1200 & Mach1
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