plyscope
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 11/23/06
Loc: Perth, West Australia
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: Happy-Idiot]
#3550706 - 01/09/10 09:53 PM
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Good picture Brian, I like seeing snow. It is mid summer down here in West Australia, we never see snow even in winter except for on top of the Stirling Ranges. Looking forward to hearing more about the Jaegers too.
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dawsonian2000
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 07/26/06
Loc: Riverview, FL, USA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: Happy-Idiot]
#3551261 - 01/10/10 08:15 AM
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That's a great shot of you and your Jaeger's, Brian! I just hope your optics didn't frost over!  
Mel
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Happy-Idiot
Stuck with it
Reged: 04/06/06
Loc: 3rd Rock
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: dawsonian2000]
#3551268 - 01/10/10 08:24 AM
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Mine did but the scope's didn't. 
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BarabinoSr
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 11/17/05
Loc: Slidell La
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: Happy-Idiot]
#3551469 - 01/10/10 10:35 AM
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Great Scope and picture,Brian.I like the blue scope color!!!  Gary (G  )
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Happy-Idiot
Stuck with it
Reged: 04/06/06
Loc: 3rd Rock
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: BarabinoSr]
#3551684 - 01/10/10 12:15 PM Attachment (168 downloads)
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Thanks Andy,Mel,and Gary for a great post, it is nice to finally place a face with the user name. It is like a Star Party you talk to people all night long and never get to see their faces. Unless you stay at the party until the Sun rises, i have done that a few times.  You feel almost hung over the rest of the day, i guess you could call it an Astro/hangover or a hang-nova.
I forgot the history part with the picture so i'll add it now but i'll keep it brief.
As a kid we would camp on the beach, light camp fires, and watch for satellites. It was all naked eye until about ten years ago when i moved to a dark sky location on the Eastern part of Long Island, lots of farms and few shopping centers. My first real scope was a 10" Hardin Optical Dobsonian, MAN o'MAN let me tell you it was the best first scope ever, i highly recommend it for beginners. I found myself buying scopes like crazy, new scopes, and they were not cheap. My wife stepped in and put a damper on my purchases. I decided to buy cheaper used scopes locally and a friend gave me a 3" Dynascope which was my first Classic. While researching the scope online i stumbled onto this forum. My next purchase was a Towa 339 and i was hooked. I have since slowed down on purchases and have actually sold most of my collection to fund AP. As of now i am down to a handfull of scopes. Some include a few Swifts, Unitrons, a Royal Astro,a super nice C-80, and the Jaegers.
The only thing i like more than observing and collecting Classics is ATM'ing. And as i mentioned before i would like to improve my Astrophotography skills. You guys and gals have been great and you taught me a ton, i plan on slowing down with collecting but i will stay here on the forum as long as i am welcome. 
BTW thanks to Astronomics for the forum, i like to buy my new equipment with them to support the wonderful job they have done here.
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akman1955
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/07/09
Loc: Alaska, USA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: Happy-Idiot]
#3551967 - 01/10/10 02:38 PM
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 What brian, your not going too buy any of my unitrons when i sell them?  great story brian and your always welcome in my book. John
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Crick no Watson
newbie
Reged: 02/03/09
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What qualifies as a classic? Meade 4550?
[Re: BarabinoSr]
#3553037 - 01/10/10 10:44 PM Attachment (189 downloads)
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What qualifies as a classic scope? A friend just gave me this Meade 4550 4.5" reflector on a equatorial mount. The equatorial mount was not working. When she tried to aim the scope it would slew over and crash into the tripod. She got it from her father but it was just sitting there. When I got it I noticed two capscrews that were loose allowing the gears to skip. I tightened these and it fixed one control but the slow motion control for the declenation was not working. I noticed a screw hole that has nothing in it. I could not find the right size screw. Anyone out there have this scope? Is yours like this or is it a home made fix? Anyways until I figure it out I made a dobsonian mount for the scope to be used with. Took one evening and today I glued on the lamanate for the teflon pads to ride on. Now putting on the last few coats of varnish. Only had to buy the white plastic bearings. Had everything else on hand in scraps or spare parts. Optically the scope seems very nice and also came with original eyepieces, 25mm and 9mm and one 2x barlow. All very clean and well taken care of.
Thanks Bonnie!
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bob gunnerson
journeyman
Reged: 11/13/08
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: akman1955]
#3553963 - 01/11/10 12:06 PM
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HOPEFULLY THIS IS TO THE CORRECT POST, BUT WHAT A NICE LOOKING EARLY UNITRON MODEL 150. IF YOU SHOULD EVER DECIDE TO SELL IT, PLEASE CALL ME AT 303-620-1389. THANKS, BOB GUNNERSON
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GeneDiG
sage
Reged: 05/31/05
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Re: What qualifies as a classic? Meade 4550?
[Re: Crick no Watson]
#3554068 - 01/11/10 01:00 PM
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Looks to me like it's an EQ2 mount. Spare parts, motor drives etc. are relatively easy to find.
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Awesomelenny
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/02/04
Loc: Long: 81.42 W Lat: 41.21 N
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: akman1955]
#3554782 - 01/11/10 06:55 PM
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Hey John,
Now why on Earth do you have that lonely Model 128 eq. mount sitting in the corner!!?? Come on now, put her up with the OTA and have all 3 of them up!!! 
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akman1955
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/07/09
Loc: Alaska, USA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: Awesomelenny]
#3554839 - 01/11/10 07:24 PM
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i did have it there...remember the camera on it. just stuck out in walkway too much. only takes a second too set up. frustrating here as -30 out now and nice clear skys but cant use as too cold. by the way eq mounted unitrons have a 2 at end of model number right? john 
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actionhac
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/09/08
Loc: WA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: akman1955]
#3555553 - 01/12/10 02:41 AM Attachment (193 downloads)
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2010 shot of me in my living room with my first telescope from 1965 when I was 8.
Made by Harmonic Reed Corp. 2.5" with an adjustable focal length ep.
I was hooked on Astronomy and used this scope for quite a few years, then built scopes with Edmund Scientific parts up into the early 1970's.
Drifted away from Astronomy until the late 1970's when I bought a used Edmund Scientific 4"f15 and then a Unitron 3"f15. Sold the Unitron and a few years later the Edmund in 1995.
Back into Astronomy in 2007 with a Edmund 4"f15 objective and Edmund 6"f8 reflector that a friend was trying to sell for his dad. I built a scope for the lens.
I like all kinds of telescopes, new and old but really enjoy the classics and building scopes from old parts and plans, and of coarse using them.
Robert
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dawsonian2000
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 07/26/06
Loc: Riverview, FL, USA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: Happy-Idiot]
#3555556 - 01/12/10 02:48 AM
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Hey Brian,
My sentiments as well! I thought the baseball cap in your avatar was permanently attached to your skull! 
I know what you mean about those Hardin's! Gary's 8" f/6 Hardin knocked my socks off when I visited him in Slidell, LA. During our observing session together, we used the Hardin and the star images were pin-point! I thought I was peering through a refractor! I did not see any diffraction spikes even on bright objects, such as Jupiter! I contribute that to the fact that he had flocked his spider vanes with ProtoStar flocking material. I plan to do the same with my 10" Newtonian when I upgrade its DEC axis' slewing system on its fork mount head. To add fuel to the fire regarding the Hardin 8, and after checking out M3 at low power, I told Gary to kick up the power. Man!... All I can say is... Diamonds! That scope bust that globular wide open and filled the field of his Wollensak 10mm beautifully at 121x!
Getting back on topic, I aspire to add a Unitron to my collection in the future, but as with you, I had to slow down on my purchases. Though Gelinda (my better half) is very understanding, she just can not fathom why I would need so many astronomical instruments. "Isn't one sufficient", she would exclaim! I put it all in perspective and tell her, "Isn't one purse sufficient"! Just kidding around, but our spouses do have a point... to a degree!
Mel
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dawsonian2000
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 07/26/06
Loc: Riverview, FL, USA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: akman1955]
#3555561 - 01/12/10 03:00 AM
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Hey John!
How in the world under those frigid conditions can you get your joints to move, let alone your telescope! Temperatures here in Riverview, FL are at freezing! I understand that -30 may be typical during this time in Alaska, but how do you manage to enjoy an observing session under such harsh weather conditions outside of apply layers of garments? All I can come up with is to stay indoors! 
Mel
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dawsonian2000
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 07/26/06
Loc: Riverview, FL, USA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: actionhac]
#3555580 - 01/12/10 03:45 AM Attachment (166 downloads)
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Hi Robert,
Thanks for sharing your story and photo of you and the telescope that helped launch you into amateur astronomy! This thread is definitely bringing out the raw history of classic scopes. Not only is this thread conveying the instruments of yesteryear, it is proving beneficial in showing the individuals who relished this telescopes when they were manufactured.
Here is a photo of me of recent with my 10" f/5.6 fork mounted Newtonian, and in the past with my first astronomical telescope, a Jason 60mm f/12 Constellation refractor, which appeared in the debut April, 2007 issue of ATT for my article "Fullfilling a Boyhood Dream, The Making of a Telescope". The inset photo shows me and my Jason when I lived in the Desire Housing Project in New Orleans back in 1972 at 14. Though not the same instrument, I now have an identical instrument in my possession today.
Mel
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akman1955
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/07/09
Loc: Alaska, USA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: dawsonian2000]
#3555881 - 01/12/10 10:31 AM
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hi Mel, the quik answetr is i dont take scopes out in these kinda temps. if i do take one out it frost up big time when i return too warmth of house and have to wipe off moisture..its too hard on scopes. the good thing is i work alone in a woodworking shop ( yes the little sheltie in avator is with me in shop) that i can pull my vehical in to keep it warm as kinda slow in winter. so mostly collect and dream untill warms up in few months. i cant kick alaska as its been good living here but 4 1/2 more years and iam leaving (retiring) after 50 years living here. Maybe florida/arizona/texas next john
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Preston Smith
The Travel Scope Guy
Reged: 04/24/05
Loc: Eureka, Pa
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: actionhac]
#3556177 - 01/12/10 01:02 PM
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Quote:
2010 shot of me in my living room with my first telescope from 1965 when I was 8.
Made by Harmonic Reed Corp. 2.5" with an adjustable focal length ep.
Robert
Great photo Robert! It's wonderful that you still have your first scope after all these years - and that it had successfully led you down the Astronomy path!
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actionhac
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/09/08
Loc: WA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: Preston Smith]
#3556223 - 01/12/10 01:24 PM
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I wish I had a photo of myself using it back when new but I don't. My family just didn't take many pictures.
It did start me off on Astronomy and using it today it's a surprisingly good scope.
What really sunk the hooks deep was Jr. high school 1970-72. We had superb Astronomy classes and lots of telescopes. Also model rocketry, wood shop and metal shop, great school.
Who ever said "if you can remember the 60's you weren't THERE"
I can remember the 60's, more so than the 70's, like it was yesterday and I was there?
Robert
Edited by actionhac (01/12/10 01:42 PM)
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actionhac
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/09/08
Loc: WA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: dawsonian2000]
#3556226 - 01/12/10 01:27 PM
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Mel,
That's a fantastic fork mount. I bet very strong and light weight.
Robert
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tim53
Postmaster
Reged: 12/17/04
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Re: Post a Picture of You and Your Classic Scope
[Re: actionhac]
#3556618 - 01/12/10 04:58 PM Attachment (176 downloads)
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This has been posted on the Pinos classics star party thread, but my previous pic is really old (like I am now), so I'm putting it here, too.
Me and the 6" f/15 Jaegers "4-day wonderscope" with the Zanteson 6" f/5 Jaegers piggyback. A bit much for the NJP, but it worked!
-Tim.
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