Telescope Reviews: my unistar deluxe has arrived

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Equipment Discussions >> Mounts

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maltydog
member

Reged: 09/13/12

my unistar deluxe has arrived
#5454080 - 10/03/12 07:57 PM

i ordered a unistar deluxe with the heavy duty tripod. it arrived today and all i can say i wow - what a nice setup. i will mount my new ES 127ED on it. Tonight is the first night of clear skys since i got the scope (and mount) so this will also be first light for the new scope. now i have to decide whether to view first light or watch the debate. ha ha, not much of a decision.

i love the simplicity of an alt az mount - especially one that is buttery smooth and easy to balance. this is a mount you keep the rest of your life. i appreciate the fast shipping from UA (Larry). i actually got the mount a day earlier than expected. Plus the fed-ex boxes arrive in pristine shape (compared to the banged up boxes from UPS shipments).

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rigel123
Postmaster

Reged: 06/29/09

Loc: SW Ohio

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: maltydog]
#5454343 - 10/03/12 11:29 PM

rules say you must have pics!

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maltydog
member

Reged: 09/13/12

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: rigel123]
#5454366 - 10/03/12 11:43 PM

will do in a day or so.
just got in from first light; the unistar worked very well. smooth. i do need to extend the tripod legs a bit. i was on my knees a lot when pointing near zenith. nice views though.
gw

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Agatha
professor emeritus

Reged: 06/04/12

Loc: Minneapolis, MN

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: maltydog]
#5454733 - 10/04/12 09:12 AM

Congratulations. I look forward to some pictures of everything set up.

Linda B.

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Grandpa Jim
old fogey

Reged: 08/04/12

Loc: GREAT AMERICAN DESERT

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: Agatha]
#5455583 - 10/04/12 07:15 PM

ME too!!!

I'm thinking about a "Unistar" for my "ES" AR-102, so I'm itching to find out out what "hands on" is like.....................

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m1618
member

Reged: 09/18/12

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: Grandpa Jim]
#5455623 - 10/04/12 07:47 PM

i was looking into the unistar deluxe as well. Wondering... would I be able to nudge/guide it without much play to track a planet or moon? I'm trying to imagine what it would be like to not do the fork mount/etch-n-sketch type movement using the dials of alt/az. Is it truly silky smooth?

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maltydog
member

Reged: 09/13/12

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: m1618]
#5455656 - 10/04/12 08:06 PM

yea, pretty smooth. my highest power was about 160 magnification. kind of wish i would have bought the handle. currently just grab the whole scope and move / track with it. i beleive the handle may make it easier to nudge / track. you can adjust the tension on teh movement. i took some pictures this afternoon. plan to post a few but i have seen a few other recent posts with pictures of the mount so my pics will probably not show anything that has not already been posted.
gw

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maltydog
member

Reged: 09/13/12

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: maltydog]
#5455799 - 10/04/12 10:01 PM

ok, here a a few pics:

'Ol yeller

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10gauge
sage

Reged: 10/31/10

Loc: Boston

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: maltydog]
#5455819 - 10/04/12 10:11 PM

Looks great! I hope you enjoy many hours with your setup. Is there any backlash? How is the movement under higher powers? How is the balance maintained when you switch to a heavier eyepiece?

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maltydog
member

Reged: 09/13/12

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: 10gauge]
#5455836 - 10/04/12 10:20 PM

the instructions say to use your "average" weight eyepiece then adjust the tension to keep things steady while you change eyepieces. however, if you make a BIG change such as putting in one of those monster eyepieces or 2 inch barlow, etc. then you will probably need to slide the scope a bit to re-balance. that is actually fairly easy to do, just loosen the knows on the rings a bit or just leave them a bit loose and you can move the tube forward or backward.

i didn't notice backlash. no problem tracking my first night out but as stated above my highest power EP is only 160 so not a big challenge. it is a nice piece of equipment and i will happily use this for many years (along with my atlas eq mount).

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m1618
member

Reged: 09/18/12

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: maltydog]
#5456024 - 10/05/12 01:45 AM

Beautiful setup!
Curious... how does it swivel? Which part rotates? I'm guessing some flange plate lube? I wish someone had one at a star party to test out. Larry should post a video on youtube.

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Paul G
Post Laureate

Reged: 05/08/03

Loc: Freedonia

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: maltydog]
#5456115 - 10/05/12 05:42 AM

Nice pics! I have the Unistar Light Deluxe on a Gitzo cf tripod and it will carry a 130 f6.3, so you should be very happy with your setup.

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catboat
sage

Reged: 12/01/09

Loc: Maine

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: maltydog]
#5456123 - 10/05/12 05:58 AM

Quote:

kind of wish i would have bought the handle. currently just grab the whole scope and move / track with it. i beleive the handle may make it easier to nudge / track.

Congrats! I have the unistar and unistar light and am happy with them.

About the handle: You might find the handle helpful, but my own experience with the handle is that 1) it's pretty short and 2) it can introduce a bit of wobble at the attachment point.

Overall, I find the moving the tube of longer OTAs more satisfactory. It provides a larger "vernier" scale and (for me) that translates to smoother movements.

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maltydog
member

Reged: 09/13/12

Re: my unistar deluxe has arrived new

[Re: m1618]
#5456186 - 10/05/12 08:02 AM

Quote:

Beautiful setup!
... Larry should post a video on youtube.

good idea. if i get bored and clouded out this weekend, i may make a short video of the movements and post up.

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