Review of the APM 152 ED serial number 245

Review of the APM 152 ED serial number 245

Here is my astronomy bio, so we can clarify where my biases are and my experience.

I restarted the hobby in November 2008. My first “real” telescope was a Meade Schmidt Newtonian, which taught what I liked and what I didn’t. I really liked nice focusers and while the SN6 was a nice widefield scope, it was very hard to get a lot of power, so planets were always small. I joined AAI of Cranford NJ as a member and as the Sidewalk Astronomy chair at AAI 2009-2011. We did over 50 observing sessions with the public. My first goal as an Amateur Astronomer was to complete the Messier list which I did in 2010, that was the year I started in Astrophotography. I got into meteorites in 2011 and have a pretty nice collection (over 3 kilos of meteorites). I was also a member of UACNJ and was the recording secretary from 2012 to 2014. On January 2015 I had my first picture published in Sky and Telescope, I’ve been published in several newspapers, trade journals and other magazines. In March 2017, I had 2 photos published in 101 Amazing Sights in the Night Sky. I also had several gallery showings including a 28-picture presentation in 2017 and a 15-picture showing in 2018. I have sold several (over 15) framed astro photos.

As to telescopes I have used visually extensively the below are a few and some notes for each one:
 

Celestron 9.25 = Mechanics C, Optics B. Major issue is image shift. Light bucket, bloated stars

Meade SN 6 = Mechanics C-1, Optics B+. Focuser sucked was replaced with a moonlite. No flatner available that correct field to the edge for imaging. Hard on eyepieces.

Orion 80MM EON = Mechanics B, Optics B. Fast optics hard to get high power, dim view. Good imaging scope with a moonlite.

Stellarvue SV 70T = Mechanics B+, Optics B-. As good as the Orion 80MM. The risers and focuser are nice, but hard to motorize, focuser upgraded to moonlite. Question is it better than the Orion 80MM, hard to answer.

Tec 140=Mechanics A, Optics A. As good as I have seen. Probably perfect scope.

AP 178= Mechanics A, Optics B. Probably the best at its time. Newer glass actually improves on color correction.

Explore Scientific 152= Mechanics B, Optics C = This is a triplet? Wow, not impressed.

Explore Scientific 127= Mechanics B, Optics B- = The 120 EON has more contrast and better color correction.

Orion 120MM EON = Mechanics B, Optics A- = Needed a moonlite for imaging, but otherwise, a light weight, very good scope. Not a TEC or TAK, but honestly don’t feel like I need it.

TAK TOA 130 = Mechanics B+. Optics A= Optically perfect. Cost is too high, for same amount you can get a TEC 140. Focuser is mehhh. Does this thing need to be made out of neutron star material? Why is this scope so HEAVY?

I’ve looked at a few more, but this gives you an idea of what I feel about a particular scope mechanically and optically.

BUT I know you don’t care about the other scopes, you care about the APM 152MM and here it goes:

Mechanics: This scope is an A

The focuser is robust, super smooth and doesn’t shift. The dual rotation and shift lock really make the 3.7” focuser premium. The only issue is the lack of space for a 2nd finder. Not a major issue, but if you could do one thing to make it better, that would be it.

The dew shield is massive and its sliding. Fixed Dew shields SUCK!!! Really SUCK. If your scope has a fixed dew shield, you should sell it to Chas  not really kidding, I don’t like fixed dew shields, the lock is a nice touch.

The paint job on the APM is superb. Really really nice and pretty. I will state, I have no idea how it will hold up over time, but now it’s really nice. 

Robust rings and the losmandy dovetail is a beast. Heavy duty and solid. The dovetail needs 2 stop screws, for .98 cents at Home Depot, get them before the scope falls on the ground. The handle is a great idea, all refractors should come with a handle.

The case is incredibly robust. Well thought out and super strong, only recommendation would be a handle in the front or on top. The side handles make it cumbersome for one person to carry.

The only reason the scope isn’t a A+ mechanically is that I haven’t seen an AP 130 recently so I can’t say it’s as good as an AP.

Optically: This Scope is a A/A-

6" of aperture are just sooooo sweet. Stuff that was faint in the 120 just pop in the APM. There is color in out of focus stars, but if you like looking at out of focus stars, then this scope isn't for you. In focus even on Vega the color correction was as good as the EON 120. 

When I started the temperature was dropping quickly so you could see color in in focus stars, but as the scope acclimated the color just went away. I started off on some bright stars that I was using for the model, so Vega, Albireo, Enif, Arcturus, Mizar and several others. Of all of these, Arcturus was the only one that showed false color and that was more because it was directly over the roof of our house, all the others had no structures really nearby. Vega being directly overhead was probably the prettiest. 

I had a list of objects that I wanted to test with. I started off with my favorite summer open cluster M39. I used the 20MM ES 100* and it was like sparkling diamonds on velvet (never gets to black in Union, NJ), so dark grey velvet  This cluster is nice in the 120, but it really sparkled in the 152. 32MM (or almost 70% more light gathering) really makes a difference. 

From M39 I went to M13 and again, just brighter than in the 120ED. I've seen M13 in some high-end smaller scopes and aperture just rules. It’s really bright and can handle magnification well. I went to 5.5 but it was framed better in the 9MM ES.

I then went to Saturn as it cleared the roof line and was between the house and the trees. At this point I just stopped testing and enjoyed the view. The creamy view of Saturn was really nice. The other thing about 6" is how much more colorful the planets are. Saturn was a creamy yellow and the various bands were just there. I'm not an averted vision type of person, it’s not visible time to go to a different object. Saturn was really pretty. Really there. I used the 3.5MM and Saturn was HUGE (342 magnification), the scope handled the magnification well, but seeing rarely supports 300X in NJ.

I went to Mars, hate Mars and at this point the moon cleared the trees and roof line. Stayed with the moon for a while. Took a short break to get some water and get the camera for some pictures  .

At 11:00 the moon was between the roof line and the trees. With the limited amount of time I had I stuck in a camera for a quick picture. Around 12 I packed it in. Covered the scope and went to bed.

So here are my thoughts. No matter how much you paid for a premium triplet, on most objects the 152MM can keep up with it. If you want to see no false color and need your ego stroked because the scope is not expensive, don't buy the APM. Get a TAK/TEC/AP, you'll feel better about yourself. If you consider the value, this scope is just an excellent buy. It’s like the EON version of the SW150. You get a better focuser/case/sliding dew shield/rings/ and a much prettier scope.

To me the APM 152 is like a bigger version of the 120ED, which is an excellent scope. Only thing I still want to do is motorize the focuser so I can take DSO images, but I'm pretty certain this scope is an excellent buy.

In summary:

Collimation was spot on, concentric circles in and out of focus
False color is minimal, based on the conditions, very close to the 120MM EON
Contrast was excellent when starting but got worse as conditions worsened.

At F8, the APM is really easy on eyepieces, edges were very good/excellent with the ES 100*

Overall, the APM 152MM is an impressive scope, both visually and mechanically.