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Celestron C8 Registry

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#1076 clamchip

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Posted 10 September 2021 - 03:36 PM

Something to remember if you are looking for a bottom base socket Celestron cord

try vacuum cleaner repair shops, as well as ebay.

The early side base socket cords are long gone and even the Cinch-Jones female

for making your own cord is hard to find now. The Cinch-Jones male to go inside

the base is still available.

 

Robert


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#1077 DogWatch

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Posted 10 September 2021 - 11:24 PM

An update on Serial #815028 (post #1047)....I just received the original purchase receipt.  It was purchased on 10/25/1982 from Helix Camera & Video in Chicago, Illinois. 


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#1078 Kasmos

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Posted 11 September 2021 - 02:45 PM

Something to remember if you are looking for a bottom base socket Celestron cord

try vacuum cleaner repair shops, as well as ebay.

The early side base socket cords are long gone and even the Cinch-Jones female

for making your own cord is hard to find now. The Cinch-Jones male to go inside

the base is still available.

 

Robert

I'm too lazy to go look at my '74 C5.

Is this the correct CJ female?

 

https://www.ebay.com...ASABEgJtlvD_BwE



#1079 pierce

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Posted 11 September 2021 - 02:58 PM

I'm too lazy to go look at my '74 C5.

Is this the correct CJ female?

 

https://www.ebay.com...ASABEgJtlvD_BwE

 

NO.     its 3 round pins with an oval outside, like this...

 

unnamed (11).jpg


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#1080 Kasmos

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Posted 11 September 2021 - 03:12 PM

NO.     its 3 round pins with an oval outside, like this...

 

attachicon.gifunnamed (11).jpg

NO, I'm talking about the earlier Cinch Jones plugs.

I'm very familar with the Beldens since 4 of my other scopes have them.

C5 Open Case copy.jpg

But I answered my own question since it looks like it has two blades.


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#1081 RSX11M+

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Posted 11 September 2021 - 03:17 PM

An update on Serial #815028 (post #1047)....I just received the original purchase receipt.  It was purchased on 10/25/1982 from Helix Camera & Video in Chicago, Illinois.

Thank you. Your sale date will be included in the next Registry issue.
 
That date, in October 1982, shows the scatter which can occur between serial numbers, manufacture, and sales. The three adjacent serial numbers for which we have receipt dates (two prior and one subsequent) are either June or July of 1982. All so far, list motors dated 10-80, which were reported from at least serial number 814826 and thru 816370 - corresponding to 1544 C8s, and likely more. 
 
This is typical for the period leading up to Comet Halley. (1984)


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#1082 davidmcgo

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Posted 11 September 2021 - 05:31 PM

This is both ends, scope gets the plug and cord gets the socket.

 

https://www.ebay.com...1-127632-2357-0

 

Dave

NO, I'm talking about the earlier Cinch Jones plugs.

I'm very familar with the Beldens since 4 of my other scopes have them.

attachicon.gifC5 Open Case copy.jpg

But I answered my own question since it looks like it has two blades.



#1083 RSX11M+

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Posted 11 September 2021 - 06:00 PM

I do agree this is a mod, although I think it was done by a shop here in Ontario in the 80s. Here's why:

 

For what it's worth "Slotted Robertsons" have been around since the 1930s at least ... Robertson drive screws (and combination machine screws thereof) are popular here. Probably a little bit because Robertson was Canadian. ðŸ‡¨ðŸ‡¦

 

The 3 prong socket shows marking "Made in Japan". Most of these are made in China now.

 

It is also stamped "CSA" which means it meets Canadian Electrical Code. This is not definitive, but it is common nowadays that electronic parts like light switches, plugs, etc.. simply be stamped "UL" which is not sufficient for Canada but does meet US standard.

 

On a purely speculative note, the connection is done with a nice shiny solder connection. A common skill in the Radioshack heyday of the 70s/80s. Not so sure about today. attachicon.gifc8_plug_soldering.jpg

 

Digging through more of the pile of papers I was given with this, most of which are simply recent photocopies of the original manual.. I found another receipt tucked away dated Dec 9 1980. This one from Focus Scientific Ltd., a telescope shop in Ottawa, Ontario. Itemized on this receipt:

 

  • 1 T-Ring #20-0009
  • 1 T-Adapter #22-3025

 

I don't know what these parts are exactly or what the item numbers signify. Worth noting although Focus Scientific exists in Ottawa today, it is not at the same address.

 

There is another interesting pamphlet from Focus Scientific Ltd included as well, with the same date we saw on the receipt in pencil, but this time in red ink (2-16-87). Perhaps this was some kind of warrant verification on this date, or perhaps the modification noted above happened then..

 

Oh yes, before I forget, you asked for the motor date. I cracked open the base and everything looked relatively clean. The motor does say 110v 60cy. If I'm reading the date correctly, this is from Feb 1979. So only about 8 months between the motor manufacture and purchase by the end consumer here.

 

attachicon.gifc8_motor_date.jpg

 

That's all I have for now. I hope these anecdotal facts and speculations have proven helpful regarding the history of this specific unit.

Excellent info, and thank you.. Again!

 

 

Your photographic evidence is conclusive - modification. Soldering, while debatable today, was fairly typical and accepted into the 1980s - although I'd have opted to add heat-shrink to cover soldered A/C line connections. Fold some electrical tape around those soldered posts for extra insurance.

 

2-79 motor date - may indicate fulfillment of a batch-order by supplier output from different production runs, or perhaps intermixed purchases in stock. Either way, it ties in well with use in the early 8xxxxx series production and your receipt's sale date. (better than I might have expected)

 

The T-Ring and T-Adapter receipt is for a photographic adapter, a standard commonly used in telescopes and some other optics. In this instance, for astrophotography.

 

 

 

Thank you all for participating in a lively exchange. The AC power standard used over the epochs of C8 production, transitioned from side mounted 2-prong receptacles to 3-prong bottom mounted ones from a different supplier. (coincident with introduction of Die-Cast forks and bases)

 

This "Instrument Lead" type modification is an example of yet another variation bottom mount. As availability of replacement 3-prong chords diminishes, it's a respectable mod to prolong this type's life. Modification solutions for the earlier 2-prong type are far less elegant.



#1084 Kasmos

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Posted 11 September 2021 - 07:04 PM

This is both ends, scope gets the plug and cord gets the socket.

 

https://www.ebay.com...1-127632-2357-0

 

Dave

A working cord is in the box so I understand how they work.

I was just responding to Robert's comment about the female CJ plug being hard to find. 

I mistakenly thought he meant the receptacle on the side of the base so I posted the link to one on ebay.

I didn't bother to go look at mine and forgot that it's a two blade, not three like the receptacle on ebay.

Anyway, as your link shows, even the female plug can still be found.



#1085 Slonneck

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Posted 18 September 2021 - 08:59 PM

That serial number was produced during a transitional period. During this time Celestron seems to have been undergoing turmoil and scopes produced in the time span 1977-1979 often violated the usual date-code method of serial numbering. We've heard of managerial and financial upheavals that effected production and may have negatively impacted optical quality. The situation was remedied soon after a corporate shakeup by the return of original management and with the aid of the founder. 

 

Likewise, motor dates too - tended to be plus or minus a year, and may not provide the usual date resolution.

 

Looking at your scope's features - I think 1978 is as good a guess as we can make, though it may be as late as 1979. It is Die-cast, and is assembled with Phillips screws and Hex-head bolts (?) rather than the Allen-head fasteners used in other epochs of production. Your RA drive base has a 3-prong power chord receptacle located in the bottom (not the side), the focus knob is of the "longer" type, and the objective cover is plastic and not spun aluminum - taken together, these characteristics are appropriate to the aforementioned period.

 

I would be curious to know how you would assess it's optical performance?

 

Thank you for the registry entry and photos. Your scope is among the last 4 registry entries we have before the serial number changeover to the 8xxxxx series.

Finally got the wedge installed, found a clear night, and managed to get my camera attached to the C8 for a couple of pics.  Something must be slightly off with my TMount, because I can see more clearly with an eyepiece than with the camera.  With a 9mm eyepiece, the rings of Saturn are clearly discernible and I can easily see the bands on Jupiter.  However, through the camera (Nikon D7500 DSLR attached with generic TMount from Amazon), Saturn is an elliptical blur.  I can still pick out the moons of Jupiter.


Edited by Slonneck, 18 September 2021 - 09:04 PM.


#1086 Slonneck

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Posted 18 September 2021 - 09:26 PM

Finally got the wedge installed, found a clear night, and managed to get my camera attached to the C8 for a couple of pics.  Something must be slightly off with my TMount, because I can see more clearly with an eyepiece than with the camera.  With a 9mm eyepiece, the rings of Saturn are clearly discernible and I can easily see the bands on Jupiter.  However, through the camera (Nikon D7500 DSLR attached with generic TMount from Amazon), Saturn is an elliptical blur.  I can still pick out the moons of Jupiter.

Jupiter

I tried to edit my last reply to include this pic, but don’t think I quite made it.

This is the best I could get Jupiter on the D7500 through the C8, but again, it’s better through the 9mm eyepiece, it’s clear and I can see the bands.  Perhaps my generic TMount isn’t quite the perfect distance.


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#1087 Deveshpande

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Posted 18 September 2021 - 09:31 PM

This is Jupiter and Saturn through my C8 using Nikon D5500 on prime focus. Used lucky imaging technique.

Attached Thumbnails

  • SmartSelect_20210918-222950_Instagram.jpg
  • SmartSelect_20210918-223015_Instagram.jpg

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#1088 tim53

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Posted 18 September 2021 - 10:53 PM

Congratulations! - You have serial number 54. (-didn't see a pic of that) Not only is it Tricolor but "Axial Foxcus" as well.

 

It is definitely among the first 100 or so scopes produced (we think 135). Note that it is not one of the very first few, which had holes in the rear cell and smaller RA knobs (precise quantity unknown) but we are certain of at least 3.

 

These 135 had that focuser built in. It is so rare that it's understandable even most Celestron aficionados have never seen one in the flesh.

 

 

It appears to have been accessorized with commercial ring clamps and a finder - not original.

 

Manufacturing date can be pretty closely determined by examining the stamped printing on drive motors under the base for a date suffix. I would expect 1970 (9-70). For reference, Serial number "1" has motors dated "6-70".

 

These Axial units have not been produced since 1971, but may have been originally SOLD well after.  

 

 

Please treat it as a cherished artifact, it is highly collectible - especially in original "unrestored" condition.

Tinky is #135 and it doesn't have the helical focuser.  I think #125 was the last one that did. 

 

post-6788-14073886791416_thumb.jpg

 

Tinky's story is here:  https://www.cloudyni...l= tinky tim53


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#1089 RSX11M+

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Posted 19 September 2021 - 03:09 AM

Tinky is #135 and it doesn't have the helical focuser.  I think #125 was the last one that did. 

 

post-6788-14073886791416_thumb.jpg

 

Tinky's story is here:  https://www.cloudyni...l= tinky tim53

tim53 - I'm an admirer who's been following Tinky's journey for years.

 

You make a good point about "135" being thought to be the quantity of Axial C8 models, given the fact that Tinky is SN 135 and it is not AXIAL. (this is clearly indicated in the registry BTW) So I stand corrected - Thank You!

 

As a nearly aside... It's always been in the back of my mind that I'd heard somewhere that a few of the Axial models were retrofitted by the factory to the newer focus mechanism after the model change. I've no facts to back this up, but recall it as being done, only on user request. Had you ever heard that story?

 

It always seemed to me that Tinky may have been one of these. It's rear cell appears to be of the earlier vintage, containing the machining to accept the Axial Focus mechanism. Are you aware of how many Tri-Colors have this appearance?

 

Lastly - Was any connection to KBEW Blue Earth Minn. ever established to Tinky? They were in operation in 1976. In that year, KBEW-FM ceased operation, while KBEW-AM continued. I have yet to find any reference to "Tinky" that applies however.

 

Thanks for the word, the pics, and the correction.

 

Photos of Tinky always make me smile.


Edited by RSX11M+, 19 September 2021 - 03:28 AM.


#1090 tim53

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Posted 19 September 2021 - 09:48 AM

I don't think I'd ever heard about the axial focusers being swapped out for the later focuser.  I simply assumed that Celestron used up the castings they had on hand by making the adapter mine has for the later visual back.  I never did make a connection with KBEW, unfortunately.  It might be fun to try, though.

 

-Tim.



#1091 RSX11M+

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Posted 20 September 2021 - 01:17 AM

I don't think I'd ever heard about the axial focusers being swapped out for the later focuser.  I simply assumed that Celestron used up the castings they had on hand by making the adapter mine has for the later visual back.  I never did make a connection with KBEW, unfortunately.  It might be fun to try, though.

 

-Tim.

I have been able to validate another scope like yours by photo from a registry post by CCD-Freak, #195. Since I've not [yet] found any in the serial number range below Tinky, I'm beginning to doubt the "conversion" story, although it was from a highly credible source known to me personally. If this did happen, it was a rarity since we do not know of any below #135, and no Axials above have turned up.

 

As I recall the conversation, the individual must have had an Axial model at one point, because he recounted how clumsy and upsetting to photography the mechanism was compared to the later focuser. 

 

I'm going to continue reviewing photos in registry entry posts - in hopes of identifying the point where rear cells transitioned from needing an adapter, to being natively machined for non-Axial focus, and again when the casting changed to no longer being capable of accepting the Axial machining.

 

From registry entries we have learned of the following distinct evolutionary stages of Early (aka Sand Cast) C8s:

  1. Axial Focus Tricolor OTA 422mm, provisions for main mirror collimation (3 screw holes in the rear cell), no base tag, SN on Focuser
  2. Axial Focus Tricolor OTA 422mm, no base tag, SN on Focuser
  3. Axial Focus Tricolor OTA 422mm, SN on base tag
  4. Adapted STD Focus Tricolor OTA 422mm 
  5. STD Focus Tricolor OTA 422mm long
  6. STD Focus OTA 396mm long

 

Notes:

  • The 422mm long OTA cannot swing fully down between the forks with a spun aluminum cover in place.
  • This rear cell casting appears to have been lengthened so the SCT thread "mound" replicates the position of the missing Axial focus mechanism, or the later "Adapter". 
  • The end of the Tricolor era may be marked by the shorter 396mm OTA, commonly supplied with the Spun cover.
  • The end of the Sand Cast era is marked by different forks and a new RA base with 3-prong power in the bottom

 

There could be further in-between stages as well. Once a photographic basis for a timeline is established, this evolution will be depicted better in the registry.

 

Thank you all again, for participating

 

 

P.S. tim53 - I have been trying to work the KBEW angle for some time. Will advise should anything else turn up.


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#1092 CCD-Freak

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Posted 20 September 2021 - 10:13 AM

I have been able to validate another scope like yours by photo from a registry post by CCD-Freak, #195. Since I've not [yet] found any in the serial number range below Tinky, I'm beginning to doubt the "conversion" story, although it was from a highly credible source known to me personally. If this did happen, it was a rarity since we do not know of any below #135, and no Axials above have turned up.


 


 

 

P.S. tim53 - I have been trying to work the KBEW angle for some time. Will advise should anything else turn up.

 I have not seen the "Tinky KBEW" label up close but if the B is actually an 8 then it looks like an amateur radio callsign.   Amateurs (hams) often put their callsign on equipment and "Tinky" might be a nickname. 

 

Currently K8EW is held by a gentleman in Ohio. 

 

Is there a better image of the "Tinky" label?

 

 



#1093 RSX11M+

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Posted 20 September 2021 - 01:13 PM

 I have not seen the "Tinky KBEW" label up close but if the B is actually an 8 then it looks like an amateur radio callsign.   Amateurs (hams) often put their callsign on equipment and "Tinky" might be a nickname. 

 

Currently K8EW is held by a gentleman in Ohio. 

 

Is there a better image of the "Tinky" label?

Screen Shot 2021-09-20 at 14.13.37 .png



#1094 pierce

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Posted 20 September 2021 - 01:34 PM

FWIW, KBEW are an AM and a FM station in Minnesota.  The AM station is mostly news, the FM station is country music.


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#1095 CCD-Freak

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Posted 20 September 2021 - 01:50 PM

I am trying to make the image clearer but the character in question is the hardest to read.   I am still working on it. 

 

Tinky usm-1.jpg


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#1096 DogWatch

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Posted 21 September 2021 - 03:52 PM

FYI-

There is an orange tube C-8 that has popped up on the CN classifieds (posted 9/19) with serial# 822641.... I did not see it in the current registry.


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#1097 tim53

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Posted 21 September 2021 - 04:07 PM

 I have not seen the "Tinky KBEW" label up close but if the B is actually an 8 then it looks like an amateur radio callsign.   Amateurs (hams) often put their callsign on equipment and "Tinky" might be a nickname. 

 

Currently K8EW is held by a gentleman in Ohio. 

 

Is there a better image of the "Tinky" label?

Not really, but I was able to enlarge and sharpen it a bit.  I'm pretty sure it's KBEW.

 

I probably kept the label, and will have to hunt it down.

Attached Thumbnails

  • TInky_Label.jpg

Edited by tim53, 21 September 2021 - 04:09 PM.


#1098 CCD-Freak

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Posted 21 September 2021 - 04:20 PM

I may contact the person with that call sign to see if they ever had an old C8. 


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#1099 RSX11M+

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Posted 21 September 2021 - 11:39 PM

FYI-

There is an orange tube C-8 that has popped up on the CN classifieds (posted 9/19) with serial# 822641.... I did not see it in the current registry.

Apologies - not only am I somewhat delinquent in updating the Registry document (notifications of updates are posted here) but the machine which serves them is temporarily down. It may be out a few days, as I am taking the opportunity of the downtime to provision a new one. 

 

 

My wife saw the controversy of the "B v 8" and instead chose to focus on "TINKY" - wondering if it was a nickname, acronym, anagram, or perhaps a literary reference.

 

At least 1976 reduces the timeframe of the search. The scope was clearly in existence by that date, and in the hands of some owner. I have been trying to think of what use a C8 could have in a radio station. Calling sporting events immediately comes to mind because I worked as a broadcast engineer in those days and we Broadcast Football and Basketball games as "Live Remotes" with a great deal of promotion and fanfare. Though, TV would seem a better fit than Radio - for a C8. Antenna maintenance and inspection is perhaps a less glamorous purpose, or even "FCC Antenna Proofs" - a process of taking signal strength readings while driving around the countryside in which a C8 could be helpful in verifying line-of-sight to the transmitting tower. (not that I ever did it that way...) 

 

One must take care when interpreting call signs - the FCC re-uses and reassigns them so the KBEW of today may have no real relation to the KBEW of 1976, which goes for K8EW as well. A key question is always "Who had it on a particular date?" Talking to a re-assignee would be of limited value unless they happen to know something of a previous holder's period.

 

For example - I was dismayed to discover the callsign of my childhood HAM-operator-neighbor had been reassigned after his death before I could obtain it . Many hours were spent looking over his shoulder in his transmitting shack. Bob (W2AI) was into all sorts of things, including SSTV - an elite hobby in 1960s. The experience is probably responsible for my electronics career. Point is - today there is nearly no online memory of his time even though he held that callsign (from the 1940's?) to his death in 1980. It is currently on at least it's second reassignment since Bob.

But I digress -

 

Perhaps another avenue of inquiry is to research individuals with a recollection of Blue Earth Minn. in 1976-ish and get their recollections of KBEW activities.

 

It seems doubtful that an ordinary citizen-astronomer would dedicate their instrument to a Radio Station without more than fandom as a motive.

 

Still, since we have positively identified more than one example of these Axial-Std focus examples, and that leads us to believe there may be as many as 60 or more of them, a more salient question for the registry is the precise serial numbers of the various transition stages. If there is a re-converted (STD to Axial) example it would most likely be in the "Adapted" group prior to 396mm OTA.

 

Archeology was my alternate career choice after Electronics, as you may surmise. Is Astro-Archeology a thing?


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#1100 Borodog

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Posted 22 September 2021 - 12:52 PM

Is Astro-Archeology a thing?

 

It is now.


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