4 replies to this topic

[tishovlin]

Dom

I have a Coulter 13.1. A friend gave me the tube assembly back in 92. All I had to do was purchase the optics. It took Coulter Optics 18 months to send me my mirror and diagonal. I am currently rounding up materials for the truss tube conversion. I have the old blue tube classic, and it weighs a ton.

Tim S

[tishovlin]

If I had a picture, I'd gladly share it. Right now the big blue tank is in the shed. I do expect to bring it out tonight for some comparison viewing with my 6 inch refractor. I just got a V-block for the refractor, so I'm anxious to check that out.

The Dob gives excellent views when the collimation is dead-on. The mirror needs to be recoated, since it's over 10 years old. One thing I don't like is the the single vane diagonal holder. Somehow, I can't seem to get the collimation just right and I know the problem lies in the diagonal. The current type is a single vane (flatbar) with a slotted adjustment whereby you can raise or lower the diagonal along the optical axis. You need 2 wrenches and 3 hands to get it right. The focuser is passable, certainly not high tech. Hey, I shouldn't complain for a scope that cost only $695 around the time I bought it. And 13" of aperture at that!
The biggest regret I have about this scope is that I have never yet taken it to a truly dark sky location. That's where it would have shined. It's just too darn heavy. All this will change when I construct the new truss tube, and if I didn't think the mirror was worth it, I wouldn't. I could go on, but maybe you could tell me specifically what you would like to know.

Tim S