105 replies to this topic

[photiost]

My latest purchase and another fine addition to my collection was finally picked up this afternoon.

 

It is the Edmund 4in f/15 Red tube refractor and EQ mount.

 

This one is the later 1980's (Rank designed) red tube version with the beige dew shield and beige focuser.

 

Here is an image of the telescope at an outing from a few years ago.

 

More pictures to follow soon.

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[Bomber Bob]

Well done, Frank!  Here's an easy prediction:  You're going to love the views.  (Better odds than Vegas!)

[Bomber Bob]

Not to hijack your thread, but here's a shout-out to Terra for the groovy dewshield she donated to my Edmund 4" -- included a custom dust cover that I understand is made by Quakers (not sure if they're in Pennsylvania, though) -- Thank You Terra!

[Terra Nova]

You are most welcome JW!

The Classics Forum- People Helping People

[Terra Nova]

That's great Frank! You're gonna love it!

[starman876]

Those Edmunds red scopes are really great looking scopes. Considering an edmunds 4 inch lens is over $1000 today I am sure you got a great deal.

[photiost]

Thank you guys.

 

After reading a lot about these telescopes (and admiring Terra's and Bob's samples) I feel very fortunate to have come across this instrument.

 

The seller and long time club member finally returned after a 4 week+ tour of France, Germany, Austria and Italy... 

Nice to be retired and have all the time in the world to travel !!

 

So I went over this afternoon and picked up the Edmund and a few other items which I will be posting on other threads soon.

 

The first thing I noticed is how heavy the Edmund Tripod is even without the counterweight. The wood legs are in very good condition, the OTA is simply beautiful. 

 

I have a few questions about the scope, but first I need to take some pictures ..

Edited by photiost, 16 June 2015 - 08:57 PM.

[photiost]

Well done, Frank!  Here's an easy prediction:  You're going to love the views.  (Better odds than Vegas!)

 

Bob I have a feeling you are right on the money.

 

Really looking forward to observing with this one.

[Terra Nova]

They are pretty amazing. You won't be disappointed. Welcome to Uncle Ed's Club Frank.

[photiost]

Thank you Terra.

 

Lets start with the mount:

As mentioned above I was surprised at the weight of the mount and tripod even without the counterweight.

 

Here are some images:

 

 

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[photiost]

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[photiost]

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[photiost]

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[photiost]

From image #3 above

 

To me it does not look like this cradle originally used straps to hold the OTA.

[photiost]

The bottom of the tripod legs:

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[photiost]

closeup of the chain links:

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[clamchip]

You have a cast iron mount from the white tube era.
During the transition months from white to red the old style mount may have been used with the red tube I'm not sure.
The white tube bolted directly to the cradle.
Someone has filed a flat surface at each end of your cradle for rings to sit on which is great.
I love the Edmund 4 inch, definitely my favorite telescope of all time.

Robert

[photiost]

Robert, thanks for the info on the cast iron mount - that explains the weight.

 

I just searched through some threads here on CN and noticed your posts for your Edmund 4in ... very nice !!

 

So there are at least four Edmund 4in Refractor owners listed here so far.

[Bomber Bob]

I love the Edmund 4 inch, definitely my favorite telescope of all time.

 

Up until the Edmund, I didn't think any mid-size achro could please me as much as my old D&G 5" f/10.  I was wrong.

 

- Optical Quality.  The Carton lens holds steady at 100x / inch (my personal high-quality standard).

- Mechanical Quality.  GEM & tripod are as well-matched to the long OTA (maybe better) as my prettier Japanese f/15 refractors.

- Build Quality.  Good fit & finish;  the wooden legs are nice!

- Ease of Use.  No criticism - it moves smoothly (and stays put!).

- Portability.  It's less trouble to break down & set up than my D&G, and the views are comparable.

 

IIRC, I paid about 2.5x more for the D&G OTA 27 years ago than for the Edmund system.  Visually, the Edmund holds its own with the 6" Tinsley Cass.  If the seeing is good tonight, I'm taking Edna to the golf course for Saturn and some DSO viewing.

[photiost]

I hear you Bob, Edna is a keeper !!

 

Here are a few last pictures on the Mount

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[photiost]

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Would anyone here have a picture of what the original counter weight looks like ?

 

 

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[Terra Nova]

"Up until the Edmund, I didn't think any mid-size achro could please me as much as my old D&G 5" f/10. I was wrong."
"Optical Quality. The Carton lens holds steady at 100x / inch (my personal high-quality standard)."- BB

I would agree that the Edmund optics are Excellent. Even impeccable in my opinion. I don't think they come much better. Optically my Edmund 4" F15 lens is very good, running neck and neck in optical performance with my older Unitron 4" F15. I would be hard pressed to pick a winner between them. (They are both of similar vintage ~1960 +/- 2 or so years.) Even so, 100X per inch is a bit over exhuberant, with human eyes and an earth atmosphere, even under the best of conditions. If you do the math, that yields an exit pupil of 0.25mm. My maximum useful magnification was 60X/inch under excellent atmospheric conditions with my younger eyes. Now I typically max out at around 40 or 50X per inch. The skies aren't what they were and neither are my eyes, but even so, I think 50X per inch (an exit pupil of .5mm) is a much more realistic limit for most any person, and most any telescope, even with perfect optics and perfect seeing. Beyond that, you are simply magnifying floaters in the eyes, dust and turbulence in the atmosphere, over a dimmer image. The key, is not in boosting the magnification to beyond useful limits, but instead, in increasing your observing time and concentration on a single object. While the former (increasing magnification) is a mental trick that might deceive you into thinking you are seeing more when you are not, the latter (what I call "visual stacking" after the imaging term), is a very useful mental trick of storing quality images in your brain to build up an overall better view of what you are looking at.

http://www.skyandtel...a-pupil-primer/

Edited by terraclarke, 17 June 2015 - 12:00 PM.

[Bomber Bob]

I use 100x with a new lens to assess its quality.  If the image goes soft under good or better seeing, then that objective is not as good as some that I've used -- and currently own.

 

During a routine planetary session, I bounce around between magnifications based on the object, seeing, and particular details that I want to see.  And yes, I'll zoom up to 100x / inch to verify something I've seen at lower powers.  I rarely stay at that extreme mag for very long.  I am more likely to hover around 80x/ in if the scope & seeing support it.  Some of the best views of Mars, Jupiter, & Saturn I've ever experienced with any telescope were at 400x (80x/in) with the 5" D&G.

 

Yeah, floaters have caused me grief, and limited my ability to strain the finest details out of an image.  It would be more productive for me to use digital imaging, but I'm too old-fashioned and fond of the observing experience to quit.