I have a 30+ year-old Celestron 80mm refactor (CB80) which came with an awful mount and tripod. I recently purchased a NexStar 6SE with the standard Alt-Az GoTo mount. I was thinking of mounting the old refractor to this and swapping back and forth between the two scopes to observe different objects. The NexStar is a 1500mm focal length f/10. The CB80 refractor is 900mm focal f/11.25 but with a focal reducer, I can get it down around 450mm focal length which would be better for imaging extended objects? Would that be useful?
The CB80 does not have the Vixen dovetail that the new mount requires. I can buy a dovetail bar but I'm not sure how to go about attaching it to the scope. Any suggestions would be appreciated. The scope has two rings with little rectangular slots that slide onto the mount that it came with (see pix). The slots measure 32mm x 15mm inside dimensions. There is one of these on each ring (although only one is shown in the pix, the other ring has the same slot.
Is it worth trying to resurrect this old refractor? Or should I just donate to a local school or something?