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Does Orion Optics UK install center spots on their primary mirrors?

Started by MER , Nov 22 2020 09:05 PM

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9 replies to this topic

#1 MER

Sputnik

topic starter

Posts: 35
Joined: 09 Nov 2020

Posted 22 November 2020 - 09:05 PM

Or do I have to send them one to install before I buy one of their scopes?

Many Thanks

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#2 Kokatha man

Hubble

Posts: 15,072
Joined: 13 Sep 2009
Loc: "cooker-ta man" downunda...

Posted 22 November 2020 - 09:59 PM

Apologies for responding - I saw your post in the "Recent Topics" side-bar & just couldn't help myself..!

OOUK might do just about anything with their mirrors - imho they are the "Monty Pythons" of scope-makers - good luck if you purchase one from them!

John Lightholder and MER like this

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#3 osbourne one-nil

Surveyor 1

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Loc: Cumbria, England 54.5ºN 2.5ºW

Posted 23 November 2020 - 02:02 AM

I know mechanically, despite being based in the home of Rolls Royce cars, they can be a bit agricultural I've generally only heard good things about the optics, and that's my experience too. Anything I've had from them has had a centre spot on the mirror.

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#4 Kokatha man

Hubble

Posts: 15,072
Joined: 13 Sep 2009
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Posted 23 November 2020 - 02:56 AM

I know mechanically, despite being based in the home of Rolls Royce cars, they can be a bit agricultural I've generally only heard good things about the optics, and that's my experience too. Anything I've had from them has had a centre spot on the mirror.

...hmmm - I'm pretty certain that you've misinterpreted the thrust of my post's appraisal from personal experience of this particular "company" oo-nil..!

Let me be honest & give a quick personal experience of this lot - with the acknowledgement that they must turn out some good'uns along with those that quite a few people besides myself wound up with.

Purchased a VX-16 with "1/10th wave" primary for just under $6000 in June of 2011 - I should emphasise that way back then the Australian $ was worth more than the $US in such heady times...so not cheap!

When the scope (just the ota) finally arrived I found the secondary (much scuffed) rolling around inside the tube...

The primary had been boxed separately with just a piece of cardboard carton taped over it in its mirror cell to protect the front surface - of course the clips had chewed through this thin card to scuff the entire outer perimeter of the mirrored surface!

Had they use a 50 cent piece of thin MDF or something similar no damage would have occurred.

The tube was badly mis-shapen & took an enormous amount of work to get it semi-cylindrical...they supplied 14" "risers" - the curved/profiled pieces that grip the ota & connect to the hinged mounting rings to clamp around the ota - when asked why they sent the tube with these too-small components for a 16" scope (obviously they would not fit!) they told me that they only made 14" risers so that was what they supplied!

The hinged mounting rings they sent were mis-shapen & badly made...they said they would send a replacement secondary...then after doing so demanded payment for it in several invoices before I put them straight on that aspect!

The primary suffered from extreme astigmatism & was useless for the intended purposes - I could not in good conscience sell it on no matter how gullible any potential buyer might be... so it sits as a white elephant to this day in my studio - an extreme reminder of "caveat emptor" which if I had done the homework & read about other horror cases, I would never have become involved..!

Other aspects such as despite or regardless of the ota's deformities it was too small a diameter in the first place...when I said "Monty Python" I really meant it - phone conversations left me absolutely flummoxed every time!

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#5 osbourne one-nil

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Joined: 03 Jul 2006
Loc: Cumbria, England 54.5ºN 2.5ºW

Posted 23 November 2020 - 05:45 AM

But other than that it was ok and was the mirror centre-spotted?!

If I get one again I might drive the 120 miles to collect!

austin.grant and Lenard like this

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#6 Kokatha man

Hubble

Posts: 15,072
Joined: 13 Sep 2009
Loc: "cooker-ta man" downunda...

Posted 23 November 2020 - 05:52 AM

But other than that it was ok and was the mirror centre-spotted?!

Voyager 3 likes this

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#7 MER

Sputnik

topic starter

Posts: 35
Joined: 09 Nov 2020

Posted 23 November 2020 - 09:08 AM

...hmmm - I'm pretty certain that you've misinterpreted the thrust of my post's appraisal from personal experience of this particular "company" oo-nil..!

Let me be honest & give a quick personal experience of this lot - with the acknowledgement that they must turn out some good'uns along with those that quite a few people besides myself wound up with.

Purchased a VX-16 with "1/10th wave" primary for just under $6000 in June of 2011 - I should emphasise that way back then the Australian $ was worth more than the $US in such heady times...so not cheap!

When the scope (just the ota) finally arrived I found the secondary (much scuffed) rolling around inside the tube...

The primary had been boxed separately with just a piece of cardboard carton taped over it in its mirror cell to protect the front surface - of course the clips had chewed through this thin card to scuff the entire outer perimeter of the mirrored surface!

Had they use a 50 cent piece of thin MDF or something similar no damage would have occurred.

The tube was badly mis-shapen & took an enormous amount of work to get it semi-cylindrical...they supplied 14" "risers" - the curved/profiled pieces that grip the ota & connect to the hinged mounting rings to clamp around the ota - when asked why they sent the tube with these too-small components for a 16" scope (obviously they would not fit!) they told me that they only made 14" risers so that was what they supplied!

The hinged mounting rings they sent were mis-shapen & badly made...they said they would send a replacement secondary...then after doing so demanded payment for it in several invoices before I put them straight on that aspect!

The primary suffered from extreme astigmatism & was useless for the intended purposes - I could not in good conscience sell it on no matter how gullible any potential buyer might be... so it sits as a white elephant to this day in my studio - an extreme reminder of "caveat emptor" which if I had done the homework & read about other horror cases, I would never have become involved..!

Other aspects such as despite or regardless of the ota's deformities it was too small a diameter in the first place...when I said "Monty Python" I really meant it - phone conversations left me absolutely flummoxed every time!

how long ago did you experience this? Thanks for the feed back.

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#8 dmgriff

Apollo

Posts: 1,302
Joined: 20 Sep 2006
Loc: 30 degrees latitude, USA

Posted 23 November 2020 - 11:50 AM

I have a VX6L shipped by air freight to USA for ground delivery, 09/2016.

Everything arrived intact and collimated. Mirror is center spotted.

No problems with the scope optically.

Good viewing,

Dave

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#9 SeattleScott

Voyager 1

Posts: 10,100
Joined: 14 Oct 2011

Posted 23 November 2020 - 02:24 PM

Lol yes the primary will be center spotted. I have only seen one scope without a center spot and that was an old Chinese Dob.

OO UK is not SVBONY or some mysterious Chinese company producing scopes for a fraction of the cost of typical mass produced scopes. You pay good money for OO UK. Not top dollar but good money. Certainly more than mass produced Chinese scopes. So yes, of course you get a center spotted mirror.

Scott