100 replies to this topic

[Petsyk Alexey]

The collection has grown. Found monocular LOMO Captain. It seems that's what it's called. I'm not exactly sure about the settings. If the sources are unanimous in the lens diameter, 40mm, then there are discrepancies with the magnification. I met an indication of 12x, 14x and even 16x. Scheme - meniscus Gregory. Focusing by rotating the meniscus. No case or instructions. The case is rubberized, comfortable. Rarely seen on sale, about once a year. The price was just under $20, including shipping.

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[Petsyk Alexey]

Found a description on the web Advantages: direct image without wrapping system, low weight, small size, large magnification Specifications: Magnification, multiple of 14 Aperture, mm 40 Focal length, mm 390 Relative hole, 9.75 Anti-reflective coating - multilayer dielectric Weight, gr 326 Diameter, mm 54 Length, mm 187.3

[wargrafix]

Drool worthy stuff!!!

[NinePlanets]

Yes. I like that little blue scope.

[Petsyk Alexey]

No, he's black. This is a phone error when shooting. Daylight of the blue sky. )))

[NinePlanets]

OK, I like the little black scope. 

Gregory-Maksutov types seem so efficient in design!

[trainsktg]

I have one of the little 70mm LOMO Mak-Cass with the blue star chart, and this LOMO Mak-Newt

 

 

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[semlin]

wow.  what a visual feast of a thread.  thank you for sharing this alexey!

[trainsktg]

Ah hah! I see on the far right of the shelf in post #4, you have something very similar to this. I will post more information tomorrow. 

 

 

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[Petsyk Alexey]

Ah hah! I see on the far right of the shelf in post #4, you have something very similar to this. I will post more information tomorrow. 

On the shelf on the left, black, this is the world's first mass-produced meniscus telescope, produced in 1945 in a small series. A detailed photo and description of this telescope is given in my article, a link to which is given in message No. 9 of this topic. Or did you mean some other telescope?

Edited by Petsyk Alexey, 07 April 2023 - 05:30 AM.

[luxo II]

@trainsktg I had one of those once, an MTO 1000mm f/10 beast, rather battered, complete with the wooden box and filters.

 

 

I ended up disassembling it completely to:

 

- clean the optics (they were filthy). Interestingly the corrector was a doublet - and a truly massive hunk of glass for a 4" - and uncoated;

 

- relax the spring passing the primary mirror in its cell, which eliminated the bad trefoil aberration it showed at first;

 

- remove the focus stop screw to increase backfocus, so it could be used visually, and

 

- restore the paintwork. 

 

Optically it seemed OK for sharpness but overall transmission and contrast were poor, compared to more modern optics.

Edited by luxo II, 07 April 2023 - 12:06 AM.

[trainsktg]

The one I pictured above is the MTO 8/500 Maksutov camera lens, that someone in the past had made a very functional 90 diagonal / binocular eyepiece combination for. I estimate it to be about 17-18 power overall. It's pretty useless as an astronomical device; even the Moon is pretty underwhelming in it because the power is so low, but it does really, really well as a terrestrial spotter. 

 

The link here has some  very good information, including  a copy of a review from 1964 Modern Photography. https://mikeeckman.c...mm-mirror-lens/

 

 

 

 

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[trainsktg]

On the shelf on the left, black, this is the world's first mass-produced meniscus telescope, produced in 1945 in a small series. A detailed photo and description of this telescope is given in my article, a link to which is given in message No. 9 of this topic. Or did you mean some other telescope?

Actually I was referring to the tan one on the far right, but there are several on your self that look similar, with that larger body towards the back. Regardless, all VERY interesting little scopes  

[Piggyback]

 

Not sure if this might count as a Russian school telescope. Owned the Intes Micro Alter M 603 Mak-Cass 150/1500mm back in 2015. Built like a tank I found it cumbersome to carry around. I also remember the optics to be rather mediocre in terms of image sharpness and contrast when compared to my 3 1/2" Questar. Sold the Intes a year later. Questar still with me.

 

 

[luxo II]

Interesting to see you have one with the original fork and base - is the RA drive still functional ? NB I have a 6” Mk66 deluxe which I like a lot, heavy but optically perfect, and I mount it on a M2C altaz mount with encoders - much lighter. https://www.cloudyni...5-m2c-encoders/

 

Around 12-15 years ago I had a chance to try a couple of the f/10 Russian 6”-7” and wasn’t terribly impressed - tho we had an M715 deluxe here that was excellent, and my buddy here traded that for an MK91 which is a really excellent scope. He also briefly had a M1008 which compared well against the MK91, but it was too heavy for him so he sold the 10” and kept the MK91.
 

We did a lot of side by comparisons to rank all the 7-10” scopes we could get our hands on - SCTs, Mewlons, Vixens and others.

Edited by luxo II, 12 April 2023 - 04:19 AM.

[Piggyback]

 

Not sure these were termed "school telescopes" but russian made they are. Bought my Intes MK-67 150/1800mm Maksutov and the improved MK-66 a quarter century ago. I had then traveled to Moscow to visit the Intes works. What a trip this was. Saw Red Square and Lenins body on public display in a giant tomb. Both Intes Maks found a new home ten years ago.

 

 

[luxo II]

Ha no they always were way outside a school budget !!!

 

Even here a “school telescope” usually means a little 75mm f/10 Newtonian

Edited by luxo II, 12 April 2023 - 05:29 AM.

[Petsyk Alexey]

Intes was not a school telescope. This is a telescope for amateur astronomers and their release was intended to fill the shortage of amateur telescopes that existed in the USSR.

[GaryM]

Well, I'm extremely lucky to own almost all of the Lomo mak telescopes and I'm never going to sell them :-) Only one I never acquired is the Astele 203 mak on the fork mount.

 

Here is a photo of my Astele 150 and 180 on their fork mounts.

 

 

 

 

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[Petsyk Alexey]

I want to tell you about another gem of my collection. Astronomical binocular BAS 30x90. It was produced at the Zagorsk Optical and Mechanical Plant in the late 90s and early 2000s.

 

The device is completely made of metal, the eyepieces have a break in the optical axis of 45 degrees and individual diopter adjustment. The interpupillary distance can be adjusted over a fairly wide range. There is also a version of binoculars without a break in the optical axes, for terrestrial observations. It is called TB 30x90. There are no such binoculars in my collection, but according to user reviews, the image is not of very high quality.

 

The binocular is very heavy, so hand-held observations, even with an emphasis, are not possible. It must be mounted on a tripod - for this I made a fork mount. The binocular mounted on it is in an indifferent balance in any position, although for this it was necessary to equip the mount with counterweights.
http://www.old.astro...2&sub=2&gid=105

 

The device is very rare, I have never seen it on the secondary market. I bought my copy from a friend and partly by accident. And in those days when the binocular was sold in the store, I could not afford its price - then it cost about 800 US dollars, with my salary of 200 dollars a month. )))

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[Petsyk Alexey]

More photos

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[Petsyk Alexey]

binocular instructions

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[Petsyk Alexey]

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[Petsyk Alexey]

3

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[Petsyk Alexey]

Adjustment instructions. Available only in Russian.

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