160 replies to this topic

[starman876]

That is another version with the smaller tube. Maybe 2.5k...

that might work  Might can be a big word here

[Tom Stock]

I keep adding to the trunk. Picked up a Starbound chair today and the other half of my LX50. What a hunk of junkt he forks are on a wedge. Jitter city kitty. I am gonna take it off the forks so fast heads will spin,

Agree forks and wedges made for my worst experiences.... except for the C8.  It was still very bouncy (the fork RA bearing hub's fault), but I liked the setting circles and tracking only design.

[CHASLX200]

Agree forks and wedges made for my worst experiences.... except for the C8.  It was still very bouncy (the fork RA bearing hub's fault), but I liked the setting circles and tracking only design.

Set the forks on a stump and they fine and solid. It is the small wedge that is the problem.  I may slap the OTA back on the forks and get a dock building comp to drive a piling deep into my yard and use it .

Edited by CHASLX200, 02 May 2024 - 05:58 AM.

[Exnihilo]

Well, unexpectedly, a Tasco 7TE-5 came up locally on Craigslist, so I picked it up.  Now I actually do have a copy of my 1st scope.  Its not perfect, has a couple of bolts missing, but seems decent.  Not sure if I'm going to keep it long-term, but for now its fun.  I think I'll get an objective sun filter in its size and use it for solar.

 

A couple of years ago, I enterend an auction on Goodwill for one, but the price got run up by obvious shill bidding.  Even though I won the auction, I refused to actually go through with the transaction.  I had put in a very high bid to ensure I got it, but the bidding mysteriously ended a magical $10 below my high bid.  Hmmm.

Edited by Exnihilo, 04 May 2024 - 11:19 AM.

[Dave Cook]

Hah my classic collection has remained stable and unchanged for decades.  8" 1975 Cave, a late 1960s blue tube Sears 60mm spotter with the 15-60x zoom (bad optics but my first scope so I love it), Celestron 11x80 binocs from 1985 (Japan made, good stuff), and some 1960s 8x35 binos (cheap knockoff of WW2 german prism units, KMart OEM-branded but not terrible).

 

I did just acquire an AT152EDT triplet but that's nowhere near classic so I don't have to count it. 

[Bomber Bob]

How about down-sizing while up-sizing??  Taking my cue from Terra:  If a "new" old scope comes in & becomes a Keeper, a current Keeper old scope MUST GO...

 

My Exceptions:  a "new" old scope that I know will be a buy, test, & pass-along.  It's a Net Zero for my Collection.  [Couldn't resist the NZ use -- I'm a JUNO Charter Member from 30+ years ago... Remember Free Internet from the dial-up days??]  And... my 2 x Antique Scopes, the Mogey 3 & Tinsley 6.  [Ignore the fine print in my Collection Policy -- especially if you're a lawyer!]

 

... but the bidding mysteriously ended a magical $10 below my high bid ...

 

I'm sure that's just a coinkee-deenk...

Edited by Bomber Bob, 15 May 2024 - 04:12 PM.

[kansas skies]

My collection hasn't changed at all over the last few years. I still have a roomful of classics, but when it comes to observing, I've gotten a little lazy (or possibly just old, tired, and over-worked). I almost always opt for my Questar Standard with its modified Meade ETX90 tripod and lithium battery inverter for night viewing, and my Tasco 9VR with a .965 solar wedge/filter combo for viewing the sun. Both of these scopes take no more than a couple of minutes to setup and tear down, and both have provided countless hours of viewing pleasure. I still don't know they managed it, but for a Maksutov, the Questar takes just about as much time as my 80mm Celestron/Vixen refractor to thermally stabilize. If I ever make it to retirement, I'm thinking of ways I can get larger scopes out and setup with less expended energy and time. Then again, if I can free up some time, it probably won't matter that much as long as I'm still able to lift the various components.

 

As for down-sizing or up-sizing, I don't have any plans for this in the foreseeable future. Then again, I might pick up a 12mm Brandon for the Questar one day, and possibly a full size solar filter for the scope as well.

 

Bill

[CHASLX200]

I am upsizing again. Was gonna jump on a C11 but now a big Mak local has popped up

[Terra Nova]

I am upsizing again. Was gonna jump on a C11 but now a big Mak local has popped up

Just the other day you said it was time to let it all go?

[CHASLX200]

Just the other day you said it was time to let it all go?

Well with my mood swings i am all over the board where i wanna sell to buy more scopes. Not everyday a big Mak like the one i may get pops up local or anywhere really. And this is not a big Mak from Mc D's.

[Terra Nova]

Well with my mood swings i am all over the board where i wanna sell to buy more scopes. Not everyday a big Mak like the one i may get pops up local or anywhere really. And this is not a big Mak from Mc D's.

Go for it. Nothing wrong with getting a scope, using it for a while, enjoying the experience, and then letting it go. When I think of all the scopes that I've had over the years and all the fun that I've had with them, there's no way that that would have been possible if I had never let them go. There's only so much time and so much space. Scopes are made to be used and enjoyed, not kept hidden in a closet.

Edited by Terra Nova, 15 May 2024 - 06:31 PM.

[CHASLX200]

Go for it. Nothing wrong with getting a scope, using it for a while, enjoying the experience, and then letting it go. When I think of all the scopes that I've had over the years and all the fun that I've had with them, there's no way that that would have been possible if I had never let them go. There's only so much time and so much space. Scopes are made to be used and enjoyed, not kept hidden in a closet.

I agree. Only live once and i can always resell. Kinda pricey but the roof can wait.

[Terra Nova]

I agree. Only live once and i can always resell. Kinda pricey but the roof can wait.

Never a good idea to let the roof wait if it needs work what with the crazy weather anymore. Roof and foundation are the most important parts of a house.

[BKSo]

My collection has been stable for the last decade, with one telescope. It is hard to downsize further.

[CHASLX200]

My collection has been stable for the last decade, with one telescope. It is hard to downsize further.

Smart man. Gonna take a trip and add another today.

[deSitter]

Smart man. Gonna take a trip and add another today.

Good luck! Hope it's a good one! Intes almost always are!

 

-drl

[CHASLX200]

Never a good idea to let the roof wait if it needs work what with the crazy weather anymore. Roof and foundation are the most important parts of a house.

I know. Been like this for 6 years as half a shingle blows off here and there but still no leaks and as little rain as i have got in the last 5 years i will see how far it can go and last.

 

Got my Mak today.

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[Orion68]

I'm going to downsize from 5 vintage refractors and an 80's C8.

 

Three of the refractors have to go, maybe donated before the end of the year. A Selsi, Jason and Orbit Scope - all are 60mm 700m focal length. All with decent optics but so so mechanics.

 

The C8 will never go, when collimation is spot on and seeing is good, the views are spectacular.

 

[deSitter]

I'm going to downsize from 5 vintage refractors and an 80's C8.

 

Three of the refractors have to go, maybe donated before the end of the year. A Selsi, Jason and Orbit Scope - all are 60mm 700m focal length. All with decent optics but so so mechanics.

 

The C8 will never go, when collimation is spot on and seeing is good, the views are spectacular.

 

March 19 2024.jpg

I would likely take the 60/700mm Orbit SCOPE off your hands!

 

-drl

[upwinddan]

I know. Been like this for 6 years as half a shingle blows off here and there but still no leaks and as little rain as i have got in the last 5 years i will see how far it can go and last.

 

Got my Mak today.

Tell us more about your new Mak. 

[CHASLX200]

Tell us more about your new Mak. 

One word nitemare. 

[Bomber Bob]

Hate to hear that.

[deSitter]

One word nitemare. 

Ru-Mak collimation is an order of magnitude harder than an SCT. You have to go at it methodically.

 

-drl

[Lentini]

A couple of previous ones let go, I’m stable with just my TS-80… Not really looking for other classics, except the elusive TS-90.

 

I have a couple of MiniBorgs, but I have no idea when they were made. Are they classics? I don’t know. And I’d be up for one more! (I use them as finderscopes.)

[Exnihilo]

Never a good idea to let the roof wait if it needs work what with the crazy weather anymore. Roof and foundation are the most important parts of a house.

I had to have my roof done last summer.  Not something to be put off.