20 replies to this topic

[Arkade]

Has anyone has experience with this scope? Starfield tends to have very good reviews but haven't seen anything for this one.
It is now selling for £1000 Canadian dollars, similar to the skywatcher package...starfield has rings, vixen doverail, a case, 20mm eyepiece ( it is a good quality one), 8x50 raci finder (you can put in whatever eyepiece you want...also includes a cross hair reticle with redlight) , a 99% reflective 2" diagonal..
It is on sale $1000 Canadian or $736 US dollars.(Not sure if this is a good price in America, if so, there you go, If you want a bargain,if it is a bargain price!)

I purchased this when it was $1280 or $942 US dollars.

I got it from "Ontario telescope and accessories ".
I am just curious , as this is a really solid scope , way better built that the 100ed evostar but it is impossible to find out what glass it uses.
I know some people would say, it doesn't matter if you like it, I agree but just throwing it out there if anyone knows as the info seems not available

[dnrmilspec]

In what way is it "way better" than the 100 ED Evo?  It most certainly cannot "see" more.

[Shorty Barlow]

Difficult to say, I'm pretty sure these scopes are manufactured in China, possibly Jiaxing Rui Xing, & marketed by various brands. If it doesn't specify FPL-53 or lanthanum glass then I reckon it doesn't have it.  

 

 

My 80mm apo doublet is an Evostar (modified).

 

 

I can certainly tell the difference between the FPL-53 & other types.

 

 

However, my most used scope is my 72mm Evostar.

 

 

It gets out more than any other scope. I have no idea what type of glass it has. Synta have never said AFAIK. 

 

 

It's a great little scope.

[Arkade]

In what way is it "way better" than the 100 ED Evo? It most certainly cannot "see" more.

The only way it is better is the build of it. The focuser , the tube, it looks like that 80mm ed refractor that seems to be sold by everyone. Other than that , no optically the 100mm ed is way better and I would keep the 100ed if I could only have one

[SeattleScott]

That was my thinking too. If it is FPL53 and they aren’t advertising it, someone failed their marketing class.

[Arkade]

Difficult to say, I'm pretty sure these scopes are manufactured in China, possibly Jiaxing Rui Xing, & marketed by various brands. If it doesn't specify FPL-53 or lanthanum glass then I reckon it doesn't have it.



My 80mm apo doublet is an Evostar (modified).



I can certainly tell the difference between the FPL-53 & other types.



However, my most used scope is my 72mm Evostar.



It gets out more than any other scope. I have no idea what type of glass it has. Synta have never said AFAIK.



It's a great little scope.

Agreed in that if it was 53 or of that level, then they would be facing about it in the specs as that is what most people look for. When it is not specified, it could be something I'm not aware of but it doesn't mean it is trash but just not the higher end glass

[Arkade]

That was my thinking too. If it is FPL53 and they aren’t advertising it, someone failed their marketing class.

Lol, yes..all their other starfield scopes specify which are sold in the store, by the owner of starfield. It is their cheapest ed apo scope so I'm guessing it was for people like me who were new to the hobby and wanted a good scope with all the accessories at a good price, a step up from the skywatchers/Celestron achromats

[Shorty Barlow]

Agreed in that if it was 53 or of that level, then they would be facing about it in the specs as that is what most people look for. When it is not specified, it could be something I'm not aware of but it doesn't mean it is trash but just not the higher end glass

I can't knock the Evostar 72ED DS Pro, it certainly isn't trash, even though I don't know what the glass actually is. Possibly a Chinese Ohara FPL-51 glass equivalent or H-FK61 (CDGM) as the crown, with the Schott as the flint. TBH there isn't much noticeable difference with my 80ED Evostar (apart from the shorter focal ratio of f/5.8). I can tell the difference though, just about, particularly for planetary detail. 

 

 

The old joke about the 80ED DS PRO was that it was a cheap tube & focuser with really expensive glass. I can't do too much about the tube but the aftermarket Long Perng rotating focuser makes a difference. It does alter the weight balance noticeably to the rear. I had a MoonLite on it for a short while, but it had a few mechanical problems. I actually prefer the Long Perng which is much smoother & fits the OTA tube like a glove. It still doesn't get out as much as the 72!

 

Edited by Shorty Barlow, 14 June 2025 - 10:15 PM.

[maniack]

At $736 if it doesn't have FPL53 or equivalent it's way overpriced. An AT80ED is $500 not on sale, an Svbony SV503 80mm is $400 right now. Both are KUO-made units that have very good mechanics. Then there are triplet options that are in the $600 range (Svbony SV550 80mm or Explore Scientific ED80).

 

An 80mm FPL53 or FCD100 doublet is hard to find these days in North America, except for the Evostar 80 which is on sale for $700 right now (f/7.5 though and no retractable dew shield). But TS-Optics is selling their TSAPO80F7 for around $550 + shipping, and if you're up north and not subject to random tariffs that seems like a good way to get a known quality 80mm doublet with excellent color correction for not too much money.

[Arkade]

At $736 if it doesn't have FPL53 or equivalent it's way overpriced. An AT80ED is $500 not on sale, an Svbony SV503 80mm is $400 right now. Both are KUO-made units that have very good mechanics. Then there are triplet options that are in the $600 range (Svbony SV550 80mm or Explore Scientific ED80).

An 80mm FPL53 or FCD100 doublet is hard to find these days in North America, except for the Evostar 80 which is on sale for $700 right now (f/7.5 though and no retractable dew shield). But TS-Optics is selling their TSAPO80F7 for around $550 + shipping, and if you're up north and not subject to random tariffs that seems like a good way to get a known quality 80mm doublet with excellent color correction for not too much money.

That is insane, I paid over $800 dollars US for a 80mm ed apo with 51 glass and literally just got a new 100ed evostar for $500 dollars US and it is a lot better than the starfield apparently , haven't done side by side but I will when weather is better.
Do you feel there will be a significant difference between the starfield ed and the 100mm ed evostar?

Edited by Arkade, 15 June 2025 - 01:31 PM.

[maniack]

That is insane, I paid over $800 dollars US for a 80mm ed apo with 51 glass and literally just got a new 100ed evostar for $500 dollars US and it is a lot better than the starfield apparently , haven't done side by side but I will when weather is better.
Do you feel there will be a significant difference between the starfield ed and the 100mm ed evostar?

I don't have experience with either scope, but the Evostar 100ED has FPL53 and is f/9. Not only should it have more reach and light gathering than an 80mm unit the color correction should be far better than an 80mm FPL51/FK61/FCD1 scope. And the price you paid is insanely low. But the field of view possible in a 560mm focal length OTA is significantly wider than the 900mm Evostar.

 

I did have an AT80ED with the basic ED glass, and was disappointed with the chromatic aberration I could see on Jupiter. It's one of the reasons why I switched to a smaller AT72EDII with much better glass (FPL53 + Lanthanum), which has excellent color correction at a faster f/6.

 

The Starfield 80mm seems to come with some accessories (finder, diagonal, and eyepiece) that help justify an increase in price compared to the bare OTAs.

[Arkade]

I don't have experience with either scope, but the Evostar 100ED has FPL53 and is f/9. Not only should it have more reach and light gathering than an 80mm unit the color correction should be far better than an 80mm FPL51/FK61/FCD1 scope. And the price you paid is insanely low. But the field of view possible in a 560mm focal length OTA is significantly wider than the 900mm Evostar.

I did have an AT80ED with the basic ED glass, and was disappointed with the chromatic aberration I could see on Jupiter. It's one of the reasons why I switched to a smaller AT72EDII with much better glass (FPL53 + Lanthanum), which has excellent color correction at a faster f/6.

The Starfield 80mm seems to come with some accessories (finder, diagonal, and eyepiece) that help justify an increase in price compared to the bare OTAs.

I haven't seen any CA with the starfield , the most ive seen is a slight line outline in the moon when it is out of focus but when focused , I have not seen any. On jupiter , I haven't seen any...maybe I will see again and compare to the 100ed as I wasn't looking for ca specifically

Edited by Arkade, 15 June 2025 - 02:27 PM.

[Oldfracguy]

Has anyonehas experience with this scope? Starfield tends to have very good reviews but haven't seen anything for this one.

 

Yes. This scope is made by Kunming United Optics in China, and is a virtual clone of the discontinued Astro-Tech AT80EDL and the TS-Optics Photoline:

 

https://www.teleskop...ap-focuser-8637

 

 

 

and the Altair Astro Starwave 80 ED-R:

 

https://altairastro....scope-466-p.asp

 

 

 

That Starwave 80ED-R was the sharpest 80mm refractor I have ever had.  The details I could see on Saturn and Jupiter were better that most of the 4" ED Doublets I have owned.  I bought the larger Starwave 102 ED-R to get a little more aperture, but that scope was a dud.  It was not nearly as well corrected for Spherical Aberration as the 80ED-R, and it showed more residual CA than any FPL-53 and Lanthanum Doublet I have owned.  I guess I just got lucky with that particular copy of the Starwave 80ED-R.  

[Arkade]

Yes. This scope is made by Kunming United Optics in China, and is a virtual clone of the discontinued Astro-Tech AT80EDL and the TS-Optics Photoline:

https://www.teleskop...ap-focuser-8637

101_2039.JPG


and the Altair Astro Starwave 80 ED-R:

https://altairastro....scope-466-p.asp

101_3251.JPG


That Starwave 80ED-R was the sharpest 80mm refractor I have ever had. The details I could see on Saturn and Jupiter were better that most of the 4" ED Doublets I have owned. I bought the larger Starwave 102 ED-R to get a little more aperture, but that scope was a dud. It was not nearly as well corrected for Spherical Aberration as the 80ED-R, and it showed more residual CA than any FPL-53 and Lanthanum Doublet I have owned. I guess I just got lucky with that particular copy of the Starwave 80ED-R.

It is funny you say that as I feel the optics have been really good. Haven't compared it to my 100ed but never seen any CA when focused at all to my knowledge. I am going to do a comparison when I get a chance with the 4 inch but thank you for that info.
I am excited to actually compare it to my 4 inch at same magnification .

Oldfracguy, I am a bit confused , so it is actually 53 glass then , where other people have said it is 51. Thanks for confirming that.

Edited by Arkade, 18 June 2025 - 05:59 PM.

[maniack]

Oldfracguy, I am a bit confused , so it is actually 53 glass then , where other people have said it is 51. Thanks for confirming that.

The strange part is that they don't mention the glass type on their website for this model, but they do specify FPL53 for other models. But the price is closer to FPL53 models.

[Arkade]

The strange part is that they don't mention the glass type on their website for this model, but they do specify FPL53 for other models. But the price is closer to FPL53 models.

I know , I really don't get it...I think they might have said on the box you get the scope in but at that time, I had no idea about glass, I just asked the guy for an apo. It is really odd as he would sell way more if he specified it as the package is great, the accessories are of real quality too.
Also when I got it, it was fairly new too as he has a prototype on his desk.
I think he made this to compete with the skywatchers 80ed package (one which has similar accessories ) as I recall those are the two I saw when I bought this and they were similar priced too. I was about to buy the SW but I told him I wanted it to potential astrophotography and he then said the starfield might be better due to focuser. He didn't push starfield onto me as I went in wanting the SW ed80 as I knew skywatcher was a good brand

[Oldfracguy]

It is funny you say that as I feel the optics have been really good. Haven't compared it to my 100ed but never seen any CA when focused at all to my knowledge. I am going to do a comparison when I get a chance with the 4 inch but thank you for that info.
I am excited to actually compare it to my 4 inch at same magnification .

Oldfracguy, I am a bit confused , so it is actually 53 glass then , where other people have said it is 51. Thanks for confirming that.

The varous telescope vendors around the world who re-brand these Kunming United Optics ED refractors (Sky Rover, by the way, is the KUO "house brand") often carry two versions of these ED Doublets.  The less expensive models will have either an FPL-51, FCD-1 or FK-61 ED element with a regular glass mate.  These scopes are very good to be sure, but they will show a little bluish fringing around really bright targets.  The more expensive versions of these scopes have either an FPL-53, FPL-55 or FCD-100 glass ED element, most often paired with a Lanthanum glass mate.  These scopes are essentially color-free.  Unless there is something drastically wrong with the objective, which happens on occasion unfortunately, these refractors will show no residual CA even on Sirius and Vega.  They also show fine details on the planets and the lunar surface better than the regular ED versions of the same scope, and can work at higher magnifications on double stars, for example.

[Jon Isaacs]

It is funny you say that as I feel the optics have been really good. Haven't compared it to my 100ed but never seen any CA when focused at all to my knowledge. I am going to do a comparison when I get a chance with the 4 inch but thank you for that info.
I am excited to actually compare it to my 4 inch at same magnification .

Oldfracguy, I am a bit confused , so it is actually 53 glass then , where other people have said it is 51. Thanks for confirming that.

 

Get up early and take a look at Venus. You'll see definite CA in an 80 mm F/7 FPL-51 doublet. The 100 mm F/9 FPL-53 double should be free of CA as would an 80 mm F/7 FPL-53/FCD100 doublet.

 

All will probably show atmospheric dispersion so distinguishing between CA and atmospheric dispersion can be tricky. Use around 200x.

 

I'm not sure how David is confirming the Starfield is a virtual clone of the AT-80EDL.  He seems to be discussing an 80 mm Star Wave.

 

Jon

[Arkade]

Get up early and take a look at Venus. You'll see definite CA in an 80 mm F/7 FPL-51 doublet. The 100 mm F/9 FPL-53 double should be free of CA as would an 80 mm F/7 FPL-53/FCD100 doublet.

All will probably show atmospheric dispersion so distinguishing between CA and atmospheric dispersion can be tricky. Use around 200x.

I'm not sure how David is confirming the Starfield is a virtual clone of the AT-80EDL. He seems to be discussing an 80 mm Star Wave.

Jon

I have seen Venus and it is mint. I also recall steve, the owner mentioning this as I didn't know much about CA. He said," one of my customers just purchased this and he is very particular about his scopes and he said Venus was great in it" I'm paraphrasing but it was along the lines of that, as he said a purple edge as I had no idea what CA was then. I was asking him if it was an improvement over my Celestron 100/660 achro, he started laughing and said something along the lines of comparing the starfield to a top sports car and my achro to a regular car..
I will check Venus again though and compare them in both scopes too

Edited by Arkade, 18 June 2025 - 06:32 PM.

[Oldfracguy]

Get up early and take a look at Venus. You'll see definite CA in an 80 mm F/7 FPL-51 doublet. The 100 mm F/9 FPL-53 double should be free of CA as would an 80 mm F/7 FPL-53/FCD100 doublet.

 

All will probably show atmospheric dispersion so distinguishing between CA and atmospheric dispersion can be tricky. Use around 200x.

 

I'm not sure how David is confirming the Starfield is a virtual clone of the AT-80EDL.  He seems to be discussing an 80 mm Star Wave.

 

Jon

You're right, John.  That Starfield scope appears to be similar to the regular ED scopes like the Astro-Tech AT80ED:

 

https://starfieldoptics.com/ed80-f7

 

If the scope did contain one of those so-called "Special Dispersion" lens elements like FPL-53 or FCD-100 it would very likely have been mentioned in the product description.  This "Kit" includes your choice of flattener, so that would explain the higher price compared with just the OTA by itself.

 

By the way, three years ago one predawn morning I had one of these 80mm f/7 ED Doublets outside looking at Venus:

 

 

 

That is a William Optics Zenithstar 81, another iteration of the Kunming United Optics 80mm f/7 ED Doublet with an FPL-53 lens element.  Using a 3.2mm Dual ED Paradigm eyepiece for 175x, the crescent Venus was crisp, with a sharp clean border and no trace of bluish fringing. It was as if someone had cut a crescent out of a piece of white paper and pasted it on the dark background sky.

Edited by Oldfracguy, 18 June 2025 - 09:29 PM.

[Arkade]

You're right, John. That Starfield scope appears to be similar to the regular ED scopes like the Astro-Tech AT80ED:

https://starfieldoptics.com/ed80-f7

If the scope did contain one of those so-called "Special Dispersion" lens elements like FPL-53 or FCD-100 it would very likely have been mentioned in the product description. This "Kit" includes your choice of flattener, so that would explain the higher price compared with just the OTA by itself.

By the way, three years ago one predawn morning I had one of these 80mm f/7 ED Doublets outside looking at Venus:

101_1255.JPG


That is a William Optics Zenithstar 81, another iteration of the Kunming United Optics 80mm f/7 ED Doublet with an FPL-53 lens element. Using a 3.2mm Dual ED Paradigm eyepiece for 175x, the crescent Venus was crisp, with a sharp clean border and no trace of bluish fringing. It was as if someone had cut a crescent out of a piece of white paper and pasted it on the dark background sky.

I was all excited thinking it was better than it was lol. Oh well, maybe we will never know