Stellarvue 115

Has anyone seen the Stellarvue 115 apo?
I am wondering how it compares with a
"real" TMB 115, in build and optical quality.

BTW, does anyone know what happened to Tom
Back? I heard he had surgery, and his website
is down.

I asked the same thing on the TMB group on Yahoo and was assured that it is exactly the same as the lens in the "real" TMB 115. Only the tube is different, and you can get the TMB in a lightweight tube too. I liked the blue tube that Stellarvue has though.

Thomas did have back sugery, but seems to be on the mend. He is posting on the TMB group, but not a whole lot. Apparently business is good, so he has other matters to attend to.

Doug
Midway, FL

Ken,
I have seen and briefly used the SV115 in both the standard version and the "Special Edition" version. The difference is in the tube diameter and the focuser (2" FT on the standard vs 3.5" FT on the special). Both are CNC machined throughout, built like tanks, and, as stated, use true TMB lenses (Vic Maris pays a royalty to Thomas Back on every SV/TMB scope). I have not seen a "real" TMB 115 so I can't offer a first-hand comparison, but they are optically the same and I suspect mechanically equal to the CNC tubes from APM and perhaps superior to the lightweight tubes from APM. The blue anodized finish available as an option on the Stellarvue scopes is, in a word, stunning when seen in the flesh. The complete run-down on the SV/TMB 115 and the other SV/TMB scopes can be found on the Stellarvue website.

Jim