Posts Made By: Doug Walton

Well, this has been an illuminating thread, and I'd like to thank those of you that offered relevant and concise information.

Here are some opinions of mine...

Rick Singmaster would very likely tell you that none of the additions you've made would make any difference at the eyepiece. Many others would agree, and maybe some would not.

Me? I think the rear fan is completely superfluous - if I was going to do a fan thing on a 14.5" SM I'd arrange them so that they blew air across the surface of the mirror. (And that might not make any difference anyway - it doesn't take that mirror very long to cool down to the point where it performs exceptionally well.) And the mirror box baffle? Possibly useful, but probably not.

Overall, I think you'd be better off being well-rested, and over the course of a long night of viewing, hydrated, and stocked with eyedrops.

Sorry for sounding negative, but that's reality. :-) Bone stock, that scope only needs to be dialed in relative to the secondary mirror and the focuser alignment. Maybe a high-end secondary if you want to be fussy - and that's about it.

Floyd, you sound like a nice, well-intentioned fellow. Aside from just using the scope as-is, if you want to get into it, focus on the details of precise focuser and secondary alignment, along with getting good at critical collimation (Catseye tools are the way to go), and when you let the scope cool for an hour or so, you'll be fine.

Doug

...Zambuto-equipped Starmasters (used) can be had for way below new prices. Just something to think about...once their "depreciation" is subtracted, they hold their value really well.

Doug

Michael, you sure are making sweet-looking scopes these days!

Michael, FWIW, once I figured out how to dial in a Starmaster (and thus, didn't need a whole lotta support from Rick anymore), the main reasons I bought other Starmasters was that 1) they work pretty well, 2) I understood how to fiddle with them, and most importantly 3) they had Zambuto mirrors in them.

#3 above was always the biggie for me. These days, though, I think I might be a little more open-minded about mirrors, although I know I'm getting excellence with a Zambuto.

Your sweet scope structure with Zambutos in them? No one could touch you. :-)

Doug

I'm a big fan of Pentax roof prism binocs. My Pentax DCF SP's (10x50) are an extremely good binoc for the money, and give up very little to high-end Swaros, Leicas or Nikons.

One place to check for birding binoc ratings is the betterviewdesired website. Then you just order them from ATWB and you're set. :-)

Doug

Since I started this thread, I'll now officially close it.

Yes, we've learned much from this discussion. We've heard from lots of folks on their cool-down experiences with various mirrors and scopes under a variety of conditions, and that's what I was looking for. We've also learned that there is a vocal minority out there who disdains any mention of mirror cool-down, along with an associated unique view of astronomy.

Let it be. Thread closed. Thanks to all involved that stayed on-topic.

Doug

Once again, up pops the Celestron 9.25. Hmmmm...

Ed, you mean on, like, say, a modified 20" Starmaster from a few years back?

In that case, it didn't last long. Replaced with nice heat-shrink covering like Rick uses now. Came out great.

nt