Posts Made By: Michael Brannon

For those of us who don't know who Harry is, could you tell us? I'm interested in this too, and it sounds like something I should check out.
Thanks

I have an ED80 mounted on the Skyview Pro. I've used my digital camera to take a few pictures. I have only done some lunar and planetary stuff with this setup though. No long exposures. Here's one I took of the moon. I used a Scopetronix Maxview 40 with a UO Klee barlow. I've talked to a few people who have done the astronomy boy teardown and regrease job to theirs and have taken some really nice shots that were a couple of minutes in length.
Mike

Hi Doug,
I have a Hardin DSH 8", and am about to purchase the 12". I think that the views through this scope are very good. I have owned 2 Orion XT8s and an XT10, and I feel that the optics on my Hardin are actually better than on the Orions I had.

As for taking pictures through it, as long as you don't need to do long exposure times, you should be fine. Here is a picture I took through my DSH 8". The color is a little funny because it was a crescent moon (and because of the atmospheric conditions at the time). It looked the same through my ED80 APO. If the camera setup makes your tube drop, you can always do what I've done, and put a piece of velcro on top of the lower half of the tube, and another piece on a weight of some kind, and you can move the weight up and down the tube to achieve balance. The bottom line is that at $299, I don't think you can go wrong.
Mike

If this is something legit, then I am not trying to start trouble for him. I live in Florida, and I know all about the hurricanes. We just had another one today. All I am saying is that this all looks pretty strange to me, and if this guy is shady, I wanted others to beware. I want to keep Astromart a place where we can all buy and sell items, and feel secure in doing so. I don't want others to be ripped off and never get the product, or their money back.

Thank you for all the replies.

I used to own a UO MK70 40mm and 25mm. I thought they were outstanding. At the time though, the scope I used the most was an f/5 Orion refractor. In that scope, the center was sharp as a tack, but it had "seagulls" in about the outer 20% of the fov. In this f/6 with better quality optics it should be a bit better. The only reason I swapped it was to get the 35 Panoptic. As I said, I loved that eyepiece. I'm just not sure if I want to spend that kind of money on one eyepiece at this time though. I plan on swapping off 2 or 3 low power ones and end up with either a MK70, or maybe another used 35 Pan though. Who knows?

I guess I'll continue reading up on reviews, shop around, and try to make the best decisions.

If there is anyone out there with a 10mm Speers Waler and a dob, I would like to know if it will come to focus though. I read a review that says "dob owners beware". It said that it may not have enough in travel on the focuser to come to focus.

Thanks for all the advice guys....

Hi Nathan,
If you'd like to try to find out for yourself, just go to this site:

http://scisites.msfc.nasa.gov/realtime/jtrack/3d/JTrack3D.html

It is s satellite and space station tracking site through NASA.

Keep looking up!

Hi Magnus,
I used to have one of these a few years ago. It's a e decent barlow if you are on a budget, but with the combination you mentioned, it would definately be the weak link.

If you don't mind spending a few extra dollars, a University Optics 2.8x Klee would be a better choice. That's what I have now, and I don't think that you would regret it. It's extremely clear and sharp. The only problem with it is that it is not threaded for filters.

Clear Skies!

I work for Lockheed Martin here in Florida, and for as long as I have been with the company, I have not heard of this. It was probably designed for use in optical targeting systems, or in space based optical equipment where the temperature would be more stable. It also may have just been experimental, and never went any further. Who knows? It can't be that new of technology though, because Lockheed hasn't used that logo for years.

Clear Skies

here's another one...