Posts Made By: John Herda

Hello fellow sky-watchers;

I've recently purchased the Vixen VMC 110L ( Chinese?, not Japanese manufacture) and have had some issues with the unit as I put it together and checked the sloppy eccentric focal adjuster, and sloppy eyepiece fit which may indicate the overall performance of this unit which has received some glowing remarks about its performance despite its low end cost and smaller aperture.

Equally bad experience with a large distribution wholesaler on Ebay who missdescribed the package which was to have included a Vixen Porta 2 mount; so,(tongue in cheek) I'm left holding the scope freehand and checking its optical capabilities. Some reimbursement of funds , but far short of the cost of finding a replacement tripod with the Vixen shoe adaption .

I purchased the scope for it's reasonable viewing capabilities( after reading various reviews) and portability as I plan to use it in the field and on my travels. I'm hopeful one of you fellow sky watchers may have had some positive experiences viewing with this scope, and may alleviate or validate my concerns.

Suffice it to say, what tripod should I get that will be portable? Should I consider a goto setup? Should I restart and try another more expensive, portable unit which may provide a prolonged and positive celestial viewing life ?

Clear skies!
PS
I have traded up and have a more respectable TV 76 on the way....American made quality travel scope..

[COLOR="Blue"][/COLOR]After years of using simple Nikon 7x35 binoculars for portable sky watching, I decided to spend some reasonable money after some basic research and came up with a TV 76mm APO, TV binovuers and I started with TV 8x24 EP's which I am adding to with a sets of TV 2.5mm Nagler T6's, 11mm NT6's and 22mm panoptics. ( I worked for some time in industry, and education; but, coming from an extended family of autoworkers for 3 generations, I appreciate keeping our jobs at home and supporting optics and accessories made in America, and if possible, Canada...meaning anywhere in NA, I just happen to be a Canuk) Lest I digress too far outa focus.....

I had a 20 minute window of opportunity to aim my rig NE at that bright spot in the sky I knew had to be a planet and called over my wife to inspect Jupiter with its apparent banding and its moon just peeking out of the 2 o'clock position....all done with a modicum of awe and a pleasant adrenal rush... my first light !

Looking forwards to years of healthy, fascination with the night sky - running from clouds and setting up quickly!

I think binos are for me, and it appears from the extent of detailed commentary and equipment-- I have alot to learn and experiment with....I have a little technical savy being a tech math person at college and in metal work/fabrication which I have used in micro machining watch and clocks...Now retired after 38 years and looking to use some skills, advice and direction from whoever and wherever to accomplish this end. Clear Skies !

I recently purchased a set of used Zeiss EP-L 10/x20mm EP's for my TV Binovuers and was shocked to note that these particular wide field EP's did not fit my Televue Binovuer with the compression rings as these EP's were designed for microscope use and had a sightly smaller barrel size at just 30mm @ 1 inch, and 31,75mm is standard for the 1.25 inch Ep mounts...I was a little chagrinned and frustrated as I was lead to believe by a fellow star gazer's advert "...the only eyepiece I use in the binos. I change magnification using different configurations using the AP Barcon and Baader Fluorite Barlow. You will be very impressed" ....I am impressed with the quality of these Ep's, but with the loose fit I was unable to use them in my Binovuer..... WHat to do??

Well, I did some research and found some commentary on the manufacture of a retrofit which can be fabricated ( lathe turned, threaded for filters and fully anodized) by APM telescopes in Germany....

I wrote Markus Ludes at APM and sent pics and my requirements for the retrofit, and for a reasonable fee (including shipping from Europe) these new tubes will overlay my existing EP barrels,,,,Problem solved !

Anyone out there with antiquated yet excellent optics, or wishing to experiment, compare or use the oldies but goodies on a new telescope rig will be happy to have found this excellent service and executed design retrofit....

I am not affiliated with APM but would highly recommend using their services to accomplish the retrofit for over-sizing a barrel for use in a modern scope..

Clear Skies !

Jon