Meade LXD55 10" Newtonian compeditors

i'm seriously looking into getting a Meade LXD55 10" Schmidt-Newtonian, but i'd like to know what it's compeditors are... and possibly something better.

I'm also looking at a guide-scope and looking for an autoguider, but that's not as important at the moment.

A dealer told me that the Meade 10" SN has superb optics but is too heavy for the LXD55 mount. There is also a serious problem with the quality of the dovetail bar. It is so poorly built that some owners have reported them breaking frequently. Even the dealer said to fill its hollow core with liquid steel or resin. Sounds like too many problems to deal with.

Hi Robert -

The 10" is too heavy for the mount. Also, the LXD-55 cannot autoguide.

Jake

An obvious competitor is the new Celestron ASC 10" reflector, which has a similar mount but a very good tripod and autoguide capabilities. The mount's still a little light but the real tripod will help a lot.

John

If you want to get serious, here is the mount for the 10" This is a pic of my setup. A Celestron CGE computerized mount. Rock steady and accurate. The cheapo Meade dovetail has been replaced with a Losmandy universal plate. I use this setup for Astrophotography and so far the results are fantastic.

Attached Image: