SkyWatcher 102/500 Or Wo Megrez II 80mm

Witch one is the best for both deepsky and planet observations (mostly deepsky)? The Skywatcher has bigger aperture but the 80mm Megrez II from William optics has better optics i think... I'am looking for a grab and go scope.

Clear Skies / Anders Asp

Hi Anders,

Sincerely, I think the New WO Megrez 80 II will be better. I am very interesting too by this small refractor for my large widefield CCD images.

But for my goal, I will purchase the Megrez 80 II in its Triplet APO version (about $1,600).

My advice is Go for the Megrez 80 II.

Regards,

Florent

--------------
CCD ALTAZ & AO web site : http://www.astrosurf.com/ccdaltazao

Pithiviers le Vieil/Jouy-En-Pithiverais-----------------FRANCE

My USA web site : http://members.aol.com/JEPobs/poiget.htm

Losmandy HGM TITAN mount
Meade 12" UHTC & William Optics FLT-110 APO OTAs
SBIG ST-10XME/CFW-8A/AO-7

For deep sky apeture is just about everything. Not so for planetary.

If you want deepsky, then the added aperture will probably be a big help. But a 102 mm F5 scope is not going to do much on the planets.

And if you are looking for planetary performance, I think the Orion ED80 would be better than the Megrez II which is being sold as a "semi APO" while the Orion scope is being compared to APO scopes like the TV76.

Another grab and go option is the C5 spotter.

jon

Hi,

I had a Megrez 80 briefly. The build quality is wonderful but the optics are underwhelming. I have owned an ST80, a Pronto, and now a Tak Sky 90. I would put the optics of my Megrez sample between the ST80 and the Pronto. For that price you could get a used Pronto or a new Orion 80ED. From the reports I hear of the Orion it would be the best bang-for-the-buck scope. The ED/APO versions of the Megrez sound promising but at that price point they will be running into very stiff competition with Teleview and Takahashi.

Best,

Paul