Suggestions for a small refractor

A while back I put myself on an equipment diet and I’m now down to two scopes: a Coronado PST Ha and a TV102. I chose the 102 in part due to its portability as well as quality. To fund the 102 I sold off some other scopes including an ETX90 and Orion 80mm ST.

With the impeding transit of Mercury I’m thinking that it would be nice again to have a small, portable scope for both terrestrial and night-time viewing; for example, something that will slip into a small travel bag and something I can use as a telephoto lens on a photo-tripod. I admit that I miss my Orion ST as I was lucky and it had exceptional optics with very little CA.

So, first question, which short-tube 70mm to 80mm refractors would you recommend in the $250 to $400 range? (Achro, Semi-Apo, or Apo – it doesn’t matter).

Second question: I have read reviews of some of the more recent ST refractors being out of collimation. While I won’t mention manufacturers’ names, from the reviews it seems to be a ubiquitous problem. Televue’s policy is if it needs collimation send it back to us. So, have owners of the newer small refractors found this to be a problem?

Thanks.

WO ZS-66SD. A small 70mm class APO for 299.00

David,
I just purchased a Stellarvue SV66 for many of the same reasons. I've had mine for a month now and I have used it for solar, birding, and astro work. You won't find any Stellarvue telescope that's mis-collimated, with coma, or astigmatism. They are all hand assembled, bench tested, and then star tested by Vic Maris, the owner of SV to make sure it is perfect when it gets into your hands. This of course, makes the SV66 a bit more expensive but I think it's worth it. The SV66 weighs about 3.5 pounds (ota) and is literally back packable. Although I recommend getting the SV diagonal with it, it will come to focus with any after market 1.25" 90º or 45º diagonal. All of my eyepieces, from plossls to Erfles to Naglers, come to focus with no issues. You can use a binoviewer but it must have an oca, and you might find the balance a bit awkward. It's a great little scope that sets up in minutes to catch a bird in the back yard, a comet, or even to photograph my cosmos flowers with. Today I took it to work to catch the sunspots during my lunch break. I still do my serious observing with my larger scopes, but once you accept the limitations of the 66mm aperture, it's a fun little scope to use.

David E

Hi David:

Check out Ivan Gastaldo's post on his new WO 66. I don't have any qualms about mentioning brand names, but I know a reviewer of the WO 110 who found his first sample grossly out of collimation. Perhaps, it has to do with the fact that their prices are lower, and their quality assurance may reflect this. That said, the Yang brothers are very serious about being competitive and I think will address the concerns of their buyers, as was the case with this particular reviewer.

On the other hand, a used TV 76 or similar scope from a company with a good reputation goes a long way towards appeasing a buyer's concerns. Of course, it all depends on how much do you want to spend.

Rey