Posts Made By: Floyd Blue

Got your attention huh?
Well, one week of leaving the scope set up in the high desert with winds all day left about an inch ( )of dust and grit on the mirror, so once again I had to clean it.
I used filters this time on the fans most of the time and kept it sealed as much as possible, but that stuff still finds it's way in the box. :C I had big hopes for the filters and in fairness they may have helped quite a bit. No telling how much crud would have been there without them. Any one else try to make filters for the air to the fans that cool the mirror?
Nothing you can do I guess to stop it, so it is just up to you to decide when it is time to clean the stuff off.
Well, it is now a sparkling clean mirror once again. Time to get it dirty 8)!
Floyd

Enhanced coatings require high heat to apply them, this is a risk in it's self. If the glass is not annealed well, or has a flaw, it can actually break or change the figure! It is also stated that they warranty only up to the cost of the coating in these cases!
The enhanced coating is thicker, up to 2 wave lengths thick compared to 1-1.5 wave with standard, this is also a risk. There is a greater chance that the coating will not go on completely evenly causing a change in the figure.
Next, the reflectivity is not really that much higher.
The 89% rating for standard is below 450nm and above 650nm between this it is about 92% compared to 95-96% for enhanced. The eye is not sensitive below 450nm or above 650nm. You probably will not see the 3% change. It is also said that enhanced coatings will deteriorate much quicker, I have read as little as 18 months and as long as 36 months before they are actually less reflective than protected aluminum.
I have had talks with many coating companies and the guys that actually do the coating say, "Just do the protected aluminum on the primary".
Floyd

Has anyone found their XLs to have a form of grease on the eye guard adjustment screws? I have one with grease and one without and have been told by Tom Hole that his have not had grease on the threads. I am trying to figure out whether to remove the grease on one or add it on the other.
Thanks,
Floyd

Isn't this a bit like Semi-Virgin?
The term is a bit hard to put a finger on really. How exactly do you test for Semi-APO? Is there a percentage of APO or a certain amount of color or just what is it?
Is the Meade ED APO an APO or a Semi-APO or a glorified Acro?
I think that when Burgess releases his new scopes, then the truth will prevail. Either they will come out or they will not, but as long as no on is laying out any money up front, then there is nothing to get upset or concerned about is there?
Floyd

I think that the talk about the upcoming scopes from TMB and Burgess needs to just let the snow ball roll until it hits the bottom of the hill. When it does, some one is going to be eating a large portion of crow. I for one hate the taste of crow. So I have been holding my tongue on this. I don't think anyone can speak with knowledge and authority on the issue of what is coming except Tom and Jim who are paying the bills on this one.
It is probably a bit premature to try and make statements about whether it is possible or impossible or whether there is glass in China. Hey if there is glass anywhere in the world, it can be purchased and brought to China I would think.
Imagine how embarrassing it will be to those involved if they do produce this scope as stated. 8O
I think I will sit back and watch the fireworks.
Floyd

I looked on his web page and I found $199 binoviewer, but nothing about a $99 binoviewer. Where would I find anything on this?
Floyd

Well, we attempted to do some observing last night, but the area was cloudy with only a few openings that lasted for minutes at a time.
We tried the 7mm Pentax XL vs. the 6mm Radian on only a few objects. I thought M57 was the best object because it was almost at zenith and gave the best conditions for the test.
Fist thing we noticed was that both EPs were sensitive to eye position and both required the use of the adjustable eye guard to eliminate this by providing the proper eye placement. Without the use of the eye guard, the Radian was a little more difficult to achieve eye placement, but the difference was not great.
Next we tried to figure through-put. Here we found the 6mm Radian seemed a little brighter than the 7mm XL. There were differences in the overall look of the background as well, with the Pentax seemly giving a slightly darker background, but slightly less bright object. As far as the potential for show greater detail, the conditions did not allow us to test this properly.
Eye relief was the same as best we could figure.
The Eye guard was easier to use with the Radian as it could be changed quickly with out having to do several turns of the guard like the Pentax. I like both, but I find the Pentax to be more work to set, but once set it will stay, where the Radian can accidentally be pushed down.
The smaller size of the Radian was a plus, but the larger exit lens of the Pentax was nice.
The difference between 60° and 65° was not that big of a deal. So I think that this is not a big thing to figure in the choice, but I guess the wider FOV is always a plus.
Hopefully we will get some better conditions this coming week and I will be able to test them with more objects and situations.
At this point I will have to say they are both great EPs and worth buying. Those that used eyeglasses were very pleased with the Radians as well as the Pentax. So the long eye relief is a big bonus for comfort and ease of viewing.
Floyd

How about people discussing the 127mm Burgess that has seemingly good optics. Or other products that they are happy with, so that a bit more perspective is put on the picture.
I am not really interested in what "Might be" or "In the works", but rather what "Has been made".
I can state that I have seen "DOGS" from a few different manufacturers slip through the cracks.
Floyd

I just traded three UO Orthos for a pair of these. I wanted something for terrestrial and astronomical use. I did not want the giants because of weight and size. I read a lot of nice things about them in reviews and forums.
What do you think? Any of you give these a try before?
These are my first decent binoculars. All others have been cheap just except a small 8x32 Pentax that I use for hiking.
Floyd

Now, I have tried to duplicate the test as you performed it Roland. The camera was held 3' above the EPs and a bit of telephoto was used to bring them in close so that they could be easily seen.
I also took four shots while walking around the EPs at 90° apart.
Same EPs were used, but this time I did not change the sequence in placement.
Many of the same statements hold true in this series. including red color the Pentax.
Now the field stops can be seen in the UWA, Pentax, Radian and Nagler, but they do not look like bright circles, but rather you are seeing them through the exit lens.
The sky can be seen reflection back from all the EPs with the XL just showing red rather than the blue and white colors of the sky.
Do note that the reflections do change as I rotate around the group in the four photos. This is what I was saying earlier about the position relative to the camera lens effecting the reflection.
However each of the EP was put into four different positions, so hopefully this is a fair test.
SO, what do you think about the results of the test. Does this look like I followed the process properly and got the shot you wanted?
I would have liked to have had other types to check as well, but I only have some not so good Plossls to add to the batch.
How would you all rate the EPs in this test, which is best?
Floyd