Tele Vue TV-102
The TV-102 works exceptionally well
with the SolarMax 90/BF15. The etalon screws directly onto the lens cell
of the 102. No adaptor plate is required. With a TV 8mm to 24mm Zoom
eyepiece the sun takes up about 3/4 the FOV at 24mm. The zoom requires
almost all of the focusers travel. About 1/4 inch remains after focusing
the image.
The image is large and bright. At the lowest setting (8mm) the image has
great contrast and hold focus well. The scope must be slide over half
way back to achieve balance on a Alt/Az mount.
See solar images taken through a SM90/BF15/TV-102.
Astro-Physics 152 f/9 Refractor
This was my first AP scope. It offered a
long focal length with a quality
oil spaced doublet lens (non-ED). It gave very good Ha and nighttime views. I sold it to
buy the AP155
EDT. There was a fair amount of internal reflections when
viewing the sun with this scope.
TeleVue NP-101
What a great telescope. The NP-101
offers the best wide field views of the night sky I've ever seen.
Hydrogen-alpha views are stunning also. Looking through the Denks at the
sun in this scope is tremendous. I really hated to sell this scope but I
wanted to add an internal Coronado hi-res module along with the SM90.
The NP has a rear doublet that prevents this. I sold it to purchase the
TV-102 and SM90.
Konus
150 (Synta)
I purchased a Konus (Synta) 150mm achromatic
refractor on Astromart
to experiment with the light gain between a 4" and 6"
telescope. It was huge! The Konus gave very bright and detailed high power
views of the solar activity. I was able to magnify individual prominences
and filaments with incredible clarity. The focuser is a Bill Burgess
model
200 Crayford.
William Optics Megrez 80
The Megrez 80 is an inexpensive
alternative for Hydrogen-Alpha viewing. It works better with Coronado
filters
than rear mounted Ha filters.
Coronado SolarMax 60
The Coronado SolarMax 60 is an
excellent mid sized solar filter. It gives large, bright views of the
sun that can be magnified. I used this filter for a year before getting
the SolarMax 90/BF15 for imaging.
AP900 QMD
One of the best values available on
telescope mounts. The Quartz Micro Drive mount has the same weight
capacity as the GOTO model at a substantial discount.
More info.
Orion Atlas Mount
The Orion Atlas mount
is nearly identical to the Synta EQ-6 mount. Orion rates it at at 40lbs,
Synta rates it at 50+ lbs.
Following the sun is
quite easy with this mount. I only roughly point the scope north and it
simply tracks. Fully
extending the legs puts the eyepiece about 2 feet off the ground. Sitting
on the side of the filter helps with your body position. It
can operate several days off of one 12VDC battery. For
night time use, I equipped the mount with JMI encoders and a Sky
Commander.
Overall, the Atlas is
a strong, sturdy mount well worth the price. It is well suited for heavy
Ha loads.
I sold this mount to finance the AP900 mount.
I've also owned:
20" Starmaster, f/4.3
6" Stargazer Steve Dob
10" Orion XT8, f/6
Coronado SolarMax 70 CaK Telescope
Meade
AT-60EX
Orion ST-80
StellarVue 80/9D
Celestron 114GT
Orion UltraView 10x50 Binoculars
SBIG STL-11000
SBIG STL-4020
DMK 41AF02.AS
Lumenera Infinity 2-1
Canon 10D DSLR
