Hello from Sunny Southern California!

[Vondragonnoggin]

Hello all. I just registered here because I just ordered my Ares 150 WFT F/5 Anistigmat. Been eyeballing this for awhile and Istar in general. I look forward to giving some reports after I get the scope in my hands and out for first light. Have wanted the 6" widefield frac for some time...

Used to own an AR127 achro at F/6.5, then sold to a friend and missed it bad. It was a beautiful achro. Thought I would upgrade and shorten at the same time from the AR127 to an Istar 150 F/5. Milky way and Open Cluster spotting, Large Nebula, etc. So looking forward to it.

[rgm]

Welcome, I am sure you will enjoy your new scope. I have had my 127mm f12 R30 for about a year and it has provided some great views, both mono and bino. Already thinking about a 200mm upgrade.

[Vondragonnoggin]

Hello. Thanks for the welcome. Your scope sounds beautiful. I like F/12 too. My MCT is an F/12. Very nice long focal ratio puts a nice change on my eyepiece mags from shorter scopes I own. Very forgiving of eyepieces too. Just about everything performs well at F/12. Even my 42mm GSO Superview performs well at that length. I will be posting a lot of impressions after I receive my F/5. Haven't seen any first light reports on the Comet Hunters yet. Tons of good stuff about all the others. Binoviewing is something I'm planning on too. Have the eyepiece pairs for a binocular telescope I own, but after I get used to the comet hunter, I'll most likely purchase a binoviewer.

[boomboom]

Welcome to the best Refractor spot on Earth!
Well maybe that is a bit over the top but….
I like RFT's too and that is next on my list. When you get the 150 f5 a report is expected  
No, just kidding. I'm just about finished an ATM with a 150 f12 achro and the once I have hd it out (for all of 5 minutes) it left views of Jupiter etched in the ol brain cells!
How long have you been into Astronomy and what scopes do you have? I had a really good Synta f8 that gave me 2.2º with an ES 40mm eyepiece so I would expect your scope would be much better than that.
Matt

[Vondragonnoggin]

Thanks for the welcome. I've been into astronomy for a little over 4 years. Started on a pair of 12x50 binoculars and then bought a few more to satisfy the interest of both me and my son. He was just turning 8 at the time. Bought a pair of Zhumell Tachyon 25x100 binoculars and a heady duty tripod, then a few months later, an 8" dob. After about a year, I decided to change scopes and bought a 6" iOptron MCT and bought a heavy duty alt-az (Twilight II ) mount. Modded the scope with a few custom goodies and then bought a 5" F6.5 achro. I loved the views from both scopes more than my 8" dob. The refractor got me hooked on richfield viewing for sure, but that scope was actually really capable on higher peer and use of Semi-Apo filter from Baader made the CA more than tolerable. I found out I just wasn't bothered much by it. After about another year, I decided to try AP. bought an EQ5 and modded dslr. Found out quickly I don't have the time or funds really to keep doing AP and preferred visual astronomy over technical astronomy by a whopping huge margin, so sold the AP stuff, EQ5, AR127 achro all together to a friend who was greatly interested in a starter package for lower cost.

I missed the refractor completely. It was really a good sample and capable for more than the money I spent let on. So, long story short - bought the Ares 150 WFT with R35 lens. I am so looking forward to the views from a short focal length refractor and I wanted something of quality, plus the better spot size and color correction than a standard is just icing on the cake since I have a high tolerance for CA. A good compliment to my 6" MCT. I also have a grab n go size binocular telescope. 70mm with 90 degree oculars and interchangeable eyepieces, a decent pair of 10x50 and 12x60 bins. I plan on the binoviewer for the refractor of course. Love those two eye views. Wide variety of eyepieces ranging from RKE type to 82 degree type. No 100 degree yet, but that's going to change soon. I like the manual mounts and would like to get my T-Rex or DM6 this year. The Twilight II is nice and easy, but the differences between it and the nicer alt-az mounts like T-Rex is obvious. I think my Istar refractor is going to be deserving of a beautiful perch.

[astromanuk]

Hi and welcome!



I think the 150/R35 on an alt-az mount is a great combination. The R35 is going to give you tighter star images than standard acromat.  

I am very keen on WFT refractors and the field of view in a 31 Nagler eyepiece of over 3 degrees at 25x would be wonderful for visual patrolling.

Looking forward to hearing of your final choice of mount.

[istarmullet]

If you live in SD, I will have to have you over to look through my two ISTARs.

[Vondragonnoggin]

Thanks everyone. Not in SD, but in NB, Orange County, but man oh man, I would take the drive to SD to look through those. Not sure exact time until I get my F/5, but after I get it, that would be cool to see the different focal lengths performing together. I don't have a Terminagler yet, but do have a 34mm Meade 5000 SWA to drop in there right away. The Nagler is on my list. Or the 25mm 100 degree ES. I'm looking at BV's now.