Orion Short Tube 80

The ST-80 is a compact achromatic refractor well suited for grab and go activities. I bought it back in 2003 to take along on moutain hikes.

I tried to use it to take pictures with a Nikon Coolpix 995 but at the time, the St80 was mounted on a camcorder tripod that was not up to task. Even after getting an 18mm Scoptronix eyepiece with the threaded adapter, the weight of the system was too much.

In 2007, after reading an article on Cloudy Night Telescope Reviews, I purchased a Microstar alt-az mount from Universal Astronomics. In addition, I found on the web another page describing the replacement of the standard 1.25" focuser with a 2" Crayford unit from Scopestuff.com and ordered their FRC2 model. Then I changed the tripod to a Bogen Manfrotto.

The result is a major improvement over the previous setup. I can use heavy Nagler eyepieces with it and reach excellent balance thanks to the friction clamps. It is a pleasure to use and still light enough that I can take it on a trip.

Compared to the Orion EQ-1 equatorial mount, there really is no comparision: the Microstar is a hands down winner. I got the EQ-1 to demonstrate the capabilities of an eq. mount for the Boy Scout Astronomy Merit Badge I taught last year but I would not use it in the field. It is way too flimsy in my opinion.