Post a picture of your rig!

The most troublefree WOULD be the AP. They are simple to use, the adapters are machined to be easily fit even with gloves on and they don't have very thin little threads like the Tak. The mechanics of the TEC - they have the full out 3545 Feathertouch. Nice. But I still like the AP. It's solid, no focus shift, no end play...good stuff.

Resale value - outstanding with the AP.

Congrats, that's a fine piece of scope!

Dave

Regarding the fluorite comments...

I remember this green laser test from years ago but had to think about and go back to some notes I took about what I learned about it.

1) All glass, with the exception of crystal fluorite, scatters green laser light. The scattering is backscatter. (it's coming back toward the source not forward toward the focal plane). However, there is almost no forward scattering of light in optical glass. Forward scattering affects the image, back scattering does not. Any light which goes back out the front of the optic does not reach the focal plane.

2) There are always at least 1 and most often two more glasses in the optical train, which all scatter green laser light, so this negates the argument that there is no scatter in fluorite.

I also learned recently that Tak is no longer using Fluorite in most of their telescopes, the new FSQ106 being one of them. Based on current information, Tak is actually using FPL53 in the new FSQ.

Anyway all of this is subjective. Your eyes see things differently than my eyes. I have my preferences and you have yours. It's all good and there is plenty of room in the market for various designs and manufacturers. I would be proud to own a Takahashi or a TEC (wait, I do own a TEC! (MC) lol) if I did not already have my AP APO and was years away from getting one .

My old 10" f/6 Newt. on a Byers 812 mount. I assembled this setup in 1981 and parted it out sometime in 2003. Many film images were taken with this scope. I used Kodak 103a spectroscopic emulsions until 1990 when I switched to Kodak Hypersensitized Tech Pan film. A 160 minute exposure of 52 cygni and part of the Veil nebula at right.

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My new scope is an Orion 8" f/4.9 Newt. which I use for piggyback imaging and visual observing. Nice setup for the money and tracks surprisingly well. My 40D with 105mm lens mounted on the back.

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Sweet setup from days past! Excellent photo of the Veil too!

markjpcs wrote in post #7509027
Regarding the fluorite comments...

I remember this green laser test from years ago but had to think about and go back to some notes I took about what I learned about it.

1) All glass, with the exception of crystal fluorite, scatters green laser light. The scattering is backscatter. (it's coming back toward the source not forward toward the focal plane). However, there is almost no forward scattering of light in optical glass. Forward scattering affects the image, back scattering does not. Any light which goes back out the front of the optic does not reach the focal plane.

2) There are always at least 1 and most often two more glasses in the optical train, which all scatter green laser light, so this negates the argument that there is no scatter in fluorite.

I also learned recently that Tak is no longer using Fluorite in most of their telescopes, the new FSQ106 being one of them. Based on current information, Tak is actually using FPL53 in the new FSQ.

Anyway all of this is subjective. Your eyes see things differently than my eyes. I have my preferences and you have yours. It's all good and there is plenty of room in the market for various designs and manufacturers. I would be proud to own a Takahashi or a TEC (wait, I do own a TEC! (MC) lol) if I did not already have my AP APO and was years away from getting one .

Fluorite has a higher transmission rate due to the lack of back or forward scatter as compared to ED glass. This would possibly explain the greater contrast that I see with the Tak, especially with terrestrial photography. I can take my AP, reduce it to f/5.4 via ccdt67 and ap16t, and it still won't have the same amount of contrast or "snap to focus". On the other hand, I can hook up the f/8 (extend q 1.6x) to the Tak, and it will still have greater contrast than my AP at the same focal ratio. It's not a small amount.

The reason why Tak stopped using fluorite in their FSQ - the mating glass had lead in it. Yuri is still using this because of the correction and the results that can be had with it. I know of someone with a TEC 200/8 FLUORITE that lives around the neighborhood. Now that's a heck of a scope! Planetary is AWESOME!!!! But so is the price tag!

True, there are other elements that are not fluorite in optical train, but the fluorite does help. The other elements may scatter, but with the fluorite, it is greatly reduced. The FSQ106 has 4 elements, 2 of them being fluorite. If they used ED, I'm pretty sure that the scatter will increase. I've often asked the boys at Takahashi whether I should switch to the 106ED or keep the 106 fluorite. They ALWAYS say to me - KEEP THE FLUORITE!

They (takahashi) are designing the next modified petzval as we speak / type. Think of it as a big brother to the FSQ106. More than likely a FSQ140 or so.

But, as you mention, all the scopes have the pros and cons. I just use them for both astro and terrestrial photography. Specifically, nature photography of animals, plants, insects, etc. They never sit around collecting dust!

And yes, the AP will have the highest resale value. BY FAR.

PJ1958 wrote in post #7509164
My old 10" f/6 Newt. on a Byers 812 mount. I assembled this setup in 1981 and parted it out sometime in 2003. Many film images were taken with this scope. I used Kodak 103a spectroscopic emulsions until 1990 when I switched to Kodak Hypersensitized Tech Pan film. A 160 minute exposure of 52 cygni and part of the Veil nebula at right.

That is a great shot of 52 Cygni, PJ1958! I would really like to do the same thing with say a STL16000.

A Byers mount?!?! Wow...haven't heard of him in YEARS. He made some outstanding worm/gear sets. And the mounts aren't cheap either!

I own a TEC 200 MC 15.5 with zero CA and it is also an awesome planetary scope. The price was right too.

IMO, TEC makes some great MC gear. Very low CO. And yes, very little to no CA. An SCT has much more color due to the corrector plate and design.

Well, It is my pseudo astronomy/Gimbal head rig. Just built it last week!
10D and Sigma 150-500 OS.

Sweet!

Love the look.

Lets see some pictures!

Another photo taken during "first light". Viewed the Sun and Venus which was just a sliver of a crescent today. Tonight I got first light under the stars before the moon rise. Observed M81/82, Beehive Cluster, M51 and split some doubles.

It's a keeper!

Mark, that is optical bliss. Very deserving of it's home in the observatory. NICE!!

Yes! The Observatory will be it's home most of the time but it will travel with me this year for sure.

I cannot get Cherry Springs out of my mind! The skies there are simply amazing.

And Chiefland is THE star party to be at IMO. What a great site and skies to boot.