After 6 months wait I finally got my new gear up and running. AG-Optical 12,5'' f6,7 imaging Dell Kirkham (iDK) mounted on iOptron CEM120EC. The scope is equipped with Optec's Gemini focuser/rotator, AG-Optical's Temperature Control System (TCS) and the old, vanSlyke slider/off-axis guider a really marvelous piece of hand-made equipment bought back in the 1990s. By using the slider, i can observe and photograph withought loosing any part of the image train, which in addition consists of an UFC filter holder, ZWO EFW and ZWO ASI2600c camera.
The space is very limited in my observatory and the set-up could not hacve been one inch longer, it fits only just! However, so far the technical thingss look great. The focuser/rotator does a great job achieving perfect autofocus through Astro Photography Tool (APT) image platform. The mount, which has gained both negative and positive reviews, works fine and tracks accurately. The optical performance of the iDK looks fantastic from the first impression. Perfectly round stars across the entire FOV. "First Light" was a 19 hr image of IC342.
The only thing that misses now are clear nights. I am probably insain to build an observatory on the edge of the North Sea where the wind blows hard and the rain falls for weeks in a row
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My "old" equipment - 10'' GSO RC with Optec TCF-S focuser and iOptron CEM60EC - is now for sale...
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