Burgess 1278


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Brand and Model:Burgess 1278
Price ($USD):489
Type:Achromatic Refractor
Attributes: un-checked Go-To un-checked PEC
Aperture:127mm
f Ratio:f8
Focal Length:1000mm
Finder:50mm
Electric Power:no
Mount:n/a
Tripod:n/a
Weight (lbs):around 15 pounds
Dimensions (w/h/d):
Description:

Vote Highlights Vote
Burgess 1278
I found the Burgess 1278 gives a really sharp image for a OTA. Using a V-BLOCK filter all but eliminates that blue false color. Splitting doble stars was not a problem for me. The ease in setting up compared to my NS11GPS is wonderful.
The price is suprisingly low for such a fine Chinese scope. My scope was collimated by the dealer for me but I still had to take the objective lens out to clean remaining specks of dust that I detected. This was easy and quick to perform. The focusing is also good. I give this scope a 10!

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Ease of Use:10 Value:10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=407591


Burgess 1278
i own this scope Index #30..
the 1278 is the Best deal for a very good quality chinesse made, achromatic refractor ..it's focuser is Very good, and the tube itself is Thicker and Heaver than any of the other chinesse made achro's .
over all, it is a Very good scope.
1. lens are of much higher ,Over all, quality than the other chinisse scopes out there
2. very nice adjustable lens cell.
3. the tube itself, is heavier.and better made.
4. the focuser is Much better than any of the other chinisse achro's out there.
5.it comes with a 2 diagonal and a focus micro adjuster.
all in all.. mine is over 1/5 wave..
damn good scope for the money... and at a later date.. there
is going to be a ED lens Up grade
thank you for your time..
South west of houston..
Darrell W

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Value:10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=365004


Burgess 1278
This scope has some of the best optics I have seen in an achromatic design. Focuser is very smooth. There is no lateral adjustment on the focuser but was very close (2mm) from center of objective when tested with laser collimator. For the $299. I paid this scope is a few light years ahead of other simular designed scopes. Has a beautiful paint finish and is solidly built. A screw on dew hood and collimatable objective sets this scope apart from thew pack. The owner of the company (Bill Burgess) gives quick service on any parts that are not up to your expectations.. Fran Musso

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:10 Ease of Use:10 Value:8
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=348362


Burgess 1278
i bought mine for 299.00 when they were first introducted.
excelent scope.. mechanics and optics are very very good for the money.
focuser is buttery smooth on My Burgess 1278
fit and finish is Without question, superior to the average
chinesse made achromatics refractors Out there.
all in all.. the scope itself is one hell of a value.
thank you for your time..
Darrell

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Ease of Use:10 Value:10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=340267


Burgess 1278
[Note: Vote moved from description by webmaster]

Let me start by saying I am the proud new owner of a Burgess Optical 1278 achromatic refractor, and my experience dealing with Bill Burgess was beyond excellent, it was fantastic. I called Bill a few days ago to discuss his scopes with him, and some concerns I had after reading Burgess Optical took an abnormally long time to ship their products after ordering. I currently own a Synta 120mm (f8.3), and wanted to maintain equivalent aperture in my next scope. Bill’s pricing fit my budget nicely, so this further peaked my interest. Bill was intensely passionate about his scopes, and told me if I wanted to just take a peak through them, I was more than welcome to try one to see what I thought with no obligation. He assured me he had scopes in stock, and that he was spending all his time getting previous orders out the door. Apparently he has had some problems getting parts in for his scopes from suppliers, and is still waiting on 2 inch diagonals and fine focus adjusters at this time. He plans to ship these out the moment they arrive from his suppliers. I explained that I am within a reasonable driving distance (6 hours) from his shop, and I would like to meet with him in person to check out the Burgess Optical products. We compared schedules, and it became obvious the next several weekends would not work out (because of commitments I have). Bill then told me that if I wanted to come down in the evening on a week night, he would stay at the shop after hours to meet with me. (Now that's customer service!) I liked that idea, so we decided to do it Friday evening.

Upon my arrival, I was greeted not only by Bill, but also his wife Tammy, and their family. They are VERY nice people to say the least. Bill opened up three brand new Burgess Optical 1278 achromatic refractors (127mm – f8) and we took them outside for some comparisons. Good fortune was with us, as the clouds parted and we had good views of Saturn to use for comparisons between the scopes. The three samples I viewed through were VERY consistent in optical quality right out of the box, before Bill had a chance to “tweak them” in any way. (This is a good sign in my opinion) The scopes are sourced from China, but they are not Synta products. We performed star tests, low and high power viewing, and Ronchi tested each scope. Testing confirmed what I saw visually, and that is the three scopes were very similar in optical quality. All three were superior to my Synta 120mm (f8.3) in image quality. (Better contrast, less color, and much more detail on Saturn than I’ve ever seen with my Synta) I’ve read that some folks rate the Burgess scopes as better in build quality than Synta, but only marginally better in optical performance. At least with these samples, I could not disagree more regarding optical quality, as they were all much better than my Synta. These scope are built like tanks compared to the 120mm Synta (thicker OTA metal, MUCH better focusers with a tight, smooth, “solid” feel to them. Metal focus knobs. The objectives have a deep green tint to the coatings. The OTA is fully knife-edge baffled - even the dew shield – which screws onto the OTA, brass locking rings on the 2 inch and 1.25 inch adapters, etc.)

Once I viewed through the scopes, I knew I had to take one home with me. I selected which of the three scopes I wished to purchase (a tough judgment call since they were all very similar in performance), and Bill worked for another 30 minutes adjusting the focuser to his level of satisfaction. Finally he gave the OTA a quick clean up, and placed it in its foam-lined hard shell case. Bill then asked which eyepieces I currently own, and substituted his standard 40mm Plossl offering for a 15mm Plossl he had on hand so I wouldn’t have duplicate focal lengths in my collection. (A 9mm also comes with the scope).

On the down side, the 50mm finder scope appears to be a work in progress. The crosshairs are very small and are physically mounted at an incorrect point in the focal plane. The result is they “disappear” when one views through the finderscope. It has 6 adjustment screws that are metal and uses a thin plastic insert sleeve to protect the finder from scratches. In my opinion, it’s an awkward system compared with the Orion configuration of spring-loaded pressure and 2 screw adjusters.


Overall, I am thrilled with the optical performance from the scope, and even more impressed with the customer service attention I received from Bill Burgess. I can see why it may take him a bit longer than people would like to get scopes out the door, as he indicated he goes through the same fine tuning process with each scope that leaves his shop. It’s a “one man band” as they say, but in my opinion well worth the wait when considering the value for $$$ invested. BTW all of his current achros will be upgradeable to ED and APO versions planned for later this year (2004)...

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=337171

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