Meade LX-10 8"

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Brand and Model:Meade LX-10 8"
Price ($USD):$1099.95
Type:Schmidt-Cassegrain
Attributes: un-checked Go-To un-checked PEC
Aperture:203mm (8")
f Ratio:f/10
Focal Length:2000mm
Finder:6x30
Electric Power:4 AA batteries
Mount:Fork
Tripod:Optional
Weight (lbs):49 lbs.
Dimensions (w/h/d):9.25x14x23"
Description:Weight includes optional field tripod.
Comes with hand controller which controls side real-rate tracking speed.
Also controls optional dec motor.
Comes with 25mm MA (1.25") multicoated eyepiece, equatorial wedge, 1.25" diagonal prism.

Meade's LX-10 page
Affordable Astronomy's LX-10 Review
Ed Ting's Review

Vote Highlights Vote
Meade LX-10 8"
Great scope for the money. Listen, polar alignment is hard with ANY scope, so when I read people saying that a scope doesnt track good in RA or DEC, then they must not know how to properly poalr align a telescope. Get a push button goto if all you want to do is impress your friends. The LX-10 is great. Exactly the same optics as the LX200. I have heard dealers saying "well Meade says the optics are the same, but you know they put the better optics in the LX200's". Bull!! I say BULL!! I've been to the Meade factory in Irvine, Ca. The optics are exactly the same. For astrophotography, I have had no problems. I have the dec motor too. Polar alignment takes me 10 minutes, with a illum eyepiece, drift method, 15 at the max. I piggybacked my OM-1, used a 9mm ilum eyepiece from Lumicon, and only made very minor adjustments with my hand controller. The 500mm lens on the OM-1 resulted in stunning photos of Orion. 2 60 minute exposures, were no problem, even the corner guide star was almost pinpoint on the film. In Prime Focus Nebulas rendered beautiful color (even better than my buddies LX200..LOL).
Tripod: Great field tripod. So easy, unfold the legs, slip on the fork mount, 3 thumb screws thats it. Hey we could talk about add-ons, sand in the legs and adjustable height tripods all days long, but we are talking about the LX-10 as it comes out of the box. Now I could add sand to the legs of my tripod, but, I don't have a habit of bumping the hell out of my scope while I'm viewing. or after I have set it up. If your a bit clumbsy, then maybe you need to pour cement around the legs of your tripod, LOL.
Anyway, for the money, bang for the buck, the LX-10 has got my vote. Great optics, easy to setup, and easy to pack around, even in the trunk of a small car. I put mine in the back of a 2000 Honda Civic, right in the trunk, box and all, no problem.
Other scopes I own, or have owned: Pronto, Celestron SCT's through 10, Tak, Meade SCT through 12" Meade Refractor 70-150mm and my favorite, Astrophysics.
Current set-up:
Takahashi FS-152JP 152mm Fluorite Refractor on NJP-160 mount
300 mm Dall-Kirkham Cassegrain on EM-500III mount
LX-10, Pronto W/OM-1 piggy back.
Email: JflowersMIS@aol.com

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 15 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=37428

Meade LX-10 8"
The mount needed a bit of tweaking to get tracking right on, you need to spend some time on collimation and looking near the pole is hell (as it is with all forks), but the optics are great, and this scope is an outstanding value. I've had mine for a year, and I haven't regretted it for a moment.

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:9 Mount:8 Ease of Use:10 Value:10
Weight: 5 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=340171

Meade LX-10 8"
For the price the best 8in CAT available. Excellent optics with great contrast. No bells and whistles, but all the required elements for moving into this design and aperture of scope. Those folks who feel the LX-10 is not suitable for astrophotography must have felt that astrophotography was impossible for the amateur a few years ago. Many fine photos have been generated with much less than this scope offers. It is NOT a point and shoot telescope that guides itself and it was not designed to be. Add a telrad and adjustable tripod and you have a scope that will serve you well for a long time.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=37420

Meade LX-10 8"
this telescope exceeds in all areas, believe me

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=37419

Meade LX-10 8"
I have had the deluxe model LX 10 for close to two years now and it is fantastic. The optics are excellent. On steady nights I have seen the C ring of Saturn and Cassini's division is definate. I have taken excellent photos of the moon at various phases as well as totally eclipsed. I haven't got into prime focus photography yet. For visual use a quick alignment is all you need and the tracking works great. The lighter mount may make the scope a little less stable than the LX 50 or 200, but less weight and bulk are a definate plus when it comes to portability. I find it very stable anyway. Like someone else said, the LX 10 is the first set up at the beginning and the first packed up at the end of observing sessions. I have so far been using the standard LX 10 field tri-pod which is OK, but I probably will upgrade to the adjustable. I highly recommend this scope.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=37416

Meade LX-10 8"
great value for money,and yes it can be used for astrophotography.If you are thing of buying it just do!!

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=37414

Meade LX-10 8"
I have been very impressed with this scope. For the price of $995, I think it is a good deal. The motor tracking is good and the scope is simple and easy to use. I was never a fan of the fully computerized scopes. Image quality is excellent especially for a SCT.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=37406

Meade LX-10 8"
This is a great scope for the serious beginner. The optics are excellent. The mount is very sturdy for general use;however,I have not tried it for astrophotogrophy yet. The LX10 is also very portable and easy to set up. I would suggest a soft case for your optics to keep it portable. I have small two door BMW and this makes it easier lay the scope on the back seat, I put the tripod in the trunk. You will need a bigger finder scope and some kind of dew sheild for the LX10,the constant dew on the optics and the little 6x30 finder scope will drive you nuts fast. Sure there are better scopes around, but there is such a huge jump in price to go to the next level of optics larger than an 8"Schmidt,so for the serious beginner it is impossible to beat the LX10.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=37404

Meade LX-10 8"
Great scope for general observing. Excellent optics (shipped with a super plossl 4000 26 mm)! Reported to be less sturdy than LX50, but mine behaves very well on calm days. However, strong gusts of wind will effect viewing. Astrophotography is probably more demanding than in LX200 or LX50, but possible. The good side of a less massive mount is that it is very portable and easy to set up. Tracking is decent after performing a quick primitive polar alignment. No PEC, so long time exposures need more attention than using a more expensive LX200 (LX 50 has no PEC either). I would get the Deluxe version which has a 8x50 scope and dec motor. Plus you have an option to get the adjustable field tripod for LX50/200.
All in all, a great value for money!

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=37399

Meade LX-10 8"
9V Battery compartment flimsy - broke 1st time. Viewfinder bracket would not allow screws to seat all the way back into the scope - scratched finish trying to tighten them down with vise grip (allen wrench stripped screw head) - Motor drive has periodic error that recurs every couple of minutes causing objects to disappear off field at any appreciable magnification, and then reappear, but not all the way to center. I really think photography would be hard on all but the brightest objects if you get a unit with this kind of tracking error.

For all that, the scope is optically sound and reasonably mounted - no collimation problem as some have said and very easy to set up for a scope of this size, so I use it frequently. Also I only paid $900 for the UHTC model and that makes up for some deficiencies. I definitely recommend the UHTC version, as you need all the light you can get. In addition you will need a good diagonal and a wideangle RA viewfinder or Telrad. I am also contemplating the f6.3 reducer/flattener as a visual accessory to improve the width of field and the edge distortions. I think this is key because this scope really excels at moderate power and a wider FOV would probably make for stunning views.

Overall Rating: 8
Optics:8 Mount:6 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=352543

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