Schwarr 10" Dob

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Brand and Model:	Schwarr 10" Dob
Price ($USD):
Type:	Newtonian
Attributes:	Go-To PEC
Aperture:	254mm (10")
f Ratio:	f/6
Focal Length:	1524mm
Finder:	Telrad
Electric Power:	N/A
Mount:	Dob
Tripod:	N/A
Weight (lbs):	Tube 20/mount 25
Dimensions (w/h/d):
Description:	Enhanced optics w/96% coatings on Primary/99% coatings on secondary. Eyepiece height at Zenith approx. 65" Built by Pierre Schwarr/Primary ground by Pierre Schwarr Complete w/2" JMI NGF-DX2 focuser, Telrad finder, dust cap

Vote Highlights

Schwarr 10" Dob

Owned by a friend of mine, this scope has one of the finest mirrors I've ever seen. The star test is near-perfect, showing perhaps a slight bit of under-correction. There was no PV or Strehl ratio ratings that came with the scope, but if I had to guess, I would say the "final wavefront" at the eyepiece would be about 1/8, indicating at PV surface rating of about 1/16 wave. It is a very well figured mirror & delivers sharp contrasty images, with excellent resolving power. In fact the only 10" mirror I've seen that beats it is Zambuto's.

The motions of the scope itself are great in azimuth, but tend to be sticky in altitude, making tracking difficult, hence the score of 9. I've found a remedy for this by using EbonyStar & Teflon. It should be a quick fix with good results, and would definitely raise the rating to a 10. However, the scope is very well balanced & can be used with eyepieces ranging from tiny Orthos to the 35mm Panoptic with no problems.

The tube itself is very light, weighing in at around 20-25 lbs & the mount is the same, which makes moving the scope a breeze. Set-up time ranges from 30 sec. to 1 min. depending on how far you have to walk! The scope is well ventillated & typically reaches equilibrium in about 45 minutes.

Since the scope is f/6, the tube is long for a 10" scope, but it is very versatile. The FOV is still just fine for deep-sky, but the f/6 makes planetary viewing a wonderful experience.

Deep sky examples - M57 under medium power easily shows the celestial "doughnut"'s slight elongation & the center is ink black (no central star). M51 is awesome under dark skies, clearly showing the spiral structure & HII regions, but the "bridge" is really unobtainable in a 10" scope. I was also able to locate M51 in the owner's backyard (Mag 3.8-4.0) with the full moon about 20 degrees away! The contrast is so good in this instrument that M51 stood out against the muddled brown backgound in these light polluted skies. Back to darker skies, objects like Omega Centaurii, M13 & M11 were completely resolved to the core. The Scorpius & Sagittarius region of the sky was an astronomical playground for this scope, especially the nebulae which routinely showed their filament structure. M17 (Swan) was incredible, showing all the delicate filaments in the neck region of the Swan.

So far the moon is the only planetary object I've seen with this scope. Again contrast prevails here in that all of the tiny surface features & shallow craterlets in the bright plains were easily seen when the moon was full, without the use of a filter. On the crescent & quarter moons the detail along the terminator was amazing. The mountain range at the back end of Mare Crisium revealed so much detail, it was like flying over it at low altitude.

This telescope is incredible. Unfortunately, there will be no more of these made, since Mr. Schwarr has passed on. So if you ever get a chance to look through one, or buy one, don't miss out. You won't find a better 10" sonotube dob!

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date: 07/20/2000 03:58:44 pm PST
By: Anonymous (xxx.xxx.125.211)
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40459

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