Stellarvue 102D

Ratings:Top:Astronomy:Equipment Reviews:Telescope Reviews:Stellarvue 102D

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Brand and Model:Stellarvue 102D
Price ($USD):$995.00
Type:Achromatic Refractor
Attributes: un-checked Go-To un-checked PEC
Aperture:102mm (4")
f Ratio:f/6.9
Focal Length:704mm
Finder:none
Electric Power:
Mount:
Tripod:
Weight (lbs):
Dimensions (w/h/d):21"(focuser removed)
Description:Very well-corrected achromat refractor. Very well built with option of focuser upgrade to JMI Dual Speed DX-1 focuser. Very Portable and excellent customer service.

Vote Highlights Vote
Stellarvue 102D
I purchased a smliiar model 7 years ago that worked fine, but humidity on a beach trip killed it. I finally purchased another at a much cheaper price in December 07 and have sent it in once to be fixed for an eject problem with the tapes which cost me $100, and now am having issues with the same thing. Spend the extra bucks on something better. This is a waste of money. Apparently EXTREMELY fragile, in that it belongs in it's box unopened and unused.Rating:

Overall Rating: 1
Optics:3 Mount:8 Ease of Use:3 Value:1
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=601183

Stellarvue 102D
Excellent optics and build quality, will hold it's own against refractors 2 - 3X the price.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:9 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=599798

Stellarvue 102D
The Stellarvue 102DN is an excellent wide field, portable achromatic telescope. It has deep green multicoatings on all objective surfaces. The tube assembly is all metal, and very well built with a retractable dew shield, 2-inch smooth rack and pinion focuser, and metal dust cap for the objective that screws on to the dew shield. The tube assembly weighs 12-13 lbs, so it requires a sturdy mount. I see no obvious way to collimate the objective, however collimation is perfect even though I am the third owner of this unit. Chromatic abberation is what I would consider a normal amount for a short focal length achromat.

When tested at high powers, star images display a round Airy disk with one diffraction ring. A very faint backround purple haze is also visible, which is not seen in my 4-inch f/15 Unitron achromat telescope. The double-double star Epsilon Lyra is easily and cleanly split. Planetary images are acceptable, but are better in a long focal length telescope. Under a dark sky with a 2-inch 32mm eyepiece, the image of the eastern side of the Veil nebula is breathtaking. Star clusters are also displayed with beautiful pinpoint star images.

Highly recommeded for those seeking a quality portable wide field achromatic refractor.

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:9 Ease of Use:10 Value:9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=456065

Stellarvue 102D
This scope is an excellent, high resolution, telescope. For a 4" achromat, this is one of the rarest findings in the market today, IMO, with respect to value - very fine product, and very unique!

Coatings are exceptional, build quality superb. The dual-speed JMI focuser makes "just so" focusing very easy. Highly portable, and an absolute delight to use. The false color is almost non-existent, except for the brightest of objects. This scope excels on planets - very high contrast. Capable of 60x/inch or higher under the best seeing. Also very good on DSOs.

Very highly recommended!

Caveat: This review is for OTA only.
Caution: highly addictive after first use!

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=156170

Stellarvue 102D
It is better than I expected. False color is minimal and only at higher magnifications on brighter objects. Wonderful focuser. Very well built and finished. The M4 mount works okay for visual use, but is too light for photography.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Mount:7 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=113202

Stellarvue 102D
Beautiful achromat refractor. Excellent optics with minimal color on very bright objects. Upgraded focuser is very smooth and precise.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:9 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=66271

Stellarvue 102D
Excellent value.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:9 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=65892

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