Earth And Sky Adventure Products

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Earth And Sky Adventure Products
It was a pleasure doing business with Joe and Karin Sunseri. What really sold me on their dealership was Joe's honest and caring attitude when I was canvasing dealers (for my Intes Micro MN86 203mm Mak-Newt).

At the end of our initial (30 minute) conversation, I informed him that I had not yet decided on where my purchase would be made. Despite this, he said that I should feel free to call him with any questions or problems even if I got the scope somewhere else...WOW!

I called him back within the hour and placed my order. Everything went smoothly, and we've been in continued (POST-delivery!) contact. I cannot
recommend them highly enough!... Great products, great service, and great people!


Feel free to contact me, if you need any more info.

Paul

pghyndman@yahoo.com

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45577

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
Prices were very reasonable. Delivery was later than originally stated but it was a custom scope imported from Russia. Joe Sunseri was honest and worked hard to make sure I was satisfied. I highly recommend dealing with him. I would not hesitate to buy from him again.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45579

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I have dealt with Joe and found him to be a very honest and ethical individual. You can't go wrong doing business with him.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45580

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I found Joe to be slow to respond to a problem with a telesope I purchased and did not appreciate how I was treated when I tried to get it corrected. Would not purchase from him again. I might have had a fluke experience with him and I purchased from him because of comments I found on the internet about his company. I found them to not be true in my experience.

Overall Rating: 2
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45581

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I purchased an MK-66 from Joe that has truly excellent optics. The scope specs out at about the 1/8 - 1/10 wave range. Very impressed. Recently I had a problem with an MN-56 scope which I purchased used. It had a few problems with it and Joe suggested that I send it to him to fix it. No charge.

WOW!

Joe has always been honest and up front with all of his dealings with me. He comes recommended as THE person to buy a Russian Mak from.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45582

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
So far, I have only purchased 1 item from Joe, an O-111 filter, but I would certainly put him on my "deal with" list!

Best regards,
Bill

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45583

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
Although I have not yet purchased anything from Earth and Sky I spoke with Joe Sunseri over the phone about which Mak-Newt might be right for me. He spent about 25 minutes with me on the phone and said that I should call him up at anytime if I had any questions---regardless of where I decided to purchase the mak-Newt from. He appears to be a genuinely nice guy to do business with. I am sure I'll be dealing with him very soon.

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45584

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I bought a Russian 6" f/8 mirrror and 1.25" secondary from Joe. The optical quality is amazing and while I can't give an exact wave rating, I can say the completed scope is one of the best in our club (200 members). I've had many seasoned observers look through it expecting to put my bragging to rest, and then saying WOW! Every one has remarked it has some of the best optics they've ever seen in a 6". At 232x with a Pentax XL eyepiece the images of Jupiter and Saturn are sharp and clear under average seeing conditions. I highly recommend the Russian optics that Joe sells.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 2 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45585

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
This is not a dealer with whom I would do business. Though friendly and willing to offer advice over the telephone, he charged my credit card to obtain working capital. Weeks after charging my card but not shipping, I called and was told the scope was "tied up in customs". After being told this several times, I decided to cancel my order. I had originally ordered on the premise that the scope was in stock and would be shipped immediately. Mr, Sunseri then informed me he would have to charge a re-stocking fee and a credit card fee. How can you re-stock something that was never shipped in the first place? And the credit card transaction fee? That was incurred by Mr Sunseri so he could get access to my funds, since he didn't have his own working capital. Credit cards aren't supposed to be charged until the item is shipped to the customer. Mr. Sunseri charged my credit card without my permission and then charged me for the privilege. Avoid this guy until he learns how to do business on the internet.

Overall Rating: 4
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45589

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I bought an Intes Micro Mak-Newt about 16 months ago.

The scope arrived and was in good condition, but there was a thumb-print on the mirror (maybe it was a toe print), which was probably put there in Russia. Lowest price.

Only one problem--I never got an invoice. I contacted them and asked for one, was told it would be sent. Never happened. Small gripe.

In order to properly insure the scope, I ended up physically showing it to my insurance agent, and showing him prices from a number of dealers, including Earth and Sky, explaining why I did't have a receipt/invoice, and presenting the check with which I had paid for the scope. No harm done, just a couple of hours of my time used up.

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
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Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45590

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I bought an MN86 from Earth and Sky 14 months ago. I made it clear to Joe that I expected the optics to be in excellent condition, and he stated that they check all optics themselves. When the scope arrived, it was badly out of colimation, and infact could not be colimated at all. At it turned out, the focuser was mislocated on the tube and would need to be re-worked. It was clear that Joe had never optically checked out the scope or it would not have been shipped to me. In addition, the scope was missing the finder bracket that mounts the finder to the dovetail on the scope.

After traveling to airports to ship and receive the telescope, I eventually got the scope back; unfortunately the focuser now did not work, I was still missing the finder bracket, and Joe neglected to return the finder itself. Joe paid for a replacement focuser which I had to install, but after 14 months I have yet to see my finder or the finder bracket.

Throughout all this process, Joe has sent mails telling me that he shipped the scope when he had not and that he shipped the finder/bracket which he had not.

To this date, 14 months later, I still do not have my finder and finder bracket. I doubt that Joe will ever send them.

I would avoid Earth and Sky, until Joe at least until significant things change. I would be dubious of any claims that they check out they scopes since they sent me scopes with serious flaws and focusers which did not work. Don't believe stories that things have shipped. Be prepared to spend alot of your time chasing Joe.

Overall Rating: 2
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45591

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I have called on Joe Sunseri over the years and found him to be informed about opitcs and very forthcoming in his service to the customer. Recently I received a new Maksutov Newtonian from Joe; scope was a beaut!; turned out that I needed to exchange for another scope more portable and suited to my needs; Joe was terrific to work with and went the "extra mile" to see that I was a satisfied customer. I think this speaks well for Joe as a professional businessman and as an amateur astronomer of upmost character. I will deal with Joe in the future.....anytime.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45592

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
Joe really takes the time to give advice about products. Seems very easy going. I was referred to him and after our phone conversations I was glad I called. As mentioned by others he even offered help if I decided to buy elsewhere. When I placed an order for an MN-76 Joe said he had a stock shipment coming in that very day that included some. My credit card bill arrived about 1 1/2 weeks later. There was the charge. After almost a month I called because I hadn't received the scope yet. His reply was "the shipment's tied up in customs". OK, I can live with that. I was offered another ETA. That time came and went. I called him back again(as opposed to him calling me). I got yet another ETA. You can guess the rest. The scope arrived right about 2 months after "I'll be receiving a shipment today".

If you think the first paragraph sounds like a trying experience, guess again. Our pre-order conversations were lengthy and focused on 2 issues. They were the mirror and the new tube design with corrugated baffling. These are major issues with me for initial image quality(1/10 vs. 1/7-1/8 wave), but mainly because of my location which has wide temperature differentials(quartz mirror and vented tube baffling). He talked me out of the quartz 1/10 wave mirror. Why? My mistake for listening. He said he'd personally test each scope and give me the pick of the litter. The external box had been opened but all else appeared to have been untouched. Do you know the signs when original packing tape has been cut or undone? I unwrapped the OTA to find it was the old design w/o corrugated tube baffling. There was also one finderscope setscrew missing and no invoice or receipt.

I immediately called Joe assuming the factory had shipped out their remaining old design tubes. I'll just have to wait a month or two for the correct scope, right? Wrong! Meet "the other Joe". From his very first sentence this was no longer the soft spoken easy going guy I that had asked for my credit card number. He began by saying the scope has never been produced with vented tube baffles. I was knocked silent for a moment while I thought "Am I talking to the right guy?" Based on that thought I reminded him of our phone conversations to refresh his memory. I was still calm and polite at this point. He denied ever saying the things that he did and began to try to talk me into the scope with comments like "just try it out first, they're incredible scopes". I reiterated the fact that we had specifically discussed vented tube baffles and directed him to his website ad that was sitting in front of me. It read "ventilated tube baffles". Brace yourself for his reply. "Just because it says vented tube baffles doesn't mean the baffles are vented".

It then became all to clear as to the type of person is was dealing with. I wasn't going to get anywhere with this guy nor did I have the desire to do business with him any longer. I offered to ship the unused scope back to him and asked for a refund. He then asked why I wanted a refund. Jeez! Is this guy a schmuck AND an idiot? We rehashed the vented baffle issue once more. After the sequel's conclusion I summarized "Joe, this isn't what I ordered. I'll ship the scope back to you and you can credit my card." He fired back with "That was a special order and there will be a 20% charge for a return." Remember the "I've got a shipment arriving today that includes MN-76's" remark? I'm still here because we were talking over the phone and not in person. My disgust had turned to anger at that point. A poster now covers the hole in my office wall at work.

The next day I spotted the same scope for sale on Astromart. I contacted the seller who verified it was baffled. He also said there was a small dent in the OTA. I mentioned I had just bought one but was returning it. He asked me which dealer I bought from. When I said Earth & Sky he started laughing. He then told me his saga with Joe. He pursued getting a new tube w/o optics. When it arrived there was a "mix-up" as to whether it would be warranteed or paid for by him. He told me Joe may still have the replacement tube. His claim is that Joe said he'd handle it under warranty and then asked for him to pay after it had arrived. I called Joe back and asked if his inventory included a replacement tube. He asked why and I told him of my contact. Joe says that guy dropped the OTA. After a little return of the bad mouthing about his ex-customer we got back on track. That issue is between them. He said, "Oh yeah, it's in my storage facility." Another face of Joe emerged. This one has a better memory, a calmer demeanor, but still retains the stance of "the other Joe". This Joe offered to ship the replacement tube and the missing setscrew. After a few weeks(please don't ask why, things had the possibility of looking up again)the tube arrived. It's vented!

I transferred the optical cells and focuser and performed a rough collimation. I then placed the OTA into the grooves of the rotating tube rings and closed them. The tube wouldn't rotate. The new tube was not built cocentrically. They are made from tube sections that are then joined together. I called Joe and asked if I could shim the teflon pads to raise the tube away from the rings under the assumption I may still return the scope. He said go ahead. That didn't work so I called and asked if I could trim the edge of the rings where contact was being made. I made that possible solution offering "I'll keep the altered rings if I can just get an OTA that works." I got a green light. No such luck. I eventually managed to get the tube to rotate but only with spots that were very tight. I was so frustrated at that point I thought I might settle for it as is. In daylight I threw in the first eyepiece. The tube was so eccentric that rotating it from one side to the other provided completely different FOV's! Not exactly useful when finding objects. It renders my expensive Losmandy Gemini G-11 I bought for this scope completely worthless. Joe did send me the camera adapter that fits in the second finder bracket for my shipping costs and all my troubles and efforts.

I once again called Joe and shipped back the vented tube. He said he would return it to Moscow and ask that a cocentric vented tube be made under warranty return. The existing tube is even eccentric and renders my mount's GOTO capbilities worthless. I made a deal with myself to be patient considering we are dealing with 3 different parties in 2 countries half a world away. I lied. I said I'd wait 1 year. I'm writing this 1 week shy of a year from the date I placed my order and paid for the scope. In the interim, I've contacted Joe about every 2-3 months. He did not contact me. I don't have the optical certificate promised 1 year ago. I don't have an invoice. I don't have a stinking little missing setscrew. Worst of all, I still don't have the scope I paid for.

When I look at ratings sites I throw out a 10 and a very low rating if there's one present. Sometimes complications occur. Sometimes the buyers are not understanding and the dealers are doing what they can. There are too many low ratings to throw out here. My last call was about 5 weeks ago. Joe said the new tube would arrive in "a couple weeks". What do you think?

p.s. If this is ever resolved, I'll post the results here and change the rating.

Overall Rating: 2
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45593

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
After reading the previous long post, I'm reminded of a contact I had with Earth and Sky back in 1998. I'll omit the gory details, but from what I could gather, Joe apparently sees no problem in reselling the rejects and customer returns from other dealers as "new" merchandise. That is why there is no receipt, and his attitude toward customers changes radically after delivery. His "factory" is the grey market of dinged and dented scopes no one else wants. After he ships one of these clunkers to you, HE certainly doesn't want it back again.

Caveat emptor!

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
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Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45594

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
After getting some recommendations to purchase a C11 OTA from Joe a couple of years back, I called him and had a very enjoyable conversation with him and ordered the C11. The OTA was received in short order and seemed factory sealed, however, no eyepiece and no bill of sale.

The eyepiece was no big deal, however, repeated emails and phone calls resulted in no action. I never received the eyepiece, and therefore would not do business with Earth and Sky again. Seems like false economy since I would be tempted to get an MN86 from Joe if the eyepiece and an apology would have been mailed out promptly.

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
Date:
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Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=45595

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
Recently, I had a question about barlows. I was having a problem with my barlow suffering from light scatter and was inquiring if two good and more expensive Barlows carried by 'Earth and Sky' might not suffer from this problem. Joe Sunseri, the owner, told me that the barlows I was considering would not suffer from this problem. But then, he told me that the cause of the problem was that the edges of the lenses in my barlow had not been darkened. That night I disassembled my barlow and darkened the edges. The glare problem was solved. And though Joe lost a sale, he may well have gained a future customer.

Overall Rating: 10
Service:10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=52641

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
A follow-up to an earlier "unreliable"(pre-ratings system)vote.

The last promise was that I would recieve a finderscope bracket adj. screw in an envelope. "I'll get that out today" were his words. That was 2 months ago. It's been a year and two months since the day I received the scope and called him immediately to say it's missing. I'll give you 3 guesses what he said then, and many times since.

You may be thinking..."a setscrew, now that's nitpicking!" Well you see, I never received the correct optical tube I ordered. How many calls do you think I've placed about that. Does he call me? Not a chance. He's got my money.

I'm no certain I'll never see the vented baffle OTA I ordered, or the setscrew, or the optical test report, or an invoice for the insurance company. Did I mention the long string of baloney about the delivery time I was fed before I got the scope in the first place? I won't rate any dealer at this site a 0....except for Joe Sunseri at Earth&Sky. Far and away the worst business deal of my life.

Overall Rating: 0
Price:8 Service:0
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=72602

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
Joe is a real gentleman, and bent over backwards to accomodate me when I had a problem with a telescope I purchased from him last year. Dealing with a Russian supplier is not the eastiest thing in the world, so a little patience is required if you go this route. It took several months longer than anticipated to get a dewshield for my Mak-Newt, but it arrived in perfect shape. Joe also is not terribly prompt on returning messages and phone calls. Otherwise, I would have rated him higher. If you can deal with the wait, I highly recommend doing business with him.

Overall Rating: 8
Price:10 Service:8
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=78214

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I've dealt with Joe for a few years and sure, sometimes you have to be patient, but he has always come through for me and his sincere desire to really help you and get you parts and give you guidance on technical stuff is as good as it gets... his prices are good, his service is great...
He's gone out of his way to look for an obsure part when I needed it and made sure I got it quickly ...

Overall Rating: 10
Price:10 Service:10
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=106401

Earth And Sky Adventure Products
I have known Joe and Karin for a good number of years, and have had numerous dealings with them. Some of these dealings have been as limited as a quick phone call or e mail for advice, and as complex as purchasing at least three seperate telescopes, and a multitude of accessories from them.
In all instances I have had nothing but professional and courteous service.
My prime reason for participating in this site is the large distances involved in any transaction, and perhaps this was initilally a concern. Since my first contact, Joe has treated me with complete and open honesty. His prices are as good as anywhere, and the main reason for "going with Joe" is the personal and unpressured service.
I have read and taken on board the previous postings, both good and bad, and while I have no doubt the respective "posters" have all had their own good times and bad, my times with both Joe and Karin have all been good. So good in fact that I am in the process of again dealing with them.
I would have no hesitation in recommending them to anyone, and would welcome any communication with anyone unsure of their integrity.
Regards,
Gary BEAL,
New Zealand
g.beal@clear.net.nz

Overall Rating: 10
Price:10 Service:10
Weight: 5 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=132056

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