Buying a Meade LX90 O'seas. Bad Idea?

[FredSnerd]

If and when the $AUS improves I was giving some consideration to buying a Meade Cassegarin LX90 12" over the net from a US astronomy shop.

Any ideas on (i) whether this is a good or bad idea; (ii) an astronomy shop I should buy from; (iii) a shipping company I should use; (iv) import duty I can expect to pay.

Thanks for looking

Regards

Claude

[andrew2008]

http://www.customs.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=5549
That link should hopefully help with any duties and what you need to pay.

As for shops Optcorp (www.optcorp.com) seem to have some of the better prices i've seen from the US sites and a good rep with people here, there's been a thread on them just recently.

Whether its a good idea? :shrug: Meade US seem to be harder to deal with when it comes to warranty than aussie dealers. If you have no probs you're laughing, but if you do:sad: Been strongly looking at doing the same myself so would love to know if it works out for you if you go ahead.

[FredSnerd]

Hey thanks for this Andrew. I appreciate it. Are you looking at a meade SC and if so which.

I'm 4really waiting for the AUS $$$ to get stronger before i buy so I dont know when that will be. last time I looked sgipping would be about $750 Aust is that what you think

Thanks again

[Moon]

Normally I would say no, try to buy locally.

But if you really want that particular scope (and you can't find a second hand one) the price difference is so big it would be difficult to justify not importing it yourself.

[FredSnerd]

Thanks James, yeah the warranty thang worries me a bit

[bmitchell82]

my thoughts on this is that if it has moving parts get it from the country you live in, if its not commonly imported already ask for a special order from a dealer here. then figure out the difference in price and if that is worth the difference.

non moving parts are fine, moving parts are bad....

[FredSnerd]

Thats is a good point Brendon. Hmmm not quite the news I wanted to hear

[coldspace]

PM, Mozzie on this site, I heard a rumor through the grape vine that he may be getting rid of his to get a 14 inch LX200.

Matt.

[FredSnerd]

Heyt Thanks Matt. I appreciate you saying

[marki]

Claude only buy the small things OS, even some tubes may be OK if you are a risk taker. Mounts are a bit of a no no as they have many things that can go wrong. They will not sell you a new meade unless you have an address in the US to send it to. It is one of the many restrictive trade practices meade has to protect local dealers.

Mark

[FredSnerd]

Thanks mark,

Yeah I think I'm just gonna have to put up with local prices. But I think I will still wait for the AUS doller to strengthen. Maybe for Xmas

[marki]

Either that or keep an eye on the classifieds both here and astromart. The LX90 comes up often.

Mark

[FredSnerd]

The thing about secondhand, normally I would not hesitate with second hand but it seems from the reviews I have been reading the new meade ACF is really really great, practically no coma. I figure if I'm gonna pay that kind of $ (and it will be my first and last scope) I may as well do it right.

[andrew2008]

Brave is the man that says their first scope will be their last.

At the end of the day i'd side with the others and say anything with as many moving parts and electronics in them as the mounts on these i wouldn't be game to buy from overseas. An OTA on the other hand:D

[marki]

I have an LX200R which is what meade used to call the ACF series before they got sued. They do have nice optics I can vouch for that. There are a number R/ACF scopes coming up for sale on the forums. If you saw mine (3 years old) you would not know it from a new scope except for the big red R on the tube. People tend to take care of them. Since this is to be your last scope may I suggest you buy the tube only and fit it to a reasonable EQ mount. That way when you change your mind it's simply old scope off, new scope on :thumbsup:.

Mark

[FredSnerd]

So Mark would you agree that there is a "significant" enough difference between the optics of the standard SCT and the ACF (R/ACF). Its not just promotional hype I mean.

I would certainly be happy to buy a secondhand R/ACF scope if and when one comes up.

I think I already regret saying that this will be my last scope. I'm getting the sense that no one believes me when i say that.

Thanks for your tips by the way

regards

Claude

[FredSnerd]

Actually Mark I wonder if I could ask another thing.

Am I right in thinking that the LX 90 (as opposed to the LX200 - which is about $2000 more new) is fine for observing purposes and that I would only really need an LX200 if i was going to do photography. Or does the LX 200 have other advantages that I'm not picking up on at this stage.

[marki]

Most advertising is hype IMO. Where the R/ACF tubes better the SCT is photography as they produce a fairly flat field free of coma. The SCT will not do this, you must add a corrector to the imaging line. You will not be disappointed with visual use either as they are pretty good value.

Mark

[coldspace]

The acf optics on my scope are nice and sharp and compared to a few SCT there was a bit of a difference as long as the scope is properly cooleddown and colimated well otherwise you probally would not tell the difference.
Up at astrofest a few years ago there was a 200R when they first came out next to a couple of various Sct and it was sharper but this could have also been colimation issues as well.

If you are spending that sort of money you might as well get the latest optics for use now and possible resale value in the future.

Matt.

[FredSnerd]

Thanks Matt/Mark

I appreciate your help

[coldspace]

The LX90 will be fine for visual use but no good for imaging especially a 12 inch.
If visuals are all your going to do then grab a 12 inch LX90 standard SCT for a bargain off someone.

The lX200 is alot more stable compared to our clubs LX90 and also weighs more and has alot more data base in its memory, but if you can track down all the objects in the LX90 then you will be doing better than me :eyepop:.

If your budjet allows, get the LX200 with the ACF optics if not and visual use is all your after then the LX90 will be good.

Matt.

[marki]

Matt I would suggest he buys an EQ mount with the tube seperate. I don't know about your experience but I had to do lots of customising to get my drive where I wanted it. I would only go with an EQ mount from here on.

Mark

[FredSnerd]

EQ Mounts do seem complicated to manouver though and somewhat more difficult to lug around - Is what I'm thinking

[marki]

See if you can have a go at lifting a 12" lx200 fork mount. Make sure you spend some time in the gym and steriods would also be helpful :). Claude they are bloody heavy buggers, takes 2 people to get mine on a wedge. At least with a EQ you can break it into seperate components.

Mark

[FredSnerd]

I see

[coldspace]

It seems that you are only going to be using the scope for visual ?
If so, then only go the fork mount, and if you want to try simple but very effective imaging then you can use a fork mount with an astro video of some sort like a Mallincam, Stellacam, gstar. or put the scope on a wedge.

The video systems are the go to enhance your viewing pleasure especially in light polluted environments.
My LX200R 12 inch-coupled with a Mallincam hypercolour cooled video is a deep sky killing machine:thumbsup:.

Claude, I have had no issues with my 12 LX200 mount in the two years, and I have several friends with LX200 scopes who use either fork mount/field derotators to various success, or wedge mount with very good results too plain old ALT/AZ forkmounts for visual or Astrovideo systems with great success.

A good friend of mine PeterM on this site has used his LX200 12 inch in Alt/Az mode and doing 25 second exposures has discovered 3 super novas and he has used his scope probally 3 to 6 hrs a night for over 400 nights in 3 odd years with no problems.

Yes they are not perfect for long, many hrs of exposure imaging but for what I think your after it fits the bill.


Matt.

[coldspace]

Marks right here, good point, they are very heavy, 34 kgs and you don't want to drop one. I got the Peterson gt a grip handles, and mounting assistant and I could mount it no worries in Alt/AZ but would not do it on a wedge without a 2nd person, but I am 100Kgs fit and lift heavy airconditioners for a living so unless you are strong you will need 2 people. Mines now in a permanent observatory so if your on your own a eQ mount will be the go so you can break it into smaller pieces or get a smaller scope or permanent mount.

Matt

[marki]

Yep if you are using it for visual the fork will be fine. For astropics the fork flex's like a b####d and any wind will put an end to your efforts. The meade drives will last a long while and although they have good componentry the guys that assembled them dont give a rats arse. Out of the box they are not accurate enough for long exposure photography (I am talking 10+ minute subs). Haven't tried them with a de-rotator so cannot comment.

Mark

[FredSnerd]

I tell you what I know its complicated and there are so many things to consider when buying a scope but it sure is exciting. iwas looking at Youtube and the kind of visuals one gets with a 12 scope and it looks great. It sure will be nice when the time comes.

Thanks to the both of you for your valuable advice

[Ric]

I lost enough sleep waiting for my scope to arrive from Sydney safely.

Arriving from overseas, I'd think I would be a nervous wreck.

[citivolus]

On the question of how much you would pay for an import, on my CGE with C9.25, I paid:

$10 broker fee (UPS)
$650 USD shipping, ~75KG
10% GST (including on the shipping price)

For an LX90/LX200 on forks, you would be looking at around $400-500 shipping, plus broker and GST.

For non broker import of a Megrez 90, I paid around a $100 customs processing fee on top of the rest.

Regards,
Eric

[stephenb]

My opinion is try to buy local. Warranty is the big issue. If something goes belly up with the mechanical and electronic aspect of the drive, no dealer in this country will touch it under warranty (and why should they, as they do not get paid for their labour time to repair Meade scopes under warranty).

Like many have said before, if you buy from overseas, you take this risk.

Secondly, many US dealers will not sell outside the US.

Thirdly, I have owned an LX200 10" and an LX90 8". The LX200 10" is heavy and bulky to transport so I recommend you meet up with someone who currently owns one and look at it in person. The LX90 is very light compared to the LX200.

[FredSnerd]

Yeah thanks guys. I think I'm gonna buy local. I tell you what I got some great advice from this thread. It certainly made up my mind for me. I'd love to get one of these babies by Xmas.

[coldspace]

I was in Sirus optics today, and they have a perfect condition 12 inch LX200GPS for sale with a Wedge, giant field tripod for about mid 5 grand or so.
This scope is on consignment sale and I know the owner and this scope is in perfect condition.

For what your after it might be a good buy, its not the ACF optics but for visual use it will be fine or unless you are one of these so-called perfect imagers out there it will also allow you to dabble in some imaging with the included wedge.
Just a heads up.

Matt.

[dpastern]

I'd buy local. Go with Bintel - sure it's a bit more pricier but the service by all accounts is top notch and you won't regret it.

Dave

[bobson]

Sorry for interruption, but after reading this post I got a question to ask :)

Did I get it right, if you are after just visual observing you don't have to buy ACF? Right?

I thought that ACF if better for visual as well.

thanks

bob

[marki]

The ACF will give slightly crisper views. The scope was designed for imaging which is were it beats the SCT outright.

Mark

[FredSnerd]

Heyya all,

Thanks all for your advice.

An issue has come up re the LX90 which is different to the title of this thread (its about the mount Matt, Mark) so I thought I had better start a new thread. I dont want to put you to anymore trouble then I already have but any ideas that you do have would be more then welcome.

Matt the thing about the LX200 is the weight for me

Regards

[coldspace]

Yep, one heavy unit the 12 inch Lx200 is, if your are getting older I would advise getting something smaller.
Have alook at the CPC 9.25, alot lighter and great on the planets, and deep sky from a dark site.

The difference between a 12 and 9.25 from light polluted environment will be minimal for you.

The 9.25 has a smaller central obstruction ratio ( I think, correct me if I am wrong guys) so apparantly this gives this scope great optics, a friend of mine has a 9.25 tube ontop of a EQ6 pro for his portable dark sky scope, and the views through it are vey nice indeed.

I now have my 12 LX200 on permanent mount in my observatory and will probally get a 9.25 on EQ6 pro for my dark sky portable setup.

Regards Matt.

[TheDecepticon]

If you are only going to do visual, I'm still going to ask why you don't by your self a nice easy to use 12" or 16" Dob mounted Newt and chuck Argo Navis on it? Just my opinion, but you are getting caught up in the hype of a modern telescope and with AN it is near the same as go to, and you will appreciate the bigger objects in the wider field of view.:shrug: Any way, may you purchase what your heart desires!:D

[FredSnerd]

Yeah I haven ruled out the dob and looking at it more closely now. The 12" skywatcher collapsible black dimond looks like a nice unit and there is an AN setup for it

[FredSnerd]

Yeah Matt I have always heard very good things about the 9.25. The trouble with celestron is they are soo bloody expensive. the 9.25 is only about $200 less then the meade 12 in. Im thinking a dob may be the way to go now fitted with AN