Televue TV-60

[MortonH]

At Bintel today I looked through a TV-60 with Televue 60-degree diagonal and 24mm Panoptic. Wow - what a view. It was unbelievably sharp with amazing contrast and saturated colour.

Has seriously got me thinking about one of these as an ultra-portable spotter/astro scope.

Any owners care to share their experiences?

[Profiler]

Don't forget the unique design features for portability. First it is super-small when the dew shield is retracted. Second, the helical focuser so it can't get bent or damaged when you 'literally' carry it around in your coat/jacket pocket.

[anj026]

It is very handy and versatile. For it's size it is amazing what it can show. I use mine for daytime spotting, solar and grab and go astronomy. Ideal for travelling and sharing quick looks at the planets and moon with the family.
I use the 90 degree Everbright diagonal and the 45 degree prism. The 60 degree Everbright would be worthwhile if you plan a lot of daytime or bird-watching.

When they first came out I knew I wanted one. I was finally able to purchase one about 4 years ago and have no regrets.

[charsiubau]

I love my TV60 which I bought for the same reason - wanted a spotting scope that would double as a super portable astro scope. More into astro than birds so got this. Bintel sold me a little hard case that fits in a small daypack (or can be slung over a shoulder) that also carries the eyepieces I use with this scope - 24 mm panoptic, and 13mm, 7mm and 3.5mm naglers. We already had the 24 mm and 7 mm, so it was a toss up between buying the 13 mm or 11 mm. Both gave great views.

The extreme portability is somewhat compromised by the desire for a good mount. We already had a Televue Telepod for our TV 85 which was OK for daytime use but too light for astro use with that scope (we use a Vixen Portamount now). However the Telepod is ideal for the TV60 giving a good portable setup for astro use. For daytime use a photo tripod can be used to mount the TV 60 but the Telepod is far superior so I tend to use the Telepod for daytime use as well unless I have to walk very far with it.

The TV 60 gives great day time views and lovely widefield (and tack sharp) views at night. Despite the small aperture the TV 60 is a rewarding scope to use at night if you appreciate it for what it can do rather than what it can't do.

[MortonH]

Sounds like my biggest problem will be affording one, since they're very unlikely to come up for sale used.

[Profiler]

Lay-by!

It doesn seem so painful when paid for gradually:lol:

[Profiler]

A minor point but Televue are quite clear that the telepod is really meant for use with the TV-76/Pronto etc and below (ie TV-60). The Panoramic is the 'portable' ish mount meant for the TV-85.

[Irish stargazer]

I use a Megrez 72mm as my ultra portable scope. It gives razor sharp views with a 27mm Panoptic. It also doubles up as an astrograph and a pretty decent 420mm telephoto lens. Its not a Televue but its a lot cheaper.

[MortonH]

I had a Megrez 72 briefly earlier this year. It was a bit heavy for my liking (for such a small scope) which is why I like the idea of a ZS66 since it is only slightly heavier and longer than the TV-60 (and larger aperture).

The Megrez 72 weighs about the same as the old ZS80 FD, so I might consider one of them over the Megrez.