Tuthill Giant 80mm finder scope???

[5ash]

Aquired this today , see pics below.It is a giant 80mm tuthill finderscope which came off a black fork mounted c8 powered by one 9volt drycell , the type used in smoke alarms.i thought i'd mention this as it might give a guide to the age of the c8 and maybe the finder. the finder no longer has its original cross hair 1.25' eyepiece but thats easily replaced. the unit weighs 900 grams without an eyepiece . can anyone enlighten me to the history of these . ive looked through it at terrestrial objects and the views look very good, well corrected for CA and SA , with a focal length of about 25 cm making it about f3.
philip

[Stardrifter_WA]

Hi Sash,

Nice pick up.

Now that is one big finder and a blast from the past. As for its history I first saw this in the 80's and when I checked Roger Tuthill advertisements in Sky and Telescope I did find an advertisement featuring this scope, which first appeared in the January 1980 issue (page 76). It originally cost $149.

It is shown as being an 80mm f/4 and takes standard 1 1/4" eyepieces (so you could use an illuminated reticle) and can be used right angle or straight. It was originally designed to go with the Celestron C8, which was considered to be a big scope back then. You are lucky that it still has the original mounting bracket.

Hope this answers your question Sash.

Cheers Peter

[Stardrifter_WA]

Hi Sash,

As requested in your PM, here is a scan, taken from January 1980 S&T mag, of the Tuthill finder.

Hope this helps.

Cheers Peter