[acropolite (Phil)]

Hey that's my thread...... I'll bite, the cost was well under $600.... as Marc said $450 Aust (£265.00 at whatever the current exchange rate is) including shipping (mine arrived around 1 week from order !!!.).

I bought mine because Allan Gould was very impressed with his kit built version.

I really can't comment on the performance in the field yet as I have some fungal problems to address in my ED before I use it again.

I was very happy with the results I got with my ED80 FF sensor and the SW reducer at Astrofest.

Not sure how well the sharpsky will work with the standard SW focuser as mine is the SW BD 10:1 focuser, not acknowledged for it's mechanical finesse but it's the only one that fits the SW reducer for full frame.

The Sharpsky will also run with all current OS including W8, Dave has produced a nice controlling app, plus it works with SGP. I had no problems getting the Sharpsky installed on a USB3 port, unlike the SSAG which refused to install on W8 with USB3.

One last point, Dave's support is exemplary, the best I have ever experienced, let him know you are fitting to the ED80 when you order as there are some spacers required to fit to the ED80.