Forget your GSO's and Skywatchers, I say you'll be better off with a Saxon!
the rust looks slightly more classy on black

I've had my trusty 8" saxon for 2 yrs... it's been rusting away for about the
last 18 months, it spends allot of time in the yard covered. It hasn't effected
it's performance and like Mike I have learned to live with it. It probably started
when the steal was still sitting in the yard waiting to be turned into an OTA
tube at the factory. And they probably painted straight over it.

You could seek a replacement, which will porbably go the same way.

However if someone has come across a supplier or manufacturer who makes
tubing to the sizes we need and in Aluminium or similar I would be keen to hear.
I'm not interested in sono-tubing

regards,CS