Well here it is, the Meade 8" f/6 Lightbridge Deluxe.
My daughter was mesmorised, her face said it all when she saw it.
Don and Mick at Bintel had collimated it for me and checked everything before I picked it up. Then they packed it all back up again ready to go. Thanks heaps guys.
Assembly at home was so easy, everything just came together perfectly.
It looks fantastic and it's very portable, just the right size for my daughter.
The deluxe model comes with a 4 way Red Dot finder ( which projects your choice of either a dot, a crosshair, a circular crosshair, or a circle) and a Meade 26mm QX wide angle 70 deg AFOV- 2" eyepiece. It's a wopper of an EP. (See attached photos).
We can't wait for some clear weather to give it a whirl.
Please add to your signature - "worlds proudest father"
i bet mum had to take that shot of her reaction, i would have been sucking a few deep breathes and could not take a shot....hard to focus.....damn dust storms....got some dust in the eye and making it water!!
I must say I am very impressed with these telescopes.
Not to be too critical of a prezzy that has certainly made a little girl very happy, but I have to comment on something about the product.
Now, we all understand that 'Meade' knows telescopes. They have been making them for long enough.
But I am shocked to see so much 'white' on the INSIDE of the 2ndry mirror cage! It goes against everything in scope making!!!!
And the trusses are bright aluminium. It seems they have concentrated on having a pretty scope rather than a practical scope.
Paint the trusses and the inside of the 2ndry cage matt black and it will be a far better scope as far as light reflection and light scatter goes.
Hi there A.G. & R.B. As Petra has already said to the LB club.
Petra and I will have to show you the secret handshake and password for our secret society Enjoy your new scope, they are truly beautiful scopes and from what I've seen of Guan Sheng mirrors, great images.
Do a ray trace of the system and you will find that the baffling of the scope is such that the tubes do not matter.
What will have to be blackened is the lower rim of the upper tube assembly and the inside captured tops of the truss tubes (where the bolt is). A quick look through the focuser with the 1.25" adapter removed will show just how far down the blackening will have to go.
But seriously guys, thanks for all your comments, my daughter feels so welcome here, that it's all she thinks about.
I reckon she was just as excited when I said she can join IIS as she was when she got her new scope.
Will definitly give a first light report (with secret handshake and all) as soon as this monsoon disapears.
I know one thing, if I had to set up very quickly, out of the scopes that I have, then definitly the Lightbridge would be the one to grab.
Now I know why everyone's recommending DOBs.
Very very sweet looking scope, does anyone have the 10" yet? I've been thinking about that one, I live in St Kilda so very light polluted, I'd only get out to dark skies once every 2 or 3 months so the 12 is probably overkill. I dunno, still undecided.
Don't mean to hijack this thread... Don't spoil that daughter too much, I never got anythign like this when I was 8... Looks great
Also as for the white sections on the inside of the tube, do you really think it will make THAT much diff? I don't think it's as much of a faux pas as you make it out to be. I have seen skeletal dobs with very little baffling that reportedly work very well and I think the key is light paths. Light only travels in straight lines so unless stray light is entering parallel and inline to the secondary I really don't think the insides of the scope, and especially the color of the trusses will make that much difference, particularly during the night when it's fairly dark.
Yeah I actually went there a week before the LB was released I was checking out the solid tube ones, I ALMOST walked away with one but just managed to resist, maybe lucky, if the LB was there I probably wouldn't have walked out empty handed ...
The thing that got me was how much difference in actual size there is between the 10 and the 12, it's quite significant, more then I thought from the specs and photos... Seems like a considerably bigger difference then between the 8 and the 10, probably because of the 8 being f6 and the 10 and 12 both being f5 i guess.. I imagine it's similar for the LBs yeah? If that's the case then maybe the 10 really is the way to go, the price difference isn't insignificant too...
As for the spoiling, it's sometimes a fine line between "spoil" and "nurture a healthy interest", in this case I think you're definitely on the right track
Yeah I actually went there a week before the LB was released I was checking out the solid tube ones, I ALMOST walked away with one but just managed to resist, maybe lucky, if the LB was there I probably wouldn't have walked out empty handed ...
Exactly what happened to me. I was thinking of getting the Bintel 8" dob for her, and it's cheaper too, But when I walked in and saw the LB, I was hooked.
And the funny thing is she always wanted a white telescope because she would drool over my little 40mm white Tasco I had when I was a boy.
I haven't seen the 12" LB but I imagine you're right.
The difference between the 10 and 12 DOB is significant as you say.
That's why I think the 10" LB would be ideal for you.
indeed I didn't want to spoil her but I failed miserably this time.
If spoiling means "loving" then spoil away...I am guilty of sometimes walking this line too as my kids express interest in this hobby it is hard not to try and get them some good stuff to play with...I only wish that my parents had been in a position to get me something so nice...
Enjoy your new scope, they are truly beautiful scopes and from what I've seen of Guan Sheng mirrors, great images.
The only thing they have left is a single 10" standard, i at least wanted the deluxe.....
