Dissapointed with GSO 12" I bought recently from Andrews

[[1ponders] (Paul)]

My thoughts too

[davidpretorius]

true, Sco and welcome!

but we do live in god's little private garden down here!

[rumples riot]

My thoughts too Ving

[davidpretorius]

my thoughts three ving!

[TidaLpHasE]

Well, i would have done exactly as you have done, that is come to a forum and ask for peoples opinion.

I am not to sure who was bagging out a supplier without contacting them first, i read in your post that you were seeking advice and asking for peoples opinion, nothing to do with bagging a supplier!

I would ring them and explain your concern, and state that you are not happy with the product rusting so soon after purchasing it.

You will be offered a refund more than likely, or if he is willing to exchange it, that's good.

And i also think that $1000+ for an item is a hell of a lot of money, just because it's a "Made in China" scope, shouldn't mean the item be expected as inferier, if this should be expected from these scopes, then they are way over priced and should sell for their"cheaper quality Bang for Buck" value of say, $450.

And as far as people posting on forums regarding quality and the standard of products supplied to them by Australian suppliers, i support this 100%,

Good luck with your scope.

[johnno]

Hi All,

There is a product that is called "rust converter",I know it works,as I have used it on a rusty fridge,there are also rust resistant paints,But I would prepare the metal tube properly first.
However,as has been said,repainting is quite a job,but to stop any further rust action,the rust converter may be worth a thought.

An Interesting fact,
40 years ago I worked for a new Car dealership as a trainee spray painter,the current model at the time often arrived straight from the factory,with rust spots in the sills,doors,and many other body panels,and it was our job to repair,and repaint the offending sections.
To be fair and honest,NOT ALL,new cars had this problem,but there was enough to keep us busy.

Seasons Greetings.
John

Originally Posted by TidaLpHasE

Well, i would have done exactly as you have done, that is come to a forum and ask for peoples opinion.

I am not to sure who was bagging out a supplier without contacting them first, i read in your post that you were seeking advice and asking for peoples opinion, nothing to do with bagging a supplier!

exactly, I wasnt bagging Lee at all, he didnt manufacture it (although some responsability is expected as the importer), I was asking peoples opinion and I have to say I have never had such a good and immediate response to any thread than this one. Excelent comments from everyone, I think I will contact Lee in the new year and ask his opinion, I can live with the rust that it has but I expect it will get a lot worse real quick. And yes, I am about 20Klms from the ocean in the hinterland, besides, my car doesnt rust, nor my tin roof nor shed etc, why should I expect this to rust? Yes I could strip and paint it but should I have to? I think not, trouble is I was charged $70 to freight it here, who pays freight for the replacement (each way) if thats the way Lee decides to go?? Maybe I could spend $200 more getting it recoated and Lee could compensate me with a nice filter or something worth this amount? Why let the freight companies make money out of a bad situation? Anyway, when I return form NSW I will call him and have a nice chat, I am not angry just dissapointed, I still love the scope. see you next year, stay safe.

[Muddy Diver]

Hi all

For what its worth I dont see much bagging going on. Good scope or not, it is more likely storage of the sheet metal prior to painting which has led to the rusting at such an early stage. Probably you should consider treating the tube after removing the paint to inhibit the oxidation prior to recoating if you dont want the same thing to happen again. Also, if metal storage was the problem then the same type of oxidation could be ocurring on the inside which is obviously a different problem.

We don't, as consumers, enjoy the same prices as dealers get from manufacturers and therefore should expect the dealer to respond to our calls of help when a product dissapoints us. By not informing the dealer and just getting on with it quietly, the dealer is left unawares of any quality issues and will keep on selling an inferior product (if thats what it is). The more people who give feedback regarding a product, the more or less likely the dealer is going to be promoting same.

I beleive dealers should take full responsibility for returns like these cos then they would take inferior goods off their shelves in favour of higher quality goods. Good for him and great for the consumer eh?

Good luck with your chosen course of action, but I would definately talk to Andrews... they might give you a nice surprise!

[Mick (Michael)]

Originally Posted by xrekcor

His $70,000.00 car
was made from old oil 44's.

maybe they are up to the same trick.

My dob has rust as well, it's not bad I jumped on it early. I contacted the supplier about it a while ago by email, they did replied but I knew there was probably not a lot they could do. The rust doesn't spoil the view through the EP and that's what I'm interested in, the view.

Cars and Telescopes, they're always fixing it in the next model

[ballaratdragons (Ken)]

All brand new Ural (Dneper) Motorcycles imported into Australia have extreme rust! And with the paint peeling off in large slabs! It is expected of this make and therefore, Ural buyers accept it. But that is only half the story.

Every Ural also comes with a complete engine rebuild kit (Pistons, rings, gudgeons & clips, bearings, valves, valve springs & guides, Oil pump kit, carby kit etc etc) as the Factory and Dealers say "You'll need it".

Ural buyers (and there are a lot of them) still buy Urals. But they are told that this is the quality of the product. They actually practically run forever, coz mechanically they are bullet proof!

BUT . . . when we are buying a product that is expected to be of Quality (not just optically) we do expect it to keep it's appearance for a bit longer than a few months!

I don't have any rust problems with my GS12" but there have been a few in here having rust in their OTA's in quite a short time! If a new car does it we let the Car dealer now. Why not let the Scope dealers now that the GS brands are rusting. If everyone with a rusty GS told the dealers, then GS might jump on the problem.

I now, I'm waffling again. I'll shut up now

[Roger Davis]

So much fun to read what you are all saying! Geez what do you expect, you ain't buying a Rolls Royce you're buying a Hyundi! If a scope develops rust don't be suprised. How much did you spend? How much have you really looked after that tube? Huh? Sure you WIPED it down with a cloth to dry it off, but this isn't really adequate. When you buy a car, you wash it, dry it and wax it. You know wax on wax off? In the "olden days" when I was a lad and made my first scope, the tube was made from galvanised steel (see? galvanised? see? steel?) which I duly painted white and watched the paint peel off after 18 months. But the tube never rusted & still hasn't.
If someone came to me with a problem of rust, I would take their tube, strip it bare, etch the surface and have it powder coated. The interior I would then blacken with Krylon (the only dead or matt black spray, there is NO other, although you could use flocking [read self adhesive felt]). Powder coating around $80-$90 and the can of Krylon around $20. Then I would say the tube stood a good chance of resisting rust for a little while at least. Moisture is corrosive, don't be complacent regarding its nature, dry your scope thoroughly and occasionaly treat it to a coat of car wax.
A tube is there to keep your optics apart!!!

[mick pinner]

if you read an ad for a telescope that said " tube may or may not be rusty ", would you buy it? why should someone put up with this rust 3 months after purchase?
to say you only paid so much for a scope is relative, $900.00 to you or me may not be a lot but to someone who has saved for their first scope it matters.
l agree you get what you pay for but rust is a condition that WILL get progressively worse and to most people will be an expensive problem to fix properly.
What other defects do you think are acceptable in a " cheap scope "?

[janoskiss (Steve H)]

Originally Posted by mick pinner

if you read an ad for a telescope that said " tube may or may not be rusty ", would you buy it? why should someone put up with this rust 3 months after purchase?

Actually there was someone on iceinspace recently who mentioned receiving a brand new Dob with rust spots on the OTA. I think the cheap way around this is for the manufacturer to supply a rust free new poduct to begin with, and instructions on how to look after the telescope, and how to keep it rust free. If that is not possible they should really do something about the problem. I never heard of anyone complaining of rust on the Orion XT Dobs, which apart from the paintjob are pretty much the same scope.

See some excerpts below from from the XT8 manual. It does not sound like rust is part of the deal here. If you see rust on a new or virtually new telescope tube that "will last a lifetime", you would have reason to complain.

If you give your telescope reasonable care, it will last a lifetime. Store it in a clean, dry, dust free place, safe from rapid changes in temperature and humidity. Do not store the telescope outdoors, although storage in a garage or shed is OK.
...
The telescope requires very little mechanical maintenance. The optical tube is made of steel and has a smooth painted finish that is fairly scratch-resistant. If a scratch does appear on the tube, it will not harm the telescope. If you wish, you may apply some auto touch-up paint to the scratch. Smudges on the tube can be wiped off with a soft cloth and a household cleaner such as Windex or Formula 409.

[Striker (Tony)]

Actually there was someone on iceinspace recently who mentioned receiving a brand new Dob with rust spots on the OTA

Thats this Dob Steve....the one we have been talking about...straight out of the box.

[janoskiss (Steve H)]

No, Tony, this one had rust appearing after several nights of dew. The one I was referring to is vindictive666's Dob.

[[1ponders] (Paul)]

Steve, this one had rust straight out of the box as well.

[Stu]

Originally Posted by [1ponders]

Steve, this one had rust straight out of the box as well.

If that's the case it should have been taken back already.

Tin sheds are zinc coated to prevent rust. Cars are negatively grounded to stop the reaction from happening. Both will be better protected than this scope near the sea. I'd get a new one and strip it back and repaint striaght away before it gets bad again.

[Starkler (Geoff)]

I think with the lessons learned here we should recommend that everyone who buys one of these gets out the Mr Sheen or car wax and give their ota a good treatment before exposing it to the night sky for the first time.

My dob started to show a few spots of rust discolouration in the paint after about three months. Two years later theres just a few more, but it is just tiny surface rust spots only and I dont see any need to panic.

Keeping things in perspective I really think the particle board base will crap out well before I get a rust hole through my ota. By this time, maybe the mirror will need recoating also ?

[Argonavis (William)]

Originally Posted by Starkler

I think with the lessons learned here we should recommend that everyone who buys one of these gets out the Mr Sheen or car wax and give their ota a good treatment before exposing it to the night sky for the first time.

making sure you remove the optical elements from the tube first before applying Mr Sheen.....I am not sure what MrSheen does to mirror coatings, but have heard very bad things about Fishlex. The story is told of a scope owner who complained that his mirror had black spots all over it - it turned out that he was so concerned about a few rust spots on the mirror cell that they applied fishlex. ouch.

[mick pinner]

Mr Sheen or any type of sealer or wax will not stop the tube from rusting, it is not the moisture on the outside that causes the rust it is the lack of a proper etch primer between the steel and the final colour.