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Advice needed on ES 100 ED (1 Viewer)

R

RedMarauder

Member
Hi all,

I have found what seems like a good deal on a used ES 100 ED (angled), with the HDF zoom eyepiece and case, for £700. Near mint condition.

I know this is supposed to be heavy, but being a fit young lad that's less of a worry for me than optical performance. I was wondering if this sounds like a good deal, and if anyone has good or bad experiences of the above model?

Thanks in advance.

Chris
 
Chris,

The ES 100 GA ED is a large and heavy scope and I would suggest that you would need a a dcent stable tripod with a sturdy head too.

It is a very sharp and bright with very good colour rendition and will be very good in low light conditions due to the extra diameter of the OG. Coupled with the HDF zoom eyepieces you will get magnifications of 27-80x. The ED glass of course will help to minimise any chromatic abberation when using the higher end of the zoom range.

The Suggested Retail Price for your new kit is £1055 so you may well have yourself a bargain if it is in mint condition

Good Luck with your new scope
 
Last edited:
Hi Chris,

Thanks for the info, not purchased quite yet -- need to check the scope is still available when I phone the supplier tomorrow morning.

Would you be able to recommend a suitable tripod? I see Opticron have a pod and panhead they recommed for this model, but not sure if it's any good?

cheers,
Chris
 
Ah, Nikon and Swars are in the "great scopes" bracket. I wonder how long I'd have to wait for one of those bad boys to come along. Will take a look through the recent sales to see how often they pop up. Thanks for the info AC/DC.
 
I saw plenty of good deals when looking for a scope before christmas - I hadn't decided on the Swaro AT80HD at the time tho, so didn't give it as much attention as I should have. Now I've got one though, and it is absolubtely superb. With the zoom (which is the older one), I can go up to 60X no problem - the other week I was watching a hen harrier at some distance, but managed to pick out tons of detail.
 
Hi Chris

A friend has the Mk1 version which is lighter than the Mk2 version which is nitrogen filled and he has been happy with it apart from one time when it wouldn't focus. It turned out the scope had undone itself and needed screwing together again and then it was fine.

The Mk1 got a good write up from Alula reviews so the optics aren't in doubt.

The for sale section here is always worth checking. Someone recently sold a Kowa 823 with zoom and fixed eyepieces for £400ish - BARGAIN.

If you do get the Alula test found it needs to have its SOC on all the time as there can be a problem with the scope warming unequally in the sun affecting the image untill it's all stabilised.

Nev
 
Hi Dipper, thanks for the info -- much appreciated. I'll defo keep an eye on the for sale section.

It's a mark1 that's up for sale. I'm not sure of the difference between the mark2 and the mark1 -- is this significant? The seller claims the mark1 were more expensive and better optically, but were not rubber armoured? Also, does anyone know of an image of the mark1 online? I can only seem to find any unless unless the mark1 and mark2 are almost identical! Looks aren't really important but it would be nice to know it's not a really ugly beast!

Once again any help much appreciated.
 
The ES100 is a seriously big scope it weighs in at over 2.5kg and is very front heavy, a standard tripod head may well struggle, not so much with the weight as with the balance. Unless you really need the extra mag that it delivers with the HDF zoom then I'd recommend saving yourself some cash and effort and getting an 80mm scope (such as the ES80) instead.
 
This time in English:

Hi Dipper, thanks for the info -- much appreciated. I'll defo keep an eye on the for sale section.

It's a mark1 that's up for sale. I'm not sure of the difference between the mark2 and the mark1 -- is it significant? The seller claims the mark1 were more expensive and better optically, but were not rubber armoured? Also, does anyone know of an image of the mark1 online or know if there's a copy of the Alula review anywhere (I understand this was a review of the mark1 from 2004)? I can't seem to find mark1 images, unless the mark1 and mark2 are almost identical!? Looks aren't important but it would be nice to know it's not a really ugly beast of a scope!

Once again any help much appreciated.
 
RedMarauder said:
Hi Dipper, thanks for the info -- much appreciated. I'll defo keep an eye on the for sale section.

It's a mark1 that's up for sale. I'm not sure of the difference between the mark2 and the mark1 -- is this significant? The seller claims the mark1 were more expensive and better optically, but were not rubber armoured? Also, does anyone know of an image of the mark1 online? I can only seem to find any unless unless the mark1 and mark2 are almost identical! Looks aren't really important but it would be nice to know it's not a really ugly beast!

Once again any help much appreciated.
Click to expand...

I think this photo (http://www.warehouseexpress.com/product/default.aspx?sku=1012317) on the warehouse express website is of the old scope 80mm version. Will give you some idea of it's 'look'!

FWIW I have the 80mm (new version) ES ED, a scope that I'm really happy with especially for the money (about £430 new I believe now). However, I have found that it loses resolution above 45x (with the HDF zoom) in less than perfect conditions.

Perry
 
RedMarauder,

If you pm me, I can send you the Alula review as a word file attachment. The scope in the picture linked in post #11 is the older version that I tested. The optics were very good, and the scope gave (slightly) better detail over long distances than any of the 80-85mm scopes back then. I have not compared it to the Kowa 883 since that model was introduced. The zoom ep has a rather narrow field of view, but good eye-relief. Balance can be corrected with a suitable long QR-plate/head combo, such as manfrotto 500 series or Gitzo 2380. The scope definitely requires a very sturdy tripod. Berlebach 3042, Manfrottos bigger than the 055 series, or Medium to rugged Gitzos are where one ought to be looking. And it is true that you need to keep the body shielded from direct sunlight - the detrimental effect it had on image quality was very real and obvious. But, if you are willing to haul the weight, and providing the sample is good (no significant manufacturing defects in alignment and optics - basically, if the scope looks sharp and snaps to focus at top magnification, providing it has reached thermal equilibrium with its surroundings, it is good enough), it can be a very good scope for you.

Kimmo
 
RedMarauder said:
This time in English:

Hi Dipper, thanks for the info -- much appreciated. I'll defo keep an eye on the for sale section.

It's a mark1 that's up for sale. I'm not sure of the difference between the mark2 and the mark1 -- is it significant? The seller claims the mark1 were more expensive and better optically, but were not rubber armoured? Also, does anyone know of an image of the mark1 online or know if there's a copy of the Alula review anywhere (I understand this was a review of the mark1 from 2004)? I can't seem to find mark1 images, unless the mark1 and mark2 are almost identical!? Looks aren't important but it would be nice to know it's not a really ugly beast of a scope!

Once again any help much appreciated.
Click to expand...

Take a look at the opticron website eg here and here (MK1) for details on the differences.

Weight is less on Mk1 2.25 opposed to 2.8kg.

Nev
 
Hi all, thank you all very much for the advice. I decided to plump for a new Opticron ES 80 ED instead (there's a great deal at Swoptics where you get the HDF Zoom and free green stay on case). In the end I thought the size, weight and the cost of the second hand ES 100 was perhaps a little unjustified. The 80 should hopefully serve me really well -- reviews seem to rate it highly in the mid price range. Also, plumped for a Manfrotto 055XV tripod and 701RC2 head. Really looking forward trying them in the field.
 
RedMarauder said:
Hi all, thank you all very much for the advice. I decided to plump for a new Opticron ES 80 ED instead (there's a great deal at Swoptics where you get the HDF Zoom and free green stay on case). In the end I thought the size, weight and the cost of the second hand ES 100 was perhaps a little unjustified. The 80 should hopefully serve me really well -- reviews seem to rate it highly in the mid price range. Also, plumped for a Manfrotto 055XV tripod and 701RC2 head. Really looking forward trying them in the field.
Click to expand...

Have fun.

I have this combo but have recently added the 32x fixed eyepiece and use it all the time at the moment. Let us know how you get on.

Perry
 
I was thinking about that -- does the wide angle add make a big difference? The adverse weather in England means it won't make it to Scotland until Tuesday. Can't wait to get out next weekend. Will let you know how I get on at my local patches.

Not that it makes any difference now, but does anyone have a copy of the review of the es80 from Alula?
 
RedMarauder said:
I was thinking about that -- does the wide angle add make a big difference?
Click to expand...

I haven't carried out a direct comparison of the two lenses - don't fancy chopping and changing them in the field too much. That said, I reckon that the the 32x lens gives the same sort of view that the zoom does at 20x. Basically the fov of the 20x and similar brightness/contrast/resolution but 50% bigger!

Perry
 
My telescope and tripod arrived last night. I've had some problems attaching the es80 body to the quick release plate that comes with the 701RC2 head though. I've had to remove the smaller pin, as it doesn't quite fit when screwed in. Odd, it looks like it should fit but the pin is *just* too large to nuzzle into hole in the body. How have others got their body attached to the quick release plate -- am I missing something obvious?

Can't wait to get out in the field. Too dark in the evenings to try it out after getting home from work :S
 
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