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ES 80mm F/6 (1 Viewer)

Musoman

PETE - Nikon/Sony Shooter
United Kingdom
Cango - ES 80mm F/6 !!

Couldn't put this in the Set Ups thread because no one has posted for so long, that it wouldnt allow another post

After getting a reprimand from Cango for leaving the Astro Photography gang, i have relented and got back on the wagon with another scope

Its the ES 80mm F/6 CF HEX Focuser FCD100 Mk3

The weight attracted me, and its got a foot mount instead of the heavy and intrusive clam shell brackets. It means the Dew Shield can simply slide back for travel, instead of having to remove it, which would mean it takes up more space in a bag

2.55kg all in weight, and if i take off the finder bracket, i might lose a couple of ounces

Its quite a fast aperture for 80mm objective, so perhaps i may need to stop down using the hole in the end cap method :)

Uses Hoya FCD100 glass - leading to a poly-strehl value of 0.979

Looks good i suppose, ( seems high to me ) but it may depend who tested it and how. Does a high Strehl number make a difference to prime terrestrial photography ?

Scope should be here tomorrow - Tuesday, and i kept all the accessories i had previously, apart from a decent TN

Here she is..
 

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On another note, i think i'll be looking for a Zuiko 100/200 TN or maybe a Sunagor 100/200 TN

They seem to be well liked here, so is there any reason to choose one over the other ?
 
On another note, i think i'll be looking for a Zuiko 100/200 TN or maybe a Sunagor 100/200 TN

They seem to be well liked here, so is there any reason to choose one over the other ?

The FCD glass should be about the same as the FPL-53 in the SW80ED from what I read.

I played around with all my TN's this afternoon. They are all very close but with it being such a warm day it's hard to be super consistent. I'd favour the Sunagor but also in my tests I used my old 2" 2X ED glass barlow and I'd probably put that at or near the top. It's still a fantastic bit of glass but a little dearer than the TN's.

Paul.
 
Welcome back ;-)

Looking forward to see bird shots from that Hoya glass :)
Beautiful and compact scope!
Hopefully - soon - I will build a sort of pistol grip to my TS apo 480 scope, so it will be easier to shoot handheld. (having the thumb free too move the focuser more easier)
 
Cool. Then there would be 4 or 5 of us using 80mm F/6 scopes.

Count me in then Tord, but its a tad shorter focal length than my 600mm Tamron, which is probably only 585mm anyways.

I suspect the scope is a proper 480mm , but i could be wrong
 
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The FCD glass should be about the same as the FPL-53 in the SW80ED from what I read.

I played around with all my TN's this afternoon. They are all very close but with it being such a warm day it's hard to be super consistent. I'd favour the Sunagor but also in my tests I used my old 2" 2X ED glass barlow and I'd probably put that at or near the top. It's still a fantastic bit of glass but a little dearer than the TN's.

Paul.

Thanks Paul..

I dont want anything more than aoput 1.5x 1.6x or 1.7x so i reckon i'll either hunt for a Sunagor or a Zuiko, and that should do me
 
Welcome back ;-)

Looking forward to see bird shots from that Hoya glass :)
Beautiful and compact scope!
Hopefully - soon - I will build a sort of pistol grip to my TS apo 480 scope, so it will be easier to shoot handheld. (having the thumb free too move the focuser more easier)

Hi Cango - you persuaded me ;)

I like the idea of the pistol grip. That should be interesting if you sort it out. Keep us posted

I'll get pictures up as soon as i sort things out. I have the mount adapter already, which is just a Nikon mount stripped off an old lens with an extension tube fitted by my engineer friend, so it was tapped and screwed on. Very sturdy
 
Thanks Paul..

I dont want anything more than aoput 1.5x 1.6x or 1.7x so i reckon i'll either hunt for a Sunagor or a Zuiko, and that should do me

2x Barlow is around 1.5x when mounted in a tube and used on the scope. With the Zuiko the rear lens sticks out and is easy to get chipped but when it's mounted then it's protected. Only sticks out about 1mm.

Paul.
 
I didnt know that mounting a 2x barlow on scope reduced its affectiveness to 1.5x. Thats very interesting

Still learning stuff !

AS for the Zuiko, yes its on my list with the Sunagor because of your real world tests, but i think i should add the Canon FD 100/200 SC to that list as well, because right now, i'm looking at some shots you did Friday 11th January 2013 of a Robin and Squirrel with impressive results

I know there's also an SSC version of the Canon FD SC but i've never seen one for sale.. well not yet anyways
 
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Thought i'd just show the adapter i had made a couple of years ago and how much extension i can make use of. I think this covers about everything.

Its around 200mm long, and with 50% inside the focuser tube, i have 100mm of extension. I can have more, of course. It can also push right into the tube to give almost no extension
 

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Welcome back ;-)

Looking forward to see bird shots from that Hoya glass :)
Beautiful and compact scope!
Hopefully - soon - I will build a sort of pistol grip to my TS apo 480 scope, so it will be easier to shoot handheld. (having the thumb free too move the focuser more easier)
Carlos,

I think I get the idea but have a few questions, and would really appreciate if you can share some pictures later on.

Left or right hand focusing? Have you reversed the focuser axis so you will have access to both knobs? Or will it be the 1:1 knob only?

Are you planning to add a mechanical remote control, to be able to benefit from the IBIS while focusing? (I miss this when using my TLAPO804 handheld, the image rendered in the viewfinder is a tad "shaky").
 
First shot with the ES is just a test shot - it only arrived today so i am just fumbling around right now.

One thing..i got focus confirm even though i was not using any chipped adapters. I assume this is normal, becuase the Nikon D610 will AF / Confirm to f8. Thats just a guess

My normal test shot subject is the alarm box on the building opposite my 2nd floor apartment. It has bright white letters on a darker coloured back ground, so will show up PF on the letters very easily

Its also a fair distance ... 147 ft , laser checked. Size of the alarm box is around 12" x 12" x 12" or maybe smaller

Nikon D610 / ISO 800 / 1/640th / No EV was used / Tripod

Cropped down from 5,679 pix width to 749 pix width. No resizing

Photo 1 is 100% crop, with no PP

Photo 2 is same 100% crop, with PP

I'm really happy with this.. at the moment anyway. There was not a hint of PF in the shot, but of course i will know for sure when i am out in the field
 

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Just as i was messing with the scope and tripod and getting balance sorted, a bird landed on my feeder, so i rattled one shot off. I was so close that the shutter scared him off so 1 shot was all i got.

I was approx 10 or 11ft from the bird. No time to focus on the eye, but its pretty good considering

I can see DOF is not great, but at the distance i was at, i probably needed to use the front cap stop down method
 

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Amended ...

I just checked the distance with my laser tape and it was 18.1 feet from the scope objective. Not 10 or 11 ft. I need my distance perception upgrading ;)
 
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Carlos,

I think I get the idea but have a few questions, and would really appreciate if you can share some pictures later on.

Left or right hand focusing? Have you reversed the focuser axis so you will have access to both knobs? Or will it be the 1:1 knob only?

Are you planning to add a mechanical remote control, to be able to benefit from the IBIS while focusing? (I miss this when using my TLAPO804 handheld, the image rendered in the viewfinder is a tad "shaky").

lefthand -thumb- focusing - since I manage the camera/shutter righthanded.
and no, I haven't reversed the focuser.
and no, no remote control, - haven't got to the grip yet :) -
I'm very new to handhel, so this is a test to make it easier. The hard part is that one have to pre-focus with right hand first, to be in the "ball park" and fine focus with the left thumb.
 
|:d|
I can see DOF is not great, but at the distance i was at, i probably needed to use the front cap stop down method

Just checked DOF master app on my phone.
Had to type in 500mm FL and F/6.3 as they were the nearest options and DOF was 1.64"

Definately need to stop down at 18 ft |:d|
 
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