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Tripod head for Scope (1 Viewer)

Hi Lobas, I think the 150-600 Sigma C lens is the same weight as my Tamron 150-600, which is 600g less than the Canon 300 f2.8.
Yes the Siggy 150-600 is more or less the same weight as the the Tammy 150-600 Les - I owned the Tammy 150-600 for several months before selling it.
 
Hi Roy, my MVH500AH locks down in both pan and tilt and so does the 502AH. If I'm only using my camera and not the scope I use the cheapish Manfrotto type Gimbal head on another tripod, which I find excellent value for money. On the scope subject, you might like to look through the Celestron Regal M2 80mm which also takes 1.25" astro eyepieces. People that own Swaro scopes and have looked through my first generation Regal 80 F-ED and can't believe how good the wide, bright view is compared to the cost of the scope. The Regals come with a good 20-60 zoom but I prefer using a fixed 68 degree Baader Hyperion EP giving either a 28x or 35x magnification and a very wide view.
Thanks for the head-up on the Celestron Les :t: I have yet to decide if I go for a relatively cheap scope (£1000 or less) or go for a top of the range swaro or Kowa - I am going to try out birding with my loaned scope to see how I like it before deciding how much to spend. Its a big change from bird photography that I have been doing for 10 years or so.
 
Hi Roy/Les

The point I was trying to make was the Sirui again IMO is great used with a telescope, the question you have to ask yourself is are you buying for one or the other.
 
Hi Roy/Les

The point I was trying to make was the Sirui again IMO is great used with a telescope, the question you have to ask yourself is are you buying for one or the other.
Yes you are right Lobas - I will certainly have a look at the Sirus head :t: (I have a Sirus mono-pod head which is very good so I know the brand). I am looking primarily for a scope head but if I did use it for A DSLR Camera it would only be with a small landscape lens (17-40). Thanks for in the info.
 
Roy,..the celestron is very nice..i have owned the regal 65 and i can also praise its optics,specially when compared with other budget scopes and considering its low price and eyepuece compatibility...i think it is a bargain,and do not falls far behind the top brands..but the top modeld you are mentioning,the 883 and the Atx series,are a step ,or two above..I only tested the 883 once,and not for long,but i was able to detect level of performance i would say "superior",probably due to the larger objective ..i would say it was the best view i ever experienced,..untul i tested the Atx85 a few weeks ago...contrast and detail that surpassed my kowa 823 by a good stretch..the owner of the scope,perhaps trying to be nice,commented on how close the views were.For me ,the advantage in performance was very clear..I have read a few of your comments about lenses and i have seen very good pictures you took with your starwatcher 85 and i know you are very exigent and aim for excellence..I think if you try the swaro Atx you probably wouldn't accept a lesser view..also ,its photographic potential,via digiscoping,is going to be higher...
 
Roy,..the celestron is very nice..i have owned the regal 65 and i can also praise its optics,specially when compared with other budget scopes and considering its low price and eyepuece compatibility...i think it is a bargain,and do not falls far behind the top brands..but the top modeld you are mentioning,the 883 and the Atx series,are a step ,or two above..I only tested the 883 once,and not for long,but i was able to detect level of performance i would say "superior",probably due to the larger objective ..i would say it was the best view i ever experienced,..untul i tested the Atx85 a few weeks ago...contrast and detail that surpassed my kowa 823 by a good stretch..the owner of the scope,perhaps trying to be nice,commented on how close the views were.For me ,the advantage in performance was very clear..I have read a few of your comments about lenses and i have seen very good pictures you took with your starwatcher 85 and i know you are very exigent and aim for excellence..I think if you try the swaro Atx you probably wouldn't accept a lesser view..also ,its photographic potential,via digiscoping,is going to be higher...
Thanks for that 'mayoayo' , very interesting and I am sure you are right - maybe its best that I do not even try a ATX until I am sure I will take to birding with a scope lol.
 
At the moment I am using a friends old Kowa TSN 4 Bill while I decide which scope to buy. The Kowa is fairly light but I need to allow for a scope up to around 2KG.

That's the same scope as I use Roy. It's old but was top of the range in it's day and is pretty good now! I use an Opticron SDL V2 eyepiece on mine and it makes a pretty good combo at a very reasonable price.
I use the Manfrotto 701 HDV head which I find very good but I think it is now discontinued. It has now been replaced by the 500 series I believe.
I have tried a few of the Alpa scopes and, to me, the Kowa 883 was the pick of the bunch, however the new 85mm Searovski wasn't available then. In good light I don't find a major difference between scopes so long as they are of good quality but in adverse conditions the best modern scopes show their superiority, especially when the subject is backlit.
I don't know what tripods you have but I have found my old TSN 4 to be more demanding of tripods than even the biggest camera lenses (I currently use the Canon 800 F5.6 L IS). It always pains me to see the local birders with some beautiful optics on top of cheapo tripos/heads. They often find that they can get a far better view from my old Kowa simply because it is so much more stable on top of a decent tripod - just some food for thought.

Hope you enjoy your time with your friend's scope.
 
That's the same scope as I use Roy. It's old but was top of the range in it's day and is pretty good now! I use an Opticron SDL V2 eyepiece on mine and it makes a pretty good combo at a very reasonable price.
I use the Manfrotto 701 HDV head which I find very good but I think it is now discontinued. It has now been replaced by the 500 series I believe.
I have tried a few of the Alpa scopes and, to me, the Kowa 883 was the pick of the bunch, however the new 85mm Searovski wasn't available then. In good light I don't find a major difference between scopes so long as they are of good quality but in adverse conditions the best modern scopes show their superiority, especially when the subject is backlit.
I don't know what tripods you have but I have found my old TSN 4 to be more demanding of tripods than even the biggest camera lenses (I currently use the Canon 800 F5.6 L IS). It always pains me to see the local birders with some beautiful optics on top of cheapo tripos/heads. They often find that they can get a far better view from my old Kowa simply because it is so much more stable on top of a decent tripod - just some food for thought.

Hope you enjoy your time with your friend's scope.
Thanks for that John :t: I have a Feisol CT-3372 tripod which is fairly good - in fact I prefer it to a Gitzo that I once had! I was not looking to upgrade the tripod! The trouble is that at the moment I am using the Kowa scope with a Gimbal head which works OK but is not ideal.
Interesting that you still use a Kowa TSN-4, I do not know anything about scopes but thought that it looked fairly good to me with a 30x fixed eyepiece. Do you know if there are any decent zoom eye pieces for this scope?
EDIT: I have just seen that you use a Opticron SDL V2 eyepiece - that obviously fits the Kowa OK then?
 
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Thanks for that John :t: I have a Feisol CT-3372 tripod which is fairly good - in fact I prefer it to a Gitzo that I once had! I was not looking to upgrade the tripod! The trouble is that at the moment I am using the Kowa scope with a Gimbal head which works OK but is not ideal.
Interesting that you still use a Kowa TSN-4, I do not know anything about scopes but thought that it looked fairly good to me with a 30x fixed eyepiece. Do you know if there are any decent zoom eye pieces for this scope?
EDIT: I have just seen that you use a Opticron SDL V2 eyepiece - that obviously fits the Kowa OK then?

That Feisol of yours looks ideal to me, perhaps a touch of overkill but you will appreciate it if it gets a little breezy! I use either a 2 series Gitzo or my 3 series when I want real stability.
A few of the Opticron eyepieces will fit the old TSN 1,2,3,4 scopes, the SDL V2 being one of them. The eyepiece actually attaches to the outer tread around the bayonet mount for the eyepiece. A spacer washer is needed to prevent the eyepiece rotating - a 3.5/4mm thick "O" ring works fine. I was told about this on this forum by forum member "Jaff" who was very helpful.
Happy scoping!
 
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