Explore Scientific ED80 Essential Series Air-Spaced Apochromatic 80mm Triplet Refractor Telescope for Astrophotography Astronomy

The image quality at high powers was stunning. The scope arrived fast and was super packed for protection. The only downside was the odd finder scope and mount attachments. I had to order rings and a dovetail to mount it.That dovetail was modified to align with the original mounting holes.I had to cobble up a standard dovetail to fit where the original finder scope was mounted.The original base is curved to fit the round shape of the scope, thus the mounting screws go in at an angle. The replacement dovetail had a flat base so I had to gouge out the mounting plate holes so the screws would line up to hold the dovetail plate on the scope. I now can use a bimount stand for my red dot finder and laser for locating objects.I'm working on a better method of mounting the scope and finders.That was just a head's up if you decide on this scope.Everything else is great. The optics, the weight, the quality build, and the images at higher power for 80 mm are superb. Even the packing was outstanding.The is a wonderful grab and go scope as I'm just a visual observer.Clear Skies.

I use this scope with my ZWO 183mc cool Pro for deep space astrophotography and it is a wonderful little piece of equipment. It's well built and of good quality. I originally purchased a Sky-Watcher doublet that cost the same price, but returned it and got this triplet APO instead. I did remove the L bracket and added a pair of tube rings and dovetail plate to make it more sturdy. I then attached my guide scope to the rings rather than using the finder scope mount. Overall, I am very happy with my purchase and the results I have been able to get with this scope. I will likely stick with Explore Scientific telescopes in the future :)

Pretty good little scope.The only issues I have are a minor manufacturing defect (doesn't affect performance, just annoying), and I tend to bang my hands into the sharp edges of the focuser and mounting a lot. I definitely recommend getting mounting rings, as I found the included mount to have a lot of play and not able to be tightened enough to eliminate it.My only real complaint is the finder scope mount seems to be a proprietary design, requiring a ES finder scope.

Very compact and a lot of back focus..which will come in handy for the auto guider. I dont like the mount so I replaced it with a two ring dovetail I had on my 80 mm short tube double. The moon is very crisp..no aberration as far as i can tell. Some violet fringing with stars. Havent taken out for photographing nebula yet (my main reason)..but I suspect it will deliver

Optics are superb and is a true triplet apo unlike the other brands that sell ed80mm doublet marketed as an apo. Worth every penny.Just a heads up if you're going to use a guidescope be sure to have the rings for it because it only works for explore style mounts which can be purchased on agena website

My first impression was how well-made and solid it was. And the optics don't disappoint. If you have only been looking through SCTs or reflectors, it's almost a shock to see how sharp the image is even without a field flattener (the HoTech seems to work well with it). The bar it uses for a mount can fit either on a conventional tripod mount or on a standard telescope mount. The problem is that the foot is secured to the telescope with only one screw. In theory, the degrees of freedom are limited because the foot fits along the curvature of the tube, but it is slick metal-on-metal, and the single screw isn't enough to hold it securely if you are aligning a go-to mount. It can slip easily. I wound up overtightening it and stripped a thread inside. And there aren't a lot of threads to grab inside. Fortunately the lock that controls tube rotation uses the same size thread, so I switched the two. My fix that seems to be working is to remove the thick washer and place a thin piece of rubber (like from a bicycle tire tube) between the foot and the telescope tube. That seems to provide sufficient friction to keep it from moving.

Excellent!

Dovetail may need adapter, finder bracket is for certain finders only.For visual you need to invest in eyepieces to realize the optics potential.You will need to use both extension tubes to achieve enough back focus.Useful for terrestrial photography as well as seen in my photos.Apparently excellent for astrophotography, though much more equipment is needed for that.