Whats the best refractor for 2500 USD?

Equipment Refractors Buying Advice
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What scope?!
Multiple choice poll 4 votes
25% (1 vote)
75% (3 votes)
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Daniel Renner avatar
Daniel Renner avatar
In a couple of weeks im going to buy a new telescope, a refractor. Firstlightoptics has a combo deal with flattner for around 2100 USD and for now this is what im going to get. But still im not 100% sure, is there another scope that is better for this kind of money?=MsoNormal
I want a focal length around 500-700 and a ”fast f ratio around 5) Do you have any other recomendations for a refractor or is this the one to get?

I am a pixelpeeper so I want the best glass that gives the least chromatic abberation as possible and of course round stars.
Andy Wray avatar
Andy Wray avatar
I know you said refractor, but you could consider a Skywatcher 150PDS reflector and coma corrector combo.  F4.5, 680mm focal length and no chromatic abberation to speak of being a reflector ;)  Also, less than half the price.

[Ooops!  just went on your images and realise you already have one … sorry!]
Daniel Renner avatar
Daniel Renner avatar
Andy Wray:
I know you said refractor, but you could consider a Skywatcher 150PDS reflector and coma corrector combo.  F4.5, 680mm focal length and no chromatic abberation to speak of being a reflector ;)  Also, less than half the price.

[Ooops!  just went on your images and realise you already have one ... sorry!]

;D Im tired of using a reflector for now, i dont want to worry about it being colimated and having to look at the stars to see if I pushed the camera 100% in to not have caused tilt etc...

So for now its a refractor i want
Roger Nichol avatar
Roger Nichol avatar
The Esprit 100ED may just be in your budget - really nice scope.
Dale Penkala avatar
Dale Penkala avatar
Daniel Renner:
In a couple of weeks im going to buy a new telescope, a refractor. Firstlightoptics has a combo deal with flattner for around 2100 USD and for now this is what im going to get. But still im not 100% sure, is there another scope that is better for this kind of money?=MsoNormal
I want a focal length around 500-700 and a ”fast f ratio around 5) Do you have any other recomendations for a refractor or is this the one to get?

I am a pixelpeeper so I want the best glass that gives the least chromatic abberation as possible and of course round stars.

Hi Daniel,
I was considering the same thing a couple of months ago and I had made the decision to go with this, however I had some personal things that stopped me from doing so. https://www.stellarvue.com/stellarvue-triplet-apo-svx080t-3sv/
That said I am still planning on doing this at some point. It does fall short of your 500mm fl you wanted however.

Dale
Steven avatar
Steven avatar
One more vote for the Esprit 100. It's hard to go wrong with that one. 
Probably not worth stretching the budget for the 120ED. Considering it's an F7 scope.

Not sure what else would suit. William optics FLT 91 maybe?  Quite a few brands make scopes in this segment.
I mean.. really.. are there any "bad scopes" out there for 2000-2500 bucks?. Most will be triplets, FL53 glass.

ASKAR FRA600  stands out a bit, since it has 5 elements. And I've been hearing more and more about Askar,
I have no experience with them though, so.. not a clue. 

William optics Redcat 71 but, that one is only 350-ish mm. So probably not..
Steve Solon avatar
Steve Solon avatar
I've had and enjoyed a Stellarvue 80mm f/6 refractor for 16 years with an Orion 2" coma corrector and flattener - about $1,800 to $2,000 US.
Well Written Concise
Daniel Renner avatar
Daniel Renner avatar
Dale Penkala:
Daniel Renner:
In a couple of weeks im going to buy a new telescope, a refractor. Firstlightoptics has a combo deal with flattner for around 2100 USD and for now this is what im going to get. But still im not 100% sure, is there another scope that is better for this kind of money?=MsoNormal
I want a focal length around 500-700 and a ”fast f ratio around 5) Do you have any other recomendations for a refractor or is this the one to get?

I am a pixelpeeper so I want the best glass that gives the least chromatic abberation as possible and of course round stars.

Hi Daniel,
I was considering the same thing a couple of months ago and I had made the decision to go with this, however I had some personal things that stopped me from doing so. https://www.stellarvue.com/stellarvue-triplet-apo-svx080t-3sv/
That said I am still planning on doing this at some point. It does fall short of your 500mm fl you wanted however.

Dale

thanks for the recomendation, I have not seen many reviews on that scope yet so I have to think about that.
rhedden avatar
rhedden avatar
The Esprit 100ED is now priced around $3,210 USD.  It was right about $2500 when I got mine in June 2020.   I spent another $200 on a Gerd Neumann CTU, $254 on a PegasusAstro FocusCube, and a few hundred $ on adapters, spacers, dovetails, etc. before I had round, focused stars and a solid rig for my guide scope.  It took about two years and roughly $600-700 of accessories, but I am now getting the image quality for which I was hoping.  I would say a reasonable budget for this telescope with the unplanned accessories you *will* eventually purchase (as a new refractor owner) is around $4,000 USD.   There is not much room in the imaging train due to its native f/5.5 specs, so I have no space left for an OAG…. but it doesn't need a focal reducer to get to f/5.5 either. 

One of the pleasant surprises about the Esprit 100ED is that I am imaging smaller galaxies with it, and it keeps up with my 11" SCT with typical seeing conditions at my location, despite its much smaller focal length (550 mm vs. 2000 mm).   Since the refractor has almost 25x the field of view with the same camera, it's gotten most of the imaging time this year.
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Dan Kearl avatar
Dan Kearl avatar
I just purchased the Askar 600 f5.6 for $2600. No flattener needed, It seems very nice.
Pedro A. Sampaio avatar
Pedro A. Sampaio avatar
I just bought an Esprit 100ed for 2400 Euros, and I'm more than happy with it!
Well Written
Dale Penkala avatar
Dale Penkala avatar
Daniel Renner:
Dale Penkala:
Daniel Renner:
In a couple of weeks im going to buy a new telescope, a refractor. Firstlightoptics has a combo deal with flattner for around 2100 USD and for now this is what im going to get. But still im not 100% sure, is there another scope that is better for this kind of money?=MsoNormal
I want a focal length around 500-700 and a ”fast f ratio around 5) Do you have any other recomendations for a refractor or is this the one to get?

I am a pixelpeeper so I want the best glass that gives the least chromatic abberation as possible and of course round stars.

Hi Daniel,
I was considering the same thing a couple of months ago and I had made the decision to go with this, however I had some personal things that stopped me from doing so. https://www.stellarvue.com/stellarvue-triplet-apo-svx080t-3sv/
That said I am still planning on doing this at some point. It does fall short of your 500mm fl you wanted however.

Dale

thanks for the recomendation, I have not seen many reviews on that scope yet so I have to think about that.

You won’t find a bad review on the Stellarvue triplet scopes I’m sure, but I get it. I personally put them in the upper echelon of scopes. Certainly would by it over a Tak, (which I considered) But thats me. I’d say AP would be about the only thing any better and with a Strehl numbers .98 or higher in the SVX line it would be pretty hard to tell the difference unless seeing is exceptional.

Best of luck!

Dale
Daniel Renner avatar
Daniel Renner avatar
An order has been made! I am now a member of the Esprit line, thanks for all your inputs =)
Well Written
Phillip Locke avatar
Phillip Locke avatar
Congratulations on the Esprit 100ED.  It's a fantastic scope!!
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