ETX90RA

Kelvin · Post by **Kelvin** » Fri Jan 23, 2004 8:39 pm

Hey you pros !!

Have any of you guys used a ETX90RA before, pls help a Rookie here , how is it ?, me thinking of going to get one, i guess, i need advise !! :?: :!:

My aim is general scope, something small, but still able to perform

Post by **acc** » Fri Jan 23, 2004 11:56 pm

The ETX90RA is well known for its excellent optics at a very good price. I had such an OTA before and it performed very well for its aperture. It should be relatively easy to get a dealer in the US to ship you one.

cheers
cc

chrisyeo · Post by **chrisyeo** » Sat Jan 24, 2004 6:18 am

I'm a new owner of an ETX90ra. If you want, you can ask specific questions here and I'll try to answer them.

There are a few other owners around,rich being one of them. Do introduce yourselves! I would like to know your experiences with the etx90 too!

clear skies
Chris

Kelvin · Post by **Kelvin** » Sat Jan 24, 2004 1:04 pm

I'm a new owner of an ETX90ra. If you want, you can ask specific questions here and I'll try to answer them.

There are a few other owners around,rich being one of them. Do introduce yourselves! I would like to know your experiences with the etx90 too!

clear skies
Chris

Oh yes please !!
Are the ETX90RA a good overall scope ? Meaning you can see all the popular M objects, nebales, planets, under good seening conditions ??

Do the scope last, rugged under good care and handling, will the motor burn out or coating will wear off ??

Is the eye relief good ? I wearing specs and therefore i would like it.

Post by **weixing** » Sat Jan 24, 2004 2:13 pm

Hi,
I'm not a EXT user, but I can tell you that any scope will last under good care, handling and proper usage....

Also, you may have some problem to see all the M objects, since some of them are quite dim. Actually, even you use a larger scope, some of the nebulae and galaxy are still difficult to see in Singapore.

Also, the eye relief is depend on eyepiece not the scope...

Have a nice day and happy Chinese New Year!

Kelvin · Post by **Kelvin** » Sat Jan 24, 2004 2:32 pm

'm not a EXT user, but I can tell you that any scope will last under good care, handling and proper usage.... Also, you may have some problem to see all the M objects, since some of them are quite dim. Actually, even you use a larger scope, some of the nebulae and galaxy are still difficult to see in Singapore.

Ok, then wat you guy often see out there ? I often do planetary work with my scope, can't reallydo much with a 60mm right ?

And Oh :!: , is the ETX90RA motorised ?? with GOTO handset and slow motion controls ? :?:

Post by **Airconvent** » Sun Jan 25, 2004 2:08 am

Kelvin wrote: And Oh :!: , is the ETX90RA motorised ?? with GOTO handset and slow motion controls ? :?:

The ETX90RA is motorised but does not have Goto. The follow up model ETX90EC is the one that has Goto.
With the motor disengaged, you have slow motion controls but as all ETX owners will tell, control is jerky. Frankly, I prefer to remove the fork mounts and plonk the scope on a proper slomo Manfrotto 410 head instead. Its lighter, easier to transport and you get more precise control.

As for the motor, it is much more useful at higher latitudes. In Singapore, you will need to align the scope in a very odd angle and have to employ sufficient counter-balances to stem vibrations...

rich

Kelvin · Post by **Kelvin** » Sun Jan 25, 2004 10:17 am

Jerky ?? Vibrations wat you mean by that, is the worm gear not as good as it should be ?

Hang on,, wat the motor do ? Is it for the slow motion control, something like joystick/gamepad control ? :?

chrisyeo · Post by **chrisyeo** » Sun Jan 25, 2004 1:02 pm

Kelvin,

The etx90ra is not a GOTO scope. It has a simple declination motor that compensates for the rotatation of the earth. What I do is that I put mine on a barstool at a roughly 90deg angle and point it north using a compass. That way, it's roughly polar aligned and I can do sufficient tracking for visual work even up to 300x. Too bad I don't have a digital camera if not I can show you my setup.

Do a search using 'etx90' on the forum and you should be able to get the two letters I've posted, one to do with how I managed to bring it here, and the other about what I can see with it.

Meaning you can see all the popular M objects, nebales, planets, under good seening conditions ??

The general answer is don't expect too much, even though I think it is a very good small scope. You can see generally see all the M objects up to magnitude 5 or 6 on a good night. The dimmest object I have detected with averted vision is one of saturn's moons at about 8 mag. However, I heard that this small scope can compare to the biggest scopes in Singapore if brought up north to a truly dark spot, of course with the advantage that this scope can easily be transported.

Detail is limited on a small scope. I can make out saturn's cassini division and the two main cloud bands on Jupiter, but other details are hard to discern.

The other answers are as Weixing said.

Overall, I think it is a good beginners scope, but lacks extra eyepieces and a tripod. If you can afford it though, go for at least a 5 inch.

Cheers
Chris

Kelvin · Post by **Kelvin** » Sun Jan 25, 2004 6:34 pm

wat the eyepieces eye relief ? i wearing specs. do you ??

All previews show that is scope is very good, the ppl told me that is scope is the next best thing to a Queststar scope ! for size and price to price.

I wonder if there is a seller in singapore ?