Assessment of Dynamax 8
Jason Menard
I've recently "inherited" a Dynamax 8 (built appearently before B&L
bought Criterion in 1982). I have all the equipment that came with it,
with the exception of the manual (of course).
I've also heard that this is not the best SC scope in the world...
could someone in the know give me a dispassionate analysis of what the
scope's strengths and weaknesses are? The instrument is in fairly good
condition.
Thank in advance for the information.
Cheers,
Jason Menard
--
Jason Menard
Department of Anthropology-- Center for Ancient Studies
University of Minnesota-- Twin Cities
mena...@tc.umn.edu
Sketcher
thought I'd toss that in before everyone told you how terrible the
optics are likely to be :-)
Despite comments to the contrary that I've heard from others on
s.a.a., IMO the tube material is quite solid and durable.
The drive on the one I had eventually started making a bit more noise
than "normal", but it continued to function.
The mount tends to "freeze" up when left outside at minus 30 degrees F
-- just in case you're thinking of giving that a go :-)
I once removed the corrector plate and primary mirror from mine for a
thorough cleaning -- and a re-painting of the tube's interior. So I
guess you could say I know the scope inside and out.
All of the sketches on my website that are credited to an 8 inch SCT
were based on observations made with an old Dynamax that was purchased
new in the 1970s (and sold in 1996.)
The old Criterion Field Tripod ("Golden Pyramid" IIRC) was definitely
ahead of its time. I still have the tripod. I now use it with a
homemade binocular mount for 20x80 binoculars. I'm not likely to ever
part with that tripod.
The 8x50 finder was bigger than the finders that Celestron included
with their scopes of the same time period (I replaced the eyepiece in
mine with an eyepiece that provided a wider field of view.) I
especially liked the dual ring mount that the finder rode in. I would
put a K-Mart 50mm refractor in the same rings, add an illuminated
reticle eyepiece, and take time exposures of up to 2 hours duration.
(I don't do astro-photography anymore!)
Bottom line: It's a telescope! If used it can show you plenty of the
night sky's wonders -- regardless of the optics.
leondf
actually better than most Celestorn's and meade's I have compared it with.
Mine has a Bakelite tube and reach equilibrium faster than any of the
Schmidt's around. A friend has a dynamax that is bad -- you just have to
take your scope to a star party and start comparing.
Chuck Zdeb
They didn't have a tremendously good reputation, but even if
it turns out to be a little sub-optimal, so long as it's
reasonably clean and this is really important) well-collimated,
it might give you a lot of good viewing. I live not far south of
you, so drop a line if you could use some help on that. It's
clear out tonight, so I'll be going outside now-
Chuck
In article <38E27906...@tc.umn.edu>, Jason Menard
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Syzygy
I had a Dynamax 8 in the early-mid 70s. It was pretty awful.
Optically and mechanically it just wasn't up to snuff. The forks were
wobbly, the clock drive was mediocre, the optical quality was poor. I
actually had two of them. The corrector plate on the first one was
filled with fine pits and streaks from incomplete polishing! It
barely formed an image! I returned it and picked the second one up
right at their "factory" in Hartford, CT.
- Bill
--
............................................................
William Schwittek - - syz...@vnet.net
http://www.inourfamily.com/sites/B&H/
Jason Menard <mena...@tc.umn.edu> wrote in message
news:38E27906...@tc.umn.edu...
RAnder3127
Worthless star images, nearly impossible
to collimate, dull images, I couldn't believe
how much less bright than a standard
C8 (without Starbright coatings). Ugly
as sin, kind of like it's made out of
black play dough. Forks are ok, solid enough.
But, by all means look through it, test
it and maybe you have a decent one.
-Rich
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