Brandon Master Birder
David Silva
Currently I am using a TV Ranger as a finder for my larger scope. I received a
mailing from Vernonscope about their "Master Birder Spotting Scope". Weight is
4 lbs with 2" Amici diag and 32mm WF ep ( I'd prefer to keep finderscope
weight under 5 lbs ), 80mm objective. From what I can tell the Amici prism
holds up ok for low->med power views. My questions:
1-Does anyone have one, and if so what do you think of it?
2-Has anyone tried planetary work with a regular mirror diag or straight
through?
Th only reason I am considering replacing the Ranger with it is 2"
diag/focuser + 80mm objective in a package that barely weighs more than the
Ranger.
Thanks in advance! -David
To reply please remove nospam. from address.
AndersonRM
In article <64nrq4$c...@dfw-ixnews8.ix.netcom.com>, das...@nospam.dnai.com
(David Silva) writes:
>Th only reason I am considering replacing the Ranger with it is 2"
>diag/focuser + 80mm objective in a package that barely weighs more than the
>Ranger.
You're probably better off getting a Pronto since you know the Ranger
is a good refractor. Be wary of anything Vernonscope is hawking.
-Rich
Edwin Spector
AndersonRM wrote:
> ... Be wary of anything Vernonscope is hawking...
I'm curious now. Todd Gross gave an excellent review of the Brandon
800mm APO. Have you had a bad experience?
Edwin.
Chuck Gulker
<< I loved my Brandon 94. >>
I love my Brandon 94 which I've owned since about 1991. Not sure about
current Vernonscope offerings however.......
Chuck
Rick Carpenter
This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
--------------19BF57210A9DA69103F7D39A
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
David (& interested others):
As an owner of a Master Birder for about two months now, I can echo the
commentary that Gary Hand presented (see below). I have both a TV
Pronto and a Q field model, and find myself favoring the Master Birder
when birding (coincidentally!).
The 2" amici, combined with a 15x ocular (w/ excellent eye relief; I
wear glasses) and light weight, is a great combination for spotting,
tracking & identifing raptors during migration. The outstanding close
focus capability (as compared to the Pronto) is of great benefit when
identifing warblers and other passerines in the field and thickets.
(I can take off my floppy hat & multi-pocketed vest now, and we can get
back to astronomy)
Regards, Rick
------------
Gary Hand wrote:
>
>
> > As for the Master Birder.. it is not color free, and meant for lower
> power
> > views. I've heard mixed reviews on that one, and have not personally
> tried it.
>
> To be up front, I'd like to mention I sell these, but here goes.
>
> The Master Birder is not a telescope, its a Birding scope. Heck, a
> Volvo
> would get mixed reviews in an off road race. It was designed to give
> uncompromising views from 7X to about 40X, This is the magnification
> Birders and Nature Enthusiasts require not the 20x-200x for a typical
> APO for astronomy. High power was not a consideration in the design of
>
> the lens. I have used one for about 100 hours. My conclusions are:
>
> 1. It is an excellent scope for wide field views and up to 40x. At
> 15X
> its nothing short of great, day or night.
> 2. With a barlow, I have taken it up to 100x and its just acceptable.
>
> This is not a high power scope.
> 3. It is built like a tank. I dropped mine 5 feet onto pavement and
> there was not even a scratch.
> 4. The contrast is quite good, coatings are excellent.
> 5. It's a hell of a telephoto lens. 35mm or medium format. Shutterbug
>
> has reviewed it and they think its exceptional
> 6. The 2" Amichi Prism is a work of art.
>
> As a Birder, its awesome, as a telescope I'd give it mixed reviews.
> Gary Hand
--------------19BF57210A9DA69103F7D39A
Content-Type: text/x-vcard; charset=us-ascii; name="vcard.vcf"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Description: Card for Rick Carpenter
Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="vcard.vcf"
begin: vcard
fn: Rick Carpenter
n: Carpenter;Rick
email;internet: RE...@prodigy.net
x-mozilla-cpt: ;0
x-mozilla-html: FALSE
end: vcard
--------------19BF57210A9DA69103F7D39A--
Gary Hand
Todd Gross wrote:
>
> I understand his concern. The problem is that Don may oversell the virtues of
> some of his product from time to time, I think unintentionally.. that is..
> since he has other folks producing the optics, he gets caught off guard a bit
> in the end.
Well said.
David Silva
In message <toddg.1105...@weatherman.com> - to...@weatherman.com (Todd
Gross) writes:
:>As for the Master Birder.. it is not color free, and meant for lower power
:>views. I've heard mixed reviews on that one, and have not personally tried it.
Thanks Todd, and everyone else. This is the kind of info I was looking for.
Guess I was just dreaming of a lightweight widefield high quality scope.
Todd Gross
>its nothing short of great, day or night.
>2. With a barlow, I have taken it up to 100x and its just acceptable.
>This is not a high power scope.
>3. It is built like a tank. I dropped mine 5 feet onto pavement and
>there was not even a scratch.
I dropped my Brandon 80 5' as well, and did a number on the finder. The
focuser needed minor repair. The scope, the optics, the collimation were
untouched.
Well built.
Thanks! - Todd
_________________________________
BOSTON TV METEOROLOGIST TODD GROSS
Weather/Astronomy Home Page: http://www.weatherman.com
Administrator, Meade Advanced Product User Group: ma...@shore.net
Administrator, New England Weather Observer Mail List: wxob...@shore.net
IRC Channel Operator: #Weather (Undernet)
Originator of the NE.WEATHER newsgroup
_________________________________
Email: to...@weatherman.com Work Phone# (617)725-0777
Bob Luffel
>>its nothing short of great, day or night.
>>2. With a barlow, I have taken it up to 100x and its just acceptable.
>>This is not a high power scope.
>>3. It is built like a tank. I dropped mine 5 feet onto pavement and
>>there was not even a scratch.
>I dropped my Brandon 80 5' as well, and did a number on the finder. The
>focuser needed minor repair. The scope, the optics, the collimation were
>untouched.
>Well built.
>Thanks! - Todd
I am content to stand by and let you guys win this shootout. I bet there are
lots of stories out there of dropped scopes, not all surviving....
This summer I was observing at our club's adopted mountain site, when
the quiet night sounds were pierced by a metal shhh sound followed by
a '!*&$@' and a thud. The fellow next to me had loosened the wrong screw
on his C8 on an SP mount (dovetail), and the tube assy slid out, whacked
him in the head and dropped to the dirt. Both scope and owner survived.
Bob Luffel
AndersonRM
In article <347430AE...@mlswc.uk.lucent.com>, Edwin Spector
<espe...@mlswc.uk.lucent.com> writes:
>> ... Be wary of anything Vernonscope is hawking...
>
>I'm curious now. Todd Gross gave an excellent review of the Brandon
>800mm APO. Have you had a bad experience?
A couple. Don Yeier sold an 80mm "apo" in the mid-1980's which
absolutely wasn't apochromatic. He "claimed" it went to 1800x
with no image breakdown. I didn't believe this, but the scope was
horribly misrepresented. He also sold a re-barreled 20mm
spotting scope eyepiece as a state of the art widefield astronomical
eyepiece. He is a sleaze ball. However, the 92 and 94 mm Vernonscope
apos were good scopes if you happened to get a good sample. I had three
and one was outstanding. I have no idea what the new 80mm is like,
but I urge caution when buying from Vernonscope.
-Rich