It’s an exciting end to the month of June as my newest telescope addition arrived!
I have used many different makes and designs of telescopes over the years. All of them were good and I have enjoyed using them. Some better than others. A few I still have even. I felt it was time to re-invest into my astrophotography equipment so I decided to buy a high end telescope with superior optics and design. I’ve never owned a single telescope worth this much before.
I spent a lot of time reviewing different makes. I knew I wanted a refractor for the convenience of size, field of view and optical quality. It boiled down to the Vixen 100, Takahashi FSQ106 or Skywatcher Professional Esprit 100 Triplet.
In my research I discovered a lot of comparisons and some that even presented images taken with each. The overall consensus seemed to lean towards the Esprit 100 refractor delivering similar performance and optical quality to the Vixen and Takahashi. While I would love to own a Takahashi, I couldn’t justify the additional $3000 or so for the scope based on the reviews and image comparisons posted by many other astrophotographers. So I pulled the trigger on the Esprit 100 Triplet.
Unfortunately on its arrival the carry case (a really nice one I must say) was damaged. One of the rubber feet were also missing which I believe was never attached since they thread on. It wouldn’t just fall off and was no where else in the shipping boxes. I was able to get a replacement case quite easily. Brian at KW Telescope in Kitchener saw to that promptly.
All is well that ends well right? The new Esprit 100 triplet has finally arrived, I’m excited and I’ll be posting more about it and first light images as I go.
Stay tuned and clear skies!
UPDATE:
So I’ve been using the Skywatcher Esprit 100 triplet refractor for over a year now. It’s really quite amazing. It delivers sharp stars and aberration-free. Past refractors I’ve had issues in colder months with pinched optics but I’m happy to report that even at -20 Celsius, I’ve seen no evidence of this condition with my Esprit 100. Its been doing its job well and the images I have been taking with it are testament to that!

My story began more than 40 years ago looking up at the Moon with a small collapsible telescope my Father had. Encouraged by my parents, who bought me my very own telescope, a 4.5″ reflector, I began to explore the night sky from my family home backyard. Today I do astrophotography from my home in Kitchener, Ontario and also with remote telescopes located in New Mexico and Australia. Some of my images have won awards and have been featured online and in magazines.
Leave a comment...