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Adding a Telrad |
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The Orion XT8 is a great telescope. Problem is it comes with a small 6x30 finderscope, as do many other dobsonians in the small to medium size category. A Telrad, or other red dot type finder, is the best improvement you can make to this, or any other telescope. (See "Telrad" on the Opinions / Mini Reviews page 2 ) Also a larger finderscope such as Orion's 9x50 Right Angle Finderscope, or other similar type, really helps too. (See "Orion 9x50 RA finderscope" on the Opinions / Mini Reviews page 2 )The question is where is the best place to attach a Telrad finder on an XT8 telescope. It was suggested to me by a member of the Astronomy.com forums to temporarily tie the Telrad on with wire going around the Telrad and the optical tube assembly (OTA) of the telescope in a few different spots until I figured out what I liked. (Thanks Harpspitfire! (aka John)). What worked best for me was to place it in between, and behind the focuser and the finderscope. (See Location of Telrad ) After trying a couple spots I found this one to be the most comfortable setup. You can stand on the same side of the scope with this position, instead of walking around to the opposite side (I'm kind of lazy this way). You can simply line up the object in the Telrad, then just move your head up to the finderscope to fine tune your position, then move your head right over to the eyepiece. Easy! However if this position doesn't work best for you, simply movr it to another location.... temporarily tie it in place.... and see if your new spot works better. Once you find what you like just stick the Telrad base into place on your OTA with the double sided tape provided. Finding a spot on the dobsonian was easy. I got a little more creative when it came to placement on my refractor. You can see the results of what I did on my How to build a Telrad/tube ring mount page.Do you own more than one telescope? You don't need to get a Telrad for each one. Anywhere that you can buy a Telrad you can also buy an optional additional base for every telescope that you own. The bases are cheap.... about $7 - $8 each, compared to $40 for the Telrad itself (which includes one base). The bases stays stuck down to the OTA, while you move the Telrad back and forth to whichever telescope you may be using at the moment. All it takes to switch the Telrad from one base to the other is twisting two tiny thumbscrews. The advantages of a Telrad, or any other red dot type finder far outweigh any problems you might have to solve with placement or balance of the telescope. (Which on both my XT8 and my 100ED telescopes didn't seem to be much of a problem at all.)
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