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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ส.ค. 2024
- These were great scopes, and if you like fine reflectors, they are worth seeking out!
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It boggles my mind as to how entertaining watching a review of a telescope thats out of production and i will almost certainly never have the money to buy it when i find one available. I guess it comes down to who is reviewing the product thanks
Thanks for the comment. I look at video reviews of cars, watches, pens, keyboards, etc even though I will likely never buy them.
@Ed Ting i was suprised at how many people do the same thing . I will watch a review of anything if its presented in a good way. Thats why I subscribed to your channel. I ended up binge watching almost all of your videos and i watched a few vids 4 or 5 times when i was actually shopping for an upgrade to my 80mm celestron refractor. I ended up getting an astromaster 130eq for 165$ brand new with an eyepiece kit . The kit came with 2 of the same eyepiece that come with the scope and withe the 80mm refractor . So now i have 3_ 20mm and 3_10mm eyepieces but i dont use them i had to get some upgrades for those as well
In an age where cookie cutter dobsonians exists (Orion, Apertura, Zhumell, StellaLyra, etc.) it's very pleasing to see something with a unique shape for once. Thank you for the review!
Thanks for the review! I saw the Portaball lurking in the background on earlier videos and wondered when it would be featured. They actually date from the early 90s, as when I moved to Milwaukee in 1989 I saw the first versions Pete made for himself and a couple of members of the Milwaukee Astro. Society. Before I moved back to Canada in late 1993 I bought one as by that time he was making them commercially as MAG1 Instruments. Pete delivered it to me just before I left to drive back.
I sold that scope in 2005 and bought the new version, with the fiberglass ball. The first units were spun aluminum. My later model (which I still have) has a Feathertouch focuser and Rigel Quikfinder. But even in it the electrics have been unreliable. Connections would break and the battery would go dead and refuse to charge. But the Zambuto optics are superb. Pete always said this was a scope you could dance with, as it moved so easily around the sky with no Dobson’s Hole at the zenith. The eyepiece can always be just where it is most convenient for height and angle. It is one of the classics for sure.
Thanks for the clarifications, Alan!
I owned an f/5 12.5" Portaball and really enjoyed it. One problem I had was the mirror cell hardware tended to loosen and come apart over time. It needed locking washers or perhaps Loctite. The other issue that eventually made me fall out of love is that binoviewing was difficult to balance, plus the extra weight was too much for the truss and it sagged from vertical to near horizontal orientation -- not a lot of sag but enough to throw off critical collimation for high magnification lunar or planetary viewing which the Zambuto primary was certainly capable of delivering. Also, I had a bad experience with a poorly-designed Astrosystems tracking platform made for the Portaball. The platform ended up in a landfill.
Thanks for the video, Ed. My first scope was an Astroscan 2001, purchased in 1980. It warmed my heart to see you refer to it and picture it. Boy that Portaball really takes the concept to the next level--impressive!
Thanks for the review. I have a ~2002/3 vintage, with a Zambuto primary the whole scopes comes in at 60lb, so a bit lighter. There's also a cart that can be found, which makes transport a breeze.
I agree about the cooling, that's been a significant issue for mine the whole time I have had it. I swapped in a new Zambuto quartz primary with a boundary layer fan, and that has pretty well solved the problem.
Thanks Ed, I've been looking forward to this! I have a long running nemesis of a project to build a 16" version from the primary of an old Meade dob.
Ha! I'm playing with one of those 16" Meade Dobs right now.
I remember in the UK a similar concept called the Rolloscope. It was about 84 or 85. This popped up at a convention at Herstmonsoux Castle.
It was a fibreglass sphere with a 14” if memory serves, possibly f4? The primary had a spherical profile to the rear of the mirror to reduce weight and provide better thermal performance.
They had a tube about an inch and a half diameter that fitted into the sphere to one side of the opening which held the focus mount and single arm secondary spider. The lid for the opening in the sphere was the base as it had a spherical indent.
I liked the overall concept although I had about five issues with the design that came to mind straight away; however it was the prototype. I did mention these at the time and I did have a couple of suggestions which seemed to be taken onboard
I think they were looking to get A&E Optics of Luton to make the mirrors. I worked at Astro Systems, also in Luton (it’s a weird coincidence how Luton had so many Astronomically related companies at the time). I have to admit when I showed the concept to everyone at work it was mercilessly ridiculed. I can’t remember what the price was meant to be but it was a lot.
Never heard from the guys again and as far as I’m aware that prototype was the only one ever made
Thanks for that. I've never heard of this model.
This video made me a bit emotional. my first experience with a portaball was an 8" at a local star party. I was completely blown away. I immediately went home and looked into getting one for myself. I picked up a 10", this was months after the company was sold. Needless to say the "premium" scope I received was a far cry from the one I experienced in the field. Right off the bat there were huge quality and electrical issues, I tried working with the owner to rectify but we were never really able to get everything in full working order. I made due for quite sometime but ended up selling it. Luckily the gentleman I sold it to was up to the challenge and willing to take a shot at getting it up and working correctly. Even with all the ups and downs I miss that scope dearly.
Ed, I just weighed the scope on a scale. So for the record, the ball on this particular scope weighs 57.4 lbs, I think you recalled me saying 67/68 but it was for the entire scope assembled, which does weigh in at 67.2lbs. Thanks for a nice review.
I've bought and sold an embarrassing number of scopes over the years, but my 12.5" f5 Portaball was the one I reminisce about the most.
Wow that's a lot of weight for a 12" scope. My 12" ACF SCT on Losmandy rails with 2" diagonal is a lot lighter (18.2Kg), but then SCT's are light weight for their aperture, even if the Meade SCT's are a bit heavy for what they are, and you also need a heavy mount. Thank goodness for the modern Ultra Light Newtonian designs!
Great review, Ed! Thanks for taking the time to highlight this unique scope. I've got an identical one (Zambuto mirror, though), AND a tracking platform. It's called an ET Platform, but the company is out of business. It works like a charm, and is very handy when I'm doing detailed star-hopping and planetary observation.
As the current owner of Mag 1 I take exception that the current version is equal to the original. But that is a matter of opinion I guess. It is out of production but we will support current owners indefinitely. Yours is a very early version, later versions had a fiberglass sphere with vent holes which helped the cooling a lot. Also we had Feathertouch focusers on both the 8 and 12. Appreciate your review and comments!
Thanks David!
That looks so awesome!
"I'm gonna wax the telescope." I just shot coffee on the monitor from my nose.
What a cool design!
I've always been curious just how these work. Thankyou for the wonderful video Mr. Ting!
Never seen one of those. Cool.
I loved mine and never should’ve sold it. Amazing views.
Since this uses pretty much the same mounting principle as Isaac Newton used for the first reflecor telescope, this could be marketed as the True Newtonian!
I suspect some kind of circular PVC (or other plastic) plumbing / drainage component could be used as a temporary rest when moving the scope: A large collar, cap, adapter, flange, etc. Just make sure it's smooth on the sphere side and flat / stable on the ground side. It could be mounted on a piece of plywood if needed.
The solution I tend to see most often is the inner tube. Deflate when not in use and it takes up no space.
Oh wow, what a great idea to have a ball pivot
This was a brilliant idea. I would buy one.
Thank you for the upload. Love your videos.
The “kinship” between portaball owners is much like that of the VW bug family. You’re simply compelled to acknowledge each other with a friendly wave or head bob 😃…. Now that I think about it, I wonder how big of a mirror will fit in an inverted VW bug shell…😂 I know, I know they aren’t really spherical but the image is now in your head 😆
Very cool. First time seeing one of these
Much better Dobs out there.
Great review ! Thanks Ed !
A friend of mine has a 12.5. Lots of issues with the little cups that hold the poles breaking off, I’ve also noticed the fiberglass has crazing cracks in it.
Another dream scope! 👍💸💸💸
Thanks
It would be super cool if you could review the ES 12 inch Dob. A lot of people on cloudy nights told me it’s the best commercial dob.
I haven't liked any of the Explore Scientific Dobs I've seen. They are full of "innovative features" that just get in the way.
@@edting So what’s your favorite 12 inch mass produced dob?
Really neat scope, I had no idea these "ball" designs were made in such large sizes! It must be a dream to use near zenith compared to a traditional dobsonian.
Interestingly, as you mention near the end I think it would be kinematically possible to build a "powered" base for one of these to allow computer control. Not only would this allow traditional alt-az motion, but would also allow you to rotate the telescope as it tracks owing to the additional degree of freedom. In theory, this could provide tracking just as good as an equatorial mount, assuming high quality and precision parts were used!
Would be quite a project to build such a setup and you'd still have to deal with balance issues, but I'd love to see somebody use one of these for astrophotography with such a mount, if only for the style points.
Yes, you can make an EQ platform for the scope, just make a big hole in the top board of the platform and insert a Teflon ring for the sphere to sit in and rotate within (look up more pics of the Portaball and observe the later ring bases that were made by Smitka). I had an EQ platform made by Astrosystems for mine, but the mechanics were poorly done and it never really worked very well. Hanging cameras on the scope just results in balance issues though, as you suspect. The Portaball "dance" is a constant attempt to balance the friction/stiction of the sphere support(s) with the desire to have it hold a position in any orientation.
Interesting scope, always cool to see you review these things I will never see IRL. Personally I wouldn't take it even if offered for free as it's a boat anchor and far far too big, I'll stick to my 4.5" SCT but different strokes for different folks eh :).
I would gladly take one for free. Put the mirror in a Sonotube on an equatorial mount, and turn the ball into a flower pot.
Flashback... It looks like a Vintage (1960's ?) Edmund Scientific Astroscan, all grown up.
Some of your earlier videos are taken in your office. Is that a Rothko painting behind you?
Celestron long term is a problem as well. If they discontinue a model they stop making parts for them. I called them up about an adjustment screw and they couldn't even tell me what size it was. Said since it was made in China they don't have the specs here anymore. Model? Zhumell 100 and they just bought them out. I called Zhumell and Celestron answered.
I didn't know that, thanks.
@@edting Literally just happened about three weeks ago. The lady that answered the phone told me that Celestron had just acquired Zhumell and she said that they don't have any specs on them at all.
As for the parts I had called Celestron looking for a nose piece for an old metal C6-N focuser and he told me that they do not stock old parts for any discontinued models. So if buying an old Celestron make certain it isn't missing any essential parts.
To move it, couldn't you just ask someone to help carry it to a new location? Those handles look substantial enough to move it around even completely assembled.
1:23 - 1:31 So what about the 10 inch?
Oh yeah, forgot about that one!
Looks nice, but this is like doing a review on a Hummer. Nice vehicle but you can't buy one new on the market, only used ones.
Not sure how you can call that a Dobsonian…
11:11 1/36th wave figure. What does it mean? What is a wave figure?
Diffraction limited optics are commonly quoted as being 1/4 wave error or better. That is what you strive for. 1/36th wave is insane.
@@edting But you didn't answer his Q Ed... mirrors are rated as to their ability to bring the reflected starlight to a focus by saying they are within a ratio of a wavelength of light. A light wave is about 21.85 millions of an inch so a 1/4 wave would be 5.46 millions of an inch... 1/36 wave like you say is insane!
Thank you so much for doing the math for me. Didn't feel like working it out myself!
@@edting I can't take credit for the math Ed... I got that from an answer on Cloudy Nights! LOL I simply paraphrased it!
Thnk u both
Should have been called just Ball, not so much portable like the original.
Wax the telescope lol