Vixen 2604 R130Sf Telescope

This telescope has no collimation instructions. After consulting another owner, I realized that one of the hex screws to adjust the secondary is defective, impossible to move, probably tightened to much at the factory. The other two move fine, so I know it is not me or my hex key. The center screw of the secondary was so over-tightened I could barely loosen it without breaking the flimsy spider vanes. I was able to collimate it closely enough, through, to try it out some: The finder scope is bad and requires a lot of squinting -- it would be cheap even for a plastic BB gun. The focuser seems to "back-off" a hair after I let go, so I have to go just slightly past where it is focused, and then let go, as it will move back. The telescope seems fine otherwise, which is a pity because for just a little extra effort it would be just fine. But if it does not function properly out of the box -- that's 1-star, defective.

R130sfThe R130sf is a great little inexpensive newtonian. Its very portable and easy to use. One cool feature was the ability to shoot pictures through the telescope with just a T-ring for my camera. All other newtonians I have had won't come to focus, but on the R130, the focuser barrel unscrews in the middle, so you are able to get the camera closer and therefore focus. The images were crisp and bright through the scope and its very light.

First of all: it's pretty. Very pretty. Second: it is well made with the exception of the focuser but I'll say more on this later. The scope comes in a nice strong box that can be used for storage. The 20mm eyepiece is very good, the 6.3mm not so. I did not use the finder even though it is of better quality than that in more expensive telescopes that I have tested. I have attached a Telrad finder on it; I prefer this type of finder but that's just me. Hey, even the 100-inch scope used by Edwin Hubble at the Mt Wilson observatory has two Telrads on it!!! You also get a nice front cover with a smaller opening (and its own cap) to be used for special solar system observations. The rings are strong and allow the user to mount a DSLR on top of the scope; the dovetail bar will fit most standard tripod mounts.As soon as I got it I decided to do a collimation even though it is not a critical step to perform for scopes with a 6" aperture or less. I used my laser collimator and a mask to mark a small circle on the mirror that I had removed for cleaning purposes. There was some dust on the primary mirror, either from storage or from who knows what. When this is done and the tension of the spider veins is adjusted, the scope is ready for observations of the sky. Again, none of these steps is necessary but they do improve the overall performance of the instrument if they are done properly.The telescope rewards its user with clear bright pictures of the planets, constellations, and other objects such as the Orion nebula. The moon is spectacular too. It becomes evident that it is not a toy and because of its very good performance it can be used to take pictures with a camera, such as a small DSLR. The focuser is designed for this purpose too, the t-threads are already there waiting for the t-threaded DSLR adapter of your choice. But, the rack-and-pinion focuser is also the weak point of the scope. The base is made of plastic, the moving portion is made of aluminum and because of its design and construction there is some image shift when you focus. After the focusing process stops however, everything s nice and the views are very rewarding. Unless you look at Venus. Due to the high brightness of the planet you will see 4 spikes around it, as many as the spider veins of the scope. If you had a scope with 3 spider veins you would see 6 spikes around Venus or any other bright object. There is not much you can see on Venus with this scope though. Even with a 60-inch scope that I was lucky to use once you still see nothing on Venus.I motorized the plastic focuser to avoid shaking during the focusing process and I used some plastic screws on both sides of the focuser to reduce image shifting. After many months of use I have made up my mind: I won't sell this one ever. But I do plan to replace the focuser one day. Keep in mind that the supplied eyepieces will not cover all your needs. I have used eyepieces that cost from $30 to $130 each with this scope and I have no complaints. When the weather conditions allow it this scope will make you stay out of the house for hours. It is not heavy and hence it is my grab-and-go. I use an equatorial mount similar to the CG4 by Celestron. No mount comes with this scope, you will have to buy one. Remember, even a good scope is useless without a good mount. A CG4 (or a clone of it) is more than adequate.The red logo on the white paint is the big selling point of the scope because (here it comes one more time) this baby is pretty. And very functional, and lightweight, and very well made, and... Well, go buy one to see for yourself. It was on sale when I bought it and that made the deal even more sweet. -DrF

I purchased the tripod as recommended by Amazon with this telescope and they don't fit together - the screw on the tripod is too short!Celestron Heavy-Duty Altazimuth Tripod was the name - do your research before buying a tripod for this product.No idea how it works yet as I now need to buy another tripod.

Can't match any mounts for tripod

I mounted my Vixen R130Sf to a Vixen Polaris Classic mount, and installed an electric focuser with remote control ($20 Tasco painted white to match the Vixen finish) and holy smokes, after a few days I finally got a chance for first light. To be honest, this an incredible telescope, and I have owned everything from Celestron, Meade, Bausch and Lomb, iOptron, the list goes on and on. This thing gave such sharp views with richly detailed background star field, I was amazed. It is the EASIEST telescope I have ever collimated. Took me 5 minutes with a Cheshire eyepiece. Tonight I used it for 30 minutes, found The Great Nebula in Hercules and Elephants Trunk Nebula just by guesstimate. I did not even use setting circles, the field is so wide, that they were easy to find, found Hercules in 15 seconds. The finder scope is top quality, rings, eyepieces are all excellent. My only compliant is the focuser is the same hard black plastic as on my Vixen A70lf refractor, but on the positive side, it is very strong, and it is already set up for astrophotography. includes steel threaded barrel for T adapter or CCD nosepiece. I still must give this a 5/5. It is about double the price of a similar Newtonian, but it is worth every penny. This is my favorite telescope by far.