Orion Telescopes & Binoculars Express 80

This is an outstanding value priced refractor telescope optical tube assembly that can be easily adapted to a either astronomical or terrestrial applications. It does not have an apochromatic (color corrected) objective lens, understandable for the cost of this instrument. However, the appearance is superb and looks like it would cost lots more. On the other hand it is certainly not a "toy" telescope although easy to use by beginners in astronomy. The lens shade (dew shield) is retractable and that makes its overall length compact enough to easily transport, to take with you while traveling and as carry on luggage. It is still a very fragile instrument so make sure it is well protected before shipments.

It comes with a spiffy 360 degree rotatable and smooth focuser and a lens cap when not in use. It can accommodate 2 or 1.25" diagonals and eyepieces and has been pre-drilled, threaded holes for an Orion finder scope mounting foot bracket. It also has a "L" bracket mounting foot on the underside of the tube for attaching to a standard 20-1/4" tripod head. You'll need a fairly sturdy tripod for stability to support the weight (close to 10 lbs) fully equipped for observing.

This product can be easily upgraded to an 80mm "APO" with a slightly longer focal length (555mm) by an optical company named Williams Optics. Through this company you can also upgrade to a high precision, 10:1 ratio, dual wheel, microfocuser. However, because these are such high quality upgrades, these items will cost more than the OTA itself.

For a mini mount suitable for terrestrial or astronomical use, also very compact in size, and low cost, but made for heavy duty use, I recommend the Orion EQ-1 Mini Equatorial Mount.

Overall, this is a terrific, value priced, optical instrument for travelers whether using for daytime or night sky observing applications.