LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

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LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by EGRAY_OBSERVATORY »

I had the privilege at lunch-time/Z in the East of England to actually go back in time (when one of the early LUNT products was released as the 35mm Hydrogen-Alpha scope) "LS35T-Ha" and where I spent some time looking through this mint-condition scope, at a friendly astronomer's house.

I well remember the slightly earlier manufactured PST scopes of which our club had both the Ha and CaK versions of which I would then better with my very own LS60THab1200FT (Feather Touch focuser) + its' DS and the same as the CaK version, which when purchased as one complete package have performed flawlessly ever since from 2010.

But today, stepping-back to 2009 when Lunt introduced the LS35T-Ha certainly is different in many ways - than the larger 60mm (non pressure-tuned) scopes of that period.

This slim and long-tube LS35 immediately struck me as being a very suitable travelling companion - as its' size and quality of build are clearly outstanding for the time. Complete with a BF400 and a well-suitable Vixen ED 12mm E.P., some quite outstanding views of the various proms surrounding the Solar-disk and especially of the big prom in the what appeared to be the far-north, but still awaiting confirmation of the exact position of that around 13:00z by hopefully seeing one of our posted FD images including that prom.

I was somewhat limited on my staying-time at the location, but was certainly eager to continue watching that particular prom. No doubt possibly if I could have stayed longer, I might even have viewed the evolving X-Class flare in the South from AR2887. :o

Spots were mostly easily to tune the etalon to and other surface-detail was unsurprisingly a little more difficult to define and probably more eye-adaption into the E.P. provided, was required on the very bright afternoon.

All in all, the little 35mm version certainly proved itself for not only it's original price and quality of build but that the all important portability for a non-imaging Solarscope, which with "The Alt-Az mount as a Tele-Optics Mini-Giro" on the "elderly wooden tripod ("originally made for a surveyor’s theodolite") and With a well-made control-arm - produced by my friend, was a joy to use... :bow

To be honest, If these were still available at a modest price today, compared to the 50/60/80mm Lunt Ha scopes, I would certainly consider buying one for its' simplicity in setting-up quickly to grab an insight as to what was going on, before opening-up either of my observatories to image such.
I can do that with WL and a powerful filtered spotting scope, but Ha = YES... :P

FD + proms using the 12mm E.P. were ideally-viewed and any closer-up views would likely require a tracking-mount, but hand operated Alt-Az with the help of the SolSearcher, was easily sufficient for a decent and longish-view. :bow

So as the attached PDF-WEB-LINK (unsurprisingly from our very-own Stephen Ramsden back in 2009) as a review of this little but long scope and correctly from what I remember of often using the PST scopes of the era, I have no doubts that Lunt then were outstanding in overall performance, easy of use, quality and price over the PST scopes and Lunt are still producing such excellent models as we know :D

http://www.stephenramsden.com/solarastr ... review.pdf refers...

I had to leave after an hour unfortunately, and left with Ed, his SkyWatcher ED80 long-tube scope & H.D.shipping-case, which I had on loan for a couple of years and subsequently have recently acquired my new SW 80ED Triplet - short tube instead... :movie

Thanks to Ed for the use of his LS35T-Ha and for yourselves for reading.

Terry :movie
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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by Montana »

It is always good to go back to basics. I would never ever part with my PST which I bought in 2008, it is the best little scope I have ever owned, simplicity, ease to set up, fantastic visual views. I think every solar observer should have a basic grab and go scope in their collection in order to look at the Sun in a space of 10 minutes. If it wasn't raining yesterday I would have been out like a shot to see these M and X class flares with my PST. An X-class is still on my bucket list 13 years later.

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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by marktownley »

I agree, a grab and go solar scope is a must!


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by pedro »

Nice post Terry. I was able to use one and it is a great grab & go solar scope. I do not have one of these in my collection though


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by EGRAY_OBSERVATORY »

Thank you so much for your comments Alexandra, Mark and Pedro as well as JochenM, & AndiesHandyHandies on the other-side.

Yes, for WL/spots, I have an immediately-ready spotting-scope with tripod attached, but to have the Ha version as with this post, would be a well-nice addition to the main and now mini observatory. Hopefully if Lunt can read this, they could produce this version again and as it being so quick and simple to use - quickly..

Just to wait for the eye to become adapted to the view through the E.P. is the only requisite - but well worth that extra wait...

Wishes can sometimes come true...
Terry


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by EGRAY_OBSERVATORY »

Thanks vm JochenM & AndiesHandyHandies

Terry


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by Robert Henry 1355 »

Hi,Terry-
I have the Lunt 40mm solar telescope with B600. I love it. It reminds me so much of the Lunt 35mm. I think this is Lunt's answer to so many solar observers wanting a quick grab and go that would be very marketable to the PST in cost and visual performance. I have owned and sold MANY solar observing configurations in my 16 years of visual solar observing, and my Lunt 40mm is a forever keeper scope!

Best,

Bob


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by EGRAY_OBSERVATORY »

Thank you so much Bob for that excellent response.

Maybe one day I might just have to go the way of the 40mm version (now currently available), but no need to get a larger scope than that, as I already have the LS60 Ha and separately the LS60 CaK scopes mounted together on a single mount, with a SW 60mm Esprit for WL and Sodium in the main observatory.

Just for a quick-look as a quick "grab and Go" would be very useful and could also be easily used in my new mini-observatory along with another WL/Sodium set-up...

Cheers
Terry


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by DeepSolar64 »

Terry,
This a beautiful handy little scope that would be absolutely wonderful for quick visual views. I bet it weighs half what my SMII60DS does!

It's probably just a scant heavier than my Orion70 white light scope which probably weighs no more than three pounds at best.

I have met some people who believe anything smaller than 76mm is useless. I very much disagree. Just like some believe only an apochromat is a good refractor. Baloney!!!

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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by EGRAY_OBSERVATORY »

I totally agree James. I didn't have to lift the LS35 for a weight comparison, but got the impression that it was not as heavy as a PST and almost certainly lighter than LS40 and above-sizes.

When one see what two others of us have done with the Etalon etc., there must be something good about the design and manufacture and certainly there is not necessarily anything wrong with size being smaller than other, as the saying goes - "Size doesn't matter" in all cases.
Equally, "Good things come in small packages" too...

It's how it is used and what for, that really describes this ideal package and as long as one lets the eye-adapt to the EP view, it performs very well for Proms and carefully adjusting the Etalon performs just as well for Sun-spots...

Thanks James
Terry


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by Bob Yoesle »

I have really enjoyed my recently acquired 2013 vintage LS35, and it seems destined to be my all purpose travel solar scope. I'm going to try it sans etalon with a normal diagonal to see how well it does with the moon - at f10 for a small achromat it should be pretty decent.

Here it is on a Bogen tripod equipped with a Benro 3 way adjustable head for Alt-Az slow motions, which works really well:

LS35 BENRO 3 way head sm.jpg
LS35 BENRO 3 way head sm.jpg (468.72 KiB) Viewed 3095 times


One could theoretically tilt the tripod head to make this roughly an equatorial arrangement, but I haven't had the chance to try it with the deteriorating weather.

BTW, I had an unfortunate experience with the objective when I attempted to remove it from the objective cell to clean, and whereby the objective fell out and fractured. Lunt was again the customer service champ, and sent a replacement forthwith for $40 USD, when the equivalent Edmund lens would have been about $95 more ($135 - no wonder how they pay for all those "free" color catalogs).


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by GreatAttractor »

EGRAY_OBSERVATORY wrote: Thu Oct 28, 2021 9:12 pm All in all, the little 35mm version certainly proved itself for not only it's original price and quality of build but that the all important portability for a non-imaging Solarscope
Oh, but it's a perfectly adequate imaging 'scope ;) and I have a surge (2014) to prove it:

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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by EGRAY_OBSERVATORY »

Thank you guys for your added comments.
Of course another way of turning an azimuth-mounted tripod, is to shorten one of the tripod legs to the point where effectively the telescope attachment is equivalent to EQ, but of course the tripod itself may become unstable depending on one's location on Earth... I do have a tripod, where that can be catered-for without that instability...

Good again to know how well Lunt had performed its' customer service...

Thanks Filipp for that excellent animation through the LS35 and obviously taken over a long period, just shows that almost anything is possible, so I'll "eat my words" of being a non-imaging scope...

The LS35 BENRO 3 way head looks interesting and with those, good visual (and imaging) of the Moon should be excellent.

I still want one though for quick-visuals especially with the low-down Sun now too...

Terry


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by DeepSolar64 »

Filipp,
It's amazing how well that little 35mm Lunt scope did in imaging the solar disc. People often underestimate small apertures. Work within their limits and they can do a great job!

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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by GreatAttractor »

Yes, it really is a great scope for visual use and basic imaging (there was also a DS module available).

Full discs were not too shabby (2x2 mosaic):
ls35_fd.jpg
ls35_fd.jpg (639.13 KiB) Viewed 3029 times
I also have a partial eclipse animation (I used the etalon with a shorter f=350 mm singlet lens to fit the Sun on my sensor):
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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by EGRAY_OBSERVATORY »

Well Filipp with your image and the animation, who wants to spend much more on the much bigger apertures, as these images really show everything required, from proms to animated-transits through the likkle 35mm/B600..

Obviously, weather, camera and operator with the processing skills etc., will make a difference, but hey excellent results then.

Thanks vm
Terry


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by Alan White »

Old thread revival, but as a friend of the Scope owner Ed and someone who has used this very scope a number of times.

The LS35 has been used as well as my clubs SV50 Solarscope to compare.
Really not a fair comparison, or is it...

Well for most detail, they stood alongside each other well,
the SV50 does show detail mor easily as it should at a larger aperture and far more expensive unit.

I really enjoy using the Lunt LS35 Ha scope and if one came up used, well I would jump at it,
it has made me start stashing the pennies for a Lunt LS40 which now repkaces the 35, but a lot of pennies to go!

In the meantime,
I have to make do ;) with White Light using a Lunt wedge and my Vixen ED103 scope (no making do takes place it's great!).

Alan


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Re: LUNT LS35T-Ha telescope in action today in clear-skies 28-10-2021

Post by Montana »

A very warm and sunny welcome Alan, I hope your piggy bank gets full quickly so you can get going. I own a Coronado PST and that is fabulous too, I wouldn't sell mine for the world.

Alexandra


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