Old Telescopes

Just curious, and I ask this question in the full knowledge that I may have been covered before. I am still fairly new to the boards, so maybe you can humour me.

In the present era of ever inproving optics and cheap scopes, I wonder which member of these boards have the oldest scopes. I imagine as appature fever strikes all of us - we leave last years scope to gather dust

do we hoard scopes for nostalga, or to canabilise???

Captain Slog Star Date 230108

I was rummaging around in the attic one day when I came across the first scope I ever owned, a Vixen 60mm refractor with a 5X25 finderscope and .096 eyepieces. I took it down, it was still wrapped in the original plastic in the original box. It has a simple alt-az mount and accessory tray with wooden tripod. On a moonlit night I tried it out and It works just fine, not so hot on deep-sky, but it was just nice to find it again as I thought I had given it away. I bought the scope sometime in the early eighties.

Family heirloom
“Remington” brass refractor.
3” aperture Pre World War 1 Naval Gun-sight.
Embossed: 1908 AD.
Optically and physically still in top condition after being cleaned a few years ago.
Heavy beast.

For me...it will be for nostalgic reasons i hoard scopes. I still intend to use old ones now and again...but saying that......................

Once i get my apeture...i'll probably never give the smaller scope(s) a second look. But i'll keep them anyways.

Or maybe sell them to finance upgrade(s).

Anyone wanna buy a 3.5" refractor cuz i've seen a nice little 30" Obsession.

LOL.

I remember getting a little scope from santa when I was about 10. I think it was about a 60mm on a little table mounted tripod....but then out of curiousity and boredom I decided to clean it, every lense, spring and ring...never got it back together again properly, shame. Gave it away to a cousin I did not like

that was nearly 36 years ago!

dmolloy...my first scope met the same death.

I think it was a 70mm AZ (up,down,left,right) reflector. Nice sturdy wooden tripod. Funny thing is i cant ever remember using it. I was about 7-8 yrs old. Maybe the stars came out too late for me to see them and i was in bed.

Then i "cleaned" it.

I wont be making that mistake AGAIN.