DESCRIPTION: NOTE: This kit is heavy at 50lbs total, including case and accessories, plus it will be shipped in two or maybe three boxes so Ebays shipping quote (which we have little to do with) will NOT be an accurate estimate as Ebay can't deal with multiple boxes. Please contact us with you shipping address so we can quote you a price.

Local pickup in the Sacramento, California area welcomed.

About as nice a Celestron C5+ 5” SCT kit as one can get, complete with declination motor, table top wedge, modified/improved original tripod, visual back, front and rear caps, Telrad base (no Telrad), hand controller, 90 degree star prism diagonal, Plossly eyepiece, nicely bound copy of the instruction manual (not shown) and original fitted case.

No original finder scope or bracket, but that’s no great loss as it was 6x30, straight through, incredibly annoying to use and overall pretty useless. As mentioned there is the Telrad base, the Telrad itself you can get for about $40 if you want to go that route for a finder scope.

The C5+ is the version with the internal 9v powered AZ motor. In this case it also has the optional accessory declination motor which works very well with a properly balanced OTA.

Excellent glass with Starbright coating, we tested this scope on Orion and adjacent stars, very fine views and star tests. Surprisingly of the four scopes we were using that night (the C5+ and three good quality 3” to 5” achromat refractors) this one was the only one that delivered Airy discs though varying sky conditions over the course of the evening may have had something to do with that. Of course you will want to re-check collimation after receiving it as you would do after significantly moving any SCT.

No question if we didn’t already have several scopes that do about the same thing as this one we would keep this in an instant.

The scope makes an excellent grab-n-go when used with only its table top wedge as long as the table you put it on is stable. Fold up the OTA against the fork and you can pick up the entire 23lb assembly with the handle on the fork, it balances and carries very well (see last photo). Wedge comes off the tripod head with one large Philips head screw and turning down the large attachment knob on the bottom by hand, about a 60 second job. The wedge can be placed on the tripod head in two different positions, depending on where you want the legs to be.

A word about the tripod, a much aligned type typical of the time period. While as it comes from the factory it’s a bit of a loosy/goosy mess but with a few simple, cheap and easy modifications which we have done and outlined below it can be made to work very well for its intended purpose of holding  the C5+ and wedge. Once these mods were done when one picks up the tripod there is little to no shake or rattle.

The first thing we did was replace the metric through bolts on the ends of the tripod spreader spider with 8-32’s. They are a bit fatter than the original and take up 90% of the slop at that end of the arms, no modifications needed. We used a couple of washers and a nylock nut to keep it there and keep things moving smoothly when folding the legs.

The second thing we did was add an accessory tray. We got a 12” pizza pan from our local dollar store and drilled four holes to match the four holes in the spreader assembly (one in the middle, one on each end of the arms). We then put nylon ¼-20 thumbscrews through the holes and secured them on the pan with half-height nuts underneath so they became captive to the pan. The thumbscrews shown are white but black ones are now there as they contrast better with the mat material. All you have to do is lay the pan on the spider, guiding the 4 thumbscrews through their respective holes and secure them with the nylon wing nuts on the bottom. This makes the tripod much more solid. We use nylon thumbscrews so if you happen to put your favorite EP down on top of one there is less likelyhood of doing damage.

Finally we cut out a round piece of the thinnest yoga mat material we could find ($6 at Ross, but why are they all ugly colors?), punched holes for the four thumbscrews with a ½” “hollow punch” (Harbor Freight, $9 for a set), lightly sprayed the back side of it with glue and laid it down.

One thing about the tripod we weren't able to address was the tendency for the lower leg to not line up correctly with the locking mechanism, especially at full extension. Be sure the lower leg is lined up correctly through the clamping assembly by lightly locking the knob, then wiggle the leg a bit and see if it falls into place, then tighten the knob. If you don’t do this there is the chance the leg will collapse on you, tipping your scope over.   

WHO WE ARE: Oddog2 is a husband/wife team, home-based small business specializing in the buying/refurbishment/selling of primarily photographic equipment. We do occasionally have other types of things to sell that come to us as a result of our search for camera-related items. We have nearly 40 years of experience (24 years as a hobby, 16 as a full time effort) with photographic equipment, both as a shooter (17 years newspaper photojournalist) and as a collector/restorer/seller. We have been on eBay as Oddog or Oddog2 since September 1999.

US BUYERS ONLY 

Free shipping on items under 1 lb. Shipping within 1 day after purchase, USPS Priority Mail; delivery confirmation included. First class offered if item qualifies by weight and is under $50. Buyer responsible for shipping fees. We combine shipping if multiple items purchased. Fed Ex Ground for large, heavy items. No local pickup. If Paypal is used, we ship only to the address Paypal provides, no exceptions. Payment must be received within 14 days after close of auction. CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS REQUIRED TO PAY STATE TAX.

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