Portaball 8 inch f/5.5
Overview
- Designed to deliver superb visual performance
- Compact, lightweight, and highly transportable
- Quick setup and knock down
- 32 pounds total instrument weight
- Primary mirror by Zambuto Optical
- Unique sphere mount allows easy tracking
Design Objectives
- Easy assembly
- Intuitive to use
- No compromises in materials or workmanship
- Premium optical quality
Our goals required a critical look at all of the designs available - even those that were not easy or inexpensive to produce. Our concept of a spherically housed telescope combined with new materials and better construction techniques has resulted in an instrument that is easy to set up, easy to move, and a pure joy to use.
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Specifications
| Sphere size & composition |
15.5" Diameter Seamless Fiberglass |
| Upper tube assembly construction |
9.5 inch O.D. Laminate composite |
| Trusses |
5/8 O.D. anodized aluminum |
| Base New and Improved |
CNC machined and anodized aluminum billet |
| Optics manufacturer |
Zambuto Optical Co. |
| Aperture |
8 inches |
| Focal Ratio |
F/5.5 |
| Primary mirror thickness |
0.95 inches (1:9) |
| Secondary size (minor axis) |
1.52 inches |
| Secondary obstruction (diameter) |
20% |
| Maximum Recommended eyepiece weight |
Up to 20 oz. including adapter weight |
| Size and type of focuser |
2.00" Mag 1 CNC machined Aluminum Helical-Crayford |
| Finder |
Quik Finder by Rigel Systems, Standard |
| Eyepiece height at zenith |
48 inches |
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| Weight of components |
| Sphere |
24 pounds |
| Upper Tube Assembly |
1.5 pounds |
| Base |
2 pounds |
| Trusses |
2 pounds |
| Total telescope weight |
32 pounds |
Last Updated on Friday, 12 June 2009 16:35
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Standard Equipment
The following items now come standard on the 8" f/5.5 PortaBall:
- Sphere Electrical Package
- MAG 1 Instruments Helical-Crayford focuser
- Single vane curved spider. A MAG1 exclusive!
- Quik Finder with MAG1's exclusive easy view reticle
- Nylon shroud and forward light baffle
- Fitted PVC tube for trusses
- Collimation tool for secondary mirror
- Cheshire collimation eyepiece
- All stainless steel and/or anodized aluminum parts
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Helical-Crayford Focuser
We are proud to introduce a unique and refined style of focuser to our customers - the Mag1 Helical-Crayford. We designed this new focuser to be ultra lightweight, very low profile, and to have no image shift. It retains the backlash free fine focus control of a helical, but has the added ability to make very large focus point changes rapidly. A very smooth fine focus motion is achieved by turning the finger friendly, scalloped drawtube that rides against four inclined stainless steel bearings, or after a twist of the tensioning screw, sliding the drawtube up or down for large changes. The focuser parts are made from machined and black anodized aluminum. This PortaBall is equipped with a 2" focuser and will handle boh 1.25" eyepieces with it's included adapter, or moderate weight (up to ~ 20 oz.) 2" eyepieces. Weight constraints make these the only appropriate focusers for this model. |
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Rigel Systems Quik Finder
We've just adopted as our standard finder on all PortaBall models the improved Rigel Systems Quik Finder projected image finder. These compact finders do everything the heavier, bulkier Telrad did plus: |
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- Tall enough to use either eye to sight with
- Built in variable rate, pulsing LED
- Its a snap to install, no tiny knobs or screws
- One fourth the weight of a Telrad
- A wider field of view than other finders
- Small enough to fit in your eyepiece box
- It can have an anti-dewing element built in
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| The Quik Finder is standard equipment on all Portaball telescopes. It's also available for separate purchase, call MAG1 for details and prices. |
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Light Shroud and Shield
These two items are designed to increase your images' contrast by reducing stray light and stray objects. The shroud is made from a lightweight, black ripstop nylon, and easily slips onto the telescope after it is assembled. The nearly weightless baffle is made of closed cell foam and quickly attaches to the top of the telescope, helping to block unwanted light from reaching the eyepiece. A shroud and baffle serve to create a tube, but without a tube's weight. These items are recommended if you observe where there is some background light, or you if you like hunting for low contrast objects. Both will easily store inside of your disassembled PortaBall.
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Last Updated on Saturday, 27 June 2009 09:13
Portaball 12.5 inch f/5The 12.5-inch PortaBall, like the smaller 8-inch model, delivers outstanding visual performance while still being a highly transportable scope featuring quick setup and knock down. The same process has been applied in design and re-engineering, with the following features: - An anodized aluminum support base
- Innovative truss attachment system that allows for faster assembly and dis-assembly
- Improved reliability with our new battery box and wiring system
- Custom molded top and new truss attach points provide a cleaner look while reducing weight at the top end
- Our new secondary cell incorporates an intuitive collimation system that helps you maintain optimum collimation at all times
Whether first-time user or seasoned observer, you'll appreciate our attention to detail and ease of use: hallmarks of all PortaBall models.
Specifications| Sphere size & composition | 22 inch Diameter Seamless Fiberglass | | Upper tube assembly construction | 14.25 inch O.D. Laminate composite | | Trusses | 3/4 inch O.D. anodized aluminum | | Base New and Improved | CNC machined and anodized aluminum billet | | Optics manufacturer | Zambuto Optical Co. | | Aperture | 12.5 inches | | Focal Ratio | f/5 | | Primary mirror thickness | 1.625 inches (1:9) | | Secondary size (minor axis) | 2.14 inches | | Secondary obstruction (diameter) | 17% | | Size and type of focuser | 2 inch Starlight Instruments | | Finder | Quik Finder by Rigel Systems | | Eyepiece height at zenith | Custom fit to your eye height, 62 inches min. | Weight of heaviest component
| ~ 50 pounds | | Total telescope weight | ~ 65 pounds |
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 09 June 2009 23:32
Portaball 18 inch f/4.5
We will be adding more information soon regarding the addition of the 18" f/4.5 Portaball to the Mag 1 product line. Contact us for more information. Specifications| Sphere size & composition | 29 inch Diameter Seamless Fiberglass | | Upper tube assembly construction | 22 inch O.D. Laminate composite | | Trusses | 1.5 inch O.D. anodized aluminum | Base
| Circular composite with PFA bearing
| | Optics manufacturer | Zambuto Optical Co. | | Aperture | 18 inches | | Focal Ratio | f/4.5 | | Primary mirror thickness | 1.625 inches, in removable cell
| | Secondary size (minor axis) | 3.1 inches | | Secondary obstruction (diameter) | 17%(minimal diffraction)
| | Size and type of focuser | 2 inch Starlight Instruments | | Finder | Quik Finder by Rigel Systems | | Eyepiece height at zenith | Custom fit to your eye height, 62 inches min. | Weight of heaviest component
| ~ 90 pounds | | | |
Last Updated on Tuesday, 09 June 2009 23:32
We are an authorized dealer for TeleVue eyepieces.
Contact us for details.
MAG1 Instruments Coffee Mugs are available for $6.50 and can be found on the Order Form.
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