I bought a used cpc 11 a couple of years ago for a good price $1200. Came with everything - dew shield, heater, feathertouch, counter weight kit, wedge, tons more! The gentleman was nice enough to even deliver it over a hundred miles away! I believe it also came from cloudy nights classified. My plan was to de-fork it, but haven't gotten around to it yet
That is a good deal. Given the prices of the new market, I find the used market to be the best first option when shopping for equipment. Thank you for the comment!
Nice, thorough review of this scope, David! Thx so much. I have an EdgeHD 800 since I only use AM5's and I didn't think an EdgeHD 11 would play very well with it! The only thing I might add is for people considering one of the Celestron dew heater rings (that goes in place of the corrector plate retention ring), it does deform stars a bit by adding some spikiness when it's turned on. I also bought a Celestron Dew Controller (way overpriced but it has some nice features) and turned the aggressiveness down to 2 and that seems to keep the star spiking to a minimum, enough for BXT to take care of most of it during processing, anyway. I imagine any dew controller (that's reasonably priced) would do well at low setting. Very nice review! Enjoy that great scope.
Hi, Greg. Thanks for sharing your experience with the Dew Ring. I have an 8" XLT and did implement the dew ring, without the celestron controller, and can report that I have experienced the same exact issue with the star deformation. Little radiant spikes. As I understand it, at full blast, there is a serious temp gradient across the corrector plate. I hesitated to invest in the incredibly expensive controller but I think that is likely the solution needed. Cheers!
@@AstroDNAObservatory Ah, you know you might have relayed that to us already. Forgot about that! Well, I think any good dew controller with adjustable voltage will work if you turn it down to a level where the spikes are minimized. Not sure, but might be worth a test to save some bucks on the more expensive controller.
Used market is great. I recently scored a carbon fiber c11 with Feathertouch focuser, large case, and $1000 in accessories for $500. Now I just need a bigger mount.
Hey there I have the 9.25 SCT model and its been a great scope. Also as an Astrophotographer I agree its important to put that eyepiece in as well, its a different experience. Enjoy the scope, I think these are great value for money.
Agreed! I am deploying the C11 to the observatory next week for planetary work and then I'll swap out imaging train in October for some galaxy work. Cheers!
Thank you for the clarification Michael! That would make more sense - lighter, corrosion resistant, takes a powder coating... Pulling a video together on a planetary setup for this scope this week - will have to wait until the weekend to test with all the rain on the east coast. Cheers!
I have the carbon fiber version of this scope. It is an awesome scope. I bought a G11 to hold it, and found the mount change was a good choice. With gear like this you need to do your homework, to adapt it to your viewing enjoyment.
Awesome! It is rare to see the carbon fiber version. You most definitely need more patience and resolve to use these longer focal length SCTs. I have owned three in my life-time - in fact, I started with a Meade 10" LX50 over 30 years ago. I for one don't mind the demands of the design - it delivers a wonderful experience for the effort. Cheers!
Thanks for the review. These SCT scopes are great for visual, though on an equatorial mount you may end up on your knees at times. I have a used edgehd 14 that I bought to try out while waiting for my German Newt. I'll be selling it soon, but I've already enjoyed it thoroughly. But for astrophotography other than lucky imaging I don't see the point with all that focal length under normal seeing conditions, so I triple bin everything.
@@matthewbrown8679 - binning for DSO absolutely makes sense with this instrument - along with the use of the corrector/reducer. Oh my, a C14 Edge may be coming to the market - hard to resist! Thanks for the comment!
Hello from Spain. I have been trying to use my C8 XLT scope for DSO witn the Celestron focal reducer F/6.3 for over a year, but the stars allround are alongated. Awful. Have you tried any coma corrector - focal reducer with your C11 such as the Starizona SCT 0.63 or Astro-Physics CCDT67? My main camera is for the moment a Canon not modified (looking for a ASI294MC Pro). I worked on the backfocus but I am having the same results. Clear skies.
Hola! I have been using the C11 at prime focus (f/10 no reducer/corrector), however I do own a C8 XLT and do use the Celestron .63 reducer with it. I have found that there are three primary causes of distorted stars. First is improper backspacing. The backspacing is something that is specific to your reducer and should be published information. Once you have that distance known, adjust the spacing from the rear of the reducer to the sensor. The published backspacing is a guide and you may find a mm or so in either direction variance. The second issue would be collimation, making sure your secondary mirror is aligned with the primary. You can test this by de-focusing the star and seeing if the shadow of the secondary is centered within the defraction rings. Finally, if you are seeing distortions increase with exposure time, check your polar alignment and your guiding. If you are guiding with a scope as opposed to an OAG, you may have differential flexure. This happens when the guidescope is not mounted securely or is "flexing" during guiding. Generally, addressing these three issues should resolve the star distortions. I hope this is helpful - don't give up!
We know this telescopa has bad coma Curve field chromatic defect. But for visual observations , it is amazing. Celestron provides a better version with the EdgeHD. Of course more expensive for astrophotography. For my concern the C11 is nice but too big for transport.
I'm waiting for good seeing to get a proper collimation. Hoping that will happen later this week. After collimation, I'll run it through some image tests to judge it more thoroughly. My primary use case for this rig will be imaging lunar, planetary and very small DSOs. I'll keep in rotation at the observatory for the next couple of months before swapping back to a refractor. Thanks for the comment!
I currently don't own a long fl scope. To be honest, as I'm not that interested in planetary or lunar observing / imaging I am happy with the performance of my short and medium fl refractors . I have been thinking of getting an SCT for imaging small dso's like planetary nebulae though, perhaps something like a C8 which would be manageable and at a price point I could afford. That C11 looks a really nice scope, but it would be a bit too big for me to handle (I don't have the space to mount it permanently) I would also need to buy a new mount as I don't think my EQ6-R would handle it. (I am considering getting an AM 5 but I'm not sure that would handle a scope of that size either). Thanks for another interesting and informative video.
Lunar and planetary are of course a different challenge in astrophotography, and not for everyone! I enjoy it, especially the observing. It is one of the coolest ways to engage friends and family at the eye-piece. I own a C8 as well (should be some videos on the channel with it) and use it for DSO with the f6.3 reducer. I think I did a video on the Bubble Nebula with it for the New Year! The C8 is smaller and more portable and can be grabbed cheap on the used market as well. The AM5 is rated for 28lbs and I think those harmonic drives don't require counter-weight balancing either. You should be able to mount a C8 with image train on it, but I would google to see if others have been successful with that combination. Everything I shared in the video will apply to the C8 as it is also an SCT. So if you did decide to try some planetary, you will be good to go!
It's a beast to mount - so once deployed, I like to image for a few months before swapping back to one of my refractors. I truly enjoy all my rigs. Each is unique and delivers its own experience. Thank you for the comment!
@@AstroDNAObservatory I know what you mean about beast to mount. I had a 10 inch SCT many years ago and it was heavy also. And viewed with a C11 and C14.
its crap! i have also a c11. it has so much mirror flop that with every movement you need to re-collimate. its complete ridicilous. the edge is better. but the meade acf is much better,it has mirror lock etc.
Thanks for the comment. Mirror flop is absolutely an issue with these SCTs. Time will tell just how bad it is on this particular specimen. There are ways to address it if it turns out to be disruptive (locking mechanisms, alternative grease, shims, external focuser, etc...). Lunar and planetary are short sessions and this is a non-issue in those use cases. This is also a non-issue for most observing sessions. The mirror flop presents a problem for long session DSO imaging where there is a meridian flip - at least that has been the case for me with all my SCTs (Celestron and Meade). Again - thanks for the insight, valid concern!
Perhaps you got a bad sample? I collimated my EdgeHD 800 back in January, I use it for imaging and some visual all the time, and haven't had to collimate it again (it's mid-July now). I do have a ZWO EAF on the unit, though, so that hopefully minimizes the mirror flop.
I hear you... Some folks say these are actually portable scopes. Perhaps when I was a little younger and more ambitious. I did a few "pop-up" observing sessions outside the workshop this past week with this rig and I do not miss it. I'll get it into the observatory next month when I start planetary. I'll take my Stellarvue on the road for some Dark Sky site visits. Cheers!
@AstroDNAObservatory there is a channel called refreshing views over here in the uk, he has a c11 and shoots alot of lunar and planetary images. He uses ir pass filters to cut down on the atmospheric distortions on lunar imaging, flip mirrors etc.. give him a watch. I only have an edge 8 for this but im waiting for an 11 or 14 to come available. Excellent video again sir
I bought a used cpc 11 a couple of years ago for a good price $1200. Came with everything - dew shield, heater, feathertouch, counter weight kit, wedge, tons more! The gentleman was nice enough to even deliver it over a hundred miles away! I believe it also came from cloudy nights classified. My plan was to de-fork it, but haven't gotten around to it yet
That is a good deal. Given the prices of the new market, I find the used market to be the best first option when shopping for equipment. Thank you for the comment!
So cool to see what you can capture with this equipment, and all just on a phone. Thanks for sharing
Thanks for watching, Leland! All the best to you and your family!
Nice, thorough review of this scope, David! Thx so much. I have an EdgeHD 800 since I only use AM5's and I didn't think an EdgeHD 11 would play very well with it! The only thing I might add is for people considering one of the Celestron dew heater rings (that goes in place of the corrector plate retention ring), it does deform stars a bit by adding some spikiness when it's turned on. I also bought a Celestron Dew Controller (way overpriced but it has some nice features) and turned the aggressiveness down to 2 and that seems to keep the star spiking to a minimum, enough for BXT to take care of most of it during processing, anyway. I imagine any dew controller (that's reasonably priced) would do well at low setting. Very nice review! Enjoy that great scope.
Hi, Greg. Thanks for sharing your experience with the Dew Ring. I have an 8" XLT and did implement the dew ring, without the celestron controller, and can report that I have experienced the same exact issue with the star deformation. Little radiant spikes. As I understand it, at full blast, there is a serious temp gradient across the corrector plate. I hesitated to invest in the incredibly expensive controller but I think that is likely the solution needed. Cheers!
@@AstroDNAObservatory Ah, you know you might have relayed that to us already. Forgot about that! Well, I think any good dew controller with adjustable voltage will work if you turn it down to a level where the spikes are minimized. Not sure, but might be worth a test to save some bucks on the more expensive controller.
Used market is great. I recently scored a carbon fiber c11 with Feathertouch focuser, large case, and $1000 in accessories for $500. Now I just need a bigger mount.
Now that is quite the bargain my friend!
Wow. I've never even seen a CF C-11 in person. . . . Great score!!
@@flyboyu777 I have one
Hey there I have the 9.25 SCT model and its been a great scope. Also as an Astrophotographer I agree its important to put that eyepiece in as well, its a different experience. Enjoy the scope, I think these are great value for money.
Thank you for the comments - I will checkout your channel as well!
I have the 9.25 xlt. It’s 20+ years old and still works great. I use an Optec f/6.3 reducer corrector.
I have a Classic C-11. It's a great telescope. Relatively compact, fairly light and optically very good.
Agreed! I am deploying the C11 to the observatory next week for planetary work and then I'll swap out imaging train in October for some galaxy work. Cheers!
@@AstroDNAObservatory be sure to post a video of your progress.
I believe the rear cell is a machined aluminum structure (rather than iron). A lovely scope-and great presentation-thank you!
Thank you for the clarification Michael! That would make more sense - lighter, corrosion resistant, takes a powder coating... Pulling a video together on a planetary setup for this scope this week - will have to wait until the weekend to test with all the rain on the east coast. Cheers!
I have the carbon fiber version of this scope. It is an awesome scope. I bought a G11 to hold it, and found the mount change was a good choice. With gear like this you need to do your homework, to adapt it to your viewing enjoyment.
Awesome! It is rare to see the carbon fiber version. You most definitely need more patience and resolve to use these longer focal length SCTs. I have owned three in my life-time - in fact, I started with a Meade 10" LX50 over 30 years ago. I for one don't mind the demands of the design - it delivers a wonderful experience for the effort. Cheers!
Thanks for the review. These SCT scopes are great for visual, though on an equatorial mount you may end up on your knees at times. I have a used edgehd 14 that I bought to try out while waiting for my German Newt. I'll be selling it soon, but I've already enjoyed it thoroughly.
But for astrophotography other than lucky imaging I don't see the point with all that focal length under normal seeing conditions, so I triple bin everything.
@@matthewbrown8679 - binning for DSO absolutely makes sense with this instrument - along with the use of the corrector/reducer. Oh my, a C14 Edge may be coming to the market - hard to resist! Thanks for the comment!
Great video, looks like we may hit 1000 subs around the same time…congrats on the Chanel….👍🏻
@@Astro_Shed - awesome - and congratulations to you as well!
Stack those moon images... I think you will be amazed!
Hello from Spain. I have been trying to use my C8 XLT scope for DSO witn the Celestron focal reducer F/6.3 for over a year, but the stars allround are alongated. Awful. Have you tried any coma corrector - focal reducer with your C11 such as the Starizona SCT 0.63 or Astro-Physics CCDT67? My main camera is for the moment a Canon not modified (looking for a ASI294MC Pro). I worked on the backfocus but I am having the same results. Clear skies.
Hola! I have been using the C11 at prime focus (f/10 no reducer/corrector), however I do own a C8 XLT and do use the Celestron .63 reducer with it. I have found that there are three primary causes of distorted stars. First is improper backspacing. The backspacing is something that is specific to your reducer and should be published information. Once you have that distance known, adjust the spacing from the rear of the reducer to the sensor. The published backspacing is a guide and you may find a mm or so in either direction variance. The second issue would be collimation, making sure your secondary mirror is aligned with the primary. You can test this by de-focusing the star and seeing if the shadow of the secondary is centered within the defraction rings. Finally, if you are seeing distortions increase with exposure time, check your polar alignment and your guiding. If you are guiding with a scope as opposed to an OAG, you may have differential flexure. This happens when the guidescope is not mounted securely or is "flexing" during guiding. Generally, addressing these three issues should resolve the star distortions. I hope this is helpful - don't give up!
We know this telescopa has bad coma Curve field chromatic defect. But for visual observations , it is amazing. Celestron provides a better version with the EdgeHD. Of course more expensive for astrophotography. For my concern the C11 is nice but too big for transport.
I'm waiting for good seeing to get a proper collimation. Hoping that will happen later this week. After collimation, I'll run it through some image tests to judge it more thoroughly. My primary use case for this rig will be imaging lunar, planetary and very small DSOs. I'll keep in rotation at the observatory for the next couple of months before swapping back to a refractor. Thanks for the comment!
I currently don't own a long fl scope. To be honest, as I'm not that interested in planetary or lunar observing / imaging I am happy with the performance of my short and medium fl refractors . I have been thinking of getting an SCT for imaging small dso's like planetary nebulae though, perhaps something like a C8 which would be manageable and at a price point I could afford. That C11 looks a really nice scope, but it would be a bit too big for me to handle (I don't have the space to mount it permanently) I would also need to buy a new mount as I don't think my EQ6-R would handle it. (I am considering getting an AM 5 but I'm not sure that would handle a scope of that size either). Thanks for another interesting and informative video.
Lunar and planetary are of course a different challenge in astrophotography, and not for everyone! I enjoy it, especially the observing. It is one of the coolest ways to engage friends and family at the eye-piece. I own a C8 as well (should be some videos on the channel with it) and use it for DSO with the f6.3 reducer. I think I did a video on the Bubble Nebula with it for the New Year! The C8 is smaller and more portable and can be grabbed cheap on the used market as well. The AM5 is rated for 28lbs and I think those harmonic drives don't require counter-weight balancing either. You should be able to mount a C8 with image train on it, but I would google to see if others have been successful with that combination. Everything I shared in the video will apply to the C8 as it is also an SCT. So if you did decide to try some planetary, you will be good to go!
Nice telescope. To heavy for me. But I have many Celestron telescopes. They are good telescopes.
It's a beast to mount - so once deployed, I like to image for a few months before swapping back to one of my refractors. I truly enjoy all my rigs. Each is unique and delivers its own experience. Thank you for the comment!
@@AstroDNAObservatory your welcome.
I sure would not mind viewing with a c11 for a while.
@@AstroDNAObservatory I know what you mean about beast to mount. I had a 10 inch SCT many years ago and it was heavy also.
And viewed with a C11 and C14.
its crap! i have also a c11. it has so much mirror flop that with every movement you need to re-collimate. its complete ridicilous. the edge is better. but the meade acf is much better,it has mirror lock etc.
Thanks for the comment. Mirror flop is absolutely an issue with these SCTs. Time will tell just how bad it is on this particular specimen. There are ways to address it if it turns out to be disruptive (locking mechanisms, alternative grease, shims, external focuser, etc...). Lunar and planetary are short sessions and this is a non-issue in those use cases. This is also a non-issue for most observing sessions. The mirror flop presents a problem for long session DSO imaging where there is a meridian flip - at least that has been the case for me with all my SCTs (Celestron and Meade). Again - thanks for the insight, valid concern!
Perhaps you got a bad sample? I collimated my EdgeHD 800 back in January, I use it for imaging and some visual all the time, and haven't had to collimate it again (it's mid-July now). I do have a ZWO EAF on the unit, though, so that hopefully minimizes the mirror flop.
@@gregerianne3880 the edge is good,it dont have mirror flop,its all the older celestrons.
Pretty, but too heavy for me.
I hear you... Some folks say these are actually portable scopes. Perhaps when I was a little younger and more ambitious. I did a few "pop-up" observing sessions outside the workshop this past week with this rig and I do not miss it. I'll get it into the observatory next month when I start planetary. I'll take my Stellarvue on the road for some Dark Sky site visits. Cheers!
Dude!!....your ink....its cool as ....there are some hours there...
Indeed, years in fact! Thanks for watching the video!
@AstroDNAObservatory there is a channel called refreshing views over here in the uk, he has a c11 and shoots alot of lunar and planetary images. He uses ir pass filters to cut down on the atmospheric distortions on lunar imaging, flip mirrors etc.. give him a watch. I only have an edge 8 for this but im waiting for an 11 or 14 to come available. Excellent video again sir
Thanks for the channel recommendation - will check it out!