I now have a perfect ETX.

I purchased it in October as a guide scope for the 12" LX200 and
also as a portable travel scope. It took till march before I was
able to star test it. (The few good nights this crummy winter
were LX200 runs). The ETX was badly out of collimation.
So, 5 months after purchase I show up at my local dealer (The Nature
Company) where I had purchased it and politely explain. They immediately
swap it for me. I got my next good night in April, and this time I have
really weird and different inside of / outside of focus images, and
the image smooshes through "best" focus never coming to a reasonable
stellar image. Back to Nature Company, and another painless quick
interaction. Last night a descent night and bingo, a beauty. Moral:
the right dealer is a great asset.

I may be dangerous as my only experience with the star test is reading
Suiter once, and messing with my own scopes. However, in a recent
exchange on the star test the following was observed:

> you haven't already been doing so) allowing the scope to sit for a couple
> of hours with the eyepiece end of the tube *open*. In my experience, it
> takes between 1 and 2 hours under these conditions for the system to
> properly equilibriate such that the diffraction rings look sharp. (I can't

The third ETX started out as a clinker, but after 30 minutes, it
settled down into perfect patterns. I hope I waited long enough
on the others (I think I did). So, it appears that even these
little guys need the time.

As for my thoughts on the two ETX's that didn't meet my
expectations. "So what". Whether I'm buying trees, bean dip,
or telescopes, I'm a picky guy.

Jon B

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