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Bresser Messier AR-127S/635 127mm f/5 Refractor Telescope OTA

4.0 (1 Reviews) Read Reviews Write Review
Brand Bresser
Part Number BR-27635
Availability available

Product Info

Manufacturer Description

Closeout - All sales final. No returns on this item.

This fast 5" f/5 achromatic refractor from Bresser (by Explore Scientific) will introduce you to a plethora of Earth's most influential neighbors! Drop by Saturn, and see its famous rings with your own two eyes, or visit Jupiter, which boasts the largest planet on our solar system's block. If you have a mind to do it, you can get to know the Moon like the back of your hand. With your Messier 127mm telescope, you will be able to tour mountain peaks, valleys, craters, and ancient river beds in a single night. In the mood for a road trip? Leave our neighborhood behind and travel to far-off galaxies, nebulae, and star clusters...vast cities of lights that put New York, Paris, or even Las Vegas to shame! These exotic places are all within reach of a Bresser 5" refractor.

The Messier 127mm telescope uses a two-element, air-spaced crown & flint glass objective as its light-gathering source. The short focal length (635mm) of this AR-127 will give you wider fields of view, a perfect option should you desire to do some astro-imaging. The optics are fully anti-reflection coated for contrast and sharpness. When you wish to use your Messier telescope during the day to do a little bird-watching or other observations of nature, the colors will be bright and beautiful. To help increase contrast even further, the optical tube assembly has a long dew shield installed. It will help keep dampness off of the lenses when you're observing at night as well, which is a bonus.

A 2" rack and pinion focuser with 1.25" adapter is included with this telescope. A Bresser 1.25" diagonal is standard, and you'll also receive a 25mm 1.25" eyepiece!

A one-piece tube ring assembly cradles the optical tube, and makes mounting your Messier 127mm telescope a breeze. At the top of the tube ring, you'll find a built-in carry handle that is designed with the ability to attach a DSLR camera for piggyback astrophotography. At the bottom of the assembly is a stainless steel rail that slides into Vixen-style mounts.

You will be pleased with the additional accessories that come standard with the Bresser Messier 127 mm telescope. In order to help you find objects more easily, an 8 X 50 LED-illuminated finder scope and bracket are included. The finder bracket attaches easily to the rear portion of the tube, and is removable for telescope storage should you wish to do so. A rotatable star map, also called a planisphere, a map of the moon, and Stellarium PC Software round out the package.

Reviews

4.0 (Based on 1 Reviews) 100% of reviewers recommended this product.
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    1. Guest

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      User Notes:
      Review by Van Webster of Los Angeles, CA.
      1402704000
      Jun 13, 2014

      4.0 Bresser Messier AR-127S/635 127 mm f/5

      Pros:

      Good value,Sturdy construction

      Cons:

      Chromatic Aberation,Difficult To Focus

      Comments:

      I had been looking for a moderately priced refractor telescope and had been attracted to the Explore Scientific doublet models, having seen reasonable specifications and a "just out of my budget" price. I first saw the Bresser Messier AR-127S/635 127 mm f/5 Refractor Telescope on the Agena web page and was intrigued. A "cosmetic blem" version was offered at a discounted price so I took the plunge and ordered. As usual from Agena, the transaction was smooth and the scope arrived in a couple of days.

      Opening the double layered box, I found that the scope had shifted during handling and that some of the internal packaging inside the box was damaged. The scope and its contents appeared to be fine. The current specification of the scope includes a 1.25" diagonal and a 1.25", 25mm eyepiece. The version I was shipped included a 2" diagonal and a 2", 25mm eyepiece that appeared to be virtually identical (except for the exterior finish) with the Explore Scientific 2", 25 mm eyepiece I already had in stock.

      Also included was a small planosphere that is very hard to read because of its small size and a software disc purportedly containing night sky software that completely refused to load on my computer so it is functionally useless. Attached to the scope barrel were two logo stickers from F.A.O. Schwartz, the famous toy store in New York. These stickers were very difficult to remove. The paperwork inside the box indicated that the scope was made by Meade Europe.

      The scope itself was substantial in appearance with a quality powder coat finish. It looks very impressive when mounted on a tall tripod. The focuser is a 3" diameter rack and pinion device with plenty of travel but sloppy clearances. Tightening the screws on the rack and the tension screws on the pinion improved the focuser's performance but it is by no means precise or smooth. The barrel of the focuser has a calibrated scale in centimeters that is helpful for setting preliminary focus. I found that focus could be achieved with the 2" diagonal and 2" eyepieces but that the optical path of the 2" diagonal was too long to use 1.25" eyepieces with a size adaptor in the 2" diagonal. Using a separate 1.25" diagonal with its shorter optical path, enabled 1.25 "eyepieces to come into focus and worked quite well. If you purchase this scope, expect that you will need both sizes of diagonals.

      A 5" doublet optical design priced at about $500 should not produce high expectations of optical performance. As tested, the image quality was quite sharp with pinpoint stars at magnifications of up to 100x. Chromatic aberration, however, was substantial with even the most amateur of fifth grader at an astronomy outreach commenting that the image looked like rainbows when viewing Jupiter. Deep sky objects fared better with considerable detail in M-42. Adding a Baader "Fringe Killer" with IR Cut filter (available from Agena) to the optical path greatly reduced the chromatic artifacts but only with a truly dark sky. Twilight viewing thorough the Fringe Killer filter produced a distracting yellow color in the background bluish sky.

      My son and I are dipping our feet into the astrophotography pool and this instrument proved to be pretty successful for prime focus astro photography when using a 2" camera adaptor coupled to a Nikon DSLR. This scope is an affordable way to test the refractor scope waters before making a commitment to a pricier instrument.

      A surprise to me was the quality of image when using this scope for white light solar viewing. An Orion full aperture glass filter, intended for a 6" reflector telescope, fit the sunshade of the Messier perfectly. Stacking the Fringe Killer and a Baader L-Booster UHC-S Filters produced a detailed image of the sun's surface and sun spots. Not the same view as a dedicated Ha solar scope but an excellent white light view.

      So what is this scope good for beyond solar viewing (with the appropriate filters)? Someone once said that getting the first 95% of performance out of a telescope design is relatively inexpensive but getting the last 5% can be very costly. So it is with this scope. You get a lot of bang for the buck. It is ideal for school outreach events where you want to demonstrate a refractor design to students. The relatively short focal length gives satisfying views of deep space objects and the scope can be easily attached to a DSLR for beginning astro photographers.

      Fitted to a mount rated at 30 pounds or more, you can expect reliable tracking within the mount's specifications. The Vixen style dovetail plate, with a steel reinforcing strip, is easily attached to most of the standard scope mounts.

      For the price, this telescope is a good value but don't expect the performance of a top imported scope at thousands of dollars more out of pocket. Set reasonable expectations and you won't be disappointed.

      Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? Yes
      Was this review helpful? Yes / No

      This review was provided courtesy of AgenaAstro.com

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      Specifications

      Telescope Aperture 5" (127mm)
      Manufacturer Bresser
      Telescope Aperture 5in - 8in