Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsAlmost OK Telescope on an Annoying Tripod
Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2022
Update:
I dropped a second star after trying to use the scope to look at the moon. This year Jupiter and Saturn were both visible, so I started first on them. Nine months later, Saturn is now a daytime planet and Jupiter sets in the early evening, so I set my sights on the moon. Since I also bought a set of upgraded gold-line eyepieces, I expected to see a nice sharp image. I was very disappointed. Nothing was truly sharp. I tired every trick I knew. I went up and down the magnifications of my gold-line eyepieces. I tried both of the original Celestron eyepieces. I tried a moon filter. I tried adding my 80A filter to the moon filter. I put a cut-out over the large objective lens to reduce total light and increase contrast. I cleaned my eyepieces. I took apart the telescope and cleaned the star diagonal and the objective lens/lenses (The objective uses double lenses). Nothing helped. I began to suspect my eyesight and pulled out my binoculars and found my binoculars and gave me me a nice sharp image at one-eighth the cost. I'm still leaving this telescope 3 stars because I was impressed by it's ability to capture light and see distant faint objects, including Jupiter's moons and Saturn's rings. However, the resolution and contrast were disappointing for a $300+ telescope.
Original review
I dropped a star due to the annoying telescope mount on the tripod. Even with the mechanisms unlocked, when I first got the telescope, the mount was very hard to rotate, both horizontally and vertically. Basically, it is so stiff that once you put enough pressure to overcome the friction, it suddenly shoots past your target. I will provide directions on how reduce this problem, but plan on buying an 8 mm hex key (or 5/16 inch hex key) and Super Lube synthetic grease.
I had a beginner telescope since I was 8 or 10 years old and shared it with my kids from time to time until it fell apart somewhere in my late 30s. I'm now past 60 and wanted to be able occasionally look at the moon and planets again, without breaking the bank. I first bought a $150 80mm Hexeum telescope, but returned it a few days later, realizing that I would have to spend lots more to replace every eyepiece and and drill some holes to install a better finder scope. So, it took a big breath, and bought the Celestron 102AZ for $300.
When it arrived, I pulled the large refractor scope out of the box and was impressed. The telescope is best described as advanced beginner or pre-intermediate. I put it together and adjusted the finder scope while it was still daylight. After nightfall saw Jupiter and at least 4 moons and Saturn with its rings and at least one moon. The red-spot finder was a big help in targeting the planets and the eyepieces were pretty good for inexpensive Keller lenses. I also bought a 2X and a 3X Svbony Barlow lens to make the images bigger. I was impressed by the quality of the images, even with the beginner eyepieces.
Now for the tripod. I know some reviewers expect a heavier tripod, but i found it sturdy enough, especially after trying the lightweight tripod that came with the $150 Hexeum telescope that I returned. However, the telescope mount was very, very stiff for both horizontal rotation (azimuth) and vertical up and down (altitude). I tried oiling various parts with WD-40 and light oil, but that solution failed.
After email correspondence with Celestron and reading about similar complaints online, here is what I found. Between the tripod legs, under the mount, there is an overtightened bolt that attaches the horizontal rotating plate to the base that attaches to the legs. Turn the mount upside-down, then use an 8mm (or 5/16 inch) hex key (same thing as an Allen wrench) to loosen the bottom bolt counter-clockwise about a quarter turn. If that's not enough, turn it a hair more. Now flip it back over and try rotating the mount horizontally. If unlocked, it should turn smoothly and freely with almost no friction.
The altitude (up and down) mechanism is a little harder to fix. The altitude mechanism attaches the telescope to a horizontally split tube that rotates around two parallel black disks, one on each side of the altitude mechanism, The disks are hidden by an orange cap on one side and grey metal on the other side, but they are visible though the horizontal split (or gap) in the mechanism. You may need a bright light or flashlight to look in the gap and see the black disks. The twisting handle, called the pan handle, reduces the size of the horizontal split (gap), causing the tube to grip onto the disks. Unfortunately, even when completely loosened, there still too much friction on the disks. To reduce the friction, buy some Super Lube Multipurpose Synthetic Grease, then take a toothpick or skewer and dab some grease on the edge of the black disks, which can only be reached through the horizontal "split" or gap in the altitude tube. After you dab in some grease, loosen the pan handle lever and rotate the altitude down and up, over and back in order to spread the grease. I had to dab the grease on the edges of the gap a several times and at multiple altitudes. Although the altitude rotation is not as smooth as I would like, it is a lot better with the synthetic grease.
One more detail. Unlike the Hexeum telescope, the Celestron AstroMaster 102AZ does not come with a free carry bag. A decent carry bag is not cheap but is a worthwhile purchase to protect your telescope, especially if you ever need to store the telescope, move to a new apartment, or travel with the telescope.
