The Prestigious Esprit 120ED Triplet Super APO Refractor from Sky-Watcher!
As one of the premier telescopes designed by Sky-Watcher, an industry leader in high performance astronomy equipment, this Esprit 120 mm ED APO Triplet Refractor is a telescope of world-class quality. It’s been crafted specifically with astrophotography in mind, delivering sharp, detailed images thanks to its first-rate glass, a 120 mm aperture, and a focal length of 840 mm. With its prime optics, outstanding performance, and included accessories, it’s easy to see why this Sky-Watcher 120 mm Triplet APO is one of the highest regarded telescopes amongst astrophotographers!
This Sky-Watcher 120 mm ED is fitted with three air spaced lenses of Schott-BK-7 glass and FPL-53 ED glass. Enjoy superb color correction through the apochromatic design, as well as impressive light transmission with the multiple layers of lens coatings. To get you ready for a night of astronomy, Sky-Watcher has included numerous accessories such as a carrying case, a Losmandy-style dovetail, a field flattener, and many more. Providing great versatility is a Canon camera adapter for astrophotography and visual necessities like a finderscope and 2” diagonal. Assembled with a sturdy, fixed dew shield, eliminate stray light from entering your optics and reduce the chance of dew forming over your lens.
Discover the Cosmos With This Powerful, High End Refractor
Designed to deliver top-of-the-line images, this Sky-Watcher Esprit refractor is sure to take your astrophotography to the next level! False color is eradicated with the high quality optics, sharp stars are easily attainable with the 3.4” Rack & Pinion focuser, and the added accessories get you out and under the stars in no time! Read more about this feature-packed Sky-Watcher Esprit 120 mm ED APO Triplet Refractor below.
Top-Notch Optics
As an APO triplet refractor, three air-spaced, fully multi-coated correcting elements are fitted within the telescope to deliver sharp, high contrast views with intense clarity. Two pieces of Schott-BK-7 glass and one piece of FPL-53 ED glass eliminate color fringing for optimal color correction. Also, each element is fully multi-coated with the Sky-Watcher Metallic High-Transmission Coatings™ (MHTC). Internal knife-edge baffling greatly reduces stray light and reflections from bright stars, further enhancing performance! With a focal length of 840 mm and 120 mm aperture, this astrograph nicely frames a wide variety of deep space objects within the frame.
High Precision Focuser
Furnished with a robust 3.4” Rack & Pinion focuser, smoothly adjust focus for perfectly round stars. The Helinear track design of this focuser greatly reduces image shift during focusing to help dial in on the precision. As a dual speed focuser, first find rough focus with the larger knob, then hone in on the details with the smaller, more precise knob. The high quality craftsmanship is able to handle heavy imaging equipment with ease, reducing flexure and improving image quality. Also, this focuser is fully rotatable, providing you with the flexibility of framing your targets.
DSLR Attachment
To make attaching your DSLR a breeze, Sky-Watcher has included everything you need to get you out an imaging in no time. Please note: the included T-ring is designed for Canon DSLRs. If you have another brand of camera, you will need to purchase a camera-specific T-ring for proper attachment. The steps to attach your DSLR are as follows:
(1) secure the drawtube adapter to the end of the telescope, (2) attach the field flattener to the adapter, (3) screw on the extender tube to the field flattener (ensure both parts of this extender tube are secured together tightly), (4) add the T-ring to the extender tube, (5) finally, attach your camera, and you’re all set!
Dedicated Astroimaging Camera Attachment
To reach proper focus, your camera’s sensor must be set at a distance of 75 mm from the last lens element of the field flattener. This 75 mm of backspacing distance is easily achievable with today’s most popular user-supplied spacers and/or accessories. Important note: The telescope side of the field flattener houses 62×1 male threads, meaning you will need a spacing element with female 62×1 threads. The steps to attach your dedicated astroimaging camera are as follows: (1) secure the drawtube adapter to the end of the telescope, (2) attach the field flattener to the adapter, (3) add your user supplied accessories/spacers and camera. You’re now ready to image!
Extras That Elevate
To enhance your Sky-Watcher Esprit experience even more, a variety of optional accessories are available for add-on. When it comes to astrophotography, sharp stars are a must, which is why the team at Apertura worked hard to deliver their line of Bright Focus Masks. These innovative focus aids have been specifically designed to fit their respective apertures, which results in better, more precise focus! If you’re looking to completely automate your focus routine, the ZWO EAF is a great option. This device is to be installed on your refractor’s focuser, and with the help of software, finds the exact focal point of your optics. If you’re looking to capturing lots of detail in a short amount of time, the Starizona Apex-ED 0.65 Focal Reducer takes this refractor’s light gathering speed up a notch by offering a faster focal ratio of f/4.5. This is perfect for those looking to complete their imaging projects in a more timely manner, and for those looking to widen their field of view!
Everything You Need Right Out of the Box!
Sky-Watcher has you set up for success thanks to the numerous accessories they’ve added within this Esprit 120 mm APO Refractor package! The included field flattener has you ready to image in no time, as it provides you with a flat imaging field straight out of the box. Also, you can effortlessly attach your Canon camera thanks to the included M48 camera adapter. If you’d like to utilize these powerful optics for visual astronomy, you can easily do so with the 2” dielectric diagonal, 1.25” adapter, and 8×50 right angle finderscope. This Esprit 120 mm Super APO Refractor easily fixates to a wide variety of telescope mounts with its D-style dovetail and comes with tube rings for ample security. When not in use or when traveling, the heavy-duty, padded hard case keeps your optics safe and protected.
JEFFREY D. Verified Buyer –
I’ve been doing astrophotography for just over 3 years now. I’ve learned you get what you pay for as far as telescopes go. I started out with the inexpensive imaging newtonians both 6 ad 8 inch. For the most part it was a constant battle with collimation. If not collimation, it was selecting a coma corrector. If not collimation or coma correction,
it was tilt from the focuser. So after 2 different coma correctors and deciding that replacing with a focuser more expensive than the scope itself would be stupid, I decided to save my money and purchase a refractor. I was tired of non round stars at the edges of the image. After much research I contacted Highpoint Scientific. I spoke with Isaac and told him I wanted a quality scope that had everything threaded on. No screws, no compression rings. All threaded. He immediately recommended the Skywatcher Esprit ED APO 120mm triplet. I am glad he did. The scope was promptly dropped off at my door step 3 days later. I took the scope out to our clubs dark site that evening and set it up on the trusty CEM60 mount. I bought the mount from Highpoint Scientific also a few months earlier. I decided first light would be on M101. The next night I set up at home here in the suburbs of Houston(Bortle 9). and used the Baader IR/UV Neodymium filter along with the ZWO ASI533MC Pro, also purchased from Highpoint Scientific, and imaged the globular cluster M3. In conclusion, MONEY WELL SPENT. The flattener Skywatcher provides with the scope had my stars perfectly round to the edges. In 3 years of imaging, I’ve never experienced round stars to the edge. Many thanks to Isaac, Dave, Toby, and Patrick who all have been so helpful in my journey through this thing called amatuer astrophotagraphy. Attached are the first 2 images ever taken with my new scope. They have been stacked and processed. I will hopefully be retiring in October 2021, and I think I’ve found the scope to carry me through retirement.