Pros: Great sky viewing, easy to use electronic system, very durable, not too expensive.
Cons: sub-par eyepieces included with telescope, easy to knock over, astro-aligning can be challenging, mount vibration.
The Bottom Line: If you have realistic expectations, you won't be disappointed. Quality, accuracy, durability, and the built in computer with 20,000 object database make this a great Newtonian reflector.
luxuryliners's Full Review: Bushnell NorthStar 78-8846 (675 x 114mm) Telescope
Introduction
The Bushnell NorthStar 78-8846 reflector telescope with electronic alignment system is a great step up from cheap, department store, telescopes for anyone with a true interest in astronomy. The telescope has a 114mm (4.5") diameter mirror and 675 mm focal length, a size suitable for beginning astronomy and an ability to see objects much smaller and farther away than smaller telescopes. Seeking more observing power, I upgraded to this telescope from my Meade Telestar 60mm reflector and have found that I can see more objects with greater clarity using it.
Company Information
Bushnell is the manufacturer of quality optical products ranging from binoculars and spotting scopes up to large aperture telescopes much bigger than this one. Products from this company are respectable competition for companies like Meade, Orion, and other optical and outdoor equipment manufacturers. I have used a spotting scope from Bushnell and was so impressed with its quality that I decided to take the plunge and purchase the 78-8846 North Star telescope despite its high price. More information about Bushnell Outdoor Products can be found at the company website http://www.bushnell.com/.
Product Description
Main Scope and Optical Tube
The main optical tube is made of aluminum and painted in a reflective silver. It is the most substantial part of the telescope other than the tripod and by far the most important. The tube stretches about 34.5" from the black caps screwed onto each end and has a diameter of about 6 inches. The tube is both scratch and rust resistant and is very light due to the fact that it is hollow. Two metal screws with plastic grip caps secure the main optical tube to the electronic base atop the tripod. The eyepiece holder is made from black plastic and has two round dials for focusing.
Within the optical tube at the very back is the main mirror of this telescope. The scope is a reflector meaning that it uses a series of mirrors, rather than lenses, to produce an image for the user. Lenses over 4" are very expensive so refractor telescopes (the other main type of telescope commonly used on small units costing less than $100) are quite uncommon. The inner parts of this telescope are deceptively simple in design. A small, oval, mirror extends to the center of the optical tube near the front of the telescope and the main mirror rests at the back of the optical tube in the center.
Reflector telescopes are known for their ability to gather light due to larger aperture sizes (mirror diameters) and this telescope is no exception. Light from a star or other object is drawn into the front end of the optical tube, reflects off of the main mirror to the smaller, secondary mirror, that directs the image for focusing at an eyepiece that mounts to a tube extending out from the main optical tube. Having either mirror be the slightest bit unaligned will drastically reduce the effectiveness of your telescope so care should be taken to avoid rough movements or jolting the telescope, it is not a toy.
The word Bushnell appears next to a North Star emblem along with a printed placard reading 78-8846 AM and the words made in China. All writing is painted on in black print and looks classy enough for a telescope of this price. The paint job seems quite water resistant as it has stood up to condensation and even short periods of light rain. This is a piece of outdoor equipment and it is durable enough to live up to that designation.
View Finder
Many telescopes use what is essentially a smaller telescope mounted on top of the optical tube as a view finder. This telescope uses a different design, utilizing a red laser light projected onto a plastic screen. The purpose of the view finder is to locate small objects in space and center them in the viewfinder (in this case where the red laser dot is). Then if the telescope and view finder are properly aligned to each other, the image of the object will also be centered within the users field of view through the eyepiece. It is very challenging to try to locate objects in space using just the telescope because only a tiny fraction of sky is visible through the telescope, the view finder has a much larger field of view and thus, makes locating objects infinitely simpler. I like the laser design and have found it easier to use than a customary view finder.
Tripod
A large metal tripod supports this telescope at a height of about 32" off the ground in its closed position, with the telescope parallel to the ground. To make viewing of objects higher up in the sky or while in a standing position simpler, the tripod extends up to about 50" (shoulder height for me) using a simple, plastic, locking, system. The telescope is a bit unstable with the tripod in the lowered position but once you get it fully extended, the telescope is very sturdy and hard to knock over. The plastic, locking, system is easy to use but does stick sometimes, especially when removing the telescope to an area where the temperature differs from its storage spot. The tripod is hollow but very solid and dent resistant. The base of the three legs is made of hard plastic that extends into points to actually dig into the ground a bit for greater stability.
Two electric motors control rotation of the telescope on two different axes for declination and inclination adjustments. The motors run a series of tiny gears within the top of the tripod for fine adjustments to position. These electric motors do run a bit loud and have shown a bit of wear in the 5 years since this telescope was built but still move the telescope with authority and can even reach impressive rotational speed. A single, metal, arm rises from the rotating base at the top of the tripod to hold up the optical tube. A large "B" is circled in plastic on this arm for Bushnell.
The tripod also includes a large eyepiece tray that will hold 5 eyepieces (two are included with the telescope) along with the included 3X barlow lens. The tray is triangular, made from hard, black plastic. The eyepieces and accessories for this telescope have a 1.25" barrel diameter and the holes in the tray fit that size.
Electronic Controller
One of the more intriguing features of this telescope is its electronic alignment system with voice output (that's right it talks to you, luckily you can disable the speech and just read it off of a screen if desired). All of this electronic gadgetry is centrally controlled by a detachable remote control that plugs into the center of the base of the tripod. The remote is black with illuminating buttons. The color red is said to have the least effect on your vision in darkness, so naturally all the large, rubber, buttons light up red.
The remote is wired to the base with a telephone cord like wire that gives you some freedom of motion up to about 4 feet. Directional buttons are surrounded by a larger button that says Go on it. The directional buttons can be used to position the telescope using the tripods motors. Above the directional buttons sit four more buttons; back, enter, up, and down. These are to be used to scroll through the different menus of the computer system. A 2.5" long screen lights up red with black, calculator style, writing displayed on it just above the four buttons. The go button is pressed once you choose an object to look at or program the telescope to go to certain coordinates. Batteries are housed within the base on the tripod and after you plug in the remote to the phone-like jack above the base, you simply press a clear (appears black due to coloration of the base) button that will begin flashing red, and the system is turned on.
Parts Manifest
The box contains the following (from the manual): • Adjustable Aluminum Tripod Assembly (Pre-assembled to NorthStar Computerized Star Locator Base) • Quick Release Accessory Tray • Northstar Telescope with finger attachment nuts • Red Dot Finderscope • 2 Eyepieces • Barlow Lens (Reflectors Only)
Instruction Manual
The instruction manual is available from Bushnell's website as a .pdf document, which, is very fortunate because I lost my original. The manual is a daunting 207 pages long but don't despair, only the first 35 pages are in English. Other languages include French, Spanish, German, Italian, and Portuguese. The manual starts out with a nice introductory page congratulating you on your purchase and then warning you not to look at the sun. This manual is designated for five different, though similar, telescopes and gives a nice overview of each.
It seems that this telescope is designed for the novice or beggining user as the manual starts off naming different telescope parts and suggesting what you might be able to see using your telescope. Following that is a parts list, parts diagrams, assembly guide, alignment guide, electronic functions guide, constellation name article, tips for using your telescope, helpful hints, Messier catalog, star catalog, warranty information, then several blank pages with a notes heading. This is quite comprehensive as far as telescope instruction manuals go and I was very impressed with the myriad of information presented (though I'll likely never use half of it). The guide to assembling and using the telescope is very easy to understand and I had this thing assembled and ready for various alignments in less than a half hour.
Initial Set Up
The telescope is not shipped to you as one piece but instead requires some assembly. The instruction manual offers both a condensed and detailed assembly guide which, when combined with the pictorial parts guides, makes it relatively simple to assemble the telescope. The simple assembly guide is actually a series of pictures showing how the different parts go together, the detailed assembly guide consists of written directions explaining what is happening in those pictures. Basically you first snap the tripod into place with its legs separated, then you screw the eyepiece tray on with a simple, plastic screw to secure them into place. Once the tripod is finished you attach the optical tube to the tripod using two, plastic, thumb nuts that screw onto metal prongs that extend out from the optical tube assembly. Two more thumb nuts screw the finderscope (view finder) to the top of the optical tube on either side of the finder scope base.
Viola, you have a completed telescope! It is not quite ready for use though, you still have to adjust the tripod leg heights (simple), place an eyepiece in its designated hole and tighten it in with the two, provided, chrome, screws (very simple), and then comes a series of alignments and adjustments to the finderscope and electronic system (not hard but a bit more time consuming) after inserting the batteries. I will outline the adjustments to the finder scope next and the electronics adjustments will be presented below in the "Using the Electronics" section. The whole process requires only the use of your hands and a 9V battery for the base along with a 1.5 volt battery in the finderscope for the laser.
You can look at things through the telescope so long as an eyepiece is inserted but to find anything in space, you will need to align the finderscope. The procedure for accomplishing this is fairly simple and is most easily achieved with a fixed object during the day (I use the top of our cities water tower) or a prominent night time feature (the moon is most commonly used for this. Make sure the laser light is turned on by turning a black dial on the right side of the finder scope clockwise until it clicks, this is a dimmer switch so turn it up as high as you need to see the laser dot. Basically you find an object that is at least 200 yards away from you and center it within the eyepiece (and thus the main mirror), then you make adjustments to the finder scope using the two thumb screws at its base and a little manipulating to get the object centered on the red laser dot in the finder scope. As long as you don't bump the finder scope out of alignment it will be ready to direct you to celestial objects all night long.
Viewing Abilities
This telescope is primed for viewing in darkness, the wonders of the sky. Unlike a refractor telescope (one that uses lenses), you do not look through the back end of the Bushnell North Star. Instead you position yourself to the right side of the telescope near the front, where there is a hole for inserting the eyepiece. This scenario was a little confusing to get used to when I first set up this telescope as it was my first reflector but it is often a better viewing position. Don't forget to remove the large, black, plastic, dust cover from the front of the telescope before viewing or you won't see a thing.
Day Time
Want to read a stop sign from 2 miles away? How about studying birds in a field from 2,000 yards. Well you can achieve these things using this telescope but the image is upside down and there are better ways to do it. The brightness and clarity of day time scenes through the eyepiece of this telescope is often astounding and the ability to see distant objects as if they were right in front of the optical tube is remarkable. I recommend that you purchase an erecting eyepiece to reverse the image (to right side up) if you plan on doing a lot of daylight viewing (never, ever, look at the sun or you will go blind quickly and damage the telescope).
For bird watching, hunting, and other day time activities this telescope is simply too large and too powerful to be practical. A 50 mm Bushnell spotting scope would likely give you more enjoyment. This telescope is optimized for low light conditions and is just not the best tool for day light viewing. Think about birdwatching with it, you could see a bird from far away but it would be upside down, and to try to keep up with its movements using the electronic motors to manipulate the telescope would be near impossible. You certainly can use the telescope during the day but it is not the best use for it; the lower price, portability, and practicality of a spotting scope or even smaller telescope (like my smaller Meade refractor) make them much better candidates for that use. The curvature of the Earth limits visibility to about 10 miles in most places and this telescope is designed to peer millions of miles into space.
Night Time
During the night is when this telescope's abilities really shine through. The 4.5" mirror has the ability to detect objects much fainter than the human eye can see. True deep space viewing is best done with a mirror of 6" diameter or more but there are still lots of things to see with this telescope. The Moon is probably the easiest to spot and among the most rewarding objects to look at. You can see details like craters, shadows, and mountain ranges on the Moon, particularly when it is in phases other than full. A Moon filter like my Zhumell Moon filter helps make Moon viewing easier as it reduces some of the glare that comes from the brightness of the object in this telescope.
Other planets including Saturn, Jupiter, Venus, and Mars can be seen with some detail in this telescope. I have seen 5 of Jupiter's moons, the rings of Saturn, an ice cap on mars, and the crescent shape of Venus through this telescope. Mercury is occasionally visible from my latitude but I have yet to see it but the Pleiadas star cluster looks vibrant through the 78-8846. I have also seen a few nebula and millions of stars through this telescope but I would like to stress that all of these things appear very small, even under high magnification.
Galaxies including the Andromeda galaxy are also visible through this telescope as well as any comets that may come close to Earth. You can watch lunar eclipses and I have tracked many satellites as they streak across the night sky. With a little luck and a lot of patience I have also seen a glimpse of shooting stars during meteor showers on summer nights here in Wisconsin. The Aurora Borealis and fireworks from neighboring towns are also quite the sight through the eyepiece of this telescope.
The 4mm eyepiece is really best for close lunar observing and I do intend to replace it with a higher quality version. The included 20 mm eyepiece is the "go to" eyepiece, good for most observations. I have had only limited success with the Barlow lens as it tends to darken images and thus is not great for the deep space objects you are trying to magnify. It is in my opinion, best to get smaller eyepieces if you want more magnification, rather than resorting to the Barlow. If you do not expect unrealistic performance out of this telescope it will delight you for years to come. If you expect to see Hubble clarity images or fine details on planets you are kidding yourself, even the most powerful observatory's on Earth are unable to spot details less than several miles across on the Moon.
Eyepieces and Other Viewing Factors
If you are having trouble with this telescope remember that there are many factors that play a part in successful viewing. The telescope comes with two fairly adequate eyepieces to begin with in two different sizes and magnifications (larger eyepiece mm value means less power but a wider field of vision). I used these for awhile but was very surprised to see the difference a better quality eyepiece can make using this same telescope. I purchased a plossl, multi-coated eyepiece off of Ebay in 20mm size (the same as one of the included eyepieces) and it really unleashed the full power of this telescope. The field of vision widened slightly, images were crisper and brighter through it, and all because I upgraded the eyepiece. Don't cheat yourself out of a great viewing experience, this telescope has lots of power and I highly recommend that you upgrade from the included eyepieces to at least a Plossl for best results.
Keep in mind that air currents, clouds, atmospheric dust, moisture, and ambient light from surrounding buildings also play a big part in how well you can see objects in space. This is especially true of deep space objects and those that are very faint. Also realize that different objects are visible at different times of the year and in different hemispheres so what you see is not what can be seen on the other side of the Earth at the same moment.
The Mount
As with any telescope, the altizimuth kinematic mount that holds up the optical tube is critical to overall function of this scope. Even if the optics are great (that is the case with this telescope) a shaky mount can ruin a viewing experience by blurring the image. I mentioned earlier that the tripod is very sturdy and durable but we are talking about minute vibrations being amplified by the magnification of the telescope here. I will admit that if you bump the mount, you will see images through the eyepiece begin to dance and jolt around momentarily. On nights with winds exceeding about 10 mph you may also have some trouble star gazing with this telescope. It is much more vibration resistant than most telescopes I've used and some of those were more expensive.
Using The Electronics
The complex electronic system built into the base of this telescope is one of its most distinguishing features that makes it stand out from manually operated competitors. An on board computer makes it possible for the telescope to "know" where it is oriented in space so that it can automatically aim at any object the user desires to look at through the press of a button. The computer talks to you in a male voice while delivering you to any of a database of more than 20,000 objects whose coordinates come pre-programmed into the computer. Every time you power up the telescope it automatically levels itself while saying welcome to Bushnell's NorthStar 78-8846...etc
Aligning the Telescope
For the computer database to be of any use, you first have to align the telescope so that it knows its orientation with regard to space. To accomplish this you first make sure that the telescope is on a level surface, then set the date, time, location (using a catalog of major cities and countries nearest you) and then allowing the telescope to go through an aligning procedure based on the input information. The success of the alignment is indicated with asterisks displayed on a screen that reads alignment complete; the more asterisks displayed the better the accuracy of the alignment.
Another way to align the telescope (and in my opinion the better way) is to aim the telescope at two different stars cataloged in the computer database (and your brain as you have to identify them), input the name of the stars looked at, and the telescope will align itself based on the position of these stars (whose position relative to each other in the sky takes millions of years to change). I was pretty skeptical that this alignment system would work at all but I was pleasantly surprised when it did. The telescope aligns itself so accurately (generally using the second method) that any object I tell it to "go to" with the remote will end up in the field of view of the scope on most occasions (though not always centered). I sometimes have to align the telescope a few times to get it right but the work is well worth it once you get the computer locating celestial objects for you instead of tracking them manually.
Finding/programming coordinates
Another option you have with the Bushnell NorthStar 78-8846 is to type in the coordinates you want to go to and then press the "GO" button to look there. This is helpful if you know where an object is and want to look at it at the known declination and inclination.
Internal Object Guide
The internal object guide has a database of over 20,000 celestial objects and knows which ones to take you to based on the your location programmed into the computer. You can even take a sky tour and learn facts about each object as the computer moves the telescope to objects like Jupiter and then speaks and displays information about it. In the case of Jupiter, the telescope states and displays:
"Jupiter fifth planet from sun. Largest planet in solar system. 16 moons, orbit is 11.86 years. Diameter 143,000 km. Named for Roman king of Gods."
Quite frankly I was blown away by all that this telescope has in memory, how accurate it is, how well it picks up faint objects, and yet how generally affordable it is.
Other Features
The telescope has many features that can be accessed by putting it into one of 7 different modes. I will briefly address each mode (located by pressing the up and down keys on the remote then pressing enter) and what it does. Please note that all modes require alignment of the electronic system to work.
Explore: Browse various astronomical objects categorized by object type; planet, deep sky, constellations, etc... Sky Tour: Take a tour of the brightest objects in the sky at your location based on the month input into the system. Telescope: A standard mode that displays the right ascension, declination, altitude, and azimuth of where the telescope is currently pointing as well as an abbreviation for any constellations in view.
Identify: This feature allows you to press a button for information on any object in your current field of view, from the database.
Align Earth: This is the first of two alignment methods I described in paragraphs above.
Align Star: This is the second of the two alignment methods I described above.
Align Object: So you go through all the work of aligning the telescope and then the family dog bumps into the tripod! Tragedy? No! Put the telescope into this mode to recalibrate the alignment based on aiming the telescope toward any single, cataloged, objects position.
Durability
If you recall, earlier I cautioned to be careful not to jolt or bump violently into this telescope as it is not a toy. Well stuff happens to the best of us and I will admit that I once knocked the whole thing over onto a brick patio. I was afraid of looking down the optical tube and seeing a shattered mirror (by far the most expensive part to replace) or a severely misaligned secondary mirror. To the credit of Bushnell and this product, however, the only damage was a dent in the metal casing of the optical tube and some scratches in the paint. The telescope was still well aligned and I continued to use it without incident that very night.
The telescope is made up of solid metals that resist oxidation and hard plastics that are hard to damage. The electronics are sealed within the base of the tripod and I haven't had a single computer freeze or error. No bolt or hand tightened nut has stripped and everything is held together tightly. I would expect nothing less of a $375 telescope. I do recommend taking the telescope remote indoors during the winter and limiting exposure to rain and the elements. If you use this telescope year round as I do, it is generally best to store it out in a garage or shed where ambient air temperature is close to that out where you plan on viewing. Otherwise condensation will frequently build up on the mirrors and eyepieces causing you viewing delays and unnecessary water exposure to parts.
Collimation
Collimation is simply an aligning of the mirrors in a reflector telescope. It may be time for collimation if you notice that stars do not focus to a fine point, or there is waviness or splitting of light into the color spectrum when looking through the telescope. Several screws around the main mirror allow for collimation and fine adjustment but don't attempt it unless you know what you are doing. A laser collimator (retails around $50) may be a wise investment to assist you in aligning your telescope mirrors but it can be done manually. I include this section mainly to make you aware that this is the type of telescope that occasionally needs collimation adjustment.
Cleaning
Cleaning is another problem with reflector telescopes because the mirrors are inside the optical tube rather than at the ends. Special lens or mirror cleaning brushes can be purchased for this tasks as well as microfiber sheets but the best way to keep the telescope clean is to always have the included dust cover on when the 78-8846 is not in use. The main mirror can be unscrewed from the optical tube through the back for cleaning. I had to do this once to remove a large hair that drifted onto the mirror and it wasn't a big deal.
Storage
Storing the Bushnell NorthStar 78-8846 is made easy by a very quickly remove-able optical tube, collapsing tripod, and quick release eyepiece (accessory) tray. The optical tube is delicate and kind of bulky but other than that, the whole thing will quickly condense down to a size easily stored in a closet. I store mine in a closet built in to the side of the garage. An added benefit of the collapsible parts of this telescope is that it can be set into a trunk and driven out to wide open areas, away from city lights, for optimal sky viewing.
Overall Impressions
Overall I am very impressed with the Bushnell 78-8846. It has proved incredibly durable, weather resistant, accurate, and the batteries have lasted over a year so its not a power hog. Sights through this telescope are spectacular; bright, vibrant, clear, everything that I wanted and more. The quality of this telescope is excellent and it has held up to two owners, being knocked over, and shipped at least twice (I bought it used on Ebay for $85 but it was priced at $375 for the original owner).
Versus My Meade "Department Store" Telescope
As you may have guessed from my earlier sentiments about this product. The Meade Telestar cannot do all that the Bushnell can, that is not to say that it is a bad product (as you will see if you read my review of it here) but that it is expectedly less powerful at only $60. If you own a telescope like the Meade Telestar 60AZ-D and are interested in upgrading, this Bushnell scope is an excellent choice. It picks up fainter light, has a wider field of view, there are more eyepiece and accessory choices, the electronics make for a far more pleasurable viewing experience, and you get much higher practical magnification from this scope. Major disadvantages for the Bushnell telescope that the Meade excels with are price and day time spotting scope use.
This telescope is warranted for the lifetime of the original owner in regard to mechanical parts. The electronic parts are warranted for two years after the purchase date. Both warranties assume that there was a defect in the product or workmanship and do not cover accidentals, you also have to follow a strict protocol to be considered for repair or refund at the companies discretion.
Final Thoughts
The Bushnell 78-8846 4.5" reflector telescope is an excellent product worthy of a thorough review...though I may have gone a bit over board. With a purchase price in the hundreds of dollars, a buyer is entitled to demand quality, accuracy, gadgetry, and durability in their telescope and this one does not disappoint. I am very happy with the telescope and have had many an interesting night scanning the sky's with it. This is far more than someone with a casual interest in astronomy will need or should pay. For those of us who yearn for something better than the cheap, 60mm, refractors on every big box stores shelves, the 78-8846 is a great choice in optics.
*For some reason the site directed this review to the 78-8845 telescope when I first posted and I have moved it to this more accurate location. If you read the review before the move, the two telescopes are very similar but this is the correct location. Thanks for reading!
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