Gerrit H., 18" UC owner in Osnabrueck, Germany - October 17, 2009

Four weeks ago I was in the Alps at 2500 meters height above sea level. There I had my best views on Cirrus (a dream with the 17 mm Ethos), Stephans Quintett, Cat's Eye nebula and Jupiter.

Gerrit H.

Gene T., 18" UC owner in San Antonio, Texas - October 1, 2009

When I finished assembling my new 18" UC, I just let it stay assembled in the living room for two days. I was enthralled with the engineering and how well thought out this telescope is. I finally took it all down. It is stored on my side of the closet. It takes up less room than my 12.5 inch Porta Ball. And, the Porta Ball has a fairly small foot print.

I hope to join you at a star party sometime.

Gene T.

Alan M., 18" UC owner in El Cajon, California - July 24, 2009

This is a cool, stripped-down, 1/4 mile racing machine you have in the 18 UC.  Oversized carbs (aperture), polished and ported (teflon bearings), hot exhaust system (2 inch focuser), lightweight but rigid frame, and no wasted weight anywhere.  Slide in a Nagler of your choice for the best Earthside view "south" of the Hubble.  A racing machine if I've ever seen one. And the focuser, my oh my, it's the smoothest throttle you could ever want, with Five to One Nitro on the left.  You have outdone yourself by creating the all-black Stealth Bomber of the Dob world!!.
 
Alan M

Doug Kent, 18"UC owner in Colorado Springs, Colorado - July 12, 2009

I absolutely love the 18UC you built for me!   I took the back seat out of my Suzuki compact crossover and have tons of room left over for camping gear.  I could not believe how much M51, M99 and Trifid looked like their photographic appearance.

Craig Anderson, 18" UC owner in Herndon, Virginia - June 23, 2009

Hi Dave, I experienced "first light" with my new 18 Obsession UC at the Rocky Mountain Star Stare in Colorado last week. The scope is a great performer and I was awestruck with the views. I have done some astrophotography and one of my favorite pictures was M13 through my AP155. When I looked at M13 through my new Obsession, it was better than the best picture I've taken of that object. Unbelievable. Spiral arms in galaxies, dust lanes in nebula, color on the Dumbbell and Trifid, a tour of planetaries in Cygnus, and a tour of globulars in Ophiuchus. Wow! The ARGO is also great and I was able to use it without even opening the user manual (which is good, because I forgot to bring it to the star party). Several folks came by for a look and there were a lot of "oohs" and "ahhs" from owners of even larger scopes. Thanks so much for a wonderful and innovative telescope.

Kevin L., 18" UC owner in North Liberty, Iowa - June 10, 2009

I can't tell you how much I love this scope -- it's really wonderful. Transporting it is a joy, and the OMI mirror is absolutely incredible. I've spent as much time as I can rediscovering my favorites and hunting down new ones.
Kevin L.

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John R., 18" UC owner in Richmond, Virginia - January 31, 2009 Easy to set up. No "eyestrain" to see my favorite deep sky wonders. Only minimal collimation needed when set up. Takes high magnification well. Good Optics, Fits in my small car.

Stacey G., 18" UC Owner in Wheeling, Illinois - August 24, 2008

Through the scope, Jupiter is amazing.  We just kept going back again and again to look.  It is better than any magazine picture and we had a full moon last night. PS, Love the scope, it is amazing.

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Ron R., 18" UC owner in Austin Texas - June 27, 2008 We had a total blast at TSP '08 and I seemed to be quite the celebrity with my 18" UC. It's definitely the scope that has quite a buzz going on right now. Lots of folks dropped by and wanted to feel the smoothness of the motion and check out the views. All were blown away by the scope. Some were also fascinated and impressed your minimalist design with the smaller number of trusses and only three spider vanes. I've ordered the servo cat from Gary Myers and should get it sometime in July. This sure is an awesome scope and I've been enjoying it as often as I can. David Nagler was there and I picked up an Ethos 13mm and a Nagler 31mm Type 5 and what a combination that makes with the already wide field that an F4.2 has! I'm a wide field junky and this is wide field heaven! Thanks again! Ron R., Austin Texas

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Frank J., 18" UC owner in Bay City, Texas June 6, 2008 I took the 18" UC to Austin, TX and had an incredible time. The Austin Astronomical Society allowed me use of their site. The views were spectacular and I loved the way the scope setup. Good viewing.

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Finally got everything together and the scope is working beautifully. I am giving the scope TLC and keeping that beautiful 18" f/4.2 mirror and my eyepieces locked up in a vault.

Everything about the system is first class. I got to appreciate the quality and stability of the Obsession-AN-SC integrated scope for the first time last night. Unbelievable!!! Aligned on Sirius and Aldebaran and did a GO-TO to Rigel that was it. Every one of 20 objects distributed all over the sky was in the eyepiece each time. Saturn tracked dead center in the eyepiece for over 15 min, the longest I took it. This was my first experience with Obsession movements, servo motorization, and digital navigation and the whole experience was fantastic. And all from Leesburg with our bright Washington, DC skies. AN is proving quick to learn and use, and the 2 star alignment method is lean and elegant. The encoders are working fine with no slippage. All parts of this system from Obsession, Wildcard, StellarCAT, OMI, Televue and Catseye work together seamlessly.

The scope's axes are built precisely square. The views are stable with no shaking or vibration. 18" UC is very stable, with minimal torsion or hysteresis and no sticky behavior in the bearings. Lovin' that! The OMI mirror is close to perfection and I am eager to do a star test in stable air. Love the widefield views with Televue eyepieces. AN is an absolute pleasure, and the servo motorization is truly fantastic. The movements to objects are all so precise, the accelerations and decelerations are smooth, the tracking is superb. And all these mechanisms working together -- it just all works!

Thanks for helping me get up and going. Now to celebrate, first with family, then with friends. I hope I don't lose track of you guys. Clear skies,

Doug Murphy, Leesburg, Virginia
Obsession 18" UC #10


Stacey Greenhill, 18" UC owner in Wheeling, Illinois - April 15, 2008
Hi Dave,
First light, amazing!!!! Definitely worth the wait, and that was at the end of my driveway under a streetlight.


Chris K., 18" UC owner in Sunnyvale, California - March 29, 2008
Dave, I have had two sessions using 18"UC #26. I wish I could describe just how much I appreciate this telescope you've made for me. It surpassed every expectation I had. Quick, easy set up & take down. Collimates well. Smooth motion. Views that took my breath away (even with poor seeing). My Obsession has unlocked the heavens and night will never be the same.
Clear skies, Chris K.


Doug M., 18” UC owner in Leesburg, Virginia - March 20, 2008
Dave, The 18UC arrived safely yesterday. I read through your setup instructions and watched your DVD for putting the scope together. It looks very handsome and lean. There is no way I could have created a scope like this on my own. Every feature reflects thought and experiment and your many years of experience with working with your hands (with machines as well as teeth). I really look forward to using the new scope.

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Bernard Chevalier, 18" UC owner in Chaponost, France - March 18, 2008 First light a week ago of the 18" UC N° 14 and I am fully satisfied with it. Mechanics are wonderful, smooth as well as precise, whether conditions did allow a full check of optics but seems great anyway.