Orion 9x50 Achromatic Finder Scope

5.0 Good performance!

Bright images! 2-screw alignment is a snap!

Really couldn't find any!

Last year I purchased the Orion 9X50 straight-through finder for use in combination with an Orion 100mm f/6 achromatic refractor. I was preparing for a trip to Australia and I had certain criteria in mind when I made this purchase.

I have used many different kinds of finders over the years ranging from little 20mm finders on small telescopes to large 6" and 8" refractors and catadioptric finder scopes on large professional observatory scopes. Each is selected for specific needs and reasons relating to the aperture and focal ratio of the primary telescope, as well as the intended type of observing program. For my purposes, I was not that familiar with the Southern Hemisphere skies and wanted a finder with excellent light grasp and sharp images. I had no problem putting a 2" finder on a 4" scope! Further, I was planning to use the telescopes on a moderately rugged camera tripod, so the straight through design was not that big an issue.

For the intended purposes, the finder was an excellent choice. Its performance was flawless and served me quite well. The 2-screw alignment made setup a breeze! It is so much better than the old 6-screw method! Illuminated cross-hairs would have made things much easier, but at the time I couldn't justify the extra expense.

I would highly recommend this finder to anyone that is considering upgrading from a smaller finder (6x30, etc.) that commonly comes with smaller telescopes.