Orion FUNSCOPE User manual

INSTRUCTION MANUAL
IN 374 Rev. D 02/18
Fu nSc pe
76mm TableTop Reflector Telescope
#10033
Customer Support:
www.OrionTelescopes.com/contactus
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89 Hangar Way, Watsonville CA 95076 - USA
Providing Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975
Copyright © 2018 Orion Telescopes & Binoculars All Rights Reserved. No part of this prod-
uct instruction or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted, with-
out the prior written consent of Orion Telescopes & Binoculars.

2
Congratulations on your purchase of the Orion FunScope telescope.
Your new FunScope is easy to use and arrives from the factory
almost fully assembled! Only the nder scope and eyepieces need
to be installed. If you have never owned a telescope before, we
would like to welcome you to amateur astronomy. Take some time
to familiarize yourself with the night sky. Learn to recognize the pat-
terns of stars in the major constellations. With a little practice, a little
patience, and a reasonably dark sky away from city lights, you’ll nd
your telescope to be a never-ending source of wonder, exploration,
and relaxation.
These instructions will help you set up and use your FunScope tele-
scope. Please read them thoroughly before getting started. Please
save all original packaging. This will help protect your FunScope if
you wish to transport it or in the unlikely event to need to return it for
repair.
1. Included items
Remove and identify all included items, using the list below for reference.
• FunScope telescope with base
• Red dot nder scope
• 20mm Kellner eyepiece
• 6mm Kellner eyepiece
• 2x Barlow lens
• MoonMap 260
WARNING: Never look directly at the Sun through your
telescope—even for an instant—without a professionally made
solar filter that completely covers the front of the instrument, or
permanent eye damage could result. Young children should use
this telescope only with adult supervision.

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2. Getting familiar with the
FunScope's features
1. Optical tube - This is the main component of the telescope. It houses the
76mm-diameter primary mirror at the bottom end and a small secondary
mirror at the front end, which deects light out the side of the optical tube
through the focuser (2).
2. Focuser - This is where the eyepiece (5) is inserted, and how sharpness is
adjusted.
3. Focus wheels - The focus wheels are used to bring objects into focus. By
turning them you move the rack-and-pinion focuser (4) in and out until sharp
focus is achieved.
4. Eyepiece securing thumbscrew - Used to keep the eyepiece (5) secure in the
focuser (2).
5. 20mm eyepiece - The eyepiece is the part of the telescope that you look into
to see things. It magnies the image. Its magnifying power is determined by
Figure 1. Items included with the FunScope.
FunScope
Dust
cover
Red dot
nder
scope
2x Barlow
lens
20mm
eyepiece
6mm
eyepiece
MoonMap
260

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the focal length of both the eyepiece
and the telescope. Magnication
is discussed in more detail in the
Using Your Telescope section. The
FunScope comes with two eyepieces:
one has a focal length of 20mm for
low-power views, and the other has a
focal length of 6mm for higher-power
views.
6. Red dot nder scope - A non-magni-
fying sighting device that is used to
locate celestial objects and “aim” the
telescope. It superimposes a tiny LED
red dot on the sky (it is not a laser!),
showing exactly where the telescope
is pointed.
7. Finder scope base - The nder scope
base is attached to the main tele-
scope. To attach the red dot nder
scope to the telescope you simply
slide the bracket of the nder scope
into the base.
8. Altazimuth base - The base provides a stable mounting for the telescope.
Made of wood composite material nished with a water-resistant laminate,
it allows you to easily move the telescope in altitude (up/down) and azimuth
(left/right).
9. Altitude tension knob - This knob couples the optical tube to the vertical
strut of the altazimuth base. It allows you to adjust the amount tension in the
altitude (up/down) motion of the telescope to the desired level.
10. Feet - Three feet provide stability and ground clearance for the FunScope.
They have skid-free rubber grip pads on the underside.
The following items are also included and are shown in Figure 1.
• Dust cover - As its name suggests, the dust cover keeps the internal optics of
the telescope free of dust and other particulate matter when the telescope is not
in use.
• 6mm eyepiece – Used for higher-magnication (50x) viewing.
• 2x Barlow lens - Doubles the magnifying power of any eyepiece it is used in
combination with.
• MoonMap 260 - With over 260 identied craters, mountains, valleys, "seas"
and more, this laminated map can be used to plan what to look at on the Moon,
Figure 2. Key parts of the FunScope.
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1

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and to learn the ofcial names of all the interesting lunar landscape features you
see with the FunScope.
3. Getting started
Setup
Your FunScope arrives assembled from the
factory; you just need to install the visual
accessories. These will be found in a box
within the main box.
1. Attach the red dot nder scope (6) to
the optical tube (1) by inserting the
nder scope’s bracket into the nder
scope base (7), as shown in Figure
3, until it clicks. (To remove the nder
scope, press the small tab at the back
of the base and slide the bracket out.)
2. Now you will insert an eyepiece (5) into
the focuser. We recommend starting
with the 20mm eyepiece, which pro-
vides lower power and a wider eld of
view than the 6mm eyepiece. Loosen
the eyepiece securing thumbscrew
(4), then insert the chrome barrel of
the 20mm eyepiece into the focuser
(2) and secure it with the thumbscrew.
It’s best to get a feel for the basic functions of the FunScope during the day,
before observing astronomical objects at night. This way you won’t have to
orient yourself in the dark! Find a spot outdoors where you’ll have plenty of
room to move the telescope, and where you’ll have a clear view of some
object or vista that is at least 1/4 mile away. It is not critical that the telescope
be exactly level, but it should be placed on a relatively at surface to ensure
smooth movement.
The FunScope was designed specically for visual observation of astro-
nomical objects in the night sky. Like all Newtonian reector telescopes, it is
not suited for daytime terrestrial usage because the image in the eyepiece is
rotated (upside-down).
One of the great assets of the FunScope is its extremely portable size. Due
to its overall short height, you will nd that viewing while sitting next to the
telescope is the most comfortable. If you wish to raise the telescope off the
ground so that it can be used while standing or sitting in a chair, then a plat-
form such as a milk crate or table can be used.
Figure 3. Attaching the red dot
scope to the telescope.
Finder scope
base

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Altitude and Azimuth
(Aiming the Telescope)
The FunScope altazimuth base (8)
permits motion along two axes:
altitude (up/down) and azimuth
(left/right) (Figure 4). Moving the
telescope up/down and right/left
is the “natural” way people search
for objects; which makes pointing
the telescope intuitive and easy.
Simply grasp the front of the
optical tube and move the tele-
scope left or right so that the base
rotates. Move the optical tube up
or down in the same manner. Both
motions can be made simultane-
ously and in a continuous manner
for easy aiming. This way you can
point to any position in the night
sky, from horizon to horizon. If
the base tips when you are mov-
ing the telescope, just place your
other hand on the base to stabi-
lize it. You may also want to loosen
the altitude tension knob (9) a little.
Focusing the Telescope
With the 20mm eyepiece (5) inserted into the focuser (2) and secured with the
thumbscrew (4), aim the optical tube (3) so the front (open) end is pointing in the
general direction of an object at least 1/4-mile away. With your ngers, slowly
rotate one of the focus wheels (3) until the object comes into sharp focus. Go a little
bit beyond sharp focus until the image starts to blur again, then reverse the rotation
of the knob gradually, until you’ve nailed the exact focus point.
Aligning and Using the Red Dot Finder Scope
The included red dot nder scope (6) (Figure 5) makes pointing your telescope
almost as easy as pointing your nger! It permits easy object targeting prior to
observation in the higher-power main telescope.
Before you can use the red dot nder scope, you must remove the small plastic tab
sticking out from the battery compartment (Figure 5). Doing so will allow the pre-
installed 3V CR-2032 button cell battery to make contact with the nder scope’s
electronic circuitry to power the nder’s red LED illuminator. The tab can then be
discarded.
To use the red dot nder scope properly, it must be aligned with the main tele-
Figure 4. The FunScope has two axes
of motion: altitude (up/down) and azimuth
(left/right).
Altitude
Azimuth

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scope. This is easiest to do during daylight hours, before observing at night. Follow
this procedure:
1. First, remove the dust cover from the front of the telescope.
2. With the 20mm eyepiece already installed from step 2 above, point the tele-
scope at a well-dened land target (e.g., the top of a telephone pole) that’s
at least a quarter mile away.
3. Center the target in the eyepiece.
Note: The image in the eyepiece will appear rotated (upside down). This is
normal for reector telescopes.
4. Turn on the red dot nder scope by sliding the power switch to ON (refer to
Figure 5). The “1” position provides dim illumination while the “2” position
provides brighter illumination. Typically the dimmer setting is used under
dark skies and the brighter setting is used under light-polluted skies or in
daylight. Position your eye at a comfortable distance from the rear of the
unit. Look through the rear of the nder scope with both eyes open to see
the illuminated red dot. The target object should appear in the eld of view
Figure 5: The red dot nder scope has vertical and (inset) horizontal adjustment
knobs for aligning it with the telescope.
Power switch
Vertical knob
Horizontal
knob
Plastic tab

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somewhere near the red dot.
5. You’ll want to center the target object on the red dot. Without moving the
telescope, use the nder scope’s vertical and horizontal adjustment knobs
(shown in Figure 5) to position the red dot on the object.
6. When the red dot is centered on the distant object, check to make sure the
object is still centered in the telescope’s eyepiece. If it isn’t, re-center it then
adjust the nder scope’s alignment again. When the object is centered in
the telescope eyepiece and on the nder scope’s red dot, the nder scope
is properly aligned with the telescope. The red dot nder scope’s alignment
should be checked before every observing session.
At the end of your observing session, be sure to slide the power switch to OFF to
preserve battery life.
4. Using your telescope
Choosing an Observing Site
When selecting a location for observing, get as far away as possible from direct
articial light such as street lights, porch lights, and automobile headlights. The
glare from these lights will greatly impair your dark-adapted night vision. Avoid
viewing over rooftops and chimneys, as they often have warm air currents rising
from them. Similarly, avoid observing from indoors through an open (or closed)
window, because the temperature difference between the indoor and outdoor air
will cause image blurring and distortion.
If at all possible, escape the light-polluted city sky and head for darker country
skies. You’ll be amazed at how many more stars and deep-sky objects are visible
in a dark sky!
Cooling the Telescope
All optical instruments need time to reach “thermal equilibrium.” The bigger the
instrument and the larger the temperature change, the more time is needed. Allow
at least 20 minutes for your telescope to acclimate to the temperature outdoors
before you start observing with it.
Let Your Eyes Dark-Adapt
Don’t expect to go from a lighted house into the darkness of the outdoors at night
and immediately see faint nebulas, galaxies, and star clusters—or even very many
stars, for that matter. Your eyes take about 30 minutes to reach perhaps 80% of
their full dark-adapted sensitivity. As your eyes become dark-adapted, more stars
will glimmer into view and you’ll be able to see fainter details in objects you view
in your telescope.
To see what you’re doing in the darkness, use a red-ltered ashlight rather than
a white light. Red light does not spoil your eyes’ dark adaptation like white light

9
does. A ashlight with a red LED light is ideal. Beware, too, that nearby porch,
streetlights, and car headlights will ruin your night vision.
“Seeing” and Transparency
Atmospheric conditions vary signicantly from night to night. “Seeing” refers to the
steadiness of the Earth’s atmosphere at a given time. In conditions of poor seeing,
atmospheric turbulence causes objects viewed through the telescope to “boil.” If
you look up at the sky and stars are twinkling noticeably, the seeing is poor and you
will be limited to viewing at lower magnications. At higher magnications, images
will not focus clearly. Fine details on the planets and Moon will likely not be visible.
In conditions of good seeing, star twinkling is minimal and images appear steady in
the eyepiece. Seeing is best overhead, worst at the horizon. Also, seeing generally
gets better after midnight, when much of the heat absorbed by the Earth during the
day has radiated off into space.
Especially important for observing faint objects is good “transparency”—air free
of moisture, smoke, and dust. All tend to scatter light, which reduces an object’s
brightness. Transparency is judged by the magnitude of the faintest stars you can
see with the unaided eye (5th or 6th magnitude is desirable).
Tracking Celestial Objects
The Earth is constantly rotating about its polar axis, completing one full rotation
every 24 hours; this is what denes a “day”. We do not feel the Earth rotating, but
we see it at night from the apparent movement of stars from east to west. When
you observe any astronomical object, you are watching a moving target. This
means the telescope’s position must be continuously adjusted over time to keep
an object in the eld of view. This is easy to do with the FunScope because of its
smooth motions on both axes. As the object moves off towards the edge of the
eld of view, just lightly nudge the telescope tube to re-center it. Objects appear to
move across the eld of view faster at higher magnications. This is because the
eld of view becomes narrower.
Eyepiece Selection
By using eyepieces of different focal lengths, it is possible to attain many mag-
nications or powers with the FunScope. Your telescope comes with two 1.25"
eyepieces: a 20mm, which gives a magnication of 15x, and a 6mm, which provides
50x magnication. Other 1.25" eyepieces can be purchased to achieve higher or
lower powers. It is quite common for an observer to own ve or more eyepieces
to access a wide range of magnications. To calculate the magnication of a
telescope-eyepiece combination, simply divide the focal length of the telescope by
the focal length of the eyepiece.
Telescope Focal Length (mm)
Eyepiece Focal Length (mm) = Magnication

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For example, the FunScope, which has a focal length of 300mm, used in
combination with the 20mm eyepiece, yields a magnication of:
Whatever you choose to view, always start by inserting your lowest-power (longest
focal length) eyepiece to locate and center the object. Low magnication yields a
wide eld of view, which shows a larger area of sky in the eyepiece. This makes
nding and centering an object much easier. Trying to nd and center objects with
a high power (narrow eld of view) eyepiece is like trying to nd a needle in a hay-
stack! Once you’ve centered the object in the eyepiece, you can switch to a higher
magnication (shorter focal length) eyepiece, if you wish. This is recommended for
small and bright objects, like planets and double stars. The Moon also takes higher
magnications well.
The best rule of thumb with eyepiece selection is to start with a low power, wide-
eld eyepiece, and then work your way up in magnication. If the object looks bet-
ter, try an even higher magnication eyepiece. (You can purchase additional 1.25"
eyepieces, if desired.) If the object looks worse, then back off the magnication a
little by using a lower-power eyepiece.
Magnification Limits
Every telescope has a useful magnication limit of about 2x per millimeter of aper-
ture. This comes to 152x for the FunScope. Some telescope manufacturers will
use misleading claims of excess magnication, such as “See distant galaxies at
640X!” While such magnications are technically possible, the actual image at that
magnication would be an indistinct blur. Moderate magnications are what give
the best views. It is better to view a small, but bright and detailed image than a dim,
unclear, over-magnied image.
Using the 2x Barlow Lens
The included 2x power-boosting “Barlow” lens (see Figure 1) doubles the magnify-
ing power of any 1.25" eyepiece it is used with. For the FunScope, when you use
the 20mm eyepiece by itself you get a magnication of 15x. But when the 20mm
eyepiece is used in combination with the Barlow lens, the magnication is doubled
to 30x. And when the Barlow is used with the 6mm eyepiece, it yields a magnication
of 100x, instead of 50x without the Barlow.
Simply insert the Barlow lens into your telescope's focuser, and then insert the eye-
piece into the Barlow, gently securing it in place with the thumbscrew on the Barlow
lens (Figure 6). Then, adjust the telescope's focus wheels to enjoy double the mag-
nication of the eyepiece used.
300mm
20mm = 15x

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Using the MoonMap 260
The MoonMap 260 is a great observing
aid to use when viewing the Moon with
your FunScope. With it you will be able
to identify a myriad of lunar features.
Because the view in the FunScope is
upside down, you may nd it useful to
rotate the MoonMap so the image on the
map matches what you see in the tele-
scope. Concentrate each evening on the
“terminator”, where the illuminated por-
tion of the lunar surface meets the dark
portion. Due to the low angle at which
sunlight strikes this portion of the moon,
shadows cast by crater walls and other
high-elevation features are elongated,
thereby making such features stand out
more vividly. Using a red ashlight (sold
separately) to read the MoonMap in the
dark will be helpful; the red light will not
spoil your eyes’ dark adaptation.
What to Expect
So what will you see with your FunScope? You should be able to see bands on
Jupiter, the rings of Saturn, myriad craters on the Moon, and many bright deep-sky
nebulas and star clusters. Do not expect to see color as you do in astrophoto-
graphs, since those are taken with long-exposure cameras that can record faint
color. Our eyes are not sensitive enough to see color in faint deep-sky objects
except in a few of the brightest ones. Remember that you are seeing these objects
using your own telescope with your own eyes! The object you see in your eyepiece
is in real-time, and not some conveniently provided image from an expensive space
probe or astrophotography rig. And if you take the initiative to learn a little about
what you are looking at, that will greatly enhance your observing experience.
Objects to Observe
A. TheMoon
With its rocky surface, the Moon is one of the easiest and most interesting
targets to view with your telescope. Lunar craters, marias, and even mountain
ranges can all be clearly seen from a distance of 238,000 miles away! With its
ever-changing phases, you’ll get a different view of the Moon every night. The
best time to observe our one and only natural satellite is during a partial phase,
that is, when the Moon is NOT full. During partial phases, shadows are cast on
the surface, which reveal more detail, especially right along the border between
the dark and light portions of the disk (called the “terminator”). A full Moon is
Figure 6. The 2x Barlow lens is inserted
in the focuser, then an eyepiece is
inserted into the Barlow, as shown. The
Barlow lens double the magnication of
any eyepiece used.
Eyepiece
Barlow
lens
Focuser

12
too bright and devoid of surface shadows to yield a pleasing view. Make sure
to observe the Moon when it is well above the horizon to get the sharpest
images. Use an optional Moon lter to dim the Moon when it is very bright (see
Useful Accessories section below). It simply threads onto the bottom of the
eyepieces (you must rst remove the eyepiece from the focuser to attach a
lter). You’ll nd that the Moon lter improves viewing comfort, and also helps
to bring out subtle features on the lunar surface.
B. TheSun
Never point the unltered FunScope at the Sun — this is not only dangerous to
your eyes, but it will damage the FunScope.
Warning: Do not look at the Sun with any optical instrument without a
professionally made solar lter, or permanent eye damage could result
You can change your nighttime telescope into a daytime Sun viewer by install-
ing an optional full-aperture solar lter over the front opening of the FunScope.
The primary attraction is sunspots, which change shape, appearance, and
location daily. Sunspots are directly related to magnetic activity in the Sun.
Many observers like to make drawings of sunspots to monitor how the Sun is
changing from day to day.
C. ThePlanets
The planets don’t stay put like the stars, so to nd them you should refer to the
Monthly Star Charts in the Community page of the Orion website (telescope.
com), or to charts published monthly in Astronomy, Sky & Telescope, or other
astronomy magazines. Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn are the brightest objects in
the sky after the Sun and the Moon. Your FunScope is capable of showing you
these planets in some detail. Other planets may be visible but will likely appear
star-like. Because planets are quite small in apparent size, you’ll need relatively
high power for detailed observations. Use the power-boosting 2x Barlow lens
included with your telescope! Note that not all the planets are generally visible
at any one time.
JUPITER: The largest planet, Jupiter, is a great subject for observation. You
can see the disk of the giant planet and watch the ever-changing positions
of its four largest moons – Io, Callisto, Europa, and Ganymede.
SATURN: The ringed planet is a breathtaking sight when it is well positioned.
The tilt angle of the rings varies over a period of many years; sometimes they
are seen edge-on, while at other times they are broadside and look like giant
“ears” on each side of Saturn’s disk. A steady atmosphere (good seeing) is
necessary for a good view. You may see a bright “star” close by, which is
really Saturn’s brightest moon, Titan.
VENUS: At its brightest, Venus is the most luminous object in the sky, exclud-
ing the Sun and the Moon. It is so bright that sometimes it is visible to the
naked eye during full daylight! Ironically, Venus appears as a thin crescent,
not a full disk, when at its peak brightness. Because it is so close to the Sun,

13
it never wanders too far from the morning or evening horizon. No surface
markings can be seen on Venus, which is always shrouded in dense clouds.
D. TheStars
Stars will appear like twinkling points of light. Even powerful telescopes cannot
magnify stars to appear as more than a point of light. You can, however, enjoy
the different colors of the stars and locate many pretty double and multiple
stars. The gorgeous two-color double star Albireo in the constellation Cygnus
is a favorite. Defocusing a star slightly can help bring out its color.
E. Deep-SkyObjects
Under dark skies, you can observe a wealth of fascinating deep-sky objects,
including gaseous nebulas, open and globular star clusters, and different types
of galaxies. Most deep-sky objects are very faint, so it is important you nd an
observing site well away from light pollution.
To nd deep-sky objects with your telescope, you rst need to become rea-
sonably familiar with the night sky. Unless you know how to recognize the
constellation Orion, for instance, you won’t have much luck locating the Orion
Nebula. A simple planisphere, or star wheel, can be a valuable tool for learn-
ing the constellations and seeing which ones are visible in the sky on a given
night (see Useful Accessories section below). Once you have identied a few
constellations, a good star chart, atlas, or astronomy app will come in handy for
helping locate interesting deep-sky objects to view within the constellations.
5. Telescope care and maintenance
If you give your telescope reasonable care, it will last a lifetime. Store it in a clean,
dry, dust-free place, safe from rapid changes in temperature and humidity. Do not
store the telescope outdoors, although storage in a garage or shed is OK. Small
components like eyepieces and other accessories should be kept in a protective
box or storage case. Keep the dust cover on the front of the telescope when it is
not in use.
Your FunScope telescope requires very little mechanical maintenance. The optical
tube has a smooth painted nish that is fairly scratch-resistant. If a scratch does
appear on the tube, it will not harm the telescope. If you wish, you may apply some
auto touch-up paint to the scratch. Smudges on the tube can be wiped off with a
soft cloth and household cleaning uid.
Cleaning Optics
You should not have to clean the telescope’s mirrors. Covering the telescope with
the dust cap when it is not in use will help prevent dust from accumulating on the
mirrors. Even a little dust on the mirror surfaces will not affect the optical perfor-
mance in any way. If you feel the mirrors need to be cleaned, please contact Orion

14
Customer Service at 800-676-1343 for guidance.
To clean the eyepiece lenses, any quality optical lens cleaning tissue and opti-
cal lens cleaning uid specically designed for multi-coated optics can be used.
Never use regular glass cleaner or cleaning uid designed for eyeglasses. Before
cleaning, remove any loose particles or dust from the lens with a blower bulb or
soft brush. Then apply some cleaning uid to a tissue, never directly on the optics.
Wipe the lens gently in a circular motion, then remove any excess uid with a fresh
lens tissue. Oily ngerprints and smudges may be removed using this method. Use
caution; rubbing too hard may scratch the lens. On larger lenses, clean only a small
area at a time, using a fresh lens tissue on each area. Never reuse tissues. When
bringing the telescope inside after an evening’s viewing it is normal for moisture to
accumulate on the optics due to the change in temperature. We suggest leaving
the telescope and eyepieces uncovered overnight to allow the condensation to
evaporate.
6. Collimation – Aligning the optics
Collimation is the process of aligning the telescope’s two mirrors. Your telescope’s
primary and secondary mirrors were precisely aligned at the factory, and should
not need any adjustment unless the telescope was jarred while in transit. Accurate
mirror alignment is important to ensure the best images from your telescope, so it
should be checked regularly. Collimation is a relatively easy process and can be
done in daylight or darkness.
To check the collimation, remove the eyepiece and look down the focuser draw-
tube. You should see the secondary mirror centered in the drawtube, as well as the
reection of the primary mirror centered in the secondary mirror, and the reection
of the secondary mirror (and your eye) centered in the reection of the primary mir-
ror, as in Figure 7a.
If the entire primary mirror reection is not visible in the secondary mirror, as in
Figure 7b, you will need to adjust the tilt of the secondary mirror with the three
Philips alignment setscrews surrounding the center screw (Figure 8). Using a
small Philips screwdriver, rst loosen one of the three alignment setscrews by, say,
a half turn, and then tighten the other two to take up the slack. Is the primary mir-
ror reection more centered in the secondary mirror now? You may need to loosen
a different screw then tighten the other two to better center the primary mirror in
the secondary. It’s a matter of trial and error. The goal is to center the primary mir-
ror reection in the secondary mirror, as in Figure 7a, by adjusting these three
screws in this fashion. Do not adjust the center screw.
Aligning the Primary Mirror
The primary mirror of the FunScope is xed in place, so no adjustments are nec-
essary. The view down the focuser drawtube should now resemble Figure 7a. A
simple star test will indicate how well the telescope optics are collimated.

15
Figure 7a. Collimating the optics. When the mirrors are properly aligned, the view
down the focuser should look something like this.
Reection of
secondary
mirror
Reection of
secondary
mirror
Reection
of primary
mirror
Reection of
your eye
Retaining
tab
Reection of
primary mirror
Eyepiece holder
Drawtube (inside)
Telescope Wall
Edge of
secondary
mirror
Edge of
secondary mirror
Secondary mirror
holder
Figure 7b. Here, the secondary mirror is centered under the focuser, but it needs
to be tilted so that the entire primary mirror is visible.

16
Star-Testing the Telescope
When it is dark, point the telescope at a bright star and accurately center it in the
eyepiece’s eld of view. Slowly de-focus the image with the focusing knob. If the
telescope is correctly collimated, the expanding disk should be a perfect circle
(Figure 9). If the image is unsymmetrical, the scope is out of collimation. The
dark shadow cast by the secondary mirror should appear in the very center of the
out-of-focus circle, like the hole in a donut. If the “hole” appears off-center, the
telescope is out of collimation. If you try the star test and the bright star you have
selected is not accurately centered in the eyepiece, the optics will always appear
out of collimation, even though they may be perfectly aligned. It is critical to keep
the star centered, so over time you may need to make slight corrections to the
telescope’s position in order to keep the star in the center of the eld of view. A
good star to point at for a star test is Polaris, the North Star, because its position
does not move signicantly over time.
7. Useful acessories
•OrionMoonFilter – A 1.25" Moon lter will cut down the strong glare of sunlight
reected from the Moon, making Moon viewing more comfortable and revealing
more surface detail. The lter threads into the bottom of the Kellner eyepieces that
came with your telescope.
•OrionStarTargetPlanisphere – A nifty “star wheel” that shows what stars and
constellations are visible in the sky at any time of any night. Just set the date and
Figure 8. Adjust the tilt of the secondary
mirror with the three Philips screws surrounding
the center screw.
Alignment
setscrews

17
time see a mini representation of your local night sky. Great for identifying what you
see and planning an evening’s observing session.
• Orion Telescope Observer’s Guide (book) – This book will help you explore
amazing celestial objects including nebulas, double and multiple stars, star clus-
ters, the Andromeda Galaxy, and more. With a full page of information dedicated
to each interesting object, author Richard J. Bartlett leads you on a detailed tour
of the night sky as he describes over 60 fascinating astronomical objects that can
easily be seen with a small telescope.
Orion carries these and many other useful accessories to help enhance your
viewing experience with your telescope. Visit our website at
www.OrionTelescopes.com.
8. Specifications
Primary Mirror: 76mm (3") diameter, spherical
Focal Length: 300mm
Focal Ratio: f/3.9
Focuser: 1.25" Rack and Pinion
Eyepieces: 20mm and 6mm Kellner,
multiple antireection coatings
Magnication with supplied eyepieces: 50x, 15x
Assembled weight: 3 lbs., 11 oz
Figure 9. A star test will determine if the telescope’s optics are properly collimated. An
unfocused view of a bright star through the eyepiece should appear as illustrated on the
right if the optics are perfectly collimated. If the circle is unsymmetrical, as illustrated on
the left, the scope needs collimation.

18

19

20
One-Year Limited Warranty
This Orion product is warranted against defects in materials or workmanship for a period of one
year from the date of purchase. This warranty is for the benet of the original retail purchaser
only. During this warranty period Orion Telescopes & Binoculars will repair or replace, at Orion’s
option, any warranted instrument that proves to be defective, provided it is returned postage
paid. Proof of purchase (such as a copy of the original receipt) is required. This warranty is only
valid in the country of purchase.
This warranty does not apply if, in Orion’s judgment, the instrument has been abused, mis-
handled, or modied, nor does it apply to normal wear and tear. This warranty gives you specic
legal rights. It is not intended to remove or restrict your other legal rights under applicable local
consumer law; your state or national statutory consumer rights governing the sale of consumer
goods remain fully applicable.
For further warranty information, please visit www.OrionTelescopes.com/warranty.
Orion®Telescopes & Binoculars
Corporate Offices: 89 Hangar Way, Watsonville CA 95076 - USA
Customer Support: www.OrionTelescopes.com/contactus
Copyright © 2018 Orion Telescopes & Binoculars
All Rights Reserved. No part of this product instruction or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied,
modified or adapted, without the prior written consent of Orion Telescopes & Binoculars.