On Sat, 20 Feb 2016 06:05:01 -0800 (PST), Quadibloc
wrote:

On Saturday, February 20, 2016 at 6:03:02 AM UTC-7, wrote:

Somehow, I don't really envy your friend, as nice as Questars are. (I would
never buy a used Questar without original bill of sale and fully documented
provenance.)

You expect his friend to eventually be jailed for having stolen it?

Or is it just that it may turn out to have not been properly cared for?

I do remember that the old Questars used threaded eyepieces, so one could only
use the Brandons that came with them, so there is reason not to envy him _too_
much. Can a Questar really be _that_ much better than the 90mm go-to Maks that
London Drugs now sells cheaply?

Optically, a Questar is nothing special. Nor does its mount offer any
real advantages over some of the mounts found on similar sized scopes.

But a Questar is still a thing of beauty and craftsmanship.

Which is the best reason for owning one. It's like somebody choosing
to own a Rolex, even though you can buy a watch for $20 at a
convenience store that works as well. There is value in something
which is beautifully made.

Of course, if you can afford to buy something like a Questar, you can
also afford a much better instrument for astronomical viewing.