Celestron C5 50×127 Spotting Scope
- 5″ Schmidt-Cassegrain Optical Design
- StarBright XLT Coatings
- 25 mm (50x) Eyepiece
- 45° Erect Image Diagonal
- 6×30 Erect Image Finderscope
- Water-Resistant Soft-Sided Case
- Limited Lifetime Warranty
$1,100.00
Celestron’s C5 Spotting Scope is a 5″ (127 mm) aperture, 1250 mm f/10 Schmidt-Cassegrain optical system. Its optical excellence is the reason it was chosen by NASA for many space shuttle missions.
The C5 spotting scope is an ideal choice for the serious bird watcher, nature lover or anyone who enjoys beautiful views -either from your home or in the field. At just six pounds in weight and 11 inches in length, this spotting scope is a completely portable visual and photographic instrument that performs well in any viewing location. Further, Celestron offers a wide variety of optional accessories to expand the capabilities of this special instrument.
The C5’s aperture of 5″ allows it to easily outperform smaller aperture spotting scopes. Offering 4½ times more light gathering ability than a 60 mm spotting scope and 2½ times more than an 80 mm scope, Celestron’s C5 is the clear choice when a powerful instrument delivering brilliant, crisp views is what you require.
The C5 spotting scope is a wonderfully versatile instrument, and its near focus of approximately 20 feet allows you to observe plant life, wildlife, birds or insects with ease. At the same time, the C5 can also be used as an astronomical telescope. In addition, the C5 goes easily from working as a powerful spotting scope to being a high performance 1250 mm f/10 telephoto lens. Photography couldn’t be easier, because the C5 is designed to be fully camera adaptable.
To take professional quality shots with the C5, just attach the correct optional T- Adapter and T-Ring for your 35 mm SLR camera to the back of the C5 spotting scope, and you’re ready to shoot.
The tripod adapter block on the C5’s tube makes easy work of mounting the instrument onto a tripod for either viewing or photography. The C5 comes complete inside its own soft sided carrying case.
Specification: Celestron C5 50×127 Spotting Scope
| Weight | 12 lbs |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 13 × 16 × 10 in |
| Brand | Celestron |
| MPN | 52291 |
| UPC | 050234522915 |
Mike –
Bought this scope for target shooting at 300 yards. At shorter ranges our rifle scopes were sufficient for identifying shots. However, at 300 yards it began to get difficult to differentiate shots, especially if they were close to one another or other marks on the target. With the Celestron C5, we’re able to easily differentiate .204 and .308 on Shoot-n-See targets easily, .308 on cardboard without much trouble, and on day with good visibility .204 can also be seen on cardboard with a bit of difficulty. While we haven’t tried it farther than 300 yards, with a .308 on Shoot-n-See targets I think you’d be good to 600 yards or so (as long as it isn’t a hot day – the heat shimmer distorts things). We had also tried a Vortex Diamondback 20-60×80 (having had great success with Vortex rifle scopes), but found this far superior to it.Some things worth noting:* Because this is based on a telescope, the eyepiece is interchangeable with other 1.25″ mount eyepieces. In our case, we didn’t use the eyepiece that came with it, but instead use an 8mm – 24mm zoom eyepiece (Celestron 93232). You can find the effective magnification by dividing the focal length (1250mm) by the eye piece’s. So in this case, it would be 52x to 156x. The eyepiece that comes with this scope has a fixed 50x magnification.* It comes with an amazing carrying case. The Vortex had a cheap bag with a zipper on it. This comes with a nylon (or similar – not sure it is technically nylon) case that has custom cut foam in it that everything nestles into nicely. The cut-outs in the foam also are able to hold the 45 degree mirror and the eyepiece comfortably (in fact, in our case we have both eyepieces in it).* Focus is extremely sensitive, but the focus mechanism still has a good feel to it and is geared in such a way that you don’t easily overshoot the focus without noticing (it takes something like 40 turns to go from 20′ to infinity).* That said, if the sun is out or the ground is hot, the heat shimmer is sufficient to make it difficult to find the best focus, and even if you do, it does make it more challenging to clearly see your shots. That’s not the scopes fault. With a cheaper scope or lower magnification you might not even notice the shimmer from the heat. With this you definitely do. Still, even with that, it’s good for 300 yards.* At this high of a magnification, any little touch makes it shake, so get a stable tripod. We ended up purchasing a tripod head that is really meant for telescopes – you get it pointed in the right general direction, then use knobs to slowly dial it into position. That’s a heck of a lot easier than playing with a ball head or even a decent pan and tilt head. That head is the Orion 7033 precision slow-motion adapter.* I also ended up mounting this using the same quick release plates I use with my camera. Those are made by Giotto’s. The MH649 long quick release plate has sufficient space on it to tighten down on both of the tripod screw holes on here, which is extremely solid. Even with that, there’s still some play in the tripod head, so once you get it lined up, you’ll still want to look through it without quite touching it.* Being a telescope, there’s a lot of other fun things to do with it. It is sufficient for some amateur astronomy. And Celestron makes mounting hardware to attach a DSLR camera to it.Honestly, for this price I couldn’t be happier.
Eric –
I purchased the C5 for terrestrial and astronomical viewing. I have owned an older C5 and currently also own a Nexstar 5 which are the same optical assembly, so I have an existing selection of accessories that match the C5 well. The accessories included with the C5 are OK quality-wise, but don’t come close to higher performance optics. However, I was able to sell the bundled parts for around $50, so when considering the very good price of the scope from Amazon, minus the price of selling the accessories, the C5 has an amazing price/performance ratio.My most common setup for both land/sky viewing is Manfrotto heavy duty tripod and pan head, William Optics 45 deg erect image / Lumicom 90 dec star diagonal, and a Televue Panoptic 24mm (1.25″). I also use Televue Nagler eyepieces for higher magnification. The 24mm Panoptic combined with the C5 produces an extremely wide and crisp view. The quality of the C5 optics is stellar and nicely couple with high performance eyepieces. Of course these eyepieces cost almost as much as the C5 itself, but they really are able to maximize the visual performance of the C5.Compared to the older C5’s and Nexstar models, this newer C5 seems perhaps just a bit more cheaply constructed. The lens cap for example is plastic instead of metal and doesn’t fit as firmly. The tube assembly, while solid, also feels a bit less so than it’s predecessors. However (and this is a big point), considering the current cost of the C5, these differences are of lesser concern. The cost of the original C5, adjusted for inflation, was around four times more expensive than the current version. The current C5 also has very good optical coatings that were not on the previous models.Overall, this is a high performance scope that is very highly recommended for both the professional and beginner.
Stephen Van Patten –
Being a Celestron telescope owner for many years, it seemed a good idea to buy another Celestron when needing a smaller telescope. The first one that was sent was so far out of collimation that getting a star, any star in the field was impossible. Bringing it in under bright lights revealed a secondary mirror that was so loose it rattled at the slightest touch so I decided to not bother so much as attempting any collimation. I was not interested in a build it yourself telescope after all. Amazon sent out another one in less than 48 hours and it did not disappoint. It has textbook diffraction patterns both in and out of focus and decent contrast considering the secondary mirrors are rather large in these scopes. Celestron has become even more mass produced than in previous years and it shows but in the end I am very happy with this purchase and have had success both visually and photographically so far.
Marcoh –
I purchased a Celestron C5 as an upgrade from my Celestron C90 for terrestrial and celestial viewing. As you’d expect, images are much brighter and sharper in the C5 vs the C90. I’m disabled, so I particularly appreciate such a light weight Schmidt. The included accessories are so-so, but the finderscope mount was a disappointment. Instead of a dovetail finderscope mount as on the C90, the C5 has a 30mm rings mount bolted directly to the optical tube, and the holes for the mount are too widely spaced to replace it with a dovetail finderscope mount. This isn’t an issue for terrestrial viewing, but for celestial viewing, I can’t contort myself into a position in which I can use the finder. I get that Celestron wanted to keep costs low, but this is a corner they shouldn’t have cut.
J. R. Petroff –
Crystal clarity even up to 200x or 300x. Portable and can use with my selection of eyepieces. I’d buy it again and would recommend it to friends.
Roland Herrera, Bristol UK –
First immediate impression: I like it a lot ! Ordered yesterday ; arrived today. Amazon are letting me pay for it gently over 6 months, plus they have the lowest price I have found for the C5 in the UK.. so as a thank you I am writing this review. It arrived in a soft case (you could call it a semi-rigid case) surrounded by no less than 3 boxes. The Primary and secondary mirrors are clean with no blemishes obvious on first inspection. The daytime view of my little Buddha statue across my garden is stunningly bright and crisp thanks to XLT coatings, non doubt ; I tried 8.8mm – 40mm (a bit long but just about works) eyepieces.. Couldn’t be happier. Now to work out what tripod / mount to use with it?… and more to the point what to use when travelling? I will add to this review when I have used it for Astronomy in particular. So far it has exceeded my every expectation. Oh yes, I might well dismount the finder rings and add a finder, Telrad or red dot finder of my own liking… 1250mm focal length in such a small scope! Remarkable; no wonder they took the C5 up on Shuttle flights! Update; I have pointed it at Jupiter, and was most stunned by the sharpness and contrast,,, it’s hard to believe how good the image is … far better than one would expect from a 5″ scope. I’m going to get the Explore Scientific Twilight 1 Alt-Az mount and tripod, and will update once that arrives and once I have had a decent session (the Jupiter session was before the scope had time to cool down…) Collimation (Star test) seemed very good (considering the scope had not yet cooled). With regards the finderscope, it is true that it does not align out of the box. A little modification is necessary ; watch this clip on Youtube called “Celestron Red Dot Finderscope Fix”. I fixed my 6SE finder by adding some flexible black plastic instead of cardboard… but the principle was the same. I am actually using a Celestron Red Dot Finder with it. My Twilight 1 Tripod and mount arrived… totally suitable for this scope… weighs in at 7.6 kg, and you can get lighter. I have a YouTube clip called ‘Celestron 5″ SCT C5 Overview’ which should be useful if you want to get a quick idea… Further update ; continue to be pleased with this scope. Albireo colour contrast good ; Ring Nebula good (not as good as my Celestron 6″ SCT, of course) ; M31 nothing particular to report.. the usual fuzzy ball you get from suburban skies. I do not recommend the supplied 45 degree diagonal for Astronomy.. I have a very good Televue Everbrite 90 degree Star diagonal which is costly, but out performs any other diagonal I have.
Mr Ronan Harris –
This is our first telescope and we wanted something for the family that would allow both terrestrial spotting, but also to bring us on our first forays into the solar system. After a bit of research around the web, we decided the C5 fitted the bill and ordered from Amazon. The purchase experience and delivery was first class as usual.The scope was easy to assemble out of the box. We had no issue with aligning the spotting scope as mentioned by somebody else, although it did take a little effort and fine adjustment of the positioning screws to get just right. The scope is easy to use and we have been amazed by what we can see with the standard lens that’s supplied with the scope.Already we’re planning to upgrade and get the additional lens/filter set from Celestron and increase the power of this great piece of kit.
ROBERT REVAN –
Good light gathering properties with a 40mm plosal stunning views
Alex –
J’utilise ce télescope pour l’observation de la faune terrestre par beau temps (le télescope n’est pas étanche), en complément de mes jumelles x10.Il est livré sans pied, avec trois accessoires en plus de sa valise légère de transport: la lunette de visée x6 (à installer et à régler), un miroir redresseur pour la vision terrestre et un oculaire de 25mm à champ large (je l’ai comparé à un Plossl 20mm, son champ de vision est bien meilleur, avec un excellent dégagement oculaire) offrant un grossissement x50. Tous les oculaires et accessoires astronomiques de 1.25p s’adaptent.J’ai longtemps hésité avec le C90, ce sont les commentaires d’utilisateurs des 2 appareils qui m’ont décidé: je ne regrette pas mon choix, le résultat est spectaculaire, notamment vis à vis du zoom de mon reflex (450mm).L’image est très définie, la luminosité au-delà de ce que j’espérais…Pour pouvoir prendre des photos, j’ai acheté un support téléphone à fixer sur l’oculaire et un adaptateur en T Celestron 93640. J’étais inquiet de l’ouverture limitée, mais je me suis tout de suite rendu compte que la principale difficulté était de régler finement la mise au point sans un trépied stable, et en trouver un n’a pas été simple: les pieds photo rotulés ne sont pas faits pour un objet de cette taille et cette masse (surtout lorsqu’un reflex est fixé au bout…).J’ai fini par acheter un Celestron Alt-AZ.Il faut s’habituer à la très longue focale fixe (1250mm) pour la visée. Avec un objectif zoom, il est très facile de cadrer en jouant sur la bague de zoom, mais ce n’est pas possible avec un télescope à focale fixe : le grossissement est tel qu’on se demande souvent ce qu’on est en train de regarder. Il est donc important de parfaitement régler la lunette de visée par rapport à la distance d’observation (la convergence dépend de la distance).Je pense acheter un oculaire zoom pour régler ce problème.J’ai testé ce télescope pour l’observation du ciel.L’oculaire fourni étant très lumineux, il est très facile d’observer Saturne et Jupiter avec leurs lunes. On voit très distinctement les anneaux de Saturne bien que la planète reste très petite avec l’oculaire de 25mm fourni.L’observation de la lune est réellement spectaculaire.J’ai acheté un oculaire Celestron X-Cel-Lx de 5mm et un autre de 2.3mm pour améliorer l’observation des planètes: les 2 étaient flous, il a fallu régler très finement la collimation pour voir apparaitre une image de qualité mais très sombre sur le 5mm, et bien trop sombre, floue et granuleuse sur le 2.3mm. Il ne faut donc pas aller au delà du grossissement théorique de x300 (oculaire de 4.16mm).Je pense que ce télescope n’est pas assez lumineux pour l’observation du ciel profond: toutes mes tentatives d’observation de nébuleuse se sont soldés par des échecs.Si vous visez essentiellement l’observation du ciel, un télescope de Newton avec une grande ouverture et des oculaires à champ large d’excellentes qualités sont probablement un meilleur choix (et permettra un meilleur réglage de la collimation, indispensable pour les forts grossissements, puisqu’il sera possible d’ajuster les 2 miroirs au lieu d’un seul pour un télescope SC).A noter que le prix du télescope a oscillé entre 480€ et 730€ lors de ma période de réflexion… soyez donc patients.En résumé, pour mon utilisation, c’est un outil fantastique.
MSH –
Mäßige Lieferungszeit (Aus der Nähe von Manchaster), gute Aussenverpackung, sehr gute gepolsterte Teleskoptasche. Diese bietet aber keinen Mehrplatz z.B. für andere Okulare.Gute Verarbeitung, d.h. gute fehlerfreie Spiegel, gute Lackierung, gute Befestigungsschrauben.Der Sucher bietet eine gute Vergrößerung und arbeitet auch im Dunkeln zur vollsten Zufriedenheit.Die Bildqualität ist im Vergleich zum C90 um einiges besser. Mehr Farbe, mehr Kontrast, mehr Schärfe, keine Abschattung am Rand und kein milchiges Bild.Ein Mehr an Vergrößerung beim Anschluß einer Spiegelreflex mit einem T2-Ring im Vergleich zum C90 gibt es nicht, da die Brennweite gleich ist. Nur die gute Lichtstärke von f/10 macht sich bemerkbar.Zum beobachten des Sternenhimmels ist es auf alle Fälle gut geeignet. Mit einem anderen Okular für eine noch höhere Vergrößerung biete es sicherlich viele Möglichkeiten.Als Spektiv ist die Anwendung durch die bauliche Größe jedoch nur bedingt möglich . Das Gewicht von ca. 2,4 Kg schlägt nicht so sehr zu Buche. Ein gutes stabiles Stativ ist ein Muss.Es geht zurück, da ich es vornehmlich als Spektiv nutzen wollte und da ist ein gutes Objektiv mit einem Konverter besser. Als Teleskop würde ich aus meiner Sicht ein ähnliches Produkt aus einem anderen Hause vorziehen wenn man Preis und Leistung ins Verhältnis stellt.Leider läßt im Moment die interne Abwicklung der Rücklieferung auf sich warten, was ich bezogen auf Amazon schlecht finde, da sonst alles hervorragend klappt.
Key –
I tried a number of refractor spotting scopes before this one. I was doubleful about the Schmidt-Cassegrain as there a lot of negative reviews. But OMG, this telescope is the best. Basically I’m giving away all my refractor telescopes to family and going all-in on this telescope.
TheBirdNest –
This is a great scope, which I’ve used for DSO and Lunar work. I did have to collimate after purchasing, but it’s so easy to do. It takes minutes to achieve perfect collimation.
Cliente Amazon –
Ottimo telescopio, peccato per il puntatore che non è possibile regolare fino ad ottenere il centraggio dell’immagine.
Francisco Moya Alfaro –
El precio era tan bueno que pensé que quizá no tuviese algún elemento pero estaba completo.TelescopioPrisma erectorOcular de 25 mmbuscadorBolsa acolchada para transporteEl tiempo de envio fantastico, mucho menor que el anunciado
rodolfo –
Buena calidad, necesario mas oculares para los que nos estamos iniciando.La maleta que trae en muy practica y su leve peso lo hace cómodo de llevar.