Sharpstar has been making refractors for many years for well-known worldwide astronomy vendors, and they’re now marketing their own premium apochromatic refractors at a surprisingly affordable price. The Sharpstar 76EDPH is the second in their series of instruments under the Sharpstar brand that’s quickly gaining a reputation for precision instruments for visual observation and astrophotography.

This scope features a 76mm air-spaced triplet objective with an ED glass element for excellent color correction, contrast, and image sharpness. With a focal ratio of f/5.5, the scope measures just 333mm in length with its dew shield retracted and weighs just 2.9kg. It’s ideal for field use and travel. With a focal length of 418mm, the 76EDPH delivers tack-sharp stars across a 5 degree X 3.3 degree field with a full-frame camera.

The superb optics of this ED refractor are matched by the quality of its mechanics. The striking red CNC trim and carrying handle and the white gloss tube give this scope a distinctive and attractive look. The scope also features a premium dual-speed 10:1 rack-and-pinion focuser with 60mm of travel that handles most full-frame astronomy cameras

Alan Dyer, in a review at Astrogeartoday.com, writes of the Sharpstar 76EDPH:

“The limbs of the Moon, Venus and bright stars showed no chromatic aberration when in focus, with Venus and bright stars showing just a pale rims of magenta inside focus and cyan outside focus. This is color correction that ranks with the best in the world of apos. There was no sign of astigmatism, even on cold winter nights when lens cells can pinch optics, and only a smidgen of spherical aberration. In-focus stars exhibited textbook Airy disks… I consider the 76mm a match, both optically and mechanically, for the best apos on the market, and at a very reasonable price for its performance.”

The optional 0.8x focal reducer/field flattener for the 76EDPH brings this scope to a very fast focal ratio of f/4.5 and a focal length of 334mm. The reducer delivers excellent image quality across a full-frame sensor with a field of view of about 6 x 4 degrees.