S&T Test Report by Alan Dyer Testing Two Premium Refractors Founder Optics Draco 62 and FOT86 Refractors U.S. Price: $1,099 (Draco 62) $1,399 (FOT86) founderoptics.com What We Like Corner-to-corner image sharpness Very little vignetting on fullframe sensors What We Don't Like 86-mm telescope's focuser is inadequate for imaging 62-mm could use a second dovetail shoe WE ARE CERTAINLY enjoying an abundance of apochromatic (apo) refractors today. It seems a new company offering premium optics appears every few months. Among the latest crop is a relatively new name to the astronomy market, Founder Optics of Taiwan. Founder specialized in riflescopes and spotting scopes and recently began producing premium apo telescopes. I tested their two latest offerings - an 86-mm triplet, the FOT86, and a 62-mm quintuplet Petzval astrograph, the Draco 62. Both instruments were loaned to us by the manufacturer. While the telescopes are produced in Taiwan, Founder makes the point that the optics were designed by a renowned (though unnamed) Japanese lens designer. dance of apochromatic (apo) refractors Mechanical Impressions Each telescope has Founder's signature livery of black tubes (in a glossy finish for the FOT86 and a matte finish for the Draco 62) with green anodized fittings for a striking appearance. My early impression, borne out after several 66 MARCH 2025 * SKY & TELESCOPE tThe FOT86 yields a field 3.6° by 2.4° on a fullframe sensor. This portrait of the Veil Nebula with the 1× flattener is a stack of twenty 6-minute exposures at ISO 1600 with an astro-modified Canon EOS R. Both new telescopes from Founder Optics have their strengths for visual and photo use. tThe Draco 62 astrograph yields an expansive field of 8.2° by 5.5° when using its included 0.83× reducer. The wide field enabled framing the main parts of the Veil Nebula in Cygnus with the nearby cluster NGC 6940 in Lacerta, also with twenty 6-minute exposures but at ISO 800. ALL IMAGES ARE COURTESY OF THE AUTHORhttp://www.founderoptics.com