Explore Scientific Telescopes are Handmade
In order to achieve the performance of diffraction-limited telescopes in the Explore Scientific line, we use a combination of machined sub-assemblies, hand-figured optics, and handmade final assemblies that are individually tested multiple times during the process, both in the factory and in our QA facility in Springdale.
This produces telescopes capable of being used for research and award-winning astrophotography. But because humans are not machines, we remind customers that these handmade instruments will feature inconsistencies or slight flaws. These are signs that the instrument was not mass produced.
For many in the community of amateur astronomy, telescopes possess a certain physical beauty and can symbolize an idea of perfection. It is not unusual for someone to carefully look at the surfaces of the telescope: both optics and the mechanical structures (e.g. the tube, the mounting rings, the focuser, etc.). This is in contrast to researchers and professional astronomers who often see the telescope as merely a data collecting instrument where "beauty" is in obtaining high-quality data, and "perfection" is how well the collected data supports a theory.