Orion Portable Roll-A-Table

4.0 A Bigger Place to Put Your Stuff

Plenty of room for accessories, side-pocket is a bonus, easy to assemble.

Could use to be a little taller or possibly include leg-extenders.

Like many amateur astronomers, several years in the hobby means I've acquired many astro-accessories over the years. This includes eyepieces and filters and charts and maps and red-flashlights. Not to mention adapters, reducers, extenders and caps and covers. Unfortunately, most commercially made telescopes have little more than a small, triangular accessory "tray" to hold whatever fits in it, usually little more than a few eyepieces and a pair of glasses if you're like me. This leaves many astronomy enthusiasts with little option but to place their stuff on the most readily available flat surface: the ground. This can result in accessories getting dirty or, worse yet, stepped on.

Orion's Portable Roll-A-Table is identical to many rolling tables sold by camping-gear suppliers. The table top is made of wood slats joined together by a vinyl cover. When extended, a pair of aluminum-tube braces are held into place by four aluminum-tube legs that screw to the bottom-corners of the table, keeping the table flat and rigid. The 32-inch by 32-inch table top is roomy enough for a huge collection of accessories and there's plenty of room to spread out even the largest star maps and charts. The blue vinyl covering is easy to keep clean. A sectioned mesh side-pocket extending the entire length of one side is perfect for storing smaller accessories. When disassembled, the Roll-A-Table is 32-inches long by about 6-inches wide and has a convenient carry-handle. The whole thing weighs only 10-pounds.

The assembled Roll-A-Table stands 28-inches high. This is an adequate height for use while in a sitting position although it may be somewhat low for the standing astronomer. There is, unfortunately no provision to increase the height of the table.

In conclusion, Orion's Portable Roll-A-Table is a welcome addition to a growing collection of astronomy accessories and makes it easy to keep track of all your stuff.