Recently in May 2009 I had a Meade Starfinder Equatorial telescope shipped to a buyer in New York. The optical tube was shipped in a custom wood crate. When the crate arrived the outside trim along the lid was ripped off, the side wall was broken away from the crates frame, both optical mirrors were shattered, viewfinder ripped off, and the motor drive cover was shattered. The reciever took pictures of the damages and emailed them to me. I then filed a claim through UPS for damages and was told no insurance was put on the telescope. Which I... read full review »