Swan Nebula - bright with clearly defined shape. Hubbles Variable Nebula - fan shape clear and bright. I am extremely pleased with my purchase, the quality received for the amount of money spent is unbeatable in my opinion and yes is worth the long wait. Thank you for your letter. I will answer your questions point by point.
Star clusters look especially nice because the stars look very small and crisp.
The fairly large central obstruction in the C-14 destroys the contrast needed for sharp planetary views. Also the smaller refractor will cool down faster than the C-14. I have looked through 2 C-14's. If you buy the refractor, get the TeleVue Naglers 9mm and 7mm eyepieces. The Astro-Physics refractors, as far as I know, are now on backorder.