Mak 127 M57

[JamesF]

Bit on the noisy side, this. I only had 15 minutes each of RGB. At least it's possible to see what it is

James

[starnut]

That's very good so well done

[knobby]

Nice job

[Mr Bergman]

Nicely done James!

[majapala]

Nice one James!

[Paulus17]

Thats very nice James,i'd be happy with that.

What mount are you using with the 127??

[robbie c]

That's a great image James

[JamesF]

What mount are you using with the 127??

I started off using a standard EQ3-2 with the aftermarket motors -- I bought it secondhand with the scope and it could easily be ten years old. I modded it to add a polar scope illuminator and remove some of the gearing from the DEC drive train. The Mak has been used on that for imaging until a couple of months ago when the mount really seemed to start behaving very poorly -- I ended up ditching half the data I'd captured with it because it was wandering about so much. It wasn't helped by the gearboxes in the dual motor drive kit having quite a bit of backlash either. So, I replaced it with a HEQ5 Pro. The HEQ5 is a huge improvement and fine as is for planetary/lunar/solar imaging, but for long exposure imaging at long focal lengths such as the Mak has it still wanders a little and I do still lose some subs. I'll have to add something for guiding if I want to get beyond 45 second exposures.

When I have time, the EQ3-2 is going to get completely stripped and rebuilt and I'll probably do an AstroEQ conversion on it.

James

[Aceace321]

Really nice pic James good job

[fwm891]

That's a nice image James - have you tried the mount slightly out of balance so gears are fully engaged, removing the backlash? - awkward crossing the meridian as the weight takes it the other way.

[JamesF]

I'm working on that, Francis It's easy to do with the camera on the west side of the mount because the scope and camera barely weigh the same as the counterweight. I might have to make myself a lighter counterweight. Or perhaps I could try the one from the EQ3-2. The only other alternative when the scope is on the eastern side is to remove the counterweight altogether which isn't something I really want to do once I have the mount aligned.

James

[fwm891]

Do the opposite then load the camera side a little so your CW comes into play more your mount will certainly take the extra weight

[astrosathya]

James, do you drift align your HEQ5? Is it the HEQ5-PRO or the standard one? If it is the Synscan version, SW have released a new version of the firmware that lets you do an accurate polar alignment, similar to the procedures available in expensive softwares. I use the kit in my signature, and have no problems with star drifting. Its always worthwhile to spend a good hour drift aligning. My scope has a 1000mm focal length, so not far from your mak. I do have a large FoV.

[JamesF]

James, do you drift align your HEQ5? Is it the HEQ5-PRO or the standard one? If it is the Synscan version, SW have released a new version of the firmware that lets you do an accurate polar alignment, similar to the procedures available in expensive softwares. I use the kit in my signature, and have no problems with star drifting. Its always worthwhile to spend a good hour drift aligning. My scope has a 1000mm focal length, so not far from your mak. I do have a large FoV.

I have the latest firmware, but despite several attempts it only made my polar alignment worse Previously I have drift-aligned, but I'm going to give EQAlign a go next time the sky is clear.

James

[JamesF]

Do the opposite then load the camera side a little so your CW comes into play more your mount will certainly take the extra weight

Good point

James