Astrofest2014 Today

[Pig]

I would say the 16" Orion Dob was one of my favourites along with the Lander Pier tripods, they are pretty special

[iksobarg]

Having just gotten into this boat with you guys and gals I had no chance this year. Next year!! Please share more pics and stories! It's the next best thing!

[Helen]

I had a really enjoyable day too It was good to see people and chat. I did spend a little bit of money - book for my husband and small manual filter wheel for me - but also did some research and chatting about a mount upgrade. I think though that with all the lovely mounts on show it hasn't made the decision any easier!!!!

Good fun though : smile:

Helen

[Pig]

Helen,

I was stood next to a Welsh lady, around 12 O'clock, who was discussing EQ mounts with one of the representatives of the widescreen centre. I wonder if that was you !

She seemed to know a great deal about them

[alan potts]

Where was it held? I may try to come over next year and include it in the time I am there. I missed out on a show last year because it started on a Friday in May and I was flying the following day and didn't fancy two day travelling on the trot. This one was at Warwick I think, Hull is not an easy place to travel from to most places other than East side of the Country.

Alan.

[ronin]

Astrofest is splat in the middle of London.

Kensington High Street.

Usually early Feb,

It is only 2 days and the venue is a bit cramped.

Sort of a victim of it's own success.

Although bigger would be nice it would also cost more and that may lead to problems I suppose.

So it stays where it is and we all get cosy to the person next to us.

[Kai]

Helen,

I was stood next to a Welsh lady, around 12 O'clock, who was discussing EQ mounts with one of the representatives of the widescreen centre. I wonder if that was you !

She seemed to know a great deal about them

Was she 4ft 0 and luvverly  ???    

[Pig]

Alan,

I went to the one in Warwickshire also and it was a very similar event.  However it does have a large eating area thus making chit chat easier.

Warwick is much easier for me to get to as I can drive and park there, I don't think a train would be the best option though. The tube stops almost outside the Astrofest in Kensington so it is pretty much a hassle free Journey.

Both venues would be about the same travelling time from Hullgaira

[Pig]

Was she 4ft 0 and luvverly  ???    

As it happens she was   I also love the way she pronounced Equatorial,

I think all the Welsh should have an EQ just on the basis of how it sounds with the Welsh accent

[alan potts]

Thanks for the info Ronin, London is fairly easy to get to but would not allow much time there if I did it in a day, first train from Hull is 0700 but that has you into Kings Cross at 0945 I believe. I know that area well as i have been to the City many times over the years and this area has not changed much.

4 Feet 0 inches, are we sure that is legal?

Alan

[Sneezy24]

Had a great day there, missed last year due to family illness.

I also bought a moon map for £6.00!

... oh, and a Revelation 8" Dob........ (well, ordered it, didn't want to lug two huge boxes on the train!)

Good talks, and I met Alan Chapman and had my book signed!

This will be my second scope, but the first one doesn't really count - a really poor Meade DS-2114.

Got some Helios 15x70 bins, but really need to mount them, can't keep them still enough!

No doubt I will be going to IAS in June (Warwick) for more bits and pieces....

[TheMightyKong]

I was there all day on Friday, went to the Friday pm talks. Talked to Al Nagler and bought a 21 Ethos!! Had 20% off. Having got an offer of a interest free credit card balance transfer in the post this week, was sorely tempted by the NP101 with £400 off but walked away. So ended up with a ethos and felt good that I'd saved 3 grand... Best of both worlds :-)

[L8-Nite]

Added some images (600x800): http://stargazerslounge.com/gallery/album/3017-astrofest-2014/

Thanks for posting, I wasn't able to attend.

[Pete Presland]

first time visiter to astrofest, it will not be the last.i thought it was a great day out absolutely loved it! it was very nice to meet some fellow SGL members, barkis, grant, dave s, to name a few and of course all at first light optics.

i had a lovely chat with science center at Herstmonceux in Sussex, looks a fascinating place to visit if you are down that way. the guys on the Astronomic said i could keep my clip filters in a container full of sand    on serious note the Aurora flatfield panels looked excellent!

very nice also to talk to the students from i think it was Wales university about metoerites and other space material, enjoyed handling the objects and it was great to hear they were all astronmers as well.

really impressed by the Lunt stall  talking to the guys on there about solar imaging was very interesting.

i bought the highly regarded ASI120MM while i was there, thanks to the guys on Teleskop-Express.

this new TCR refractor caught my eye almost as much as the silver polished "Raker" refractor

so many other things i could mention but i guess this post is long enough, i will definitely be back there next year.

well done to all those who makes Astrofest happen     

[alan potts]

Looks like I missed out big time, it is almost worth a trip over, especally if you were going to buy a few things, flying over for only say two days frees a lot of Kilos in the bags to fill with goodies.

Alan.

[Pig]

That's almost two T31 Alan

[SimonS]

bunnygod1.

Thanks for visiting the Uni of South Wales stand. Glad you enjoyed your time at the show! It was my second time there and I think better than last year. Roll on Astrofest 2015!

Simon

[Martin Meredith]

I came away with 4 books and a second hand Stellarvue Nighthawk of uncertain vintage which I'll test as soon as we get some decent weather -- maybe March. Looks like a robust scope.

Apart from the kit on display, I enjoyed all the talks immensely (although the one on special effects seemed more suitable for a Star Trek convention than a serious gathering of amateur astronomers  ). I found the exoplanets and Martian geology talks especially interesting, and the one from Imperial on testing MOND really intriguing.

Martin

[DaveS]

What astonished me was how big some of the latest EPs are  . Not just as big as my fist, but as big as both fists together.

Glad to be going to the Dark Side.

[nickarp2000]

I took my wife down for the first time on Saturday (to also treat her to a day in London as I knew I would spend ). This was my 4th visit to the show and although I ended up purchasing a few items which were slightly lower priced than on the web (but not really when you factor in the traveling costs!) on the whole I think I was underwhelmed this year, and have made a promise not to go again.
I believe for an exhibition of it's size it's over-priced on entry.
Certain retailers are starting to basically make it "their" show, which in my opinion pushes out other retailers that may occupy smaller units but at least would give us as punters a lot more choice and possibly a more enriched experience.
The show is becoming very high-tech in certain areas and moving much more into complex imaging equipment at obviously very high costs and moving away from traditional visual astronomy and basic set-ups.
I understand this is a fairly tight-knit community between certain retailers and customers and friendships are made, but this comes at a cost. I felt that in the smaller more specialized retailer areas, customers were more interested in chatting away with the sellers about previous visits, other equipment, star parties etc etc and this led to the retailer becoming detached from the purpose of the exhibition (promotion and selling)
I have conducted many exhibitions throughout the world in my business and know the need to be as efficient as possible and cater for the needs of the maximum number of customers that take the time to view your stand. I felt slightly ignored at times, and even when browsing at a stand, not once did any retailer contact me, even when it was quiet.
I am a little disappointed, and am starting to feel that there is a clickiness developing in this arena, which isn't particularly healthy.
I am going to go to the Leamington exhibition later this year to see if there's anything different there.
Not a moan, just my personal observation.
Nick

[Pig]

HIya Nick, I see you are also from Northampton.

This is my second visit to the Astrofest and I will probably not go next year as I found it very similar to last year. Maybe a gap between them would be more suited to me, having said that the guest speakers are always excellent.

I also like the idea of meeting like minded people and this is an ideal opportunity to do this. I agree on the entry price but unfortunately anything hosted in London always commands a premium