Oh! Joy of joys!!! finally got a clear night and got the virgin 10" Dob out of its box..it is now NOT a virgin. It was a night of mixed emotions, from the high of seeing few stars in the sky then looking through the scope and seeing millions, to the frustration of knocking the finder scope and not being able to line the scope up all night...and the realisation that I have a very limited field of view from my back yard....and then !!!:headbang::hello2::hello2::icon_eek:...a burst of real excitement as the moon rose over the rooftops and came into my line of sight...being pulled through the heavens by Jupiter and Uranus (though I couldn't see Uranus), Me and my daughter, who had joined me for the night, picked up the Dob and carried it to the top of the garden to bring Jupiter into the scope's field of view, and there she was ... racing across the night sky swinging four bright moons around itself like a warrior charging into battle!! It was magnificent...I was gobsmacked. I was so excited I even forgot what eyepieces I had in!! I think it was a X2 Barlow with a 12mm plossel. It was a little fuzzy, though I could clearly discern the darker NEB and very faintly, the impression of other bands. It seemed so majestic, Jupiter with its four moons brightly hanging there.

Well, that was the excitement...the disappointment was that I couldn't find any of the Messier objects, cos I couldn't use the finder scope very well. Plus I got severe neck trauma trying to sight the finder on the Messiers in Cassiopeia !!....I really must get either a Right angled finder or a Telrad...or SOMETHING!! . I found the Dob mount a little difficult to use smoothly, Particularly the AZ movement, being a little jerky...maybe a dab of silicon grease will help..(please tell me if I'm wrong!!) I spent another hour just scanning the sky getting colder and decided to call it a day(or night!). As I packed away the scope, I thought that Collimation may be a problem...even though I've had it explained in written form, I think I need someone to show me step by step. The bit I find difficult and scary is moving the secondary mirror...there are so many screws around that end of the scope, I don't really know which ones are which. Anyway First light was Jupiter and it's moons....BRILLIANT...I think I'm in love with Jupiter!!! ... Clear skies to you all.