Rob

Home is Bortle 5. 30 min drive to the New Forest Bortle 3.5/4 ... But I have been under Bortle 2, and that changed everything!

5 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

A quick search reveals one apparently on sale at Widescreen. But it's £579 (reduced from £667)!!

Ouch!....

4 minutes ago, mikeDnight said:

Here's the latest incarnation of the stunning Takahashi FC100D series of apochromatic refractors - my newly acquired FC100DZ. Possibly the most highly corrected fluorite doublet apo in the world!

Oh.. stop it Mike.. I'm now wanting to part with so much money I don't have!!!!!!!

Seriously.. NICE!.. enjoy it as i know you will Sir!

Welcome @JeremyS . Just hope you can locate either of them!. May take a little hunt around. To be honest across all the EP's I own I've only bought 2 in the UK, the rest from the US.

Good hunting!

Could be helpful.  Regards Rob

I had a Meade 5000 24mm UWA which I only sold on due to weight. I personally really like the range. ES did make the same range (Maxvision), but not sure how easy to pick up now.

I'm also lucky enough to own a Meade 5000 WA 20mm. Its a super EP.. rear as hens teeth!.

Best Rob

Well that's certainly got the WOW factor. Nice work!

Plus you can pickup a Minus Violet filter (fringe killer) if it really bothers you. That said I agree with John. That scope with the EQ3-2 with perfect optics would have been fair for £125. That said when you find the confidence you could remove the cell and perform a full clean (you have to mark everything on the edge on lens's - I've done this before).

to be honest I agree with the others for now though.. just leave it. The only thing I would do is check the collimation. Its a skill that you need going forward.

Good Luck

I've had 3 SCT's.. Now have 3 refractor's & Newtonian. For me they cover most targets, and all have strengths and weakness. I would like a Mak once again mind!

Rob 

1 minute ago, johninderby said:

A secondhand Aero 30mm 2” eyepiece. Looks to be in good order. 👍🏻

Nice John!. Been after one of these for while also.

I didn't get a chance last night. The skies turned so milky with high cloud... Shall try again

For sure... The 200PDS would need the HEQ5.

I will add this site for help. I like the images provided, they really help.

https://garyseronik.com/a-beginners-guide-to-collimation/

Best Rob

Interesting you managed it in the 80mm.. that's inspired me to give it a go tonight!

Fingers crossed ... thinking positive - Yes.

Thanks for the post Jeremy

Not suggesting any particular here. But I'm going to provide combinations I have/had have and what sits well with what!

SW150PDS - EQ5

SW200PDS - HEQ5

ED80 - EQ5 or HEQ5 alike

I have used several dobs and enjoyed them its fair to say. I am an EQ man in the main. The SW150PDS on the EQ5 is great setup & easy to manage. Remember its focal length is shorter, so for wide field its a beauty. It can do planets  mind you with a decent Barlow. The 200PDS is a great scope, if EQ or Dob mounted. A nice step up from the 130P.. for visual it sits OK on the EQ5 (some shakes hence the match to a HEQ5). The ED80 is rock solid on a EQ5.. Optics crisp for visual, mags can be pushed on a good night, so good on Planets.. though aperture will win. However rewarding on most nights.. the moon is a joy!.

Well.. thats my summing up for now. The others sure have made good points. Take your time on deciding.. research LOTS!.. its free, and will pay you back in spades. Try and take a look through what you can at clubs & open evenings (after COVID-19).

Best Rob 

Nice, fun post here!... Heres mine

1 hour ago, Stu said:

Needing to start work at 5.30am, I was up and about early this morning so just wandered across the road to have a look at the beautiful conjunction of the Moon, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars. It was stunning I must say, I took some binos to have a pan across them but largely enjoyed it naked eye, standing there for some time drinking it in, along with the lovely dawn chorus. Similar again tomorrow with the Moon a little further across obviously.

I managed a half decent picture, the video just about shows Saturn and Mars if you look carefully, but I’m mainly including it so you can hear the lovely birdsong.

How nice @Stu.. Right going to be up and about tomorrow before work for this. Forecast looks good for it too. Thanks for sharing - Stay Safe buddy

Oh my.... cabin fever setting in I see!

Looks really nice, And well made. Nice thick glass.

Looking great to me!.. Rob

Certainly a change for me being on the outskirts of the City. Less pollution, less lights and virtually no planes from Southampton Airport (was 80% flybe)

Nice report Stu. I was also out with the ED80 again. Stunning sky last night. Also have you noticed how the LP has reduced?. I certainly have living on the outskirts of Southampton. Clearly less cars on the road, and less places open (reduced lighting) have changed the skies!. I honestly felt I doubled the amount of naked eye stars I could see

Regards Rob

2 hours ago, Stu said:

Nicely done @Rob, these little grab and go setups are ideal for quick sessions when conditions are a bit dodgy! I had to scramble everything inside at one point yesterday evening when a light shower came over.

Thanks @Stu.. they really are a treat. And for me keep my hobby alive!.

Grrr I hate those scramble moments to duck the rain. I always feel that I'm going to drop something... I have now bought a BBQ cover to quickly throw over the mount after removing the OTA. It also has a heat layer (silver lined on the inside) and a nice pull string to wrap round the tripod legs. Mind you if its really coming down...back to the scramble 😄

I think the cover was a whole £9!

Oh BTW I omitted to say I was using an Orion Shorty Plus 2 x APO barlow with the Meade 14mm EP

The Moon was so good last night. I had the Revelation ED80 out for a run!... took this handheld image at the eyepiece (14mm Meade 5000 ep). Windy - Yes. Fun Observing - Yes!