whooshbang

2 hours ago, nickarp2000 said:

I believe ow my forecast visit has been sabotaged by the train drivers. Both Avanti West Coast and West Midlands lines are due to be on strike. 

I'm struggling to find convenient park and ride options. 

Was thinking of parking at Brent Cross (I understand it's free) and tubing in from there. Just not sure whether it's worth the extra effort now. 

I live a few tube stops up the road from Brent Cross (Burnt Oak) on the northern line. If you are thinking of going on the Friday you could park outside my house (free and safer that a random carpark) and tube in with me if you want?

5 minutes ago, Laurin Dave said:

No it's a separate Exhibition over at Lightroom behind Kings Cross..  The Moonwalkers: A Journey with Tom Hanks (lightroom.uk)

Dave

Ah I see! Looks good. Might have to give that a look.

23 minutes ago, Laurin Dave said:

I'll be there Friday..   You'll enjoy Moonwalkers.. I went on Tuesday and it was amazing, the area around Kings Cross is also very interesting 

Dave

Is that the 10:30 "fly me to the moon" talk? Looking forward to that one. In fact, there isn't one that i'm not interested in seeing. The idea being that if i stay busy with the conference i'll have less opportunity to overspend in the exhibition. 🤑

6 minutes ago, fireballxl5 said:

Going down for the weekend with a couple of astro buddies, tickets bought for the conference on both days and The Moonwalkers: A Journey with Tom Hanks show on Sunday.  Should be a great weekend🙃

Indeed 😎

Any members attending attending this year? Not a roll call, just curious. I haven't been since the late 90's. I remember purchasing a Meade 10" SCT there after getting the astro bug from Comet Hale-Bopp. I have fond memories of many great nights observing with that scope, it was a breeze compared to my Meade refractor on a very manual Alt-Az mount and badly collimated newt on a withering EQ mount with no setting circles... its no wonder i didn't have a clue how to find anything with the newt (that put me off newts n gems for a while).

Anyway, I'm looking forward to going again... booked a conference ticket for the Friday

Anyone else thinking of going? buying something perhaps? Or doing the conferences?

12 hours ago, JackW07 said:

I have recently gotten into astrology,

 

That's a swear word on here!

😉

I too have been looking for some of these. Found a company (India) that accept paypal so going to email their sales department later today... need to double check my requirements first.

https://www.holmarc.com/thumb_screws.php

2 hours ago, ollypenrice said:

 Finishing your own and murdering your neighbour to steal his is a far more likely scenario...

Olly

Or, Finishing your own and murdering a Pig - which carries a far less punishable crime - is far more likely scenario...

In keeping with the context of the OP I guess we should be asking "How safe does the pig feel" when outside at night alone in a field?

I prefer to get out of the town/city when i can. When i lived in centre of Bath i used to drive out to spot near Marshfield. Only ever had one person approach me and that was the farmer who's land i was set up next to (dead end dirt track) He was fine once he knew what i was up to. Now living in central Bracknell I've be scouring the countryside for dark spots. I've used Puttenham common car park a few times and the only thing i've ever encountered is the odd car pulling up, staying for half hour or so then leaving. It's a nice out the way spot. Generally when i see car headlamps approaching i grab my Mag lite put my hoodie up and watch them drive into the car park. I don't wave, I don't smile, I just stare for at least 5 seconds (but not more than 10s).

I try to position my scope behind my car so all they see when entering the car park is some bloke on his own with a 1000 yard stare and potential weapon in hand. Who do you think is more scared?

If it's the police or farmer they will approach regardless... If it's doggers, swingers weed smokers or adulterers they may find a quiet spot in the corner to carry out their business. If it's scum they'll probably think twice about approaching, but 9 times out of 10 any visitors in the night see me staring at them and do an about turn.

I had a car pull into the carpark one evening, they parked up and shined their full beam headlights directly at me. After about 5 mins i got a bit annoyed and started to walk over to politely ask them to kill their lights (please). I must have taken 5 or 6 steps in their direction and they drove off. I didn't even have the Mag Lite in my hand.

For most people driving out to a dark remote location in your car is one thing but getting out of your car alone and in the dark? Most people won't entertain it. So when they see someone out there alone in the dark they are very unlikely to get out and join you. (unless of course, they are fellow observers or cops)

That's my experience anyway!

Good luck! Get out there! And clear skies!

Oh, if anyone wants to buddy up at Puttenham in the autumn PM me.

This is what i get:

The Sun - William Optics FLT98 Telescope and Baader zoom eyepiece at 24mm - Samsung s10 Camera phone

Not the best footage

Using a Seymour Solar filter (Orange)

I have a slightly bigger refractor and a phone holder so i'll have another go at it

I wouldn't normally chime in but i am in the process of designing a collar/spacer for a dumbell weight to fit a counterweight bar and by sheer coincidence stumbled across your similar build thread. it's shocking how much stuff can be designed and sent to print, 10 years ago i would have never considered buying a 3d printer... today, i would not be without one.

On 25/10/2011 at 17:03, Moonshane said:

my wife thought I'd been on the sauce again, making spoons in the back garden......

You would definitely had been on the sauce especially making spoons with holes in.

Excellent idea though. Food for thought when i get an AZ mount

2 hours ago, StevieDvd said:

They look nice but the early incarnations of them (as in the pictures above) were prone too much to slippage.  They have updated them a little changing the bearings to larger teflon type washer (HDPE) and the knobs to bigger, easier to use ones.

You'd need to make sure you are buying one of the newer ones, and they do come in several sizes too.

The AZT6 would be a better choice, though this also uses the same type of HDPE washers I find it can be locked solid or allowed to move freely without the hassle of the Hercules. 

 

 

Did actually look at the AZT6 but the payload is half of what the Hercules can apparently handle. I plan of throwing 6 or 7kg on it

Thanks for the heads up on the newer model though.

On 29/07/2020 at 18:52, Steve Clay said:

Ok so lets see what it feels like just moving it about.  The 2 smaller lattice screws that can be seen in the picture are not clutches so there is no way to apply any tension on each of the axis. not so much of a problem in azimuth but could prove problematic in altitude.

 

 

 

 

Thinking of giving one of these a whirl.

Quick question. If you placed a scope on the mount with a suitable length dovetail couldn't the Alt axis be balanced out so when the axis is unlocked the scope won't drop (or rise) in declination?

I'm assuming the Alt and Azimuth axis can be locked and unlocked?

Thanks

21 hours ago, Astro Noodles said:

Thanks to fellow member @whooshbang for selling me his bespoke dec bracket for iOptron Skyguider Pro. It has a Skywatcher derived worm gear for smooth adjustments. A major improvement over the standard iOptron one.

 

 

Looking good now

On 25/11/2021 at 18:46, bonzodog said:

just a heads up anyone taking advantage of the Topaz Labs - Denoise Black Friday discount  my affiliate code topazastro15 for extra discount. regards David 

Many thanks! Finally pulled the trigger on Topaz!

I don't think many will complain about this:

Millions more funding for projects to make our streets safer - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

more street lighting.... but safer streets is the trade off.

I can confirm that Frensham large pond carpark closes at 9pm. There's a smaller carpark up the road for the small pond but the trees are fairly high so the views are limited.

31 minutes ago, PeterW said:

I wonder if Frensham carpark is left open? Puttenham feels a bit close to Guildford.

Peter

I'm gonna ride the bike down to Frensham car park today. I'll let you know (if i don't get lost)

Thanks for link about Hankley/Thursley common.

On 29/04/2021 at 10:59, Deadlake said:

I'm might go over sooner, have some stuff for the tip at Milford. I think we have 3 car parks within 5 minutes of each over so will do a drive by.

I went to Thursley site last night but it was closed due to military training. I proceeded to Puttenham top carpark which is big and open. The photo is a south facing view. Unfortunately the heavy cloud moved in and bailed out. Definitely worth another look. 

1 hour ago, Stu said:

As Peter says, SQM-L is the one I have. The narrower fov allows you to check in different areas of the sky which I find useful.

Thanks. I have pulled the trigger on the SQM-L from FLO

On 29/04/2021 at 13:07, PeterW said:

We’ve all got SQM-L, although there is a phone app that claims to do the same I am not sure how accurate it is, my old phone didn’t give good results, but then it’s camera is almost blind at night.

Peter

Could i ask which SQM's you all use? Thinking of getting one, as i understand it they have different FOV.... which one is generally the best?

I See FLO sell this one... Unihedron SQM-L Sky Quality Meter with lens | First Light Optics

Thanks

4 minutes ago, Deadlake said:

I'm might go over sooner, have some stuff for the tip at Milford. I think we have 3 car parks within 5 minutes of each over so will do a drive by.

awesome!

perhaps snap a photo of the view south? 

if it's clear or patchy cloud i'll be there Sunday night

got new gear to try out so i'll happily dodge a few clouds to capture some light

57 minutes ago, Stu said:

Looks good, short walk past the trees.

I reckon set up straight out of the boot of the car. looks pretty open and i can't stand lugging kit too far from the motor. Plus i like to keep an eye on the car and use it for a comfy flask of tea. 

I 'm gonna check it out Sunday.

18 hours ago, Stu said:

Check it out and let us know. Where is the car park, can’t find it immediately on Google. Straight down A3 is definitely easier than Ranmore so could be good.

I got this car park https://goo.gl/maps/d4u2QL1wYzfwtbu76 on Thursley Common