John

It's a cloudy evening here currently. Forecast to clear from around 1:00 am but I don't think I'll wait around for that. Enjoy the clear skies, if you have them

When I last observed these comets they were both in the "small hazy patch of light slightly more condensed towards the centre" category of target. A low magnification would pick them up as something different to a star but higher magnification helps increase their contrast. No elongated form that I could see visually with these although I'm sure the imagers would do better. For me, the fascination with 67 Churyumov-Gerasimenko was that we had sent a probe there (Rosetta in 2014) and that the Philae lander lies on the surface of the comet, stuck in a crevice. That makes the small faint patch of light just that much more interesting to observe in my opinion

Well done for finding that image to illustrate the effect. I tried to snap one with my mobile phone but failed to capture those shadows .......

I've just been out again, with my 100mm refractor this time, just because the moon looked so tempting Messier and Messier A were very close to the terminator and the pair looked rather different in that oblique illumination, inky black within each crater and they cast a weird shadow extending towards the darkened portion of the surface that resembled a pair of pointed horns or ears. I've not seen them looking like that before !. Lots more lovely detail around the terminator of course. Then finally a quick look at my old friend, the golden double star Algieba in Leo - the first double star that I ever observed with a telescope

They were quite faint when I saw them last and that was with an 200mm aperture scope. Tonight's moon was bright and on the same side of the sky as the comets so I think they would have been very challenging to see at all with a 130mm. When the moon is out of the way, you will have a better chance to spot them.

If the OP comes back with a budget of a couple of hundred £ we might have to have a rethink !

Just going to try that one with the 12 inch Mark. Should get it, I hope !

Good seeing again tonight. Got my 12 inch dob out - first target is 7 Tauri the close pair of which is a .77 arc second split. Got them at 338x. Nice Transparency is not that good as others have said. Should have some fun all the same

Good seeing tonight. I split 7 Tauri with my 12 inch dobsonian quite clearly using 338x (Ethos SX 4.7mm). Very pleasing looking system with the 10th magnitude star a little further from the very close pair. I don't manage sub-arc second splits that often and this is one of the nicest I've done

Not really.

If you scroll down the web page below, on the left hand side (to the left of some astro images) you will see UK astro societies listed. Click on the astro society name to go to their website: https://www.astrobuysell.com/uk/

Here are a couple of mine:

Tube length quickly gets more significant than tube weight with regard to mount stability due to the moment arm force that a longer tube imparts to the mount head and tripod hob.

Just had a nice hour looking at the moon before the clouds came over. Petavius was looking wonderful with it's central peak complex and the great cleft extending from that, across the floor of the crater, to it's tiered rim. The Messier pair of craters were looking very fine as well. Nice end to the evening

The seeing just is not as good tonight as it has been lately Steve. Later in the week it looks as though we will be clear of the jetstream again so, clouds allowing, the scopes will be able to go that extra yard

That looks excellent Mark

I got 32 Orionis with my Vixen ED102SS earlier this evening but it was right on the margin of possibility tonight - the split came and went as the seeing fluctuated.

I agree re: the seeing Steve. We seem to have some effects of the jetstream tonight I think.

I've just remembered another one from 2017 - good year for asteroids !:

There was 3122 Florence back in 2017, though that was further away and slower moving (visually) than 1994 PC1:

A very, very similar refractor was marketed under the Asahi Pentax brand name back in the 1960's. This is the focuser from one of those Asahi Pentax scopes and as you can see, it looks practically indentical to the one on your Limer branded scope: These scopes were also produced under a number of other brand names at around that time.

One of our members tried one out and found it disappointing. I think it was @johninderby ? I've read other negative reports on that design as well. The good old Skytee II is a much better bet I think.

Thanks Nik, very interesting This is one of Charles Wood's "LPOD" pages which covers this area and mentions Whitaker's work: https://www2.lpod.org/wiki/January_6,_2007 It's a little like the early expeditions to the Himalaya's, trying to work out which peak is which !

Excellent report and a great achievement Stu It is really motivating when it all comes together Early promising clear sky here quickly clouded up so I could not try for the asteroid, or anything else

No problem at all Dave - it may clear later but if not I think the prospects later this week might be hopeful