John

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC): https://spacenews.com/spacex-seeks-fcc-permission-for-operating-all-first-gen-starlink-in-lower-orbit/

Congratulations Paul - super looking setup ! These Vixen mounts are really nicely made

Lots of clouds here so not observing. Hope somebody gets some sort of view with their dob somewhere

You can get 3.4kg and 1.8kg that will fit your mount I think. Just need to check the diameter of the shaft. If it is 20mm than that is the same as the EQ5 / HEQ5 / Skytee II etc.

Still pushing the £1K EP's ?

I do wonder what the point of using 2 inch eyepieces in a 120mm aperture F/12 scope actually is so I will be watching the replies to this with interest There seem to be quite a few for sale over here at any one time but all 1.25 inch visual back.

Get a Tak FC100 DZ. You then know that you have the best currently available 4 inch refractor in the world today and anything that you don't like is your own weakness, not the scopes

If it is Orion Optics they will probably try and claim that having chunks out of the mirror is perfectly normal and acceptable

I've owned a few refractors at 150mm of aperture. The mount requirements escalate quickly when you exceed 120mm I've found. At one time my dream scope was a 150mm F/12 and I did own one for a while but that pushed the mounting requirements even further. Even the Rowan AZ100 would have been swamped by that scope I've owned my TMB/LZOS 130mm F/9.2 for 4 years now. It was only in February of this year that I got a mount that really copes with it - the T-Rex. Now I can fully exploit the potential that the scope has at last Aperture fever afflicts refractor enthusiasts just as much as with other scope designs but that additional inch or so has big implications which need to be taken seriously if the instrument is to deliver to it's potential I think. It can also be a little deflating when you go to all that expense and effort and then realise that a somewhat less expensive and less awkward 10 inch F/6.3 Orion Optics dob (for example) can outperform your dream quite easily on many targets I suppose it's about going in with your eyes fully open, as it were Sorry for the rather rambling reply !

A barlow lens will make the image scale larger (ie: more "zoomed in") rather than smaller (ie: more "zoomed out"). Is that what you want to achieve ?

Do you use GOTO to find your targets ?

My preference is to have both an illuminated reticule finder and an optical finder on my 12 inch dobsonian. Most of the RDF's that I have tried are too bright for deep sky hunting but the Rigel Quikfinder and Telrad are optimized for astronomy and go dimmer. On my refractors I seem to get on best with optical finders of the right angle / correct image type either 30mm or 50mm in aperture. The optical finder on my 12 inch dob is a 50mm RACI with an illuminated cross hair facility if I want to use it. There is no right or wrong approach with finders really but it does sometimes take some experiments with different arrangements to find what works best and most successfully for you.

If you buy new, and there is an issue with quality, at least you have some redress.

The ones produced in the 12 months before Comet Halley's return in 1986 were often poor. Apparently both Meade and Celestron relaxed quality control standards to meet consumer demands at that time.

You can get lighter weights:

Rod Mollise's free guide to used CAT's is well worth a read and covers Celestron and other brand SCT's: https://skywatch.brainiac.com/used/index.htm The change to being produced in China didn't seem to affect the quality and maybe even improved it:

Mouthwatering stuff Gerry I've been trying not to buy new stuff lately but I do feel a growing urge to get one of the new Tele Vue Bandmate II O-III's in my filter case for my Veil observing this Summer and Autumn

Return it straightaway. Totally unacceptable. I expect you knew that really though ?

This is my Lumicon 2 inch O-III. I don't know when it dates from exactly - perhaps 6-7 years back ?. It's a cracking performer

The serial number on my Astronomik O-III starts 003002 - perhaps it's from the future ?

@Stardaze there you go - you start a thread on the merits of £200-£300 eyepieces and end up getting recommended £1000 ones ! As Gerry / @jetstream says though - your original shortlist are hardly shabby in any way and will show fabulous views

I only bought one of my Ethos new. The 21mm cost me less than 50% of the current list price, thank goodness !

The dew shield probably screws onto the blue flange. If you can find a way to hold the flange steady you might be able to unscrew the dew shield and then you can get to the mechanism that holds the flange / dew shield in place on the tube. Probably a friction clamp / clip of some sort.

Welcome Gary From John in North Somerset.

I only use the locking screws on my Orion Optics 12 inch when I'm transporting the scope somewhere. Otherwise I leave them loose.