Wolfstar

Decided to purchase a WO Z81 and start from there. Thanks again all.

Thanks for the help. After a few hours last night on Astrobin I thought i had nailed it down - until i read the thread this morning - lol , so now even more confused I was thinking £1,000 for a ES Comet Hunter (until 900SL feedback above) as it covers a broad range of targets, not to heavy, good resolution on moon etc, and once collimated the secondary it holders it very well (which is ok todo - I would never touch the Primary). I also read a lot of good reviews (see end for YouTube). The images I saw on Astro Bin looked good to me from a EAA perspective and noob AP; Elephants trunk nebula ( rdv_astrophotography ) - AstroBin and even Sombrero M104 ( Ed Litoborski ) - AstroBin . Admittedly these are all AP work, with massive integration times and post processing. EAA has as many definitions as there are stars in the universe, with some only taking a single exposure (more akin to visual) and other like myself who are quite happy to let an image live stack for 30mins or more, thus my instinct says go for aperture and hence i was also planning within the same budget of £1,750 (approx) to get a WO RedCat 51 (or similar) to give cover more of the realy Wide Field end of targets and provide a truly portable and learn more about AP world option. It seems like two paths - (1) a 100mm reflector like Cosmic Suggests, providing excellent EEA views and some AP if I go for an APO within budget, easy to maintain and use, and add a RedCat at a future date, or (2) ES Comet Hunter + RedCat now - noting the harder collimation and 900SL feedback. Thanks again for the really excellent feedback. I probably need todo more for research. But, still very interested to know what you would personally acquire scope wise given a £1,750 - £2,000 budget, to try and meet these requirements. Bye the way, what is considered a DSO - when starting out thinking beyond planets I thought any thing outside of our Galaxy was a DSO ... hence Andromeda is a Widefield DSO - but from the conversation I now suspect its not?

Thanks "But you say wide field in at the same time as wanting more aperture..that doesn't really make sense." ... isn't the focal ratio the primary consideration? an 8" RASA at F2 frames Andromeda very similar to a Z61 at F6, - this is why many use big SCT and Hyperstars and reducers, and the exposure times will be a lot less compared to Z61? I might have got this totally wrong . Anyway; I do like refractors and they tick a lot of my boxes (especially ease of setup etc). They look nice quality scopes and the 80mm APO seems to frame Andromeda with a DSLR and smaller targets like Sombero really well with the 462MC , leaving 533MC covering the middle ... maybe a 100mm would be a good fit.? Especially as I plan to do a WO REDCAT at some as, a really portable rig, and that would cover the real Wide Field stuff? A 150mm Classic C for planets, a 80mm or 100mm for EAA and 50mm for widefield portable i think seem to fit well together? I already have IR cut filter but will read up on the duel narrow band. Something like SharpStar 94EDPH f/5.5 Triplet ED APO Telescope | First Light Optics or Sharpstar Z4 Sextuplet APO Astrograph | First Light Optics (no Flattener needed and a bit of budget stretch). Whilst not FPL53 they would still be great for EEA and some AP. Thanks - I think talking it through with others helps a lot to narrow down options buzzing around in my head, and these sort of scopes last for life.

My current scope is for planetary only a 150mm F12 CC and mounts are AZ and an EQ (I am happy with my other kit) ... just need a suitable scope for EAA/AP. I had a brief look at the EAA section - but many folks seem to have started with an existing scope and then moved into EAA , hence many have ended up with general scope like an SCT and then added an expensive Hyperstar route or a 0.5 reducer (not sure of quality for AP). But I am starting from a clean slate, scope wise and also looking for opinions around ease of setup and maintenance - hence an F2 RASA for example sounds difficult for me. A Scope that does EAA over a broad range of targets and a bit of AP is what I am after. I have suggested something like a Comet Hunter (think Skywatcher do a slightly bigger version. but is heavy) might be the direction to go ... hence asking , or a biggish refractor (120mm F6)?

Hiya and thanks - I had in my head ; Andromeda to Sombrero Galaxy. I suspect a bigger aperture than WO Z61 ... was thinking some like the Explore Scientific Comet Hunter (150mm , F4 ... hence reaching out for advice.

Hiya, Looking for some help with regard to a home based EAA / AP setup. Specially - what scope and filters would you suggest for this task: (1) Widefield / DSO objects (2) Less than 8kg for telescope (mounts I have are rated at 15kg and 13kg) (3) Easy to setup and maintain i.e. hold collimation well if a reflector (4) Bortle 5 (5) Using DSLR, ZWO ASI 462MC and 533MC (6) No guiding and only basic post processing on any AP. (7) Budget of £1,750 for scope (excluding any accessories needed (Filter)). Big thanks in advance. 😊

You can see clear sky 🦄

Yes that does sound right on target 😛 Couple of questions; Is this a rig you have used? , do you need a reducer/flattener on scopes this small for AP? on AZGti - how do you Polar align in EQ and attach Counter weight? Does it work well with Sky Safari over Wifi or need EQMod cable? .... sorry for questions ❤

Thanks for responses I should have made it clear my current setup is entirely built for Moon and Planets. The mount is great but AZ only so that rules out any AP work, but the main issue is weight - the mount and tripod alone are over 12kg ... I was looking to have close to 12kg all-in if possible. In terms of a permanent base EAA setup i would probably look towards a Comet Hunter or 8"SCT with reducer (any fast, large aperture and low maintenance). My current integration times are really based around bright targets and 2 - 3 mins of AVI files for lucky image - i was guessing for faint objects/smaller aperture i would need much longer, but I am quite happy for the imagine to build up whilst messing about with other bits and bobs - if shorter then fantastic ✨ I find focusing whilst some distance away is much easier if it can be done electronically. I do really like visual as well - but its a bit like going from BBC1 in BW from the 60's to 4k HD (they both have their merits). Good call on Cloudy nights 👍 I am guessing, but weight distribution might look something like ; 3.5kg Tripod, +3kg mount , +4kg for scope, flattener, camera, rings, dew heater, +2.5kg for Laptop and portable power (13kg). I want to be able to pick up, transport and assemble rig quickly and easily ... hence dedicated rig for the purpose. Current mount could act as a really good test bed for finding things out and enable a step by step approach. /Wolfy

Hello, I have dabbled in visual a bit and the odd picture of a planet and thus I am still very much a beginner. I am keen to build an EAA setup from scratch, but one thing I have learnt (after some expense ) is that this hobby is like building a PC in the old days ... numerous separate components that need to be assembled together, all with their various quirks and small differences, lots of research, scratching of head and several trips to the shops - before I end up with a well behaving system and good performance. With this in mind I am reaching out to the community for advice and recommendations: I am after ideas and details of a complete setup for a highly portable and easy to use, wide-field EAA system for large DSO objects, (to include as a min - camera, tripod, mount, telescope, flattener, electronic focuser and other remote gadgetry, filter, and any other important parts to make it all work together "Plug and Play" ... I don't want to be going to the shop to buy bits for modifying AZ mounts into EQ, lack of back focus or deal with known software bugs etc). I will use the system from home (Bortle 5 ) and also travel to better dark site locations occasionally. I already have an ASAIR Pro, ZWO ASI462mc, iOptron AZ Mount Pro on a 2" Tripod and 6" Stellalyra CC, use both Windows and Mac OS laptops, ASI Studio, Sharp Cap, Sky Safari Pro, Ipad, Iphone. Typically I would look to have a total integration time of 20-30mins per live stack (but with the occasional need for extended time for decent AP work). Key requirements are total weight 12-16kg and an initial budget of £2,750 , but also extending this to £3,750 for specific components that create a foundation for future expansion and heavier scopes. I have probably made some glaring contradictions in the above , but trust in the expertise of the community to make more sensible assumptions. Thanks in advance /Wolfy