Samop

Hi, As a total beginner I understand what an RA motor is for... on a properly aligned eq mount it keeps it pointing at the same bit of sky....yes? But I'm not sure what the purpose of a DEC motor is. Us it only used if you've some sort of goto setup? or for tracking the moon? or something else?... I'm sure it'll be obvious when it's explained.

Thanks for your ideas but that's not the issue.... I had a serious look at it today in the daylight, and the tripod bit of the mount is rock-solid (if you ignore the rubber feet!). The movement is coming from a little bit of play in the dec "pivot" in the head. I've tightened up the screws and apart from a bit of flexing it seems less wobbly. Of course I won't really know until I point it at something, but it looks pretty cloudy out there at the moment

For the first time since getting my 'scope over two months ago the sky was a bit clear(ish) tonight so I quickly assembled everything and LOOKED THROUGH IT... at last. Probably a bad idea for a newbie to do an unplanned impromptu observe but I did get a magnificent view of the moon and I looked at Mars although not totally impressive. With luck the weather will start calming down and I should now start being a bit more proactive and actually plan what I'm going to look at. I have a question, though. The lightest touch of my eye on the eyepiece caused everything to bounce around so I had to do hands-and-eye-off viewing. Is this normal? I have a Skywatcher 150pl with an E3-2 mount. Everything was done up as tight as I could do it, and the movement was coming from the "head" of the mount, not the legs or anything. What do you think?

Thanks to everyone who's contributed to this discussion... all a bit academic at the mo in the SouthEast of England as there hasn't been a clear night since I bought my 'scope, 6 weeks ago. Most people seem to agree with my sentiment, that unless you're really out in the sticks a perfect astronomy site is also a pretty good place for "undesirables". I don't have a dog and my cat is a bit too self-centred to be helpful. Where I live (west-ish Essex, UK) there are however a lot of narrow out-of-the-way lanes, many leading up to farms, so I do think they may work... perhaps a late night drive around to scout them out.

If you're at all interested the BBC Sky at Night mag is doing a special introductory offer... 3 issues delivered to your door for £5. Just do a google search... So even if you've no intention of a regular subscription it's a good deal as long as you remember to cancel..

It's alll making sense now. Thanks for taking time to explain.

Ahh, thanks, that makes sense. I should have said, ĺ I have Skywatcher Explorer 150p with the EQ2-3 mount. I've had it 6 weeks and there hasn't been a single clear sky opportunity to use it yet! Doing some further research it seems that the "standard" motor for this mount has 3 preset speeds. Why would you need these?

Hi. I'm going to put an RA motor on my birthday present list this year as my medium/long term plan is to do some astrophotography. I'm confused. Reading up about these motors it ssems as simple as(and I'm paraphrasing here) align the mount, point the scope at your chosen object, press the 'go' button and that's it. But my limited common sense tells me that objects near the horizon will apparently move faster than things near the centre, so surely the motor would need to run at different speeds depending upon where you're looking. What have I misunderstood?

Hey, just downloaded SkySafari and it looks really good... thanks for the recommendation. I've also downloaded Skytracker. Anyone have any experience of that app?

I have a Skywatcher 150P with the EQ3-2 equatorial mount. I guess I'm feeling a bit intimidated. Mars/Jupiter are easy to start with (I could even see them with a rubbish toy telescope I had). Thanks for your encouragement.

So I bought my first telescope three or four weeks ago, and almost as soon as I put it together the sky clouded over and hasn't cleared up since. It seems now that Jupiter is slipping over the horizon; Mars is beating a hasty retreat for the next two years; Saturn and Venus are stuck behind the Sun .... it seems that, as a newbie I've missed out on all the easy interesting stuff, apart from the Moon. Once the sky manages to clear up, what should I try looking at whilst learning how to drive my 'scope? At this stage of my hobby I suspect DSOs will be beyond me.

Probably easier to concrete the tripod into place in my garden, then it's NEVER going to move 🤣. When I get a mo during the daytime I'll do a short video to show what I'm talking about.

Hmm, not actually sure. Without the counterbalance weights it's not heavy so it probably is aluminium. Some of the movement seems to come from the "head" rather than from the legs flexing. So, even though for me it was a bit pricey, you get what you pay for.

Hi, Is any that has an EQ3-2 able to answer my original question, which was: with everything done up as tight as I can there's still a little bit of give and springyness in the mount. Is this normal? I'd kind of expected it to be absolutely rock-solid when locked in position, but

Thanks. I worried it may cause mirror problems. I guess I should check for leaks. Actually I keep it right near the up-and-over door where rain and rubbish can easily blow in, so I should rearrange everything so it's nearer the middle

'morning all, With the awful weather we're having in uk at the mo, it's just occured to me that, I keep my reflector 'scope in the unheated and un-weather proofed garage. Is this a bad idea? We haven't really got anywhere indoors to keep but if the cold is likely to damage it I can temporarily put it in the hall.

Ahh, thanks

Hi, I've just got my first "proper" 'scope, a Skywatcher 150pl and EQ3-2 equatorial mount. With everything done up as tight as I can there's still a little bit of give and springyness in the mount. Is this normal? I'd kind of expected it to be absolutely rock-solid when locked in position, but was I expecting too much? Also, this was in the box with the mount and I can't find anywhere to put it. It's made of metal, about 2" diameter and has a thread underneath. Any ideas? Thanks

Hi...

So I got the Nightwatch from eBay. The first two chapters seem to me to be a cross between the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ("Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is..") and Professor Brian Cox (for the non-English people, Brian Cox is a youthful, good looking TV professor who used to play in a pop band called D:Ream and can be somewhat "poetic" about how amazing everything is), but after page 26 the writer's style settles down a bit and it's then a really good start on how to look at the night sky. I'm going to enjoy it and find it really useful and can recommend it to anyone else who's starting up. I just read that the author has just died. Sad. Now waiting for my copy of Turn Left at Orion.. hopefully, between the two I'll have enough to start me off.

Well there's a challenge!

Ahh, thanks. That make perfect sense and is such a clever idea. I'll give that a go next time I'm out. I got my new telescope delivered last week but I've had a pretty nasty bug so have not been able to play yet... really frustrating but I guess it's building the excitement..

Hi So, a basic-probably-stoopid beginners question. On my shiny brand new reflector 'scope, on the lens cap there are two small lens caps set into it. What are they for?

Interesting. I guess your feelings of safety are dependent upon knowing your area. I live in a lovely (generally) peaceful little rural town but it's maybe 15 miles from less-nice places and youngsters come this way for some fun... they use our high street as a race track; in summer evenings our house alarm goes off as they try to hack the car locks in the dealership over the road; etc etc... So, they may not plan of telescope stealing but a solitary person in a field in the middle of the night is an invitation for some fun. Maybe an answer is to observe from under a tree where you don't stand out, and move around the tree when you want to point the other way.. Or, simply; don't go out by yourself. Alternatively, does anyone know where I can hire some donkeys?

From my garden I have no view south due to my house inconsiderately being in the wrong place and south east is tricky due to a streetlight. In all other directions I can't see anywhere near the horizon because of houses, fences and trees. I can walk maybe 10 minutes and be in the middle of a wheat field with an uninterrupted view of the whole sky, but I'm nervous about being in the middle of nowhere, very exposed and with a bit of expensive kit ... too heavy and bulky (.. and I'm too old) to enable me to beat a hasty retreat. So how safe do you feel when you find a nice dark spot to observer from, and what, if anything, do you do to feel secure?