johninderby

About 1 kg heavier. 

Have you considered the Flextube version? Setup is about the same but the tube when collapsed is a lot easier to transport.

Something else to consider. The Opticstar 80mm guidescope which would make a nice finder but also makes a nice travelscope. Good optics for an achro as well.

http://www.opticstar.com/Run/Astronomy/Astro-Telescopes-Opticstar.asp?p=0_10_1_1_90

I used to have the Telescope Express version of that 80mm finder. It was OK. However it is a lot bigger and heavier than a 50mm one. I prefered the optics in the Antares 80mm finder but that’s a hard one to find nowadays.

Have gone for the 290m. Looks like it should be a better match to the Quark Solar Scout 60DS than the 178. 🙂

After doing some more research getting the feeling that the 290 is better for what I want. The 178 would be better for DSOs etc.

Hmmm 🤔

I’m looking for a new not too expensive mono camera for solar with my Quark Solar Scout 60DS and also for lunar.

I have narrowed it down to these two. But which will be better suited? 🤔

https://www.altairastro.com/Altair-GPCAM3-290M-MONO-Astronomy-Imaging-Camera.html

https://www.altairastro.com/Altair-GPCAM3-178M-Astronomy-Imaging-Camera.html

     John

6

8 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

My ability to douse keyboards and mice with coffee/tea means I always have Trust or Advent ones...

Have you considered a medical grade waterproof keyboard and mouse?  😀

http://www.stericlick.co.uk/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-uvgybuO4wIVghrTCh3XfwzdEAAYBCAAEgLOSfD_BwE

.

24 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

Hah! I had an identical mouse in my paw when I saw that pic!

Cheap Advent mouse but nice to hold and works well.. 👍🏻

Just a basic laptop but surprised at how nice it is for the price. Doesn’t feel cheap and everything moves along nicely.  Won’t be doing any image processing with it. Just for capture. . Will save to a micro SD card.

LENOVO IdeaPad 14” laptop 4Gb ram and a 64 GB eMMC

Yes the sun is quiet to say the least. I blame it on all the Ha scopes being bought. 😁

Clear skies predicted tomorrow afternoon so fingers crossed. 🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻

I have nothing against spaghetti. 😁

3 hours ago, souls33k3r said:

Can i request a truck shot when my mount leave the HQ?

I’m sure they would oblige. 😁

Rowen Engineering Quark T2 adpater and a Baader 1.25” nosepiece extender.

When testing the camera the other day and did notice some faint newton rings. Not bad but want to get rid of them. Looking at the scope the 1.25” adaptor is pretty short so decided rather than go for a tilt adapter right away perhaps fitting a longer more substantial 1.25” adapter would hold the camera more accurately.

Got one of the Rowen Quark T2 adapters and fitted a TS 1.25” adapter that I already had. Now to try it out when it stops raining. 😁

The Bresser has a better build quality overall with a much better focuser and doesn’t need the improvements the SW really needs to perform properly. The alt bearings on the Bresser aren’t just “fancy” looking but work so much better than the SW ones. Once you’ve owned a few dobs you realise good bearings are the key to good performance. Optically they are about the same. I don’t know of anyone who has bought the Bresser who has regretted spending the extra.

The one advantage of the SW is that it is cheaper initially  and you can upgrade it one bit at a time. 

Theres a ZWO ASI 034mc camera listed on Astrobuysell at the moment for £45.00 posted. Basic beginners camera but cheap.

Hazy sunshine this morning but at least good enough to get the scope out. Not much to see though. The sun is sooooo quiet. 👎🏽

However at least got to try the ZWO 120MM camera. Need a 1.25” spacer though to move the 0.5 focal reducer away a bit so I can get a full disc image. One ordered from FLO. Much playing about with settings needed to get an image worth looking at. 

Find with the TV 25mm Plossl the polarising filter is really needed wheras with the Nirvana 16mm not needed. The higher mag of the Nirvana does soften up the image very slightly but doesn’t lose any detail. 

Have been using Duracell Recharge Ultra. AA batteries and they work just fine. They hold their power output better than regular rechargeable batteries. 

10 minutes ago, Ags said:

I was initially disappointed with my ES Nirvana 16/82 when used in an ST80, but I was stunned by how good it was in a Maksutov as a lunar eyepiece.

I bought it mainly for use in a mak but have been surprised by how well it works in the Quark.

Yes it has a face dosen’t it. Funnily enough I thought Take me to your leader when I set it up. 🤣

And Amazon just dropped off something not astro related.🙂

A nice new work light with two swiveling side lights. Found a use for the unused SolarQuest tripod. Just right for this light. No excuse not to start the loft clear up and shelving project now. 😁

I’m sure my chain lurks somewhere in the loft. 😁 

Yes the spreader is much better than the standard Berlebach chain arrangement which I couldn’t stand. Should be standard. 

The Berlebach spreader really improves the EQ6 steel tripod which I use for my TS mount (Skytee).

Dealt with Ian quite a few times and have allways been impressed with his depth of knowledge. Great move. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻