Ratlet

30 minutes ago, Mandy D said:

@cajen2 They're still plugging the geocentric universe theory, then?

I mean technically if you're talking about the observable universe, then it kind of is at the centre of the universe.

On the bright side, I'm pretty certain someone will buy your dob, even if the motors are packed in.  You can put that towards something else.

I wouldn't be too worried about moving to a smaller scope.  I tested my 130pds/Altair Astro 533c with 20 minute total integration on M27 and Stephens quintet and even just a stack and autostretch in siril gave great results.  I keep wanting to try livestacking but it's hard to give up the 130pds for sketching.

If only I had a dob for visual....

Just wondering who among us are use a mask on the primary vs those who have siliconed it in?  I'm in the process of modding mine up and have floc'd it (inside and outside of the focuse tube too) and just getting onto the primary.

Also wondering if I did mask the mirror would it matter if it was coloured plastic that was used, so long as it is low reflectivity?  I've not got any black for the 3D printer, only rainbow.

Also hoping the floc will help with contrast on jupiter as it is a tad washed out IMHO.

I'm looking at doing some EEVA and found this forum useful:

https://www.astronomie-va.com/forum/index.php

It's in French but there's an option to select the language underneath the header (Little Google G will run it through auto translate).  There's some good info on what different people are running.  L:ot of the members are doing it with Dobs.  Not sure iof you want to ask a question if you can do it in English, but lots of good info.

37 minutes ago, Louis D said:

Someone over on CN in this thread noticed that a seller on AliExpress seems to have the entire line of Meade HD-60s available for a very good price for each focal length.

I spotted that also but didn't want to suggest it as it is unconfirmed.

That being said, I'm probably going to risk it for a biscuit.  I might pick up the 25 or 18mm myself.  You spoke very highly of them and your yard stick photos from the comparison shows the difference between them and the starguiders.

Just now, DaveL59 said:

technically, 5 words 😉 

I was taught to count by Monty Python's Spanish Inquisition lol

You could try and track down some hd-60s.  I believe meade UK has some of the focal lengths available.  Bit more expensive but very well regarded for the price.

Personally when I've tried to use my BST 8mm with my glasses and the eyecup on I've found it not so nice.  Still crisp but much narrower.  Not for me.  I do find I get better views in general without my glasses though, even with my 32mm Plossl which is absolutely delightful with glasses on

I love my mini pc to bits and it does everything I want of it, but this is (to me) a situation where the asiair is the better option.

7 minutes ago, DaveS said:

I don't have a dob 😆

Linguistically this statement is fascinating.  You have said 4 words about the dob, but it implies far more about the other items. 🤣

Her is my heart nebula.  Taken with:
200mm SMC Takumar @ F5.6, Altair Astro 533c Hypercam, GEM28 Mount.  SVBONY 30mm guidescope and ASI120MM for guiding.  All controlled with Nina through an Intel NUC. 

2 hours of 90s exposures @-5°C under 95% illuminated moon.

3 minutes ago, Ouroboros said:

Sorry my knowledge of mini-pcs is pretty meagre. I am interested to know what other factors need to be considered when using a mini-pc?  How easily can they be attached to a telescope or mount? Does it provide 12v power outlets to cameras, dew heaters, focuser etc? Is there an app for controlling the software from an iPad or other tablet?  How much setting up is necessary before it becomes useable for AP? 

Looks like you've got a pretty good understanding of mini pc's there lol.

SMC Takumar 200mm provide some VERY nice framing for a lot of objects and has exceptional optics also.

This was taken using alacant's method of focusing and an smc takumar 200 which I got for £40-50.

Vintage glass is fun.  Its cheap compared to alternatives too.

4 minutes ago, HollyHound said:

I still miss this beauty… something about that colour scheme, solid build and weight… just oozes… “weapon” 🤣

Mmmm.  Nice wooden tripod, sleek black lines.  Neo-luxurious stylings.  

Stella-mira make a lovely scope.  I won't even give it bonus points for me not having to pawn both my kidneys to afford it.

What did I see tonight?  Fog mostly.

Between getting home and getting the kids to bed the clouds descended.  Not ideal.

Not a complete bust though just before it got cloudy I went to set my kit up in the shed and it was incredible.  You could clearly see the milky way from Cas to Cygnus.  

I did setup briefly but Jupiter was the only target and even that was through fog.  I did come testing with my kit and put my telescope through an old t-shirt so I could use the shirt as a hood of sorts and cover the eyepiece when I walked away.  It worked very well and is probably going to live on the scope.  I might get the missus to make something purpose built.

I also tried sitting down on a chair and observing.  As the Mandalorian would say "it is the way".  Even on a camping chair it was great and it was a bit low.  Going to have to investigate building an observing chair.

Speaking of low, I had to collapse my tripod legs to get it to work.  This eliminated the wobbles my 130pds has experienced since I got it.  Looks like I'll need to get a new tripod.  Oh well, at least it'll be cheaper than a dob.

2 hours ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

Hmmm not convinced, we will see, hopefully  

Think tonight is going to be clear for a lot of the country.  Going to be WILD in here tomorrow lol.

Hoping some more folk will post some sketches lol.

3 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

Agreed!

If you want to really rile them up, way it gets the best views with a UHC filter.

2 hours ago, reddish75 said:

So this is where I'm confused a little, I've seen recommendations to use a telrad, is this in conjunction with a raci? 

You can lump the quickfinder, telrad and red dot site in together in that they are finders which work at zero power.  The main difference is a red dot finder shows a dot, a telrad/quickfinder shows circles.

I use a quickfinder because my scope with a 32mm Plossl gives x20 magnification and a 2° field of view which is quite nice to navigate by.  Although it can be a struggle as I'm using a 5" scope to navigate by and it shows a lot more stars than some star charts, but it works for me I think.

Some people use both a finder scope and a rdf or similar.

42 minutes ago, davehowat said:

What do you mean fake ,next you will be telling me there's life on earth 😂😂

He means Ohio is fake.  It doesn't exist.  Like birds.  They're really just government spy drones.  London gets the best so they have lots of pigeons.  Some places can't afford small light weight birds so have to make do with larger models.  This is why some costal towns have seaguls the size of small horses.

3 hours ago, Louis D said:

I was on one of the last IBM mainframe CPU design teams in Poughkeepsie, NY, that worked in ECL logic in the late 80s/early 90s.  That was some fun stuff to design in compared to CMOS.  15-way OR dotting combined with 8-way AND blocks allowed for very shallow but very wide decoder/selector circuits.  Also, emitter-follower drive capabilities allowed for enormous fanout, negating the need for buffers.  Switching to CMOS was a shock as it required relearning gate-level circuit design.  You couldn't get nearly as much logic done in a single clock cycle, so you had to increase your logic's pipeline depth quite a bit leading to increased latency.  You also had to add a lot of buffering due to terrible on-chip CMOS gate drive capabilities, further increasing pipeline depth.  It took about a decade for IBM flagship CMOS mainframes to surpass their bipolar counterparts in sheer performance.  Of course, they also shrank from ~12 enclosures to 1, with a commensurate drop in power consumption and cooling needs.

Incredible.  I recognise and understand every individual word but have no idea what you are talking about lol.

Waaaaay too advanced for my crease-less brain.

5 hours ago, saac said:

Biblical rain fell yesterday across Eastern side of  Scotland (Aberdeenshire, Tayside, Fife, Lothians Borders). I've never seen so much of the map covered in Yellow Flood warnings.  I swear at one point I saw Noah in his arc sailing by - lol the waters are only subsiding now (and no I'm not joking).  

Jim 

It was wild.  We had bad flooding but fortunately my house is on a hill and not by the river!  Flood defences held but the drainage struggle with the volume of rain and there was some flooding from the rain.

On the bright side tomorrow is looking good.  Going to try to squeeze a couple hours in before I have to get up for work at 0400

3 minutes ago, reddish75 said:

 

Thanks Ian and Ratlet I've got some 8mm bolts somewhere, I'll check fitment and get back to you for your kind offer Ratlet

I'll grab a photo of the bolts. Does the scope have the bracket for the finder scope?a

If it's M8 I think I've got a M8 anodised knurled knobs somewhere would need to check on the length but could be a good replacement.  If you like red.

24 minutes ago, PeterC65 said:

Yes! The mount is rated at 5kg, 6kg some say, and the 150PDS OTA weighs 5kg. I take care to balance it and try to avoid having anything heavy hanging well out of the (close to horizontal) focuser. I don't think it is putting undue strain on the mount axles or motors (there is no sound of them struggling). The scope wobbles a lot more than my other scopes if I touch it, and takes noticeably longer to settle, but it's still perfectly usable.

I bought the 150PDS as a bit of a punt to see if I could get to 6" aperture on my mount and I can. Anything bigger would mean a significant cash layout. After last night I'm thinking that the 150PDS will be my main scope for visual, with the Skymax 127 for the Moon and Planets and the refractor for EEVA.

 

What mount are you using?

My 130pds wobbles like a civil servant at a Christmas party at 160x on my az5.  Not a major issue so long as I hover head but not ideal

3 hours ago, markse68 said:

I want one of these just for its looks- mount and all

Mark

I'm probably going to get banned for this, but I've always thought Taks looked cheap.  Not a fan of the colour scheme, although I do love the mewlon.  It looks like something from Battlestar Galactica.

4 hours ago, niallk said:

It's a 30+ year old design very much based on practicality and functionality, and parts readily available in a DIY shop (bar a couple of custom cast items), but to my eye, aesthetically beautiful too!

This is winning for me.  Got a very cassette punk aesthetic to it (think steam punk, but 1980s rather than 1880's).

Very elegantly designed but also brutally efficient.  Marvelous.