michael8554

What PA figure does PoleMaster report after you've aligned, and the next time when you start up ? Michael

"the pec check for backlash " Explain what you mean by that. There are fairly regular big spikes in RA (blue trace). And those random big spikes in Dec (red trace) Can't tell from the grab whether those are from guiding or from external sources - grit in RA worm, snagging cables etc. Post a link to the GuideLog. Michael

Separate to the Back Spacing issue, is the ZWO ASI533 mc-pro actually working ? Shine a torch down the OTA, if it's working the laptop dislpay should go white, even if it's way out of focus. Michael

Yes saw that on the news, highly suggestive of a speculator wanting a clear site to build on.

What OTA ? What camera ? The back Focus for a f/0.63 Reducer is 105mm. Does that mean the camera has to be 210mm back from the first FR ? Michael

Perhaps we're thinking "Pixel size" eg 1200x 800. And "size of pixel" eg 3.75um. I'm saying a planet on a 6000 x 4000 pixel camera will be a dot. On a 600 x 400 camera it will "fill the image" But the 6000 x 4000 cropped to 600 x 400 will look the same, Michael

Isn't that what I said ? Same pixel size ? Michael

Hi Jim Focus a planet onto two cameras. One with a third inch diagonal sensor. One with a Full Frame 35mm diagonal sensor. Both with the same size pixels. The planet would be a dot on the Full Frame image. But almost fill the sensor on the small chip's image - wow, that's some magnification ! Maybe :-< Crop the Full Frame image to the same pixel dimensions as the small chip, the results look the same. So you can see how the concept of magnification when imaging is hard to quantify. Michael

Hi Tom I'd guess that like a normal OAG, the distance from the centre of the hot mirror to each sensor has to be the same, then both are in focus. You can roughly measure the distances with a ruler and add/remove spacers to make the distances the same. Michael

Hi Tom What are you hoping to achieve with the belt mod ? It will remove the PE from the gearbox, but the worm and wormwheel remain. As do the stock RA and Dec bearings, which may be stiff. And belt mods can introduce a very fast RA oscillation that is hard to guide out. I'd future-proof by buying a much better mount. Michael

Doesn't look like the ASI driver is loaded, as it's not on the list of available drivers. I don't believe an ASI will work on a QHY driver. The ST4 connection isn't relevant. You can prove the camera is working during the day: Without a scope attached it should show a peak white output. With your hand over the sensor the output will be black. Michael

You'll have to explain what you're trying to do with 3 cameras, some mono. The most common setup is a DSLR with a wide angle lens. The ASI178MM/MC has a tiny sensor. Michael

Is this a new problem, the guiding was previously okay ? Not a Maxim user, so I'd guess that X is RA, as the wave-like component of the X drift looks to be PE related. The overall drift suggests that X axis isn't tracking at the correct sidereal rate, and is not being corrected by Maxim. Does Maxim have a Guiding Calibration, was that successful ? Try guiding with PHD2 ? Michael

You need to vent your rage against the system....... 😆 https://www.facebook.com/ratstribute/videos/467906567414250/ Michael

I would jump at the chance to help , if only I lived closer. Michael

Confirm you're on PHD2 2.6.11 dev6, released 29 May 2023. The General release of 2.6.11 was way back on 22nd Feb 2022. Michael

Worked in SharpCap in Long Exposure mode ? Or was it in Video mode, which is different to the way used in PHD2 ? Michael

Good point Peter. I hate it when someone resurrects a 12 year-old post instead of starting a new one. He did say "I have the same problem". So my suggestions may help. Michael

Hi Chiz You seem to have isolated the problem to the batteries and the hand box. Check for volts on the motor plugs when you press buttons. Check that a solid 6V is actually getting inside the hand box. Michael

Not sure how the Az is adjusted on that one. But certainly as sturdy as a brick-built-****-house. Michael

I assume you want to wedge-mount the LX200 to allow imaging. The 12" is a heavy beast. And requires a very sturdy wedge. The basic Meade aluminium one bends under load. Only fractions of a mm, but that's enough to cause problems when stars are only a few um's in size on the sensor. Which is why custom wedges from Milburn, AE Mega Wedge etc, made from heavy gauge steel or aluminium, were offered. Meade has in the past offered increasingly more expensive wedges for this reason - SuperWedge, UltraWedge, X Wedge. There are online articles on how to "beef-up" the Meade wedges. I suppose it comes down to how much change in PA is acceptable. With guiding it may not matter so much. Michael

Hi Franklin I'm afraid you'll find that we spend more time joking about typos than fixing the problems. For instance, your scope isn't powerful enough to see the wheat fields on Mars........ 😆 Michael

To backup what has been said. If Venus is in focus when you look down into the eyepiece. Then the autofocus on the camera is failing to find the tiny dot that is Venus, and has latched onto a much bigger and closer object, the secondary. As Geoff suggested, try to lock the phone's focus onto a fixed focus setting. And a phone holder if you're going to continue using the phone. Michael

If you were able to focus on the Moon, then Venus should be in focus too. But did you actually see detail on the moon, or was it a featureless blob ? The scope should be able to focus an eyepiece that came with it, without needing to add any extensions. The Moon and Venus are so far away that they can both be considered to be at "infinity". Whereas a distant landmark will only get you close to "infinity" focus, but is a good starting point if correct focus is way out. Then for best night time focus, start with the Moon if available, and then a star. Michael

Depends entirely on the guidecam performance. If it displays a lot of hot pixels that PHD2 might think are stars then make a Dark Library. Michael