DirkSteele

The only way to access to the rear lens would be to remove this lens assembly from the tube completely.  This is not something I would undertake lightly.  I am unfamiliar with the Espirit lenses so I am now sure how they attach.  I have had to remove one of the triplets of my LZOS scope before, but that is actually quite simple as it simply unscrews from a housing that acts as the bridge between the lens and the tube.  That bridge has the push / pull screws which are used to collimate the scope.  Fortunately upon reattachment, the scope remained perfectly collimated.

So the question would be, are you confident to remove the lens, clean the rear (there are guides on line on how to clean), and then reattach and possibly need to recollimate the scope?  If not, how bad are those spots?  If they small and not too numerous, they likely will have limited impact on performance.  Front surface lenses get lots of crud on them over time, and the advice is to rarely clean, if ever, as it won't impact performance much, but you could damage a lens far more (I did this once a while back).  The alternative, if you are concerned, or think it is impacting performance, is to source an optician who can do the work for you.  You could speak to the dealer that sold the scope to see if they can recommend someone.

Do you mean the water spots are on the rear surface of the lens? i.e the side facing the focuser?  If so, there is no quick easy solution for that.  Can you post some photos focused on the spots so we can see how bad they are?

It is critical to air dry the scope.  If you believe you have some condensation inside the OTA, then desiccated silica is your friend.  Something like this which can be inserted into the eyepiece end of the scope will help:

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dew-prevention/flo-125-2-inch-desiccant-cap.html

I would bring the scope in from the garage if you can and allow it dry thoroughly over several days.  If you believe moisture has penetrated the mount you could open up the electrical housing so it can breath.  However, scopes / mounts are somewhat designed to operate in damp conditions given the difficulties we all experience with dew (don't throw it in a swimming pool though! 😉) and all should be OK once dried out.

Nicely done.

4 hours ago, Trikeflyer said:

Sounds like you had an night to remember. Nice write up. Thanks for sharing. Just shows that skies are as important as big aperture scopes. Imagine having access to a 12inch Dob out there 😱

Steve 

Seriously! Can you imagine? I told the management to install a telescope. Their lodge in Namibia has a 12” LX200 so they do know about astronomy.  I did a lot while I was there. Probably have another three write ups to do based on my observing log.

My signature would indicate that I am fairly well placed to speak about them given I own four of them, being the 105mm f/6.2, the 115mm f/7, the 130mm f/9.25 and the 180mm f/7.  If we are speaking about the scopes with LZOS lenses (from Russia), then the quality of the scopes is as good as anything you can buy from any of the premium manufacturers such as TEC, Takahashi or AstroPhysics Inc.  The build quality is great and they use Feathertouch focusers which are as good as it gets.

I have not really had any experience with their non-LZOS scopes but I imagine they are also very good. 

2 hours ago, mark81 said:

 I like the way you also found the time to enjoy the targets with different mags rather than just jumping from one to the other.  

Thanks.  I think the experience of star hopping for almost 30 years came into its own on this session, which gave me the time to actually stop and study each cluster rather than rushing to the next.  But if I am honest, this might be the most successful star hops I have done in a long time, with very few missed targets and random searches.  It was almost as if the stars aligned....

Armed with only a 3" scope, but under a Bortle Class 2 sky (limiting magnitude of +7) on Benguerra Island in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Mozambique, I attempted to observe every globular in Ophiuchus, which is second only to Sagittarius in number of GCs, in a single session while on holiday in July.  Observing report is on the link below.  It is quite a long one so you might want your favourite beverage while you read whether I was successful or not.

http://alpha-lyrae.co.uk/2019/08/04/observing-every-globular-cluster-in-ophiuchus-in-a-single-session/

Three inch aperture is not that much, but when the zodiacal light is this bright only 80 minutes after sunset, you might have a chance....

Feedback always appreciated.

If you intend to transport the fragile optical components in the hold of an aircraft, I would think nothing less than a Peli case would do (or similar other brand offering).  I would still be a bit nervous about doing that as they are called baggage "throwers" for a reason.  I have taken a Peli 1510 in the cabin for long haul no trouble with a 4" refractor in it.  Tripod and mount can go in the hold.  Plus a Pelican case is a potential theft target as it is clearly holding something more valuable than clothes.

Can I assume you are taking the 130PDS?  Perhaps if you dont think you can take the whole scope in the cabin, you could remove the primary mirror and take that as carry on to keep it safe and just install and collimate at your destination?

I think it is quite popular in Japan (hence why Taks come with so many extension tubes!).  I rarely do it as it is not super comfortable, but I have been known to pull out the diagonal if I am going for something super tough (usual a double split) and want as little junk between me and the wavefront coming in.

The most amazing Google Doodle I have ever seen to mark the Apollo 11 lunar landing.  Includes a wonderful 4 minute narration from Michael Collins.  Definitely worth a watch.

The &Beyond lodge on Benguerra Island in Mozambique. Latitude is -22 so Saturn crosses the Meridian at the Zenith. Light pollution maps classify as a Bortle 2 sky but it is only just missing being a class 1 by 0.01 (21.99 va 22) on the SQM reading. So it is rather good for a spot of astronomy.

This is the kind of view one could get used to after a long stargazing session that concluded with a sunrise.

More DSOs than I can count, plenty of bright meteors with persistent trails, and even grabbed M42 which is rather early in the season. That bright star in the top right is Rigel.

Pleased to report a split with my Tak FC-76 at 90x, which just revealed the tiny grey-green secondary. Seeing was exceptional and Antares was at about 75-80 degree altitude. Which clearly helped a lot...

However, a second attempt a few days later ended in failure. Better transparency but poor seeing and I could not see the secondary even at almost 200x, with the primary dancing all around. Was a night for DSOs.

I would not fixate too much on the transmission.  Given the glass path length (glass absorbs light as it passes through) in the WX and the number of air to glass surfaces, it was unavoidable that transmission would be in the 80s.  From what I have read of performance, no one has complained about image brightness.

I would love to try them but given they weigh so  much, I am not sure they would be for me as they defeat what I see as the primary advantage of bins, that they are truly grab and go in a way no telescope can be.

They certainly feel like an exercise of “because we could” rather than “whether we should” but that does not make the achievement any less amazing.

I know it is a bit of a cheat but I am heading down to an island off the coast of Mozambique so I will have a crack when I am down there.  My defense is I will only have a 3" aperture to assist me.  Trying to recall if I have ever even attempted it in the UK.

Pulcherrima translates more or less as "most beautiful" and is reportedly what Struve said when he split Izar for the first time.  Definitely an appropriate turn of phrase for a wonderful double star.

I am pretty sure when I joined SGL back in 2012 there would have been two scopes in my signature with one more on its way.  And that speaks nothing of the new mounts and EPs since then.   

👇

This is where I keep going in Namibia.  Does not get much better than that.

This is where I went on my Honeymoon.

This is where I am going on holiday this year.

Why do I go to these places??  Because of this!!!!  Welcome to central London....

A 76mm tube ring fits perfectly around the 2" Feathtouch and then you are free to mount the finder on it and position as you require.  See below for my Tak FC-76 solution.

Edit: I see Mark beat me to the punch.

Bit more of an informal club, but the Baker Street Irregular Astronomers in London has a real mix in both age and gender.  I imagine the average age is somewhere in the late 30s to early 40s, and while we have plenty pushing into their 50's and 60's, we also get quite a few in their late teens and twenties.  While there are certainly more men, on any one month perhaps 25-40% will be female.

Nice report!

I need to stop reading these posts Gavin!  I am going to end up buying one of these NVs.  And I have a C11.....

Thanks.  Glad you found it an enjoyable read.  It is quite fun to go back over notes post a session like that and construct it to a narrative that is good to read at a later date.

I will have to check my diary and remaining holiday allowance for the SGL camp.  It would be good to meet some SGL members in person rather than always digitally.

The forecast leading up to the Spring 2019 AstroCamp was not looking that promising, but as yet another example of why we downtrodden (by the weather) astronomers should keep the faith was the first night which proved to be remarkably clear.  Fortunately I decided to keep notes so was able to write up the log.  Report is on the link below.

http://alpha-lyrae.co.uk/2019/05/06/stargazing-in-the-brecon-beacons/

I decided to take my APM LZOS 115 for two reasons.  One the weather did not look promising and hence the effort to carry something larger did not look to be rewarded (what was I saying about faith?) and second, I have recently had APM do a complete rebuild of the scope with upgraded tube and 3" Feathertouch so it was a chance to give the scope its first run out since getting it back.  Here it is waiting for dark.

Hope you enjoy the report.  Clear skies!