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long_arms

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Everything posted by long_arms

  1. Ha I did google this out of interest, all those crushing/bending penny machines at tourist destinations springs to mind. Can't believe its enforced. However to remove any doubt, it was only paint. I have now cleaned the 20p clean and the Queen looks as good as ever! No tower for me just yet.
  2. Small splodge opposite the focuser of the 200p dobsonian. Pointed at a light source to attempt to illuminate it. The inside of the telescope seems very black until I illuminate it like this. Interestingly I can find an angle where the paint appears "lighter" than this. Its hard to get a photo of.
  3. I've seen mixed things about Black 2.0, apparently it had the usual tendency of getting slightly lighter as it dried. The video I posted shows comparison between Black 2.0 and Black 3.0 quite well I think. From this article: https://www.fastcompany.com/90300113/move-over-vantablack-you-can-now-buy-the-worlds-blackest-black-paint "His first version, Black 2.0, wasn’t quite as black as Vantablack, since it only absorbed 95% of the visible light (Vantablack absorbs about 99%). Now, Black 3.0 is out and available on Kickstarter for about $32 per 150ml tube. According to Semple, it is the blackest, mattest, flattest acrylic paint available on the planet, capturing up to 99% of all the visible spectrum radiation. The paint is based on a new pigment called Black Magick, whose exact composition they aren’t disclosing. Black 3.0 is made up of this pigment, combined with a custom acrylic polymer. Semple and his colleagues claim that the polymer “is special because it has more available bonds than any other acrylic polymer being used in paints,” allowing more pigment density. The paint is then finished with what they claim are new “nano-mattifiers,” which remove any shine from the paint. Unlike Vantablack, the resulting paint is soluble in water and nontoxic" Thankyou for your feedback on flaking! Before I paint the drawtube I will certainly check this out. ?
  4. This is a good shout, I have an IR742 Pass filter somewhere, I'll try and get a photo through that. The small amount of dried paint on paper, is now making everything I can find look positively gray!! I'll see how easily it flakes when its dried on the steel tube of the telescope.
  5. Tried to think of a fun quick test to document this afternoon, previous little tester on less metallic object is unbelievable to be honest. So, very shiny coin with grazing light and lit from above also. Whilst drying, as you can see its a thin single coat (not simply "filling" in the shape) Finally, even on a challenging shiny object with light shining on it, it makes it essentially 2D.
  6. Hello, It's been a long time since I've posted in this forum, anyway I've picked up a Skywatcher 200p F/6 dobsonian as a DIY project whilst I continue to work on a new telescope from scratch, (I've started to grind the mirror). I'll be making improvements to this dobsonian as a project and learning experience, I've already got a temperature controlled fan which has a probe that can measure both mirror and ambient temperature. I'll be measuring the primary mirror with my in progress Foucault/Ronchi/Bath Tester when that's finished in the next couple of weeks, may even refigure it depending on results. But I'm most excited about this right now. The blackest Black Paint as an alternative (hopefully better alternative) to flocking! This stuff is seriously black and flat, I backed it on kickstarter and received 3 bottles along with goodies. I plan on painting the area opposite the focuser, area around the primary mirror, inside the focuser drawtube, potentially the secondary mirror holder and edge of the secondary also. It's a shame I don't have any flocking to compare it with but it looks incredible. This video shows just how impressive it is (moreso than my little tester I've done). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJIIzcbRD9w I'll try and get some decent before and after pics. Dan
  7. Just ordered the brand new ZWO ASI174MM!

  8. ASI120MC-S arrived! Now just need to choose a USB 3.0 laptop before the next lot of ISS passes....

    1. HIP3802

      HIP3802

      Before choosing a laptop make sure the camera can take USB 3. I had to return an ASI 120 earlier in the year as it was not compatible (at all!!!) with USB3.

      HTH.

      Martin

  9. Any 500px users on here?

    1. tingting44

      tingting44

      not that i know of :(

    2. long_arms

      long_arms

      Fair enough. Just joined and there are some incredible images on there. Was looking for some astronomy peeps to follow :-)

  10. Got the ring nebula on the little ASI120MM sensor. Subs look good!

  11. Just had a look at Saturn. Lovely, not too bright though. Seeing was awful but couldn't resist!

    1. Bilvers

      Bilvers

      Me too - great sight

  12. Whyyy does Eqmod stop working whenever my ASI120MM is plugged in. Tried every variation including powered hub. Losing the will!

  13. Eqmod loses connection to mount everytime I open firecapture! Both work fine all night independently.

  14. Very Bright Supernova discovered in M82! Aaaaand...its cloudy. Typical.

  15. ASI120MM with fish eye is amazing! Very clear...even picked up the milky way!

  16. ASI120MM has arrived! It feels really well built with a nice weight to it, can't stop holding it!

  17. Ordered an ASI120MM from ZWO. HMRC want £80 in duty/tax. I expected 20% VAT. But it should be duty free. So £199 + £20 shipping. Why £80!?

    1. Show previous comments  8 more
    2. ronin

      ronin

      Anything from abroad always found FedEx seemed to have some idea, but DHL incompetant. I think FedEx add the handling charges to the initial cost, DHL may not do that so then you pay them it. They did the same to me, no documentation just a request for a customs payment. Trouble is they had got it very wrong. When I requested the customs paperwork, copy or reference so I could get the correct rate applied they dropped the whole lot and suddenly decided I had nothing to pay. Which was what the...

    3. long_arms

      long_arms

      Well I thought I had found a reason for it to be so high yesterday but I was mistaken. I suspect it will have 5% duty. So the total is up to around 60. The other 19 is a mystery (in my view anyway).

      Ronin do you think I should go to the local DHL place to try and get answers? Its a bit of a journey. I'll try ringing them first.

    4. long_arms

      long_arms

      Also whilst I don't wish to be harsh on ZWO, when I paid for postage, I was under the impression that after that the only cost would be VAT+ duty. If its even got a chance of extra charges from a courier as well, I feel as though they should have this as a warning on their website. Perhaps I am being harsh.

  18. Anyone ever bought anything from Cyclops Optics? Looks v.cheap but I'm unsure :-/

    1. ronin

      ronin

      Quick search and someone on SGL used them back in April 2013. .

      They seemed pleased with the service, however the site seems lacking in anything to inspire confidence.

      Can understand your hesitation.

    2. Naemeth

      Naemeth

      Better to pay a bit more from a retailer that you are sure with if possible :)

  19. Was just taken out for a ride in a Mclaren 12C from my house. Wow...it is really quick and completely deafening.

  20. First attempt at guiding. PHD graph is horrendous, stars arent too bad but somethings clearly not right

    1. Ant

      Ant

      Do not get obsessed with the graph - if the stars are good... go with it!

  21. Dr Brian May just retweeted my moon photo from last night.!

    1. Helite

      Helite

      Well done, Nice pic.

  22. Heq5 synscan upgrade complete. Goto is so strange! Hopefully test it out for real this week.

  23. Finally got the gears off my Heq5. Can go about fitting the synscan upgrade tomorrow now. Relieved.

    1. ronin

      ronin

      What did you do to get them off, brute force or dogged persistance ?

    2. long_arms

      long_arms

      Definitely the latter. Just waiting for something else to go wrong now haha. Fingers crossed.

  24. Going to the 10-1730 BAA workshop meeting tomorrow in London...should be good.

  25. Got my scope last october. finally collimating for first time this week haha. its awful.

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