nephilim

52 minutes ago, Swoop1 said:

N+1?

@Swoop1    S-1 I'm now single 😂

Hi,

So, as the title suggests I'm looking at buying a Ha filter for imaging & after any opinions on Antlia's Pro Ultra 3nm Ha Filter. ( https://www.365astronomy.com/optical-accessories-1/filters/dslr-clip-filters/antlia-pro-ultra-narrowband-3nm-oiii-filter-1.25  ) At nearly £300 I'm wanting to make sure its worth it.
I do know of one going second hand from a very nice SGL member 😀  who has offered me first refusal if he decides to sell soon. ( He knows who he is so I'm hoping the smiley emoji secures a good price 😂).

This is something I've been looking into for a while & I was originally going to go for Baaders 3.5nm offering but after reading the long thread/ review on here & also Cuiv the Lazy Geeks (Of YouTube fame) review of them I decided not to go for those. 

Ideally I'm wanting a bandpass of around 3nm, Chroma & Astrodon are unfortunately well out of my price range, Antlia therefore look to fit the bill, fairly premium, the bandpass I'm looking for & good reviews from what I've seen online. I'd just like to hear some opinions from people who have used them on here. How do you find them overall?, do they create the usual halos regularly seen with some of the lower quality filters? (this one is a bit of a deal breaker as I find halos the hardest artifacts to deal with in post-processing) and how well do they handle fast scopes/ lens' ? I'll mainly be using this filter on widefield targets (nebula) so I'll be imaging with my Samyang 135mm f2 ED camera lens, this can obviously be stopped down & I usually shoot @ around f2.8. All pros & cons will be gratefully received.

Thanks in advance & Merry Xmas etc. to you all

Steve

1 hour ago, Swoop1 said:

I work in the bicycle industry and mine, along with many others, rely totally on the Far East manufacturing bloc. Bikes of all price points come through with stickers saying Assembled in the UK/ Assembled in Germany (other EU locations are available etc.

The truth is, they ARE assembled in these locations- out of components made in China, Japan etc. Very few components are made in Europe/ USA  (there are some exceptions- Hope technology in the UK, Chris King in USA etc). 

What the consumer is willing to pay is what leads the manufacturing market. Until consumers stop hunting the cheapest deal (I'm as guilty as everyone else), cheap Far eastern manufacturing will remain king.

I fell into the whole 'Hope' thing when I first started mountain biking & ended up paying a premium for what in reality is pretty standard stuff (Their brakes are a total rip off). On my latest build due to many parts not been available all thanks to leaving the EU 🙄 I decided to stick with uk manufacturers as best I could (apart from the SRAM drivetrain) I chose Bird for the frame & Hunt for the wheels, I'm so glad I did as the quality is outstanding & although pretty expensive (Nowhere near Santa Cruz prices though, then again I'm not one for buying a 'name' anymore) this bike will last me a long long time.
Apologies for the non astro related reply but as you know, us MTB'rs dont need much of an excuse to show off our bikes 😂

Steve

12 minutes ago, The Admiral said:

Don't all companies operate like that?

Ian

I think your spot on there 😂

6 minutes ago, tooth_dr said:

There is no way to polar align my mesu e200. I just got it rough by eye then used software to refine it. 

The Mesu e200 is a bit of a step up from this though 😀

3 minutes ago, Daf1983 said:

Interesting. Is the laser the only way to polar align, or is there a polar scope aswell?! Surely the laser alone wouldn't be accurate enough for astrophotography?!

Knowing how ZWO works, they will come up with an 'upgrade' for this mount with a proper polar scope in around 6 months time after everyone realise the laser doesn't work.
Of course they wont announce the upgrade until they have a big sale reducing the cost of this current mount, before they suddenly announce the arrival of the 'New & Improved' version. Just look at the ASIAIR Pro & subsequent ASIAIR Plus for my cynical opinion here 😒

Steve

🤔 No comment 😂

12 minutes ago, gilesco said:

Well - a harmonic drive + tripod for £2000 (I know it says USD $1999, but that will translate to £2000+ for UK retail suppliers)

This will always need auto-guiding, the laser feature may not be available in many countries due to local regulations etc...

I will certainly keep an eye on this.

Knowing AP prices in the uk it'll probably translate closer to £3000 😂

57 minutes ago, StarryEyed said:

Took me three minutes to see the mount in the picture even with the ring around it. This is because it took me three minutes to stop staring at that clear sky. 

Its a very good use of Photoshop 😂

To me that looks as if your out of focus, a wobbly mount etc would look far worse than that. I'd look at getting a Bahtinov Mask, imo one of the most reliable ways to check focus. You dont want to be using a Barlow lens for imaging DSO's those are mainly for visual use or Planetary imaging. If you want to get in 'nearer' you can just crop the image during processing. Also your stars will start trailing after about 2 seconds with the focal length your imaging with. If I remember correctly the 200p has a focal length of 1000mm

Steve

@Geordie mc I agree with a lot of what your saying here. I've only been doing AP for about a year now & the main thing that appealed to me with ZWO products was price, ease of use (This was a big selling point for me as a newbie) and also their popularity, which I assumed meant they were good.
I currently have the ASI 120MM-S, I decided to leave guiding until I'd got the basics working well & still have yet to start. I really need to stop procrastinating now as its way past the time when I should have started as the images I'm taking are not bad (in my opinion that is) and would now benefit from longer, guided subs. So far I've taken a test shot of the Moon with the 120, the camera worked & the image was fine, that's all I can say really.
The ASI 533MC-Pro, which IMO is a very good camera for a beginner whose never used a dedicated AP camera before & at a very good price so no issues there but a good friend who bought the 1600MM at the same time has twice needed to strip his camera down (rather him than me) rather than send it away for who knows how long & clean the sensor due to melted silicone (or is it glue?) somehow leaking from somewhere.
Lastly I own The ASIAIR Pro & with this I've noted the following: An SD card which is very prone to corruption, this issue is so widespread that in every review I've read the first thing advised is to make a copy of the SD card (I would have thought that with this problem having gone on so long it would have been rectified or just addressed at the very least, the same goes for the very poor quality USB ports. This wont happen with either now due to the release of the Plus so it looks like we'll have to just live with it ). The aforementioned WiFi issues. very poor quality USB ports which on mine I cant see lasting too far into next year as they are that wobbly they seem like they could just fall out if that were possible if the wind changed direction 😬.  Very unreliable focusing, as in the HFD numbers/  results are all over the place 100% of the time, I use a Bahtinov Mask now. And questionable Firmware updates (The latest, now by default stores all images on the 'dodgy' SD card unless you switch it over manually each time you switch it on) that you have no choice but to accept as the app on your tablet/ phone etc. is automatically updated as soon as you connect & open it using a WiFi network, luckily I get round this by only using in my garden where it cant connect due to the poor WiFi signal 🤣 So the app connects to the AAP's hotspot & not a network.

Overall I'm happy with how my journey into AP is going & although  ZWO products are to use to thank for that due to how user friendly they are, especially the AAP (Yes, I see the irony here) I think I've let this ease overshadow the fact that the quality of these products isn't the best & with the AAP its shocking.
I will keep on using these until I outgrow the AAP which wont be too long, as @Geordie mc mentions there isn't a great deal of versatility with it but for me it has served its purpose whilst learning the ropes in this very complicated, time consuming but very satisfying hobby 

Astronomy equipment tends to have a good resale value if its well looked after & It usually is as us amateur astronomers tend to be a little OCD (I say this not meaning to belittle anyone who does truly suffer from it) when it comes to neatness & good order etc. My worry is that after only a year or so of what will probably be minimal use (Thanks mainly due to uk weather) the APP mainly, will not be fit for re sale as I'm not the sort of person who tries to pass off shoddy goods as 'in good working order'. So in the end I'll no doubt lose money.

Anyway, that's my two penneth. I hope this hasn't come across as supplier (or rather manufacturer) bashing as that isn't what I set out to do. Its a truthful & honest opinion of my experience with ZWO equipment over the last year.

Merry Xmas & all that to all at SGL

Steve

11 minutes ago, Zermelo said:

That reminds me of my school history lessons, when we learned how the Romans used to organize their bath houses.

They probably had warmer houses than mine 😂

Whenever I bring the scope/ camera etc indoors after an evening/ night imaging during the colder months I never put it all straight into a warm room.

Im lucky to live in a 200+yr old farmhouse (although it does have drawbacks) with very thick walls of around 2ft. I have a storage room downstairs that's only a few degrees warmer than the temperature outside, so first it goes in there until the morning & then over a period of time goes into warmer & warmer rooms.

This may seem a bit convoluted 😂 but it works very well. I appreciate many will live in a house that has an equal temperature all the way through, that'd cost a fortune in my house (one of the drawbacks I mentioned 😬) but if you have a garage that'd work or a room noticeably colder than the rest of the house. The key is, is to let it warm as slowly as you can. It's similar to if your using a dedicated cooled camera, I never just switch it off when it's at -10⁰c, I let it warm slowly by a few degrees at a time by resetting the cooler temperature. I'm honestly not sure if it makes a difference but I've read about it in a couple of AP related articles so better to be safe than sorry.

Steve

1 hour ago, FLO said:

That is probably an error. I am sure we have more arriving January. We will check and update soon 🙂 

Steve

@FLOdo I get a free one for pointing this out, what with it been Xmas & all that 🤔😂😂

3 hours ago, JeremyS said:

Takahashi TOE 4mm

Been waiting for one of these to come into stock for a few weeks. Up popped an in-stock notification from FLO at lunchtime yesterday, ordered within seconds, despatched early PM and just delivered. Just in time for Christmas. Thanks FLO 👍🏻

@JeremyS You were lucky to be quick off the mark there, back to a 40-60 working day wait (10 weeks-ish) 🤣

2 minutes ago, gilesco said:

https://www.illusionsindex.org/ir/hering-illusion

I didn't realise there was an actual name for it, learn something new every day 🙂

It looks as if the tripod leg on the left is bending under the weight of the scope, hopefully just a trick of the light.....or is it 😂😂

So, the postman didn't bring this, I did but I'm that excited with my tool box I felt the need to share my excitement with you lot 😂😂

Id been looking for a case for my side by side setup for what seemed like forever. I wanted something that would be big enough to house my small widefield setup (photo included here so you get the idea) without having to strip it down but because of the shape of it the only flight cases I could find were either oversized or custom made, both pretty expensive (£150 plus).

Luckily fellow SGL member @Ande was after a case as well & thanks to him my problem is solved. I'd been looking at flight cases which are not cheap regardless of size @Ande was sensibly looking at tool boxes & found the perfect one. During a sudden 'lightbulb moment' I realised (and I haven't a clue why I hadn't realised this a lot sooner 🙄) if I took off the Vixen bar that joins both 'scopes' together I wouldn't need an odd shaped case. It was definitely a case of the obvious solution staring me straight in the eyes & not seeing it 😒

I'm going to use the pictured toolbox for my camera/ Lens, Bahtinov Mask & cables then buy a smaller version of the same toolbox for my guide cam/ scope, filters & control unit for my mount (ES EXOS II PMC-EIGHT).  I'll be buying some puck & pluck foam for the inside of the box on Friday, so with the case costing only £29.99 (From Screwfix) & the cost of the smaller box (approx. £20) and the foam, I've saved a fair chunk of money. Big thanks to @Andefor this 🙂

7 hours ago, Ande said:

Thanks each. Both of those options look decent.  However, I’ve just collected my Stanley case from my local Screwfix. Once I have foamed it out it should be just about perfect.  Although I’ve pictured it with the guide scope on, the lid doesn’t come down. So I’ll only have to remove that for storage, which is fine by me 🙂. The case seem very robust, and could probably stand the weight of an average person. I’d be sure to make sure the scope isn’t inside whilst testing that theory though 😂. 
 

https://www.screwfix.com/p/stanley-fatmax-tool-box-26/8380p#product_additional_details_container

 

@Ande With your recommendations your becoming an expensive online friend to have what with the ASIAIR Pro & now this 😂

In all seriousness you've actually saved me money here (and as for the ASIAIR, that's been an absolute dream to use). I hadn't even thought about using a toolbox and flight cases that would be a suitable size were easily around the £150+ mark.

Buying the toolbox at £29.99 plus the packaging foam (here's a link if you haven't sorted yours yet.   https://www.easyfoam.co.uk/packaging-foam.php ) will have saved me a fairly big chunk of money.

Anyway it was meant to be though,  as I mentioned, there's a ScrewFix a 5min drive away from my parents & this was the last they had in stock until the New Year.

Although this would fit both the guiding & imaging gear, it would be a squeeze so I've decided to keep my main camera & lens setup in this case along with its Bahtinov Mask & Dew controller & dew heater strap, I'm then going to buy another toolbox the next size down for my guiding setup, the control until for my ES EXOS II PMC-Eight mount, filter, cables & the tablet I use for the AAP.

I never thought buying a toolbox would make me so happy 😂 Just please don't recommend anything beginning with the 'letters' Planewave or 10 Micron 😬

29 minutes ago, Ande said:

All we need now is a biblical parting of the clouds 🙂

That would be nice, I'm pretty desperate to get some more time on the North American Nebula.

I've also realised that I've been having a bit of a 'senior moment' 😂 I've only just realised that the case I need doesn't have to be the dimensions I've spent god knows how long looking for. All I have to do is take the scope/guide camera & the Lens/ Imaging camera off the  Vixen bar & that breaks the size down a fair bit so the box I'll need can be smaller & that means cheaper. 
I'm at my parents for xmas at the moment & luckily there's a Screwfix 2 miles down the road so I'm off there now to check out toolboxes 😃



 
 

2 minutes ago, Ande said:

I don’t know what impresses me the most….  Your gear, or your location. Either way, you’re a very lucky boy 😃

Thank you, as you know, it's taken a loooong time to get to this point (for both of us I think) and for you, your well on your way to finally be out getting some good photos 🙂

8 minutes ago, Ande said:

Thanks each. Both of those options look decent.  However, I’ve just collected my Stanley case from my local Screwfix. Once I have foamed it out it should be just about perfect.  Although I’ve pictured it with the guide scope on, the lid doesn’t come down. So I’ll only have to remove that for storage, which is fine by me 🙂. The case seem very robust, and could probably stand the weight of an average person. I’d be sure to make sure the scope isn’t inside whilst testing that theory though 😂. 
 

https://www.screwfix.com/p/stanley-fatmax-tool-box-26/8380p#product_additional_details_container

 

Looking at that I don't need to measure up again as there's no way my kit would fit in there 🤬 I'll have a look on their website & see if there's anything else. I'm also popping into town soon so I'll go into B&Q on the way & see if they have something.

1 hour ago, Ande said:

They look quite good. But, again, the only way I could accommodate my scope would be by going way over size in height. The foam link could be useful though. Anyway, panic over as I’ve found the ideal case. Drum roll please……

 

https://www.screwfix.com/p/stanley-fatmax-tool-box-26/8380p#product_additional_details_container

Hi Andy,

This is the problem I'm having, the ideal case for me would be 600mm x 500mm x 500mm but can't find that anywhere so I would have to go for a custom made case which is just silly expensive.

The tool box you've linked looks ideal & is a really good price, all it needs is the foam which I can get from the link I posted above.

I'm going to have another measure (not that It's going to have changed size since I last measured it 😂)

The main problem I have is because my setup is side by side mounted it makes it a lot wider & stripping that down even in the smallest way would mean pretty much taking the lot to bits. 

1 hour ago, TerraC said:

I got one of these for my gear.   Not too bad - ok you cant run over them with a car but they keep dust out and offer protection against dings and clunks.  They do all sorts of sizes. 

https://www.cases-and-enclosures.co.uk/roc-cases-aluminum-flight-cases

Well considering I'm running over my telescope in the car pretty much on a daily basis, these unfortunately will be of no use to me at all 😁

In all seriousness they look like the have some good cases there

Steve

5 minutes ago, tooth_dr said:

Steve I’ve linked to a thread that Cuivs has posted about this on CNs in my post directly above yours. It covers what he says in the video.  Baader directly told me that these tests were in fact not valid

I didnt spot that, thanks for pointing it out.  I'd like to hear Baaders reason as to why two of the filters he received were actually damaged in the same way as has been mentioned here a lot earlier in the thread (chips etc)