Merlin

I once purchased a National Geographic four-inch or thereabouts reflector a Aldi’s for twenty quid. The optics were rubbish. I should have known better.

It hasn’t been mentioned that without a shroud there’s bound to be a dewing problem.

That’s clever. A passive ventilation system. Have you had this system working in periods of heavy dewing?

Type in thermal management in Newtonian reflectors and click on the Sky&Telescope article.

The reason for why I use reduced specs lenses is because I have double-vision. Without the lenses inserted in the eyepiece cups, I wouldn’t be able to use the binoviewer and also some of the binoculars, where  eye relief is short.

A thing you can try Louis is to do what I did. Get a cheap pair of specs and take the lenses out. 

Next, cut the lenses down to fit into eyepiece cups. I hold them in with a bit of blue tack.

Before reducing the size of the lenses, put a small disc of easy to remove sticky paper on each side of each lens to protect the surfaces while you saw and file the rest of the lenses away.

I double-stacked a LS50f to a PST and the duo get on very well.

A Sky & Telescope article some years ago showed an amateur’s domed observatory with high-grade cling film stretched across the slit. There was a small heater under it.

The observer said he was getting diffraction limited images.

Years ago a well known British amateur astronomer, possibly G.D.Hole, had a window pane optically worked for £10,000.

Maybe you could explain the light pollution problem to them and ask them politely to shade the lights.

Offering them an observing evening in your back yard might get a  sympathic response.

If you like to DIY, serviceable rubber eyecups can be made from bicycle inner tube. I’ve made several.

I wear distance specs, but the problem is compounded by having strong double-vision.

I’ve solved this problem when using the binoviewer or binoculars by dispensing with the specs and instead using the lenses from three of my old pairs of specs that I’ve sawn and filed down to fit into the eyepiece cups.

Works fine. I get the full field and no double-vision.

I glued my camping mat ends together with common or garden Uhu. Works fine, no tape needed.

I solved the weight problem  with 70mm binoculars by attaching them to a homemade binocular mirror-mount.

If you can afford to spend more than £100 then do it. Binoculars have their uses, but you’d need to get a ‘scope to yield  decent views of the objects you’d like to examine.

Also, consider buying good secondhand. I once purchased a nice six-inch reflector for £100 pounds. 

As a specs wearer, I get sufficient eye-relief with short-focus eyepieces by sawing and filling spare specs lenses down to a size so that they’ll sit in the eyepiece cup, held in with Blue Tack.

I filed two old specs lenses down to fit the eyepieces on the binoviewer. It pays to keep our old specs lenses!

Try a few binoculars and choose the one that you personally feel most comfortable with ... .

I’ve made effective eyecups from bicycle inner tube.

Have you considered a binocular mirror-mount? No stiff neck there. If you can handle a drill and a saw you could make your own, as I did.

suitable first-surface mirrors can be had at www.scientificmirrors.co.uk .

Look through the big ends of the bins to check if there’s fungus inside.

Some SCTs have an optical window at the bottom of the ‘scope to prevent internal fogging.

I personally find domed observatories aesthetically pleasing.

Well done Fella. I like your Dumbell image. I have a similar reflector ( secondhand ) that could do with a bit of attention.

The point is to make the shield long enough. Three times the aperture works for me.

In the old days, before this dreadful light pollution, Norton’s Star Atlas served me well. The constellations were easily seen, hence easy to learn.