Saganite

59 minutes ago, Atomic_ said:

the Skywatcher comes with:

- Super 25mm and Super 10mm Eyepieces

- 2" to 1.25" Eyepiece Adapter with M42 Thread

- 6x30 Finderscope

What eyepieces/focusers should I be looking at? I'm assuming it would be different for what you use it for, but is there any general eyepieces/focusers to look for?

The focuser will be perfectly fine , so you will have in this Skywatcher all you need. I would probably scrap the 10mm and replace with a Starguider 12mm ( approx  90 dollars Australian), which will give 100x power and with the 25mm is ample for a good while until you get used to observing and deciding where your main interest is.

Good points, but the Skywatcher 6" Dob has a 2" Rack and Pinion focuser, so no slippage....

Hi there  and welcome to SGL.

Go with the Skywatcher 6" is my advice as it is within your budget, and will  show you so much it will keep you happy for years. You do not need to worry about the larger aperture, it will not make a massive difference and certainly not enough to warrant  twice the price.  The 6" is a very capable scope and was always promoted by the late great Sir Patrick Moore. I used one for a decade and a half, a long time ago, before I felt the need to go to a larger size.  

The money that you save will be better spent on a few better quality eyepieces and for very little money Starguider/ BST  will set you up.

Enjoy your scope when you get it and don't spend excessive time worrying about bigger and better.....not for a good while anyway..

5 hours ago, JeremyS said:

Well, I think you know the answer to that dilemma, Alan 

🤣

Exactly Al, bring it over here and try it in my dome......

On 13/05/2024 at 21:29, Stephenstargazer said:

Following with interest as considering simìlar possiblity after house move 🫰. Do the 'pro domers'  have a minimum size to recommend ?

I find my 2.2 metre Pulsar perfect for the 4" and 4.5"  f7.7 Vixens but a little cramped for my APM 6" F8.  It has to sit very far forward in the mount for me to get behind it with comfort but then of course needs counterweight. This is achieved with a scope on the other side of the AZ100, as well as Rowan's superb Y axis balance plate. It works perfectly well so I am happy.

My AE Luton 4.5" f14 just sticks through the aperture , but since the dome rotation responds to a gentle push with the hand, a little synchronisation and care is all that is needed....

The Pros of a dome are self evident, the Cons don't need to be regarded as  problems.

If I had a larger garden then the 2.7 metre would have given me more scope....

Hi Al,

As you know, I have had a Pulsar dome for 20 months and would not change it for anything.  During that time I have had my two refractors permanently set up in perfect balance etc etc, etc.

It has allowed me to enjoy long sessions and very short sessions because there is no set up/break down time involved and the scopes are at ambient.  It has allowed me to observe in the sort of windy conditions that I would otherwise spurn, in complete comfort but  I would never use it in strong windy conditions.  It is a fair point about losing the open sky with a dome . This troubled me and still does, but  is why I have the 12" Dob so that I can enjoy both on any session. 

I would heartily recommend  a dome, and you know where I am so you must pop over and see how you feel about using one. 

Steve

1 hour ago, josefk said:

you remember Steve i hate hate HATE dew - it just feels so wrong getting astro optics wet! A birding scope i would use in the rain but unsealed/unpurged lenses - ouch.

It was a bonus to be out though - it's "nip and tuck" for clear spells isn't it! .. and M57 'in colour' sounds fantastic!

It was superb Joe, and I feel the same way about telescopes and wet water ...🤣

I

Hi Joe,

I had the same problem.  I was at our Society Observatory looking through a 30" Dob, 10pm until midnight, quite an experience, and saw colour in M57 for the first time in my life. I had left my 12" dob cooling in the garden and when I returned to it at about 12.30 am I thought it must have been hit by a shower of rain it was so wet.  The sky stayed clear until about 2.30 am so I had a good long  but very  damp  overdue session.......

Hi,

If you believe the scope to be well collimated and you have enjoyed powers up to 170x then I should imagine your problem is simply one of poor/variable seeing.  Late last year I recall over several nights being unable to use more than 100x on Jupiter, the detail going soft, and the desirable power of 150/170x being quite impossible, and then it improved.  I would though recommend doing as David suggested, and compare what you see against the diagrams.  If you see something like the top left hand corner, then be sure that all is well and and enjoy whatever power gives you the sharpest image.

I think the image was taken by Clarkpm4242....

It looks like I didn't Piero as I have just checked the 22mm Nagler and it comes out at 656 gms.........my apologies to Neil.....

14 minutes ago, Littleguy80 said:

Out of curiosity this thread had me looking up the Nagler 22mm as I have the APM 20mm. From specs that I saw, the Nagler weighs the same? I’m assuming it’s physically smaller. Just thinking about the OP wanting to reduce size and weight. 

Hi Neil,

I have just parted with an APM 20mm 100 deg in favour of the 2" Nagler 22mm and the weight difference was 30 ounces to 24 ounces for the Nagler 22mm .  I weighed them both.

Funny you should say that John.  I had the 20mm 100 deg eyepiece for several weeks and used it quite often.  No complaints, a fine eyepiece but ultimately I could not quite take to it much as I didn't the 13mm Ethos seven  or so years ago.  I now have a Nagler 22mm by exchange on this forum and here I'll stick...

I have had the service back for a couple of hours but still it fails at odd times, briefly.

Seems to be down again. I know that they had a hosting problem last week and was down for at least a day.  Anyone else not able to access it at the moment?

Superb images, thank you.  I wish I could have seen it..

4x binoviewing pairs

1x 2" widefield 82 deg

1x 7.7-15.4 mm  zoom

1x 3-8mm  zoom

1x 7-21mm zoom

Three or four inexpensive eyepieces for outreach in a separate small case.

For a long time  I had 20 to 30 eyepieces which included Orthoscopic pairs but with advancing years eye relief has  dictated which eyepieces are  to be used. Instead of three hard cases I now have just one and a couple of small Vixen cases/ shells with the zooms and a barlow......

Great job Harry, last forever now ...

When it is all varnished it will look awesome, so show us the finished product please.

What a cracking job there John, excellent.

19 minutes ago, carastro said:

It wouldn't suprise me if the very first response they got was enough to put the OP off ever visiting here again.  

Well said.

On 03/04/2024 at 17:52, Littleguy80 said:

Couldn’t believe my luck when this came up on ABS on Easter Sunday! I have a birthday coming up so I’m putting it away for that. Should give some time for the clouds to clear 😉

Hi Neil,

After our discussion on the riser for the Berlebach Castor, I thought of you when I saw this up for sale, and I am pleased that you got it.  What a result.....

8 minutes ago, F15Rules said:

Thanks to my good friend Steve (@Saganite) (and Tim, @Franklinof course), my recently acquired Vixen LVW set is now complete..

The new to me 3.5mm will give me 254x in my Vixen SD115S, and with the 1.6x barlow, 406x.

Here's the full set.. (L-R, back to front) - 3.5mm, 5mm, 8mm, 13mm, 17mm, 22mm, 42mm..

Plus decloaked 2" Axiom LX 23mm & 31mm 84 deg UWAs at bottom right..

Scope and Cyclops Eyepiece wise, I'm now done!! 😂

Dave

Very nice Dave, I feel much better now.....

Not particularly early publications,  The Mysterious Universe being 1931 , but I have had these three since the early 1960's when my interest in Astronomy began.

20 hours ago, Highburymark said:

Nice choices Steve.

I tend to use the amici when I’m panning around the surface, and looking at features on a wider scale. I use binoviewer and Nagler 13s for an expansive view, and I do prefer a left-right orientation for this. Think it’s because I studied lunar maps from a young age and still find it more natural. Then for close up lunar details I more often use a right-left prism or mirror. It just involves a little thought before I set up.
To be honest, everything looks so great on the Moon - including pretty much every eyepiece, telescope and diagonal I’ve ever used - that it’s not the best target for distinguishing critical performance differences. So for those who prefer correct orientation on the Moon, a quality amici is well worth considering. 

Yep, bino and 13 Naglers for me also Mark , on Lunar and planetry, the perfect combination in my scopes.

I use the Baader clicklock and Baader Zeiss T2 prism diagonals in my refractors, for the best image I can get, and wrestle with Lunar orientation...