Saganite

To be true to your opener Dave, I do know several Astronomers of more senior years than myself, very , very fine observers, who are not members of SGL , so far as I know, whose knowledge and passion for observing are undimmed by advancing years, members of my local Astro society.

Casual Dave, casual.... pictures can be deceiving, I have a cast iron grip of that FS128, which sadly I had to hand over..

Just started my 70th year, and intend to carry on with the scopes that I have into my eighties and beyond if I am blessed. Like Dave (F15 Rules) I no longer have such good vision, in fact I cannot obtain sharp focus in my left eye any more ( epiretinal membrane )and only surgery might correct it. I find that my love of binoviewing helps here , as my dominant right eye seems to compensate and I still get acceptably good views.

Thanks for the approval. It should certainly perform better !

I have owned my OO12" Dob for three or four years and seen some stunning sights through it, and being the last day of the year I thought I would wash the mirror as it was looking a bit dull and had a few water marks. I was quite shocked at just how dirty the mirror was, thick with dust , which I feel is due to keeping it in the garage where floor dust and debris gets blown about every time a door is opened. The dust cap has been on an awful lot longer than it has been off this year, and so the ingress must have been under the mirror cell and even through the cooling fan I should think. I will be keeping it inside the house in future. Much longer cool down time is the lesser of two evils, by a long way. A lot of washing in soapy water and clean water, and a final sluice of steam distilled water has done the trick though, and I am quite relieved. Apart from the necessary cleaning it gave me the chance to get acquainted with the mirror cell, to adjust and set to my liking. It was released by Orion Optics in 2015 and I discovered that it had been given a Hilux coating, something I was planning at some stage. Reassembled and with perfect collimation , it now just needs a clear sky as early as possible in 2022. Happy new year to all, and clear skies.

My condolences Peter. I am visual only, and I like the image very much, as I see mostly grey things...

I'm with Jeremy on this one. If I can't use them at night time I prefer not to think about them..... Today, SHMBO turfed my scopes out of the conservatory , so they are all with me in my room, sulking ! I am allowed back after January 6th apparently.

Excellent book Jeremy. My copy sits in my bedside bookshelf and lulls me to sleep many a night...

Yeees, well you've seen my case of eyepiece pairs Al, so If you need help to spend your dosh , just let me know......

Hi Dave , You are not alone. I had high hopes for tonight and my f14 114mm refractor, but I wasted little time, it was just bad.

I would get the Starfield 102 , for the same reasons that have already been suggested and for how you feel yourself. I have a 12" Dob which sees nowhere near as much use as it used to, not because it is particularly heavy, but more often because I do not feel up to it for age and health reasons. I have four refractors, but two arrived unintentionally, by ' accident '. The Vixen ED103 F7.7 is by far my most used scope and is going to remain so for as long as I want to view the stars, it almost is a one scope option for someone who loves Lunar and planetary first. So, I too am looking to simplify things and top of the list is the Vixen followed by, if anything, one of my long focus refractors. The Starfield looks to be a superb scope. Good luck with your decision.

I was happy with two, my Vixen ED103 and my 5"f15, but then acquired two more at very little cost, by refurbishment, so now I have four , and I am even happier. I don't NEED four of course..

Welcome to SGL. A great idea for a thread !!. Here are are my two. D & G Optical 5" f15 and recently restored AE Luton Ltd 4 1/2" f14.....

Err, there is a queue you know.....

I mentioned earlier this evening Dave, that I had hopes, but I did not even get a scope through the door.

Beautiful, Dave....👍

Yep...

Without thought for a second, a binoviewer is the single piece of equipment that has transformed my love of and enjoyment in observing the night sky, and Lunar in particular.

I have a 6 x 30 RACI on each of my 4" refractors and a 9 x 50 RACI on my 5". They are Skywatcher finders, very inexpensive and very good and they stay put, aligned with the scope ready to go.

I used the ES 24mm some years ago, and I thought it excellent, as good as the Panoptic, but I have long been a dedicated user of binoviewers and my IPD is insufficient to make use of a pair of them whereas the 24mm Pan is perfect for the job. If you use the ES 24mm in Cyclops mode you will have no cause to wonder if you made the right choice.

Excellent report Nicola, thank you. It has long been on my ' bucket list '......

I have used it a few times, but I really like the idea of controlling it from a smartphone. The problem is my middle name is Ludd.

I 've had the Nexus DSC for a year plus now and still cogitating about Skysafari of any version. I should take the plunge really.....or cogitate a bit longer perhaps....

The reflector is a 6" f8 Al, and the Az100 handles it with ease as it does my long focus refractors. I will not of course use the slow mo control, but nudge the scope as you would a Dobsonian. The settle time is under 2 seconds and I can reach zenith . I wish I had done this several nights ago while trying to see Sirius B with my 4", it would have been interesting.

With time on my hands this afternoon, I decided to mount the 6" TAL reflector on the Az100. I bought this just days before the first lockdown and done nothing with it because of the ongoing refurbishment of the refractor on the left with a 4" TAL objective in a Skywatcher tube , and the more recent 4 1/2" f14 AE Ltd scope. This past week presented me with three excellent observing sessions and I chose today to discover that having both scopes mounted would be fun and give me a good range. Luckily, I had in my box of bits , all that I needed to get the bino to work in the reflector. The mirror is in pristine condition. It looks like several days of cloudwatching now before I discover how good the reflector is.