jetstream

My 10" dob shows it from dark skies but it was a big challenge for me at first with this scope. The 15" makes it so much easier, however, dark transparent skies are a must or forget seeing the HH IMHO. Must add I only see a notch, no head even in 24".

One combo that never disappoints is the 12.5mm Tak ortho and a barlow, in my case the Baader VIP.Scatter is very well controlled and the views are razor sharp.

Over on Reiner Vogels site there is a whole host of maps to download, including Sharpless and also Alvins Faint Fuzzies has great ones too. The astronomers mentioned above are among the best IMHO. Hickson 55 seemed not that hard to me but I was happy to have 4 appear, but knowing there is 5- more work to do! (fun work)

Thanks Stephan! I see Uwe got one more than me! I've heard of him from DeepSky forum but did not know of his website, it looks like a great resource. I use Reiner Vogels info on his own site as well as Alvin Hueys Faint Fuzzies. These guys are top dogs, along with Gottleib. I'm very happy to get 4 of this really unusual object and I am drawn to the non typical galaxy groups and formations. Hickson 55 likes mag but needs good seeing along with transparency for best views. I have no doubt you will see this object and break it up Stephan, good luck!

Off topic, but have you seen Hickson 55? another favourite over in Draco. I got 4 of them so far with the 24" and is well worth the time.

Robert, a vg goal is breaking up NGC 7318 into individual galaxies- what a sight! Watching 2 galaxies in the process of merging is pretty cool if you ask me. The 10 BCO makes short work of them in good conditions, the VIP is useful as well and in my case a vg sample of a KK 7mm ortho is always on deck. Play with the mag.... Good luck!

Hi Mike, if astig is very bad it will look like ovals or oblongs that flip on either side of focus at lowish mag. Minor astig is harder to detect but does the same thing, seen at high mag. My 24" when its cranky will exhibit minor astig detectable at high mag. The big secondary caused astig before I repacked the holder for more even cushion and freedom. Sling position can cause issues and I imagine a Whiffletree can too if the support roller distances are off or there is restraint in the cell system somewhere.

Absolutely. The 24" will break up this group into individual galaxies as will your 20" and I personally use orthos or more recently Delos. I had one session under my best conditions that the view was photo like and stunning- I keep chasing that view...it was a combination of fresh , well dark ,adapted eyes and the unusual combination of top seeing and superb transparency.I used between 250x and 357x ( this is why the seeing matters IMHO). Orthos or ortho like widefields are the way to go and my 10BCO still beats the 10 Delos by a squeak on this stuff.

Totally agree and I find adjusting the truss shroud up a bit can improve things sometimes. Sometimes closed works, open a bit works... maybe interaction of scope to changing ground thermals? and or puffs of wind? Getting truly high power views is a process IMHO.

Great observing Mark. Like you I use a 10mm ortho a lot these days and the Bear Paw is a favourite with my bigger dob using the 10 BCO which reveals the "toes". I've wondered the same thing- what do these galaxies look like face on (like IC 2233) How the 20" movements going Mark?

Great haul Neil! What fine sessions- eagerly waiting more reports!

Well then I'm puzzled too... Never used a concenter but I know that the sight tube portion of the Cheshire combo tool works very well. Does it look ok with the cheshire?

If you look straight thru the focuser does the secondary look round Barry?

I mean does the gap get unequal as its racked out? just curious and i hope you get it sorted out.

If you look through the sight tube as you rack the focuser out does the gap around the secondary change?

The mirror cell must "float" IMHO

The pursuit of perfect collimation can be a hard road to follow. Try taking a good, collimated laser and tighten the focuser screws watching if the laser dot moves around the primary a bit... If you really want to check perfect closed path collimation use a 2 hole autocollimator. These days I collimate simply and quickly and the results are vg, allowing very high mag. My autocollimator sits in the box now, after learning how to use it and knowing my scopes are capable of this level of collimation. Ade, I find observing more rewarding than the pursuit of perfect collimation.

I think the glass is top notch but the length and high weight of this combo might (can) cause de collimation through focuser flex or tube/truss cage issues, depending on the design and how far racked out you are.

"Now that your focuser is exactly square to the tube, it’s on to the secondary mirror. This is where things get tricky. Should you offset the diagonal, or should you not? " http://umich.edu/~lowbrows/reflections/2003/dscobel.10.html Is your diagonal offset Ade? and is your focuser square?

Another option is the the Baader VIP barlow- more expensive but well worth it. This barlow has no negatives optically- no reduction in transmission, contrast or sharpness. On the contrary it can allow better views ie Suiters wobbly stack idea.

In reality it doesn't affect viewing unless your near the threshold objects with your set up IMHO. The Zeiss zoom 25.1-6.7 will show M57 central star which is VG but on seriously small, faint PN in my 24" a difference is plainly seen comparing to orthos or Delos class eyepieces. What these eyepieces offer is extremely sharp views, including the Nagler zooms. When viewing bright objects such as the moon and planets the small reduction in transmission is a benefit IMHO- as are the differing "tones" that each one offers. I use the icy Zeiss on Saturn and the rich coloured Leica on Jupiter for example.The Nagler 3-6 gets the nod for Jupiter a well. A real benefit to any zoom is their ability to "catch" the seeing with the variable mag,just my thoughts.

I have 3 very good zooms and all excel in sharpness. The one area where they don't compete is in transmission. Tested against some other good eyepieces such as the 10 BCO and Docter UWA, other orthos etc the zooms fall short in the transmission dept. Of course this is to my eyes. The Nagler 3-6 zoom is a mainstay for the Heritage 130.

To add another side of all this talk of how hard M33 is etc I'll say that a 10" scope under dark and transparent skies will show 2 nice spiral arms buried among the glow of the galaxy. It is a great object and well worth pursuing, along with M101 which will also reveal its features under the same conditions. Our H130 will show M33 much brighter than Johns supplied image, much brighter. Moral of the story- get to dark skies when possible.

Nice report Steve! The handiest thing I've found to collimate my dobs primary is the TuBlug. I wont be without this now. The laser is also more accurate for the secondary than cross hairs so I use it for this as well. Just sayin'...

Excellent move, you will improve illumination or you can reduce your sec size. This will come from many sources. Obviously the tube must be painted flat black or flocked. The spider assy must be flat black- the sec edges painted black too.The mirror cell assy must be flat black. Paint the bevel on the primary. Shine a bright light down the tube and see where there are any reflections or brightening. IMHO, the primary must be moved down, lengthening the tube here. You can then add a foam shield up front. The inside of the focuser draw tube must be flat black... I have a 200mm f3.8 that needs a longer tube- a project for later.