jetstream

Question- what accuracy does you 20" Synscan give? My 2 dobs both easily find any object in .8deg TFOV and after using the "re align on object" (sort of a 3rd point) the accuracy is down to at least a quarter degree. What I do is re align on an easy object near my target and then the accuracy carries through to the target.

lol! Well, they provide enough accuracy- actually more accuracy than typical mounting systems do...IMHO. By mount I also mean what the SCOPE SITS ON. This is a crucial factor with both tripods and dobs. If the scope moves even a small amount and the encoder does not- wham, off target. Most think tripods are stable and they can be laterally. One little push down on a leg skews things in all directions. A dob on grass is not so stable either. Then there is mount backlash... this is why we have to take it up by going up and to the right... but- the backlash remains and reveals itself in inaccuracy. To recap- to improve on 10,000 step encoders everything else has to be perfect, zero scope movement without the encoders following. A mentor explained this to me. A typical dob has excellent encoder tracking- ie the encoder moves with the scope. I had pursued the thought of 40,000 step encoders before a lesson in enlightenment changed my mind and I now try to maximize other things in my control. A third alignment point is also a huge advantage which used properly mitigates unwanted mount movement to some extent. ie a stable base. Of course these are just my current thoughts, probably wrong

lol! To each his own but I had a less than stable mount before- great for the 90mm frac, not so good with 120mm f7.5's. Actually almost unuseable. Whatever you get I would make sure its stable. Good luck and have fun with your choice!

Do you wonder why I use 10,000 step encoders?

One of the reasons the TSA120 is not used much is the mount-its VG but set up is challenging. Levelling the mount and then finishing "up and to the right" is a pain. It is nowhere near as accurate as the SC. I hear Nexus DSC are VG too. I replaced the SW GPS (member Rainmakers suggestion) with one made in WPG, Man- I don't have to input anything. Once set up to track planets, the AZ EQ6 is amazingly accurate for this.

I'm curious why my AZ EQ6 needs to be leveled with the bubble with Synscan but my Sky Commander DSC could care less about being level? the SC can be accurate to 1/10 deg with 10,000 step encoders. I can easily get .25 deg in use with the 24" dob.

Limited experience with mounts but mentors told me to get one over capacity to the scope used -thanks @Stu This can get expensive and my longish refractor sure enjoys this mount.-AZ EQ6 Actually this mount is almost as stable as my dobson.....stability is of paramount importance IMHO. Thanks to @Moonshane for nudging me in the direction of dobsonians.

Yup! Now do I get a set of dedicated astro binos + smaller IS Canons or astro binos + replace my revered Pentax or get the 10x42 Canon IS? Thoughts Iain?

The fastest, cheapest way to sort things out is to copy other experienced observers IMHO. I did this but just HAD lol! to go keep trying more and more eyepieces out. I'll always have a 20mmish hyperwide and something around 13mm too. Supplementing the orthos wth Delos class eyepieces is a vg thing to do. Only my very best, few orthos go deeper than my Delos. I shant ever be without orthos however, I just like them. The 30mm ES 82 is adequate but lacking compared to the 21E/20mm APM IMHO but so is the 42mm LVW. So far I havn't found long fl eyepieces in the same class as the Ethos.

Thats because you have figured out the best eyepieces to use now IMHO

Excellent innovation! How good are the Helios Apollos?

I bought my Pentax after looking through a hunting buddies, I no longer hunt but that glass was so good... At the time the Pentax (about 20 yrs ago) were around $700.00. The Swaro, Leica were about $2000.00. So I was in the store in Winnipeg looking through them all. It went like this- $700...$2000, $700...$2000 etc. The more expensive binos were superb- but the Pentax also pleased my eye... For me good glass causes a reaction every time I look through it and those Pentax did for 19 yrs or so. The suffered many crashes until the last one finished them off. I would bet money the Canon IS wouldn't survive even one of the minor crashes, but I could be wrong. I don't know Steve but his advice would be appreciated. The nebula... for me stability is absolutely crucial to see faint objects regardless of the optic. Even 10x50 filtered should show the mentioned nebs but we better be steady with the binos...IMHO.

Do you have ideas about how dark your skies are? how many stars can you see? I ask this because a portable scope will not only give good views from home but open up the possibility to take it to dark skies. There is no question that a 150mm or 200mm SW dob is a top choice for you, however some of us truly like the diminutive Heritage 130 mini dob. I would make sure you could carry the first 2 with ease... It is hard to beat a 200mm f6 SW dob- it you can move it around. The 150mm is right up there too IMHO.

Thanks S&S- I too want binoculars for portability and also for quick sessions under changing skies like last night. The sky clear for just a little while so I went out before bed for a bit. I had Pentax 8x42 for many years until a drop on the rocks finished them off. There were superbly sharp and with a great depth of focus, the glass in these were right up there. BUT lol! they too left me lacking on the sky and suffered CA to some extent on Jupiter etc. I have no desire for tripods and even the monopod mount might be enough of a hassle to make me pass on it. Quandary- I need some new binos- preferably IS, for the boat, trekking and birdwatching (& animals) but I don't need the super expensive 10x42 Canon IS for this, a smaller pair would meet 90% of my needs. I did want IS for the sky but if the views aren't what I want... Another thing- good binos like Swaro,Zeiss, Leica, Pentax etc will last a lifetime if cared for whereas I'm not so sure about the Canon IS... Can you easily see galaxies in your binos when propped against the hood or a tree or something? I wonder if the Angelfish (SH2-264) and Barnards Loop are do able with filters?

A friend gave me an old set of 10x50 binoculars to try out on the sky so last night a quick session was had. I sure am wobbly with them! Much better in the lawnchair or laying on the ground for stability. These shakes made my target confirmation sketchy... I tried M81/M82/ NGC 2403 and M51. I'll give about 70% confidence on NGC 2403 and maybe 60% on M81/M82. I just might have seen a very small faint glow ball where M51 should be... who knows lol! A couple of thoughts: some say M81/M82 are just visible naked eye- in my opinion this is an extremely optimistic thought and after using the binos it just re affirms this- I've been trying for 7 years to see them naked eye with no luck and under reasonable skies. second, no matter how good small binocular views can get I don't think they will ever come close to the ultra portable H130 which I can set up in under a minute. This might come down to stability? I'd like to hear from binocular observers regarding expectations, before I buy some IS Canons...

Congrats! Yes the Eskimo is 2 toned (at least) and you have touched on this. Repeated observing under good skies and using high mag reveals much in the Eskimo. I get more detail out of it with no filter. Excellent observing Domstar.

Great info Peter, yesterday a buddy gave me an old set of binos to use and get me in the game. I'm looking at trading some astro stuff in on the Canon 10x42L, we'll see. I used to always have binos, usually cheaper ones laying around but not now. My Pentax were good in the daytime but were lacking at night. Lawnchair observing is gonna take a step up over here soon I hope.

Excellent! I've never seen a monopod before and now understand how it will add rock solid stability. Hmmm, maybe a pair of small IS for the boat, trekking and conventionals with monopod for the stars. Great images JTEC, thank you.

I wonder which IS is needed, I see II's, III's and then other systems. I'm kind of reluctant to get the most expensive ones as they might see hard use, well actually they will. Theres button push ones and ones on all the time I think etc. I too wonder about the IS price and if a smaller pair might be all I need.

Ciaran, it might be useful to explore the terms "contrast" and also the concept of Suiters "wobbly stack" (preservation of the arriving image, through the scope). Contrast is the fixed difference between the sky brightness and the objects brightness. This points out that sky conditions (darkness) are the only the thing in our control re contrast. This includes local light intrusion etc. Then there is the scope and features of its use ie scatter control, flocking (stray light) and magnification used etc. Lots of info out there on all this and stray light control for your dob is a worthwhile endeavour IMHO.

You have excellent binoculars I know what you mean about some optics grabbing the attention. I want a pair of IS binos for the boat, wild life observing and the sky. I seem to have a hard time getting rock steady views free hand. On the other hand I really like top views. Question- which Canon IS version should I buy? I have zero experience and zero knowledge re IS ps- I tried Leica and Zeiss binos out in a store onetime.... and ran out before I bought a pair lol! they were both stunning, better than my good Pentax.

I'm looking for binoculars and was wanting to try Canon IS- how are they on the stars and objects like M31/M81/M82? In what way are they not as good as the Leica? I had a VG pair of old Pentax but they broke unfortunately so in the market now.

Sounds vg, the ocean must be nice! I always try to observe south for some reason, actually SE to SW. You know, maybe try your filter out to see if it works and if underwhelming Astronomik and TV make excellent OIII- expensive yes but they work. Using a top OIII can mitigate light intrusion to some extent and Sag is so full of great objects. Markarians Chain is easily do able with your scope in Virgo and so much more. Synscan... the DCS's need a few procedures to help alignment- first you need a really solid, stable piece of ground- if the base moves around or wobbles no good. Second use a narrow FOV eyepiece after finding the alignment stars with the widefield. I forget if my AZ EQ6 has a 3 star align, if yours does I would use it. Give it a try even in the moonlight to see if accuracy improves- the DSC can have a personality. Hows the Morpheus on the moon?

ps-there are DSC (sysnscan tricks) more later off to work on the waterline.

You are not of limited calibre at all JOC- getting good views is a process at least it is for me. Having an open find can be very useful in all this I find. So the constellations... in their full extent they can be boggling and frustrating to identify. I break them down a bit- take Leo, for example- a bright 3 star triangle with the point on the left- forget the rest for now. Try finding main stars in less than dark skies- just after dusk- and the main ones reveal themselves. Some are huge like Cygnus and Aquila others more compact like Delphinius. Leo is large in whole but the triangle is smaller. So JOC we must all forget our limitations, realize where were at and explore! In my case galaxies need work, been at it 7 years now lol! startin to get better finally. Hows your south view?