MattJenko

I have the old version and the x0.79 reducer as well. I screw reducer directly into the end of the focuser and certainly don't use an extension, as the focuser is racked right in on the focuser as it is! If you are struggling, you could try inserting the reducer into the focuser as opposed to screwing in the end. This is less secure I found, but it means you can push it in further if it doesn't quite reach focus.

Its like one of these : http://www.rothervalleyoptics.co.uk/baader-v-dovetail-clamp-70mm.html

I have a polemaster, so PA is pretty good after doing that. Also, with short exposures, it doesn't really matter if it drifts slowly, natural dither,albeit during subs as well

The first 2 images are with the TS60, the second 2 are a 50mm prime lens. As for guiding, I don't bother. The Andromeda image for example. Taken from Kelling, a campsite in East England. 360 x 30 second exposures for Luminance. 90 x 10 second exposures for each RGB. That is all that is needed. Unguided can achieve that, as you don't need long subs on bright targets, especially with a fast system and a sensitive CMOS camera.

Thanks. The tripod is a bit of an extravagance, but I really liked it, having struggled with a cheap and cheerful eBay special before getting it. https://www.berlebach.de/?bereich=details&id=249&sprache=english

https://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p7275_TS-Optics-Photoline-60mm-f-5-5-FPL53-Apo---2--R-P-Focuser.html I also have the reducer, so it comes down to 260mm FL at F4.3 which is pretty quick and useful for the short exposure times I use with the ASI1600.

Missed this thread till now. Shame on me. Some awesome work being done with this little mount. I have not had my SA out for a while after a house move, but here are some of the images managed over the last 18 months with it, all unguided with both scope setup and a Canon 450d/50mm lens. Also showing off the mono rig on a Berlebach tripod to keep the whole thing low and out of the wind.

No matter what I do, things look messy, but this now all works. Altair Astro Wave 115. Trusty ST80. ZWO cameras, ASI120 and ASI1600. Just the one power cable to plug in when setting up. Anything for an easy life...

Binning also gets complicated when dealing with CMOS or CCD chips. CCDs can be binned at a hardware level, and given the noise characteristics, this can improve signal to noise ratios. With CMOS chips, it is different, in that most (maybe all, not sure) are software binned only. However, with the low noise of modern CMOS chips, the concern about this meaning binning with CMOS is pointless is lower, but it will not result in a better SNR as I understand things.

Wow, that is lovely, and very impressive.

Those people who have a tendency towards uniformity and precision and order and completeness, I recommend skipping my image. Here is my collections of all sorts : MaxVision 28mm, ES 68 degree 20mm, Baader Morpheus 14mm, TV Radian 10mm, BST 8mm, Vixen SLV 6mm, 12mm crosshair reticule and a Baader Hyperion Zoom MkIII. Hyperion x2.25 barlow. Baader MaxBright binoviewers with a pair of 18mm BSTs. Have a couple of 25mm WO plossls for them too.

You deserve a medal for this. Making the most out of the smallest area of sky medal. Persistence in the face of challenges medal. Seeing opportunity when others see nothing medal, and so on.

I fully subscribe to the aesthetics of free standing and naturally placed interior design. My wife calls it lazy.

HI Rob, It does weigh a bit. I could have used 2 counterweights and the extension, but it seems more pleasing to keep it compact with 3 for some reason...

I would like to extend a very warm welcome to my newest addition to the collection. AltairAstro 115ED triplet, picked up from a very nice chap in Sussex. Sitting on my AzEQ6 I now have my short and long focal length imaging options in one neat package with my TS60ED on a quick release bar on top, with the ubiquitous finder guider attached.

another advantage of 1 second subs is that it negates the effect of seeing to a certain extent. it is not quite in the realm of fast frame rate high res planetary imaging, but it is getting there. I reckon a bigger aperture than my 10", like a driven 16" dob+, you could do bright targets with 0.5 sec subs and then you could really start pushing towards the actual theoretical limits of the optics, not limited by the seeing.

Yes, I used Sharpcap to capture a 10min video of 1 sec exposures for each channel and used the best 300 frames from each (half) when aligning/stacking. The gradient top right is actually because I had to take the Red on a different night than the others and I was about 45 degrees rotated when I did the others!

Reprocessed AltAz M15. 5 mins each RGB channel in 1 sec exposures.

Been a while since I last visited this thread. My it has come along. Here is my recent foray into AltAz imaging. It is a 6 minute M15 using lucky DSO imaging techniques. It is an RGB image with each channel being a 2 minute video of 1 second subs (well a 10 minute video with just the best 20% of frames used). 250px newtonian on an AzEQ6 in Az mode with a ZWO ASI1600Mono camera. Aligned/stacked in AutoStakkert, combined and polished in PixInsight. It is cropped, as the aligning in Autostakkert is the least well executed part of the process and the edges were a right old mess, and you can still see issues with this aspect of the processing. It seems promising for a first effort to me though.

Not so much a personal equipment review, more a review of a system of equipment access. To start off, I am stressing right now, that these experiences are my own, and reflect just my personal experience with the iTelescope system. I have been a basic plan member for a number of months now. The idea behind iTelescope.net is that you sign up to a monthly plan. You get given a certain number of points per month, depending on the type of plan chosen, which can then be used against telescope imaging time. There is a signing on bonus set of points as well. The better and more expensive the monthly plan, you not only get more points each month, but the cost of using each scope reduces, so your points go further. All points rollover each month, so you never lose them. There are also discounts based on the cycle of the Moon, so imaging during the Moon phases gives progressively increasing discounts from New to Full. There are a host of telescopes to use, based in California + New Mexico USA, Sierra Nevada in Spain and Siding Springs in Australia. The complete list of scopes/mounts/CCDs are here : iTelescope telescopes You create imaging plans and then reserve time on your scope of choice to execute those plans. I have attempted 15 reservations on various scopes around the world to date. I found that the system is not oversubscribed and I had very little trouble in finding reservation slots, which was one of my main worries in signing up. Here is a run down of what happened in those slots: 8 reservations never happened, as the weather was poor and the observatory stayed closed. Noone's problem. 3 reservations did not run because the target I specified was below the mount limits for the scope at that location - user error in reality, although the target was above the horizon for a couple, I didn't know how far up it has to be before the scope is configured to see it. 2 reservations completed their imaging runs, but the pointing in both cases was off and the target was either cut in half or tucked away at the bottom corner. 1 reservation managed 1 out of 3 filters before jamming and ending prematurely 1 imaging run ran to completion to finish the 2 filters from the imaging run before. For the 2 pointing errors, I requested a refund though the website (there is a link in the email sent when the run is finished) and was granted them promptly and courteously, no quibbling. One was a explained as a bug they were addressing to do with pointing at zenith on that particular setup, the other was simply refunded with no explanation. The filter jam was not refunded as I didn't request one, as I was only charged for the successful filter set and managed to get the 2 remaining filters the next day, after the jammed filterwheel was fixed later that same day. Again, support was prompt and friendly. All in all, I have found that while the website interface takes a bit of getting used to, the support from the team is excellent, but unfortunately for me, it needed that support as I have had lots of niggles with the various scopes I have attempted to use. All 3 issues were with different scopes in different locations. It is probably not news to those who own higher end systems I am sure, but for something that costs over 50k per rig, having basic failures like pointing and filterwheel changes is disconcerting. I will continue to use iTelescope.net, but with a basic plan, you need to save a good few months to get any kind of decent integration time on the majority of the scopes. My image I finally managed to obtain, a few months after starting is not much of a test for the rig I ended up using, as it is an open cluster and doesn't stretch the kit too much, but here is what an FLI 16803 CCD, a PlaneWave 17" CDK on an Ascension 200HR mount can do! This is a quick 12 x 2 min each channel image. This is NGC2516, the Sprinter Cluster in Carina. My overall impression is still a positive one, although I see this system now as much more a place to get scientific data (for small solar system object hunting and the like) where long integration times are not needed, because long reservation times on these instruments starts to get expensive quickly. Cheers Matt

Just tested my travel kit at Kelling. Works a treat:

I've followed this thread since the start and all I can really add is a hearty congratulations. The effort and cost put into this is more than admirable. One day....

1 sec exposures! - What did you process it in - an Autostakkert type, or a stick-it-in-DSS/PI-and-leave-for-3days approach?

2" filters?

Darkness falls, and the clouds roll in. I need a slightly longer dovetail, but this is now getting really close to my perfect little portable rig.