Roy Challen

14 minutes ago, Louis D said:

I took a hard pass on a 127 Mak at a good price on an EQ mount with counterweights a decade ago.  I could barely lift it one handed due to the weight and top-heaviness of it.  I need to be able to pick up and move my mount and scope around the yard to dodge obstructions, so this weight and bulk issue was a non-starter for me.

My EQ setup is about 18-19kg so needs both hands to lift, as I also need to move around the garden occasionally. But actually setting up and tracking is just as quick as alt-az. I was being slightly tongue in cheek, hence the smiley face😉.

It's worth it as it allows high power tracking while using orthos, or other narrow field designs, even in strong winds.

9 hours ago, quasar117 said:

 

Thanks for all the suggestions so far.

I forgot to mention I will be using the Starfield on a manually controlled GEM mount. Only planning on plonking it down, pointing north with correct latitude for location and then tracking with RA and occasional adjustments to the DEC. 

Hopefully this should be sufficient for the smaller FOV orthos. 

This is what I do, no faff at all. Some say a manual alt-az is less faffy, I disagree 😁. My EQ mount is much heavier though...

13 hours ago, quasar117 said:

Would the 10mm and 18mm Orthos compliment the SVbony 3-8mm zoom?

If so all I would need would be a low power for nebulae and bright DSO's to get me started.

I was a long time fan of the BCOs (still am really, and of orthos in general) but imo the SvBony 3-8 is better in every way. However, the 10 and 18mm BCOs are complementary to the zoom. I also particularly like the Baader 32mm plossl for low power and HA solar use.

I'm guessing you're referring to this one, seen between 1-1:45pm.

Daystar solarscout, Baader 32mm plossl, manual alt-az mount and my phone.

Seen while dodging clouds, bright, very intricate details, rapidly changing. Well worth setting up for.

I used to have a Zeiss 25mm Huygens, which I used to split the Double Double in my f/16+ Skylight. It only happened the once, in excellent seeing, transparency and close to the zenith. The view was so unbelievably sharp. Fantastic eyepiece - in that telescope.

6 hours ago, Don Pensack said:

I agree.  Its 45° field is a bit narrower than many at that focal length, though.

To be honest, I hadn't noticed. I only use it for full disc views in my solarscout, a job it does very well indeed.

4 minutes ago, Ratlet said:

32mm plossl is a seriously underrated bit of kit.  I'd sooner drop mine in the scope than change out the 2" to 1.25" adapter.  

I found the Baader 32 to be the best of the bunch (25-32mm) that I've had over the years. The eye guard extender is a nice touch.

On 21/02/2024 at 12:32, Ags said:

My three most used eyepieces are the Svbony 3-8 Zoom and, um, well, that's it.

Same here, in my FS60. 32mm plossl for the Solar scout. I do have a 26mm plossl that hardly ever gets used, and a broken 7mm BGO that never gets used. I don't own any other eyepieces any more.

They're well spoken of in the classic refractors section on the other forum.

Nice! Plenty of other activity going on too. Missed out on a few M and X flares over the weekend.

GONG showing a large prom, sadly I'm at work, but if you have clear skies, or even slightly cloudy like I have here, it'd be well worth a look.

Use a slotted dovetail.

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dovetails-saddles-clamps/astro-essentials-vixen-type-photo-dovetail-bar.html

9 minutes ago, Xilman said:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrology: Metrology is the scientific study of measurement.

Nuff said.

Measurement of surfaces, specifically. It's what I did for 8 years.

Stargazer is ok by me btw!

Buying? No regrets at all. Selling? Plenty. I'd have saved at least a couple of grand if I'd kept my first Tal 100 and Skytee 2.

Which means I will be keeping what I have now for as long as possible.

Eyepieces though, are a commodity to be traded for something new and shiny as one sees fit😉

When it comes to astro gear, why spend tens of thousands of £££ when we're limited by our rubbish weather? And why buy a giant SUV if it doesn't physically fit on our narrow roads?

But, some of us spend that kind of money on bicycles, hi-fi, fishing, golf etc😄

Sorry to hear of your eye problems Dave. I've preempted this happening to me by buying an FS60 - it's just so convenient.

I'm looking forward to the 'F15rules has £3k for a new telescope, let's spend it for him' thread 😄

If you don't wear glasses while observing, I'd recommend the SvBony 3-8mm zoom. It will cover magnifications from x75-200. The field of view is a little less than the Starguiders, and the eye relief is quite tight, but you won't be swapping eyepieces around, or refocusing all the time. Optically, it's a little gem.

I'd complement the zoom with a nice wide field eyepiece at the longer focal length end, such as an Explore Scientific 68° 20 or 24mm, or Stellalyra UFF 24mm.

First time looking at the sun in hydrogen alpha with my Daystar solarscout.

I'm always amazed at the amount of detail you capture in your ISS images. Nice one!

6 hours ago, John said:

The best low cost eyepieces that I have used were the Baader Classic Ortho 18mm and 10mm. They have the usual ortho traits of eye relief about 80% of the focal length and a 45 degree sharp AFoV (+ 5 degrees which is less sharp) but for sheer optical quality I reckon you would need to pay a heck of a lot more to get anything better.

Not for glasses wearers though.

Totally agree, John. Except I think the SvBony 3-8 zoom is equally sharp as the BCO range (within its own range of course) and has a slightly wider field of view. I literally just sold my BCOs as the little zoom has made them redundant. Best of all though, is that the zoom very much falls into the budget eyepiece category.

On 19/01/2024 at 19:36, Stu said:

A SvBony 3 to 8mm zoom for me. Having borrowed Paul’s and been very impressed by it, I ordered one and it came very quickly. Been viewing Jupiter with it tonight, though the seeing is not great.

On 19/01/2024 at 19:49, glafnazur said:

These keep getting great write ups so I have gone ahead and ordered one.

Check that the barrel doesn't contact the mirror/prism in your diagonals. The barrel is quite long, and does make contact with the diagonal I use.

A parfocal ring/s solves this, PM me if you want one or both, I have two spare.

8 hours ago, Ags said:

Did that with my ZS66 tonight!

Me too! A glorious sight in my FS60 and 26mm eyepiece.

14 hours ago, SwiMatt said:

Yeah the weight of a 4" is a bit of a turn off: at 3.2 kg, the Mak is great but already on the heavier side for a truly portable set up (especially when travelling - I do have access to better skies from time to time, but meed to fly). I see lots of advantages in getting down to 72 (or even 60?? Your passionate speech didn't fall on deaf ears @MalcolmM). But it's a lot more money for something similar in weight and portability to a ST80 or ST102, which is why I'm loving to hear all your positive experiences. It seems worth it.

Now that I think about it, I have yet to hear someone complain about small apos...

I'll second what @MalcolmMsaid. I'd go for a Takahashi FS60-CB too. Which I did! 

Whilst it cannot compete with the resolution of a 100mm for planetary use, it can still make out the most interesting features, certainly well enough for a short session abroad. It is also a lot more money than an ST80/102,  but it is a lot better optically too. 

60mm is also my most used aperture, my Daystar is also a 60😁