Roy Challen

NE limb, very bright, started 10mins ago.

Might be worth reading this thread. https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/378149-skymaster-pro-20x80-£140/

So how are they? They sound like an absolute bargain.

Cracking list, Joe. Sounds like you had a good time!

I just used a plastic lid slightly larger than the tube diameter, painted it black and stuck it on with tape. I might get around to 3d printing one at work sometime. The solarquest isn't exactly cheap, and the AzGti probably does the same thing, as well as night time goto/tracking, but for me, it's the ease of operation that makes it worth it.

This is my exact setup, same tripod as well. Before I bought it, I did wonder whether buying the solarquest mount would be worthwhile, given that all it can do is track the sun , but it is an excellent bit of kit - it's so simple and it just works. It's worth making an aperture mask, 30-35mm hole, dramatically improves contrast, although I found that floaters increased too at higher mags (fine for low mag/full disc views). That's a great price you got it for too!

Stella and 4X? You'll find that in the offy😉

Someone will hopefully correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it is the Dec axis lock knob when in alt-az mode. My Polaris can operate in eq and alt-az, so I'm assuming that the SP can too.

Views were very good in Watford around 5pm too.

Apart from the clutch lever, it looks easy enough to make good. A skywatcher lever may fit, but would look out of place, and I'd be surprised if you found just that part on its own. What's wrong with the tripod? Looks fine to me, but a wooden one would look nicer although not necessary really. If it were mine, I'd definitely fix it up, it's a great mount - I just bought its little brother, the Polaris.

Should be fine, that's what I did for an annular eclipse in 2012 from Kyoto. I hand held eclipse glasses in front of the lens. My avatar is that very pic.

Not just stargazers. It'll affect all locals, and wildlife. My wife and I will be moving to Kent by the end of this year, thankfully not anywhere near Ashford.

Exactly this. I now only observe the sun and the moon on a regular basis, and Jupiter, Saturn and Mars when they're visible from my garden. However, this may change within the next six months as a potential (and likely) house move might allow DSO viewing again. Of course, that'll mean I have to buy a new telescope more suitable than my long 'fracs. So it's not all bad!

I noticed this too. I recall that WL through my f/10 100mm achro gave fantastic sunspot detail. This morning I stopped my Daystar down to 30mm f/30, and the improvement was immediately obvious. Much improved contrast and exquisite detail on the two ARs. Must get another Herschel wedge soon, as a complement to Ha, not an alternative.

Now, I'm not trying to say that this package is some kind of rip off. As my signature shows, I am quite the long achromat fan, in fact apart from one 70ED, I've only ever owned achros. And only ever bought them second hand. I think this package needs a finder scope as standard if you're going to be looking at anything other than the sun or moon, and I would want to swap the 14mm for something wider, say a 25mm plossl or similar. This would push the cost to over £600, which is a fair bit of money in anyone's book. I am wondering what the Takahashi connection actually is. It's made for them, but why is it listed with the scopetech products? Also why no Tak branding? That would potentially provide reassurance of quality of both scope and mount, thereby justifying the price. As I said in an earlier post, it does look nice, and if I were a beginner I would be very tempted. Just not at that price.

Bargain! Only just out of warranty too, they don't make them like that anymore!

Good report, and I agree that the scope package looks nice. I think it is a little expensive for what it is though. Having said that, splitting Antares at UK latitudes is pretty impressive. I see there is a small range of those orthos available for not much more than the Baader classics, I wonder how they compare.

I'm not into imaging, but when I do take the occasional shot, that's how I do it too. With a little practice and a steady hand, you'll be surprised at what you can achieve.

Glad you had good views. I was out early too as my sky was clear. While I waited for the sun to clear a tree, by the time it had, the clouds rolled in🙄.

The horizon tripod is 1/4" not 3/8, so you'll need an adapter. Cheap enough from Amazon or wherever. Worth trying I suppose, but I think you'll be wanting a sturdier tripod before long.

Hi and welcome to SGL. I have used the Horizon 8115 to mount my long frac. It is doable, but not really worth it. To get the eyepiece at a reasonable height, the tripod legs need to be fully extended. This, coupled with an inferior mount, makes it too wobbly to be useful. This was with the scope's original mount. However, a 150p, being a Newtonian, wouldn't require full extension to be well positioned (assuming seated viewing position). As it sounds like you would need to buy a mount anyway, you're better off getting something like an AZ4 or 5, which will easily support the scope.

That's really good to hear, I didn't know this when I bought my Solarscout in February. Thanks FLO!

I also have to get up stupidly early - 3:30-4:00 is normal for me - so occasionally it's not too much of a bother to get up at 2am as long as I go to bed early enough (also not a problem). It just depends on where the moon is at the time 'cos I only tend to do lunar and solar these days (planets don't appear above my house at the mo). Benefits of early rising - the seeing is usually much better than in the evening, and rested eyes.

I'd also be interested in real world opinions on this subject. To add to it; what about Mak 100 vs Tal 100?

Nice, but are you forecasting a prom in 10 days? 😉