JeremyS

Excellent 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Very impressive Dave 👍🏻

I’ve got an old Vixen cwt that I want to spruce up as it’s seen better days.

I don’t want the original Vixen green. I’m thinking black or silver. Perhaps white.

Which type of paint should I use? I want something that won’t rub or flake off. I seek a nice finish.

1 hour ago, mikeDnight said:

Yes, it would need to be a redesigned obsey for a Parks Newtonian. I'd probably build a rotating building. It wouldn't take me long if a Parks came my way.

 At present my Newtonian collection is quite minimal. I have a 4.5" Newt' which is a nice little scope, made by a long gone local telescope company, yet the telescope itself is still going strong more than 30 years down the line. And I have a 6" given to me by paulastro.  I have also had a couple of lovely larger apertures, a 10" on loan from Peter Drew which was very nice optically, though I didn't enjoy the OO dob mount one bit, and a 8" F6 which I used on my observatory equatorial. It was very nice but my 4" apo was more pleasurable to use so the 8" was moved on.

The best Newtonian I've ever owned was a 6" F10 made by my friend Phil. I told him I didn't want a spider, so he made it with an optically flat window to hold the secondary. Double stars in that scope were droolworthy! The problem with it was I'd mounted it on a steel pier with three welded feet. The pier itself was an sizeable old oxygen bottle that the chunky equatorial was bolted to. The whole thing was dragged out of my garage onto my drive, which was a bit of a task. Phil also painted the tube with black hammerite using a brush. It looked crubish and couldn't love it despite trying hard.

My current 6".

 

Warning! I think someone might have hacked Mike’s account 🫣

Sorry Dizzy, it’s been a while but the night is yet young.

FC 100DZ

17 hours ago, bingevader said:

But not much good a mowing the grass, judging by that scythe.

Sorry, I’m busy at the moment 

17 hours ago, John said:

I don't think the perpetrator is typical of the majority of Somerset folk, thankfully 🙄

We are generally quite normal and well behaved down here in the SW 🙂

Where’s @JOCwith her battery tools when you need her?

1 hour ago, Alan White said:

Postie has been a delivered a duplicate of an old friend and idea.

In 2021 I used a plastic toolbox as my astro case, it worked well but got outgrown and I 
needed a new box for my tools, all was placed in multiple bags, cases etc. and I often forget items.

 

 

So a replacement accessory box and how I used it before, watch this space...

I intend to do much the same but perhaps not for Eyepieced.

I’ll give it 18 months until you’ve outgrown the new case, Alan 🤣

Love it, Nigella 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

It maybe that your frequent open ended questions on “this vs that” become a bit tiring after a while. It might leave some to wonder if you actually want to know the answer or just engage in debate. Don’t get me wrong: there is space for debate - it’s what many of us enjoy, especially when it’s so cloudy much of the time 😊

…images free from spikes.

Looks super Paul. But please don’t touch the lens 👍🏻

Wonderful 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Clear from dusk until just now when light cloud arrived.

A nice time with the variables.

First time out for a couple of weeks due to eclipse travel and weather. Very noticeable how the sky has “moved on”

Although opposition is some way off (16 Jan 2025), Dr Richard McKim, Director of the BAA Mars Section, has started his blog:

https://britastro.org/section_news_item/mars-opposition-blog-7-april-2023
 

He will post updates on observations, including any dust storms that might emerge.

And we haven’t even got onto the subject of BBQ baby back ribs with BBQ sauce, @Alan White 😊

2 hours ago, John said:

Triton should be, on a good, dark night.

The moons of Uranus have so far eluded me at apertures less than 12 inches. Even the brightest of those is a magnitude fainter than Triton.

Edit: apologies, I realise that I've to some extent repeated what I posted earlier in this thread - I lost track !

Well it was good then and it’s good now, John 😊

8 hours ago, Sunshine said:

Great! love the images, was it might hot down there? did you enjoy the bbq? 

Not too hot. Typically max 80F. 
BBQ was excellent.

I'm a real fan of brisket.

Just back from Leakey, Texas, ca 60 miles from the Mexican border.

Beautiful Texas Hill Country, with the bluebonnets and other wild flowers in full bloom. The day before was perfect and eclipse day dawned clear. Then cloud came in, but there were gaps. Caught 1st, 2nd and 3rd contact. I was observing visually with my Tak FC 76DCU and Canon IS bins. What a super event!

we stayed in a cabin on a ranch. You can see it in my crude iPhone shot. It was extremely well appointed. The hosts were gracious and they even put on an impromptu Texas BBQ afterwards.

Nice handle John 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Good to see the late Maurice Gavin, CCD and spectroscopy pioneer 

That was a favourite haunt of mine from the 70s until they closed

1 hour ago, John said:

Managed to sort this natty "Tam o' shanter" type objective cap from a wooden lid and an old brass drawer knob. Needs a bit of wood stain but it's a nice snug fit into the dew shield. Should keep the dust out and somehow suits the style of the scope🙂

 

 

I’m just waiting for the cuckoo to pop out for a look 👍🏻

I certainly like your style, Nigella 👍🏻😊

I might have to dig out my observing dinner suit for the occasion 🤔