RT65CB-SWL

Hi @Lung and welcome to SGL. Binoculars are a good entry but to get detail of the planets then the next step is a telescope. Where possible avoid department stores and the online warehouses. Use a dedicated outlet such as https://www.firstlightoptics.com/ the sponsor of SGL and have look here https://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes.html When you have decided on what you think maybe suitable, come back and let us know, then we can advise of any pros & cons, etc.

Hopefully this is the right place to discuss smartphone and tablet apps. I have just downloaded an app to my iPhone & iPad called ‘Star Hoppers’ - the developer is: Hong Kong Space Museum. Basically it is like many of the other planetarium apps that are available, but this one is different. It shows the constellations as per what Chinese astronomers would use... or would have used centuries ago. It also has the option to switch to IAU constellations too, if it is all to much. Some of the other features are: list major cities worldwide. option to manually enter coordinates in deg: min: sec: format, rather than digital format. option for augmented reality [AR]. calendar of astronomical events.

Nice sketch!

Hi @CharlyLeyequien and welcome to SGL. I have one of these... https://www.firstlightoptics.com/finders/astro-essentials-deluxe-red-dot-finder.html but under a different brand name. It has the option to switch from green to red, so that is useful for daytime use as well as night time.

Following on from my previous postings, there is a small app [it’s free] written by fellow SGL’er @Artik …it is AstroHopper …link below: It should help with locating things in a light-polluted night sky. Alternatively, there is PushToCam for Telescope [paid app] on the Apple App Store. I have downloaded both to my iPhone 12.

At home I am in Bortle 6. The airport hotel parking lot is Bortle 8-9... and the airport is London Heathrow (LHR).

List of TeleVue Delite e/p’s... https://www.firstlightoptics.com/tele-vue-eyepieces/tele-vue-delite-62-degree-eyepieces.html We love spending other people’s money! 😜

The UHC and Olll filters I think can be used for astro-imaging as well as visual. The Baader Neodymium is mainly visual, but it can be used for imaging if you are not to finicky or fussy about the end result. It does however give a pale blue hue when used visually when viewing Jupiter. For serious astro-imaging there are ‘specialist’ filters. I am not yet into that side of the hobby and I am reading up on it. I am sure other SGL’ers will correct me if wrong! As most Celestron SCT’s are f10, it maybe worth purchasing their focal reducer/field flattener. It will reduce to a slightly faster f6.3 and reduce your exposure times. Back to the TeleVue Delite... My C6/SCT when used with my 6mm Radian gives me a magnification 250x. Below is an image of Mars taken with the aforementioned setup, plus the Neodymium filter and using a digital compact camera, minus the f6.3 FF/FR. All were mounted on a manual alt-az mount and from the parking lot of an airport hotel. The visual view was better.

Hi @Vinnyvent84 and welcome to SGL. One thing that seems to be missing from the above answers… How long did you leave your ‘scope to acclimatise? - Mak’s and SCT’s being a sealed tube, require between 30-60+ minutes to cool if taken from a warm environment, unless it is stored in the garage or shed prior to viewing. Following on from the above, when packing up for the night, unpack and leave the caps off everything and leave the OTA pointing slightly downward and leave to dry naturally, even if left in the garage or shed away from direct sources of heat, (ie next to a radiator or other heat source). Then pack away after a few hours or you have had some rest/sleep. On to the Celestron X-Cel and TeleVue Delite dilemma, I personally would go for the Delite. Simply because they have 20mm eye relief, 62oAFOV and the eye guard is adjustable. I have a 6 & 8mm TeleVue Radian which are 58o AFOV and was its predecessor and now discontinued. The views are superb in my Celestron C6/SCT and my other ‘scopes. Other visual filters I would consider are UHC, Olll and/or a Baader Neodymium.

I have a few 6mm e/p’s. The list is shown below: unknown 0.965” Ortho... (used with a 1.25” adapter). Circle-T Ortho. Revelation Astro Plossl. TeleVue Radian. Svbony ‘goldline’... (used with a Lunt Herschel/solar wedge). Svbony ‘redline’. ...and the zoom e/p’s: TeleVue Nagler 3-6mm ‘planetaty’ zoom. Svbony SV215 3-8mm ‘planetaty’ zoom.

Following on from @orly_andico about 0.965” - 1.25” adapters, they do exist and can purchased from the usual online warehouses. Modern eyepieces, (ie Plossl’s or BST’s), would be a big improvement. Will it will focus is another issue you may have to think about should you upgrade to 1.25” eyepieces or buy a ‘newer’ telescope is up to you. 0.965” can be still found, but usually are of what you already have. Compared to the supplied 0.965” eyepieces that came with the second telescope I owned, I purchased a 0.965” / 6mm Ortho. It was an improvement. I decided to keep it when I gave the telescope away to a neighbours son many moons ago. To give you some idea of size, below is an image of my 0.965” / 6mm Ortho [left] next to a 1.25” - 0.965” adapter [right] that I use from time to time.

Hi @willburrrr2003 and welcome to SGL. I will have ago. Things you will need... a clean bowl. plenty of soft unbleached tissue and/or surgical grade cotton wool. a rubbish bin for the above. a mild washing up liquid/detergent. warm water. distilled water... plenty of it! disposable gloves. roll of masking tape or sticky labels to mark the position of primary mirror cell before removing and aid during reassembly a camera and notepad to write things down as a reminder of what goes where. a few hand tools, (ie air blower [not compressed air in an aerosol can], soft brush, screwdriver, spanner, Allen/hex key). patience. Remove the mirror cell and secondary, including the spider, (ie the thing that holds the secondary). Not sure whether the mirrors can be separated. If they can, then leave to soak in bowl of warm water and washing up liquid/detergent for a few minutes. You maybneed to do it a few times. When the above items and mirror looks clean, gently wipe the surface using one pass of tissue or cotton wool and dispose. When done, rinse off with distilled water and repeat the wipe procedure until clean. Leave to dry naturally before reassembly. For the eyepieces and finder-scope do not disassemble. Get some lens cleaning fluid and apply sparingly to cotton wool and or cotton buds and and gently wipe the lenses. Never apply direct to the lens. Plenty of tutorials on video sharing sites on how to clean eyepieces. For the OTA, a soft brush to remove any FOD [Foreign Object Debris], ie cobwebs, from inside the tube. For the outside of the tube, any polish or foam cleaner can be used. Apply some grease to the RA & DEC gears and sparingly apply some to the draw tube toothed strip. Once all reassembled, then you need to collimate it. Plenty of tutorials here and on video sharing sites on collimation. DISCLAIMER... I accept no responsibility for any damage and damages or misinformation. All information above is from my personal experience.

Hi @petercc and welcome to SGL. I know it seems obvious, but did you remove the end cap from your ‘scope. Don’t be ashamed, as we have all done it at some point, whether visual or imaging, at some point. I have just looked at the oaCapture website… https://www.openastroproject.org/documentation/supported-cameras/ and it says: Celestron I believe the Skyris cameras should work. The 174M and 132C have been tested. The Neximage models should also work.

Apologies in advance, but how are you going to attach it to the telescope? The type of Phillips webcam that @michael8554 refers to is/was the ToUcam series. Note that early ToUcam series webcams will need to be flashed and firmware upgraded for use with MS-Windows 10 [32bit & 64bit] and above.

I will be 100 years young in 2061

Agreed! I used to be devoted to TeleVue and Meade. Now I am devoted to TeleVue and Svbony. I have the earlier 6mm ‘redline’ and ‘goldline’ [i.e. no logo on them]. They are good value e/p’s. The ‘goldline’ is used for white light solar duties with my 1.25” Lunt wedge.

Welcome back to SGL @Malc Spring

Welcome to the SV215 club. Naughty postie / Naughty courier! 😖

Some say keep both eyes open when observing the observing eye is more relaxed… apparently. If you find it difficult then covering your none observing eye with your free hand or using an eye-patch may help. I am also a ‘lefty’.

Hi @emi_damian and welcome to SGL. As @NGC 1502 said above, buying for someone else is a tough call and I will add by saying that no ‘scope does everything. Maksutov ‘scopes are very good for lunar and and planetary viewing and being a compact size, they can go almost anywhere, (even as a carry-on item with some airlines), if packed in a suitable case or backpack. They do however have a few minor issues. One issue is that they are dew magnets. So if you decide to go for the Celestron 4SE, remember to get a dew shield at the time of purchase. Why they are not included is anyone’s guess. They need to cool down before use during cold weather when taken from a warm room inside the house to the cold of a garden or back/front yard. I have a ‘re-modded’ Meade ETX, (about the same specs), and usually allow 30-40 minutes to acclimatise before I start using it. The other issue is the field of view. They are narrow, compared to other ‘scope designs.

Hi @FlaviusYNP and welcome to SGL.

Hi @Kalin and welcome to SGL. If you mainly enjoy lunar and planetary viewing and want an exceptionally well made and well priced zoom e/p, then the Svbony SV215 3-8mm zoom could be just what you need. Plenty of reviews here... and on other forums. I have one plus the TeleVue Nagler 3-6mm zoom. Hard to tell which is the better zoom IMHO.

Hi @Kerrschild and welcome to SGL. Slightly more expensive than a 'small' Dobsonian and more compact, I would go for small Maksutov or SCT. That said, if you have never viewed through a Maksutov or SCT 'scope, then it may not be the best choice if it is your first 'scope because they have a narrow field of view and if mounted on a manual alt-az mount only a slight movement your intended target has disappeared from view. They are however brilliant for lunar and planetary viewing. Also when cold you have to leave it to acclimatise to the ambient temperature if taken from somewhere warm. I have a 're-modded' Meade ETX-105 [image below] and that fits perfectly in a padded backpack. A small alt-az mount [note: some photography ball heads with removable plates are wide enough to accept 'Vixen' compatible dovetail bars too] a few eyepieces, dew-shield also can be stored in the backpack pockets and photo/video tripod is what I use when traveling. My 're-modded' Meade ETX-105, flexible dew-shield, c/w small alt-az mount and Manfrotto PROB tripod.

Hi @RimuRidgeRakiura and welcome to SGL.

Both the TeleVue Nagler 3-6mm and the Svbony SV215 3-8mm are both good quality and build. In terms of operation, I found the Svbony is smooth in changing focal lengths on mine as opposed to @Franklin. I have been an early adopter of both since their initial releases and no regrets buying either. The only ‘real’ differences I have noted is: the field of view: TeleVue is 50o ~ Svbony is 56o both have the same eye-relief: 10mm. both are parfocal throughout the entire range of focal lengths. a few hundred pounds in price: TeleVue is £424.00 ~ Svbony is £124.00. I checked last week prior to posting on another thread, I saw the SV215 on sale at £124.00. If it’s any consolation, I paid £154.47 for mine including P&P last year. For those of you that are ordering or have got one for £75.00 [is that a new buyer discount?😉] I don’t think you will be disappointed. [note: prices shown in GBP for reference purposes only].