RT65CB-SWL

Hi @SteveQ and welcome to SGL. Have you contacted Baader Planetarium for advice/recomendations? https://www.baader-planetarium.com/en/ Also, maybe worth asking or seeking advice here... https://www.adrianololli.com/

Hi @jwhitaker23 and welcome to SGL. Question... what do you intend to view/image? - reason I ask is that no 'scope does everything. I have four, [2x refractors and 2x catadioptrics... ie 1x Maksutov & 1x SCT], as per my signature. Personally I think the Celestron Astromaster 130EQ maybe the better option. It has a bigger aperture to gather more photons. I am not a great lover EQ mounts. For astro-imaging you will need to upgrade the supplied mount. The mounted OTA will also need to be balanced and polar aligned. By the time you have added a camera, T-ring, filters, etc., it is going to add more weight and more balancing. Then you will have master what is known as the 'meridian-flip'. BTW... the last image in your post has been poorly set up... it is tail-end heavy!

Thank you @paulastro Got two of four my ‘scopes setup, then realised that I had left one of four 1.25” star diagonals indoors. As I live near a main road, it was not worth the risk of leaving the kit outside for a few minutes to grab one, as it was easily visible to anyone passing by.

I went out, but forgot to pack a star diagonal for the ‘scope. You would think that someone that has four 1.25” ones, I would remember to bring at least one of them! I did let out/say an expletive that sounds similar to Pollux... also visible along the top edge.

Hi @SwiMatt and welcome to SGL.

Welcome back @barkis / Ron. I have since change my username. I will send you a PM with who I once was.

Here’s my attempt from an hour ago…

Hi @RyanL A bit more expensive but the https://www.firstlightoptics.com/bst-starguider-eyepieces.html give 60deg AFOV and would be a better choice for wide field views, as opposed to 52deg AFOV for Plossl e/p’s.

Alternatively you could always get zoom e/p. 8-24mm tends to be the most popular. Prices of zoom e/p' vary as does the quality and view. I use a 7-21mm [image below] which is OK'ish that I purchased from AstroBoot, before they left GB/UK 🇬🇧 for Europe 🇪🇺 a few years ago.

Hi @icefabio and welcome to SGL.

Hi @nikooo and welcome to SGL. Following on from @bosun21 reply, collimation is key to make every photon hit you in the retina. Should you wish to purchase a laser collimator, you will need to ensure that too is [ahem] collimated! There are plenty of YouTube videos showing this. All you need is a simple gadget called a 'V' block. They can be made from most things, such as an offcut of wood and four nails, to being made from Lego bricks, [other brands of plastic bricks are also available].

Nice images and your collimation is spot on too. (pun unintended. )

I don’t know if the the sticky-label is a hint/clue...

Polaris does have two companion stars. What ‘scope and eyepiece are/were you using? The two spots look to bright and irregular to be stars. Did you try with another eyepiece? And from Wikipedia: “Although appearing to the naked eye as a single point of light, Polaris is a triple star system, composed of the primary, a yellow supergiant designated Polaris Aa, in orbit with a smaller companion, Polaris Ab; the pair is in a wider orbit with Polaris B. The outer pair AB were discovered in August 1779 by William Herschel, where the 'A' refers to what is now known to be the Aa/Ab pair.” - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polaris

They did the same to the one opposite me. I complained again and they managed to put piece of metal nearest the pole. It’s a little bit of an improvement, but not 100% perfect. <— before. <— after.

That’s a great comment too!

Hi @AstroPhotosNZ and welcome to SGL.

As said by a philosopher: “It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” This is so true in our hobby.

Have you had look at Sky Safari [iOS and Android OS]? It has a ‘Tonight’ feature so can can see what is available from your location. Also, the iOS version includes augmented reality. It uses the iPhone or iPad camera and projects the app into/onto that. To activate it, click AR... simples!

I have the 6” Celestron SCT/XLT. It is a very capable instrument and good all-rounder. As one gets older day by day, things get harder, like lifting things, managing stairs, etc. That’s why I chose the 6” over the 8”. Image above of my Celestron C6 behind my ‘re-modded’ Meade ETX-105 and mounted on a Vixen GP and AstroEngineering side-by-side dual-mounting bar. I have since sold the Vixen GP. The money from the sale financed the AOK-AYO mount [left]. The other mount is my Tele-Optic Giro [right] as shown in the image.

That’s an eye opener [pun unintended] as I purchased my 6mm Radian during early 1999 and 8mm Radian [secondhand] during late 2022. I admit, I was a little dubious about using the 6mm when I first used the 6mm in my ETX105 as I was getting ‘blackouts’. This was because I did not fully understand the use of the supplied exit pupil guide* and did not use it, or I had temporarily mislaid it! This was before the plastic rear end got damaged following an accident/incident and had replaced the backplate with one that I had made for me by a local engineering workshop [and before Jim Wegat https://wegatoptical.com/shop/ made them]. * How use the TeleVue Radian & Nagler/type 4 exit pupil guide... TV Radian Eyepiece Instructions.pdf

Hi @EdwinHubble2023 and welcome to SGL. Do yourself a favour and buy a sheet of Baader Safety Solar Film. Apologies in advance if I appear blunt and/or rude [I have been up since 2:00am]… and remember to make a solar filter for your finder and/or guidescope. Also do examine all solar filters before and end of each solar session for any defects.

When I was a tad younger than I am now, my desired ‘scope, including a Questar, was this... the TeleVue Ranger. After dreaming, lusting, etc., at the S&T TeleVue adverts for a few years [as one does]... then fast forward to 1998, my dream, lust, etc., became reality.

I think you’re going to need a bigger or better mount. That one only does azimuth! 😜

I think you’re going to need a better mount. That one only does azimuth! 😜