RT65CB-SWL

Was it easy? I have heard the Mak's* tend to be a pain in the @+$€! * especially the Meade ETX series, as one has to remove the rear assembly, to get to the collimation screws.

Very nice.

Nice!

I started off with the 4ETE... 40x/40mm refractor... magnesium fluoride [MgF2] anti-reflective coatings... "I want one of those!" "Wow! - I can see Saturn's rings with this!" / "I can see craters on the Moon!" / "I got sunspots!" projected and scribbled onto a sheet of A4. Just some of my 'wow!' moments ...and that was in the mid to late 1970's as a birthday present from my father & step-mother. It had an awful alt-az mount on spindly table top tripod legs. My late grandfather had some galvanised steel pipe, (the sort that is used for electrical/fire alarm cable), in his garage and we made a set of 'decent' tripod legs for it of one metre in length. It was still let down by the awful alt-az fork head that would take it to about +45o. If you wanted to go higher in altitude or zenith, I just would mount it on the 'outside' of one of the forks of the head and pray that I had enough thread on the bolt without it coming loose. All in all... good then, but doubtful now! ...but it got started me into this hobby.

It's interesting to see how many of us are using Alt-Az mounts. Anyway here's my TeleVue Ranger alongside my 'modded' ETX105... ...it's the best photo I have of it to date. There maybe others, but I think they are on a Linux (Debian 3.1) HDD or CD-ROM!

I would... but I am using my iPhone at present and I don't have any photos of my TeleVue Ranger (& 'cats') on it.

For something that is carry-on/aircraft friendly, the TV-60 and a 'small' Manfrotto tripod & head ticks all the boxes. During August 1999, I managed to persuade LGW check-in staff to allow me to carry my TV Ranger case on-board, whilst the tripod & head were packed in the suitcase and in the hold.

Hi 'DSLR Nut' and welcome to SGL. 1. was this the youtube video... 2. is your ETX125 complete, (ie has the fork drive assembly). My ETX105 did not include the fork drive. It was fun removing the back and attaching a dovetail bar to it, and then reassembly. Bearing in mind the back is plastic. It my flex under the weight/load of your camera. If like mine before I 'modded' it following a crash meeting with gravity, the back is secured by 3x 6/32 machine screws and no washers or other reinforcement. 3a. try this site... http://www.telescopeadapters.com/ (if you are in the US, "yes!" they do ship worldwide but check before ordering), or this one... http://www.harrisontelescopes.co.uk/acatalog/Meade__64_T_Adaptor_For_ETX90_125.html if you are in GB/UK and of course you will need the correct T-ring for your camera. 3b. a google search gave me this... https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=meade+%2364+adaptor&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=O6nUVKDxF5DlaJntgoAP&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAg&biw=1280&bih=863 4. take a look at Weasner's Mighty ETX Site... http://www.weasner.com/etx/menu.html an excellent on-line resource for all things ETX 5. balancing the OTA with a camera too may be an issue unless you want to pemantly remove it from the fork drive and attach a dovetail bar. (I would not recommend the pre-drilled mounting points that are on the underside). You would be better off attaching the OTA to dovetail bar and a set of tube rings, or as I have done attached a dovetail bar directly to the OTA using 2x Jubilee rings/clips. (PM me if you would like to see a photo). 6. a 32mm Plossl should give nice views for affocal-photography. I thinks that is about it. Clear skies.

When I first heard the term 'clock drive' when I started astronomy, it is exactly as I imagined them... you wound them up! Now days 'we' amatuer astronomers get wound up by streetlighting and light pollution!

I started off with a Tasco 4ETE (40X) during 1976/77. Wonderful little 'scope. My late grandfather made some longer legs from some aluminium tube and thick plastic tube inserted which the original tripod legs would fit into. We had some 'great' views of the Moon, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn & projected Sunspots. Happy days. I seem to recall they had a 10 year guarantee too! Somehow I damaged the dewshield. I found a retailer in Reading, who sold Tasco equipment and told them of my mishap. They ordered a replacement. When I collected it, they said; "...it was still under guarantee."

Looking at the pipe-mounts, it reminded me of a copy of an american book I used to have. I think it was dated from about 1985, (though I cannot remember the name of it). It included plans and instructions on how to build a pipe-mount, (and a 'simple' newtonian with a floorboard or other length of a hardwood timber). Amatuer astronomers are very inventive when resources and financial funds are limited.

Nice report Matt. Personally I think the TV Radian e/p's are/were underrated. I have a 6mm and it is a pleasure to use. Maybe because the 'Instadjust'* gives varying eye-relief. When I purchased mine it was the Radian or another well known 6mm wide angle. Honestly though, I think I made the decision long before I saw one. * TeleVue patent

Great resource tool guys (and girls)! Please can we have it as a 'sticky' somewhere? Thank you.

Very informative. Thank you.

I am thinking about getting the FUNcube dongle. As I live in a studio apartment erecting an external antenna is an issue. I have a few shortwave receivers and at present use a random wire in the loft/attic and the earth wire terminated to the cold water pipe in the airing cupboard & 'Slinky' antenna streched across the ceiling in the bedsit room. I do like the names you have given your shed and installation!