Alan64

I would think that you might want to get him at least a 2x-barlow of his own to putter round, with the original kit-eyepieces... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SVBONY1-25Barlow-2X-Lens-Multi-Coated-M42x0-75Thread-Camera-Connect-Interface/361950654736?hash=item5445f0b110:g:3hEAAOSwSKtaauef ...or... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SVBONY-1-25-Achromatic-Barlow-Lens-2X-Metal-two-element-for-Telescope-Eyepiece/323934195326?hash=item4b6bfb8e7e:g:Q9EAAOSwaQ9dID84 Dedicated eyepieces at 5mm and, gracious, 3mm, among the inexpensive, standard ones anyway, have tiny eye-lenses through which to see, and poor eye-relief where you'd have to almost if not actually touch your eyeball to the eye-lens of the eyepiece to see the full field-of-view. Rather, a wider-angle 6mm with a larger eye-lens, and combined with a 2x-barlow would realise a wide-angle 3mm... https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/m.html?_odkw=&_ssn=retekessofficialstore&_armrs=1&_osacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=p2046732.m570.l1313.TR12.TRC2.A0.H0.X6mm.TRS0&_nkw=6mm&_sacat=0

Yes, that slight point is due to the secondary-stalk. Hopefully, once you get it as precisely collimated as you might, the images should be sharper than they were before. Resolution, the level of detail, is dependent upon aperture; the more the merrier. Do keep in mind that that's the smallest Newtonian on the planet, yet larger than what Newton himself had at his disposal. The general, static range of eyepieces, from 4mm to 40mm, works differently with this telescope and that. A 10mm can be a high-power eyepiece for one telescope, and a low-power for another. In this case it's a low-power somewhat, 30x. In theory, that being a 3" aperture, it is capable of up to 150x, and a bit more even when aimed at the Moon. Let's see what 100x would take... 300mm ÷ 100x = a 3mm eyepiece. 3mm eyepieces aren't particularly plentiful. I would combine a 9mm eyepiece with a 3x-barlow, and for a effective, simulated 3mm. A 3x-barlow for that one, if you want to max it out. A 2x can be useful as well.

When you look down into the empty focusser you should see that the secondary-mirror is centered directly underneath the focusser, and that it appears as a perfect circle... I could tell within one of your images that the secondary-mirror appears rotated off to one side. The mirror is actually oval in shape, yet tilted at a 45° angle... This is true for all Newtonians. It therefore appears as a circle, as you see it through the focusser, and as the primary-mirror "sees" it from the back... Be careful when rotating the secondary-mirror, as we do not yet know how that is effected. You will probably need to loosen the three tilting-screws round the hub in order to free it up in order to rotate it.

You want to level the mount, align its RA-axis to Polaris(NCP), then attach the telescope and balance it.

Refractors have always, usually, been the only telescopes with rigid dew-shields pre-installed... ...but then, the colour is not always matched to that of the telescope's tube... Then, you have the rigid dew-shields provided with this iOptron Maksutov-Cassegrain, and this Explore Scientific Maksutov-Newtonian... https://i.imgur.com/aRJPoIj.jpg Those match the tube. You rarely if ever remove a dew-shield from a refractor however. Then, Astrozap offers rigid dew-shields in Meade and Celestron colours... A rigid dew-shield can be made easily enough, with aluminum-sheet and pop-rivets, lined with a black absorptive material, then painted whatever and whichever colour or colours you'd like.

Hmm... I have a black Farpoint dew-shield for my white Maksutov... ...meh. What about chartreuse, and fuchsia... Then, there's burnt-orange and avocado... Mustn't forget burnt-orange and avocado.

Oh, that new dew-shield will not only block stray-light sources, but it will also help prevent the secondary-mirror, and the primary-mirror, from dewing or frosting over.

However, don't get too excited as to the possibility.

That's okay, as I didn't understand it when I first came across it, and several weeks ago. It sounds to me that that mirror is parabolic, if the mirror is directing the laser-beam when tilting the mirror.

The grommets, and the springs, go over the adjustment-screws, not the locking-screws. I had forgotten to mention that. Just shine a light between the components of the cell...

If, I say if, as it is now 2020, the primary-cell uses rubber-grommets for the springs, three of them at least, then you might want to replace those with heavy-duty, metal springs. The rubber will fail over time, and then you'll have to replace them anyway... The tension is then much improved, and makes collimating that much easier.

The odd thing about it all is that we must assume that the back of the tube was cut precisely and perpendicularly to the length of same at the factory... ...and square to one another. Then, the plastic cell is practically perfectly flat, we hope; as is the mirror, and again we hope. Then, we assume that the three pieces of double-sided foam-tape used to install the mirror into the cell are of the same thickness. Lastly, as long as the cell seats fully onto the end of the tube, then there should be no need to adjust it. Does the cell fully seat onto the rim of the tube, in fact? There is one other thing. Elsewhere it had been opined that there's no need to center-spot a spherical primary-mirror. If the mirror is off-center, no matter, according to those individuals. The reason being is that the surface of the mirror conforms to a perfectly round sphere, and no matter where you place it round the sphere... Spherical-mirrors cannot focus all of the rays of incoming light from an object in the sky to a single focal-point, and as a result of its simple shape. But a parabolic-mirror can. The narrow end of an egg, a parabola... You cannot move the mirror round and about in that event, as its surface would not conform to the odd and uneven curvature of the egg. Therefore, you must center-spot a primary-mirror, and for a precise collimation. Again, a parabolic mirror can focus all of the incoming rays of light to a single focal-point, via its exotic curvature, which then results in the sharpest and most pleasing images possible. Still, I don't think that it's good practice in suggesting that a spherical primary-mirror does not need to be center-spotted, as that can lead to a beginner in not center-spotting their mirror at all, regardless of its curvature. A spherical-mirror is round, it has a center, therefore center-spot it... https://garyseronik.com/centre-dotting-your-scopes-primary-mirror/ This primary-mirror, from my "Bird Jones", is a spherical, therefore I center-spotted it... The telescope was then collimated, and I saw glory. Incidentally, all primary-mirrors are first figured into a spherical there at the factory, and then some of those are parabolised for other, larger, and more costly Newtonians. I can't help but wonder, if the optician is having a good day, if some mirrors that are destined to be shipped out as spherical are parabolised after all. Stranger things have happened, and all the more reason to center-spot a spherical primary-mirror.

What "good", you mean "great".

You won in that, then. Congratulations.

Betelgeuse is 642 light-years(estimated) distant. If it exploded today, we wouldn't see the light from that until 642 years from now. Then, it would most likely be visible during the day, at least at dawn or dusk. On the other hand, if it had exploded 641 years ago, then we would see it in the sky next year. Betelgeuse, and courtesy of my 150mm f/5 Newtonian... By the way, books are most unlike monthly magazines. I get great entertainment from some of Patrick Moore's books from as far back as the 1960s.

I imagine that the telescope has gained a bit of weight over the last three years, but for kicks and giggles I placed it onto its original mount... Before... After... I will probably use that mount when collimating the telescope. I may also give it another whirl round and under the night sky, at least once.

Thanks Stu. The next step will be to collimate it, then to take it outdoors for an afocal photo-shoot, through this eyepiece and that. Although, this winter has been wetter than usual, but I'm still hopeful for a clear, dry night soon.

After the matte-blackening, the dust-plug became a bit tighter-fitting, but no matter as now the entire cap can be removed with the dust-plug's single knob, and both the cap and plug as one. To cushion the dust-cap as it's inserted, shimming with felt or other could occur only here at these two areas, and between the aluminum-braces... Through trial-and-error over the course of a day or more, I finally arrived at the ideal combination of materials: one 5mm-wide strip of double-layered aluminum-foil tape, then one 9mm-wide strip of flocking, and for each side of the flange... Perfect fit... The altered dust-plug now allows ample clearance for the secondary-hub's thumbscrews... Other than the collimation yet to be performed, the telescope is completed.

I have the same eyepieces and 2x-barlow that you have, and that came with my Meade kit... Those eyepieces and the barlow are not very good. The telescope itself should be, however. These are the same as those of the BST "Starguider" line... https://agenaastro.com/eyepieces/1-25-eyepieces/shopby/agena_dual_ed.html Plossls... https://agenaastro.com/eyepieces/1-25-eyepieces/shopby/gso-gso_plossl-gso_superview.html Plossls shorter than 9mm have small eye-lenses through which to see, and short eye-relief. The BST flat-field and planetary eyepieces... https://agenaastro.com/eyepieces/1-25-eyepieces/shopby/bst.html To reach the higher powers, I would suggest a 3x-barlow and a 12mm Plossl... https://agenaastro.com/meade-128-3x-barlow-07278.html

You do want to exhaust the possibilities and solutions before any modifications.

The slotting occurs on the optical-tube... Don't go up to and beyond the edge of the tube with the slot... I eventually took that further with my own...

The entry-level Newtonian-Dobsons. like your nephew's, and this 100mm f/4 of my own... ...both have a primary-cell that cannot be collimated, as it arrives... It's simply a plastic tray with the mirror installed with three pieces of double-sided foam-tape... My own is the same as the "Heritage" 100P. Your nephew's is not a 76P, rather a 76mm with a spherical primary-mirror. A 76mm f/4 like that one should have a parabolic primary-mirror, but it doesn't. Some enlarge the three holes to allow some adjustment. Some even slot the holes somewhat to allow for even more adjustment. But that's about it, as it comes. The secondary-assembly, however, is collimatable, but I'm unsure as to the extent. It may certainly be tilted, at least. I would concentrate on adjusting that aspect. Is your laser-collimator tool collimated itself? Many do arrive mis-collimated, particularly the entry-level units. I have one myself, but I prefer to use passive-tools to collimate my Newtonians: a collimation-cap, and a Cheshire with cross-hairs; tried and true.

Did you get this eyepiece with the kit? This one is from my Celestron "PowerSeeker" 172EQ kit... If so, then you can use it for daytime/terrestrial observations; birds in trees, ships at sea, that sort of thing. The eyepiece contains an Amici, erect-image prism at the bottom of the barrel which effects the correctly-oriented view. No other eyepiece will contains such, to my knowledge. Meade has offered one, too, in the past at least. There are image-erectors. They look like a barlow, into which you insert an eyepiece, but it's awfully long, and would jut out of your focusser like a tower... https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/31w5%2BbvEodL.jpg Newtonians, however, are not configured and designed for such. Amici, erect-image diagonals can be used with refractors and Cassegrains(Maksutov and Schmidt), but not with Newtonians. If terrestrial observations are important to you, I would suggest getting a refractor, an inexpensive achromat.

What you may want, in so far as a reliable source of power, is a marine, deep-cycle battery-box. They can have USB-ports and 12V DC connections. It would require a marine, deep-cycle battery, and a box to hold the battery, also to fit on the power-connections. They can be had ready-made, for trolling-motors, or you can make one just the way you'd want it fitted out to your specifications. Here's an example of a ready-made... https://www.amazon.co.uk/Minn-Kota-Trolling-Motor-Center/dp/B001PTHKMG That's just the box; no battery. Here's where someone customised a box, using that particular one... https://www.offgridweb.com/transportation/last-man-projects-200-diy-emergency-power-pack/ Now that's not so much configured for our purposes, but as a general purpose power-box. Research DIY battery-boxes online, for astronomy, and ones that make use of a marine, deep-cycle battery.

If I purchased a kit or mount that required bog-standard batteries, I would not use those, as there are single, 12V, Lithium powerpacks to be had instead. After all, it is 2020 A.D.