Andyb90

I got the dual boot working and tried to install Indi and kstars using the below command from the indi website sudo apt-get install indi-full kstars-bleeding But got a couple of errors with indi. The errors referred to ssag and altaircam. So I wasn't sure if indi had installed or not. I ended up running this command instead sudo apt-get install libindi1 indi-bin This worked and I then ran kstars-bleeding command which also completed. I think I have to install the drivers for my devices separately as I only have basic indi installed. Is that correct? Andy.

Ok, thanks will try the XRDP. Andy.

I'm just installing Ubuntu alongside windows on the laptop at the moment. Is it possible to run the KStars client and INDI server together on the laptop? Then remote onto it to monitor KStars. That's what I do with Windows. I don't mind having the laptop outside sat next to my rig. Andy.

Hi everyone, I'd like to try KSTARS with INDI, but I'm not sure where to start. Looking at the system requirements on the INDI website it says "It is highly recommended to run INDI in an embedded Linux computer". Can anyone explain what that means? Is it a specific type of hardware? I have a Windows 8 laptop so was hoping maybe I could install Linux on it or would that not work? Do I need to get an "embedded single board computer"? Andy.

Re-felted the rings and fitted the spacers. Dew shield is well clear of Losmandy plate and there is plenty of room for dew heater bands. The setup feels nice and solid. Looking good now just as bonfire night is approaching! Andy.

Good to know. I've stripped the original felt off and will re-felt the rings. Just wondering what would be the best glue to use. Andy.

I got the rings the other day. They are slightly too big out of the box so I got a piece of felt, cut some strips to size and put them in the rings. Now they fit fine and OTA doesn't budge. The other thing is that the Esprit dew shield is slightly wider than the rings. So I've ordered some Primalucelab spacers for mounting them on my Losmandy plate and also for mounting stuff on top of the rings. Andy.

Thanks, I'm relieved it worked ok. The felt on the Primalucelab rings is quite thick, which is working against me with the 100mm ones. I'm hoping it will work in my favour with the 102 rings. It's frustrating as I did have the 101mm rings, but sold them before I decided to get the Esprit 80. ? I see WO have discontinued them and before that had them on clearance for $29 ! I really should have done this in the Summer, but it's a lesson learnt for me. Andy.

I got the ratchet set today and loosened the nuts easily, but couldn't get them off the bolts. At this point I was getting a bit worried ! Then realised I could peel off the rubber on the bottom of the mounting foot. This revealed a base plate with 4 small screws. I removed them and the base plate. This allowed me to get an Allen key wrench into the hex screw head of the bolt. At the same time I had the ratchet on the nut in the ota. Then I just unscrewed the bolts. The freed nut stayed inside the ratchet socket so did'nt fall into the OTA. Phew ? I was able to do this without catching the inner rim inside the OTA too ?. Now I've put the tube rings on the OTA. The only thing is they seem a bit small. Below is a picture. I'm not sure if it matters that the rings don't close fully. They're Primalucelab 100mm rings. I've just realised Primalucelab also do 102mm rings and have managed to order a pair to compare. If the 102mm rings are too big should these rings be okay? I guess anything mounted on top of the rings will be at a bit of an angle, but does that really matter? Andy.

Thanks both for the info. I'll use some tape then. @Jkulin were the nuts easy enough to loosen? Andy.

I agree not what I was hoping to find. I'm also a little worried about the circular rim between the outer screw and inner screw. I don't want to strike it with the ratchet and cause any damage as I guess that could affect star shape. I may put some foam around the rim to protect it. I'll see how easily the outer screw comes loose first. It's gonna be a bit nerve wracking. I was thinking either the holes will be covered by tube rings or if that doesn't work maybe some kind of rubber bung trimmed to size. Andy.

Thanks for the suggestion have ordered a socket set similar to the Halfords one. So hopefully will be relatively straight forward to get the nuts off. Andy.

Hi everyone, I'm trying to remove the mounting foot from my Esprit 80. It is held in place with 2 screws secured by 2 nuts inside the OTA. I'd really appreciate some advice on how best to remove the nuts so I can get the foot off the scope. Is there a specific tool that would help me access the screws easily. Maybe some kind of right angled spanner that would fit over the nuts. Here's a picture, as you can see it is going to be tricky with just a normal spanner. Andy.

Yes that's the one, thanks for confirming it corrects too. Andy

Thanks for the information. I think I'm going to stick at f5 for now. As if I end up spending more time manually re-focusing that will probably negate (at least part of) the benefit of reduced f ratio. I think I'll re-visit using the reducer when I have auto focus setup with the scope. Andy.

I couldn't see on the TS website whether it's a flattener as well. I've emailed them to check. So the faster the setup generally the more difficult it is to achieve and maintain accurate focus manually. Is that correct? I haven't got auto focusing setup at the moment. I use the star HFR readings in SGPro for focusing manually. Andy.

Hi everyone, I'm tempted to try the TS Optics 0.79x reducer with my Esprit 80 as it would give f4. Has anyone tried the reducer with this scope? If so it would be good to know about your experiences. I'd also be interested to know if anyone has used another reducer with the Esprit 80 and what the results have been like. Andy.

How is the helical focuser on the scope? Andy.

I think you're both right the prism must not be far enough into the light path. I thought I'd got the positioning spot on, but it maybe the locking screw wasn't quite tight enough. Will do as suggested and try sorting it out in daylight. I think the star profile is definitely not right. I don't think FWHM should be negative. Andy.

Hi Everyone, I'm using a ZWO OAG with my QHY5III174M guide camera. I can see stars in PHD2 when the exposures are looped, but their shape seems odd. Here's a screenshot from PHD2: It looks a bit like only half the star is showing. The stars are definitely out of focus. I did try to adjust focus but could only move the guide head so far before it butted up against the filter wheel. I can never seem to get the top of the OAG aligned with the top of my filter wheel with my threaded connection. Any advice on what could be causing the star shapes would be gratefully recieved. Andy.

Yes I find it odd as my asi1600 is about 400g, EFW is also about 400g, OAG around 700g and say 1kg for flattener. So total of 2.5kg and round up to 3kg to be on the safe side. Not particularly heavy. I have a Lakeside motor focuser unit connected and can see the drawtube sticking when the focuser moves out. FLO have sent me a video showing how to adjust the tension on the pads that support the drawtube. I've done that and hope to test auto focusing again next clear night. Andy.

Until recently the focuser has been fine. Then I changed my filter wheel from SX USB wheel to a ZWO wheel and added a ZWO OAG. Since then when the drawtube is racked out its sticking in places, which is throwing out my auto focusing. I've spent some time adjusting the focuser with the hope of resolving the issue, but want to explore the feathertouch as an alternative option. Andy.

Hi Everyone, Just wondering if anyone has fitted a feathertouch R & P focuser to an Esprit 100 scope. I think this is the one that is compatible 'FeatherTouch 3" R&P Focuser FTF3015BA'. From what I can see an adapter would be needed to attach the focuser to the OTA and an end cap that is compatible with the flattener. Would be interested to hear anyone's experience if they have this focuser fitted to the Esprit 100. Andy.

Unfortunately I can't do tonight as I'm on babysitting duty. Andy.

I can do tonight. I think it's worth a gamble on Shropshire. Can PM a possible location Andy.