Louis D

I was super busy over the Holidays with the kids all back in town with their significant others, so I'm just now able to post images of my astro Christmas present:

I'm still evaluating it relative to my venerable 40mm Meade 5000 SWA.

9 minutes ago, Don Pensack said:

So the thread starter has a 12.5mm and wants to know the next logical jump.  I would say not to 17.5mm, but to about a 20-24mm depending on scope size and focal length.

Exactly what I was thinking.  In fact, I typically jump from 30mm or 40mm right to 12mm to 14mm once the object is centered in most of my scopes.  After I'm satisfied with that view, I might then try a 17mm or 22mm just to see if the change in context brings out anything new and enjoyable.

Maybe I missed it, but what is the focal length of the scope you intend to use these eyepieces in?  If it's upwards of 2000mm, then having the 17.5mm and 12.5mm makes sense.  If it's 500mm, not so much.

1 minute ago, Sunshine said:

I have a 9mm Morpheus and, a 15mm XW, reading this thread about the 17.5 Morpheus i will be getting it also, i don't care how close it is to my 15mm XW. Morpheus eyepieces are great, MORE MORE MORPHEUS!!

I'll give you $500 for that ultra-rare 15mm XW.  I've never even heard of one before. 😉

From my understanding, SCTs tend to have faster f-ratios of f/10 or f/6.3, are easier to use with field flatteners/correctors, have larger central obstructions and thus lower contrast, and can be made in larger apertures because the corrector plate is fairly thin.  The thinness of that corrector plate makes them more delicate for shipping (I've read reports of multiple SCT corrector plates cracking in shipment, but not of a single Mak plate).  They don't seem to hold collimation very well, have both field curvature and off axis coma, and tend to suffer from mirror flop and focuser slop on direction reversal.

Maks tend to have slower f-ratios and smaller central obstructions as a result yielding higher contrast, are generally limited to 7" for their largest apertures (although there have been larger such as AP's 10") due to the mass of their thick corrector plate.  This thick corrector plate is difficult to break accidentally.  They tend to hold collimation very well, often for years at a time.  They don't seem to suffer from field curvature or off axis coma as much as SCTs.  There don't appear to be any Mak focal reducers on the market, so you're stuck with f/12 or higher f-ratios.  And lastly, mirror flop and focuser slop seem to be better controlled, perhaps because the primary mirror size tops out at a more manageable size.

What's your total budget for eyepieces if we're going to help you spend your money? 😄

I'd classify f/7.5 as mid-speed.  f/10 and above is slow while f/5 and below is fast.  That leaves f/5.6 to f/9 as mid-speed.  Eyepieces that do poorly in fast scopes just off axis do better in mid-speed scopes, but are still suffering in the outer field.  Those same eyepieces will look quite good in slow scopes across most of the field.  By f/15, just about all eyepieces perform very well.

Have the seller use Mail Boxes Etc. or similar to do the packing.  Most shippers won't cover in-transit damage unless they or an approved affiliate do the packing.  SCT corrector plates are notoriously delicate and prone to breakage in transit.

I second using a credit card via Paypal or similar to pay for the scope.  Their buyer protections are very strong.

Take photos of the package when it arrives and of the interior as you unpack it.  Alternatively, video the process.  That way, no one can weasel out of damage coverage or try to claim you swapped OTAs to scam the seller.

8 hours ago, JeremyS said:

Louis, I'm regularly over in Houston on business (not since Feb '20, tho!).  So I've be looking for (preferably road) trips from there to see the eclipse. I see Uvalde is not too far, just the other side of San Antonio - is this a favoured spot to observe it?

It's my pick for April.  It's a much more arid climate there than the area north and east of San Antonio.  Eagle Pass on the Rio Grande is another option for a day trip, but I wouldn't recommend staying overnight in the area.  Overnight car theft along the border is a big problem.  Uvalde is far enough away from the border that it isn't as much of a problem.  If you want to stay overnight in a delightful tourist town along the path, I would recommend Fredericksburg.  I'd book early, though.  Weather there would have a slightly higher chance of overcast skies.  Llano is another overnight option a bit further north as well as Kerrville to the south.  You might even be able to get a vacation rental on Lake Buchanan and not have to drive anywhere since it is directly on the eclipse center line.  If you want to camp overnight, Enchanted Rock State Natural Area between Fredericksburg and Llano would be an excellent option, but book very early.

4 hours ago, Space Hopper said:

I have on the drawing a board a trip planned for 2024. Around April 8th to be precise.

As long as it stays dry and sunny for that one........

I plan to travel down to Uvalde for eclipse viewing since their weather is predictably dry down there most of the year.  April is normally a very wet month for large swaths of Texas and the central to eastern US.  If the eclipse were in July, I could almost guarantee dry, sunny conditions all month long across Texas.

My best views of Mars during this last opposition were with Arcturus binoviewers, a Meade 140 2x Barlow nosepiece, and 15x wide field B&L microscope eyepieces in my Dob.  The views were so much more detailed and easier to take in than in my 5.2mm Pentax XL or 3.5mm Pentax XW eyepieces.  My point is, binoviewer views of the moon and planets with average eyepieces are generally way better than the best mono view.  Two eyes allow for much better contrast and detail detection.

On 30/12/2020 at 07:26, Aston said:

The trolley sounds like a good idea!

I am really excited to get my new scope, it will probably be a lot better than my diy 130mm "dob". The new one has a real spotting scope, instead of the red-dot one i have now(never had much luck with that).

That's a very similar design to Starmaster's 7" Oak Classic which is very well regarded:

Were you inspired by such designs?

1 hour ago, Space Hopper said:

It rains in Texas.....?? 😉

Just got an inch today after having gotten nothing for weeks.  Our whole house has shifted mightily due to the dry soil conditions.

The problem is, we don't get slow, gentle rains that last for days on end like the eastern US.  We often get rain measured in inches per hour that can be done in a matter of minutes to hours which leads to flash flooding.

Here's my son's current apartment's underground parking garage being flooded in 2018 (Pointe San Marcos):

And here's the apartment complex he just moved out of being nearly flooded in 2015 while being built (Red Pointe [formerly Woods of] San Marcos):

That's two major flooding events within three years of each other for just one Texas town.  That, and my son has a knack for picking apartments that have flooded in the past.  He never parks on the lowest level of the parking garage, just in case.

On 23/12/2020 at 10:39, Nik271 said:

What makes more sense strategically is specializing in professional high precision equipment, but that is definitely not going to reach the masses.

That's pretty much what PerkinElmer and Corning have done in the US.  They now only work at the high end on industrial, academic, and governmental contracts.  I'm sure they could make awesome amateur telescopes and eyepieces, but at what price?

I didn't notice Jupiter looking any brighter naked eye at greatest conjuction.  It just drowned out Saturn making it more difficult to spot naked eye.

23 hours ago, noah4x4 said:

I got so fed up with the mud I laid artificial grass

Given our never ending watering restriction due to droughts, and HOA requirements to have a green lawn, we've been tempted to do the same.  We also can't get any grass type to grown in deep shade under some of the trees, so artificial turf would solve this problem as well.

On 30/12/2020 at 12:44, Space Hopper said:

The best thing you can do with a lawn is improve its drainage.

My problem is my backyard neighbor put in planters along the back fence on his side blocking my yard from draining (acts like a 1 foot high dam).  Water backs up several inches deep and about 4 feet across along the back fence.

Any change for shipments to the US?  So far, the US hasn't closed its borders to UK shipments and travelers to my knowledge.

On 29/12/2020 at 17:44, orca said:

Hi All

Just a carpenter (joiner) by trade. Having trouble deciphering the set up and use of this telescope. Any help would be welcome, or did I pay $180.00 CND for a inferior machine.

 

1. Well, they're only $100 on Amazon US with free shipping, and in stock, so $180 CND seems high since that's $141 USD.
2. It probably uses a spherical rather than parabolic primary mirror, but at f/9 it might be tolerable at lower powers.
3. You should be able to get good views of the moon and many open star clusters.
4. The eyepieces should probably be replaced with 1.25" Plossls for starters to get better views.  I believe it comes with Ramsden and Huygens 0.965 eyepieces along with a 1.25" to 0.965 adapter.
5. The mount is going to be wobbly and difficult to track objects with at high powers, so best to stick with lower powered viewing for now.

There's one for sale on CN classifieds that hasn't been marked as sold yet:

https://www.cloudynights.com/classifieds/item/237345-celestron-edge-hd-925-ota/

This year, I put down hundreds of pounds of pea gravel on the walkways around my house that had become cow paths.  The grass can still grow up through or across it (St. Augustine grass has runners), and water will still drain down through it.  It's been a game changer to reduce mud on my yard shoes.  I also put it on the drainage alongside my side fence that had been eroding badly during each rain.

I look at it from an exit pupil perspective.  You've got an f/12 scope, so your 22mm is producing 1.8mm, or just about the ideal exit pupil already.  You could move up to a 12mm to 13mm for a ~1mm exit pupil.  I generally don't go below 0.7mm most nights, so that would equate to an 8mm to 9mm eyepiece.  Taking these two together, you would do well with a 9mm and 12.5mm Morpheus set without giving up much field to the ES-82s while gaining viewing comfort.

I would look to add a 2" 40mm SWA to a 56mm Plossl widest field eyepiece as well for viewing nebulae with a 3.3mm to 4.7mm exit pupil.  You don't need to go super expensive with an f/12 scope for nebula observing, either.

For reference, here's an annotated Damian Peach image from APOD composited from multiple exposures taken early on the day of the Great Conjunction to bring out details across the image:

It doesn't look much like the FB images, does it?

22 minutes ago, F15Rules said:

Someone mentioned Speers Waler eyepieces..some are definitely pre-2000 I think..I owned a 5-8mm variable "zoom" Speers -Waler earlier this year, you may remember it?

Dave

 

That's the fancier click-stop version that came with the nice focal length window.  It was introduced sometime after 2000, but most certainly with the original optical prescription inside.

Televue introduced the 27mm Panoptic in 1994.  Since I bought my copy used in 1999, I know it has to be pre-2000 vintage.

It is still an excellent eyepiece.  It's just tight on eye relief for eyeglass wearers.

That 28mm RKE is also vintage.  I picked it up from Surplus Shed which had bought them as surplus lot.  It's a fun eyepiece to use due to the floating image effect.

The entire Nagler T4 line was introduced in 1998.  I now have all 3 of them, just not in the same image:

The 12mm and 17mm both suffer from strong SAEP.  Otherwise, they're really good eyepieces.

That Bausch & Lomb 15x UWF 31-15-74 has to be pre-1980s at the latest because they got out of microscopes years ago.  The pair I have work excellently for binoviewing.