Simon Dunsmore

24 minutes ago, Budgie1 said:

Yep, the red (+) prong should got in the centre contact inside the socket and the black (-) on the metallic part of the sidewall. 

If the needle or readout (LCD version) goes to a negative reading then the polarity is the wrong way round.

Good point, how many connections are there on the back of the switch, 2 or 3?

There are three terminals on the switch. Presently the middle one is left blank

4 minutes ago, Budgie1 said:

Have you got a multi-meter to check there's power coming out of the sockets? It will also tell you that you have the polarity correct, The switch & LED will both light up when power is put through them in either direction but your mount etc needs the correct polarity.

Thanks for the reply. Do I just touch one of the tester prongs on the tab on the rear (inside) and another on the wall (inside) of the socket to test?

3 minutes ago, bosun21 said:

If you have followed this and your connections are tight and secure then it’s either the battery posts need cleaned and check the connection to them is good. Failing that then it’s the cigar connections not making contact. Out of curiosity what condition is the battery (age etc)

The battery is pretty old but the output seems good 12.75v I'll check the sockets but they do light up when the switch is flicked.

Thanks again

Simon 

1 hour ago, bosun21 said:

Can you post the wiring diagram as there is undoubtedly something wrong with the connections inside your box 

Hi and thanks for your quick reply. Wiring diagram attached. I'm not sure if this would make any difference but I repeated this for two sockets. 

Please forgive my ignorance, but would the switches and sockets still light up if wired incorrectly?

Thanks

Simon 

Wiring Diagram.pdf

Hi Folks,

I could do with a little help from any electrical boffins out there.

I usually run my mount and gear from the mains when imaging at home. However, I plan to take the rig out to a dark sky sight, so decided to build a portable power supply.

I had a 45amp hour car battery going spare so purchased some cigar lighter sockets and 2x 12v switches and following a wiring diagram installed the components in a suitable plastic container.

So far so good, when I switch it on, the switches and LEDs in the sockets light up. Output from the battery is measuring 12.75v but no power to the mount. I'm using the same leads that I use with the mains set up so I know they're good.

Any suggestions???

Thanks 

Simon 

Hi Folks,

Quick question, I need to replace the finderscope shoe on my Skywatcher 72ED. My question is, do i need to disassemble the focuser to do this. I'm unsure if the bolt that holds the shoe in place has a nut on the inside of the tube that would fall off if I unscrewed it or is it threaded into the body of the scope? 

Thanks for your help

Simon

On 14/11/2021 at 22:18, happy-kat said:

Affinity was also covered in one of the great StarGaZine zooms, here

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/365437-ep24-youtube-a-tour-round-affinity-photo-by-dave-eagle/

Brilliant, thanks I'll check these out

3 hours ago, powerlord said:

Not sure how up to date that book is ? Affinity has added quite a lot of astro stuff in the latest version - stacking, background removal, star alignment, etc.

Personally I'd just check out 'astrophotography affinity' on youtube. affinity themselves have lots of good tutorials covering stacking OSC, mono, etc and there are many others. Also don't forget just general affinity tutorials - understanding layer blending types and curves, curves, levels, live filters, etc are all base key stuff before you go into astro specific stuff.

I will say, after being a 20 year photoshop user and finding myself having to look elsewhere, since I refuse to do subscription software as a matter of principle, I took quite a while trialing affinity before I decided to buy it. After a fair amount of re-learning I can honestly say I have never looked back - purging my macs of anything and everything adobe was very cathargic.

Since then i've bought M1 macs and affinity have been amongst the first to support them - making everything supercomputer fast, version upgrades are often and add real value, and their support of the astro community seems excellent.

So you've definately made the right choice imho. Once you learn the quirks it's a truly powerful product. Editing everything in 32 bit!! try that in photoplop.

Hi, Thanks for your reply. I purchased the book and it must have been updated recently as it covers stacking in Affinity. Finding it a good basis but will definitely be checking out the videos.

Great to hear from seasoned user of astrophotography editing software your opinion means a great deal, thanks.

Cheers 

Simon

On 14/11/2021 at 18:21, callisto said:

Not a video but I highly recommend this  https://www.firstlightoptics.com/books/affinity-photo-astrophotography-image-processing-guide-second-edition.html

 

Mark   

Thanks Mark, Purchased a copy and finding it really helpful. Cheers 

11 minutes ago, Jerry Barnes said:

 

This should be a start.  James has done several astrophotography videos.

Brilliant, thanks. I'll take a look 

Hi Folks,

I'm in need of a little advice from the corporate brain.

I've finally managed to capture some good data. I've installed Affinity photo but I just can't get my head around this editing thing.

Can anyone recommend a series of you tube or even a singular video that will get me started? 

I'm looking to edit an image of the veil nebula if that helps. 

Thanks in advance for your recommendations 

Simon

Tada!!!

OK, so the tube arrived today. Just about perfect for the sensor, just one wrap of tape and it's nice and tight. Tube is 30cm long. 

I have some sticky back plastic to wrap it in, then I'll zip tie it in place.

On 11/11/2021 at 10:00, StarWomble said:

Interested in a pic of how it looks when you've done it Simon

Will do!

12 hours ago, StarWomble said:

Interested in a pic of how it looks when you've done it Simon

Will do!

10 hours ago, StarWomble said:

This one should work?

https://www.elitemodelsonline.co.uk/Modeling/Building-Materials/Carbon-Fibre/Round-Tube/5634-/CARBON-FIBRE-ROUND-TUBE-70mm-x-50mm-x-1mt-5518458

 

That one would have been perfect. However, I just ordered a 8mm OD with 5mm ID alluminium tube. I'm thinking to mount it just under the guidescope on the dovetail bar using zip ties.

5 hours ago, StarWomble said:

Sounds like a good idea - I was wondering on using some hollow carbon fibre rod from a local radio control shop for the same thing.

Hi, Funnily enough, I was just looking at the same thing. I couldn't find aluminium tubing with a 5mm inner diameter. The sensor arrived today and its 4.5mm at the widest point. 

7 hours ago, The Lazy Astronomer said:

It's a very specific question and has piqued my curiosity: what are you planning to do?

The actual probe is 20mm long and 4mm in diameter. There's also some heat shrink sleeving around the cable which extends about halfway down the probe, this adds about 1mm to the diameter.

Hi and thanks for your reply.

I'm planning on running the probe through a length of alluminium pipe with the sensor part exposed and then mounting in atop the scope so that it extends out past the front of the rig. Just a neater solution than having it hanging downward.

Still waiting for it to arrive and so looking for a suitable bit of tube.

Thanks again for the reply.

Simon

Hi Folks,

Anyone out there who could tell me the measurements of the zwo eaf temperature sensor? I need to know the widest measurement at the sensor end.

Cheers 

Simon

Hi Folks,

Anyone out there who could tell me the measurements of the zwo eaf temperature sensor? I need to know the widest measurement at the sensor end.

Cheers 

Simon

Hi Folks,

Anyone out there who could tell me the measurements of the zwo eaf temperature sensor? I need to know the widest measurement at the sensor end.

Cheers 

Simon

Hi,

Thanks, that's very kind and much appreciated. I have ordered a slightly different model, but may come back to you if that's OK.

Cheers 

Simon

Hi, Nice job!!

Thanks 😊 

Hi Thanks for your comments.

I'm thinking more for a secure way to hold the image train 

Do you know what thread is on the ed72?