Alan White

I think it was in the plan, Clearing the Tower and blowing on the pad was the objective today, as was obtaining flight data as a stack, they got past Max Q and to stage seperation, which is quite something.

Super images as always Dave, very impressive indeed.

Tempting to comment on this MIke 😉 🤣

It’s a start guide rather than a full plan, but will guide your thoughts. All diy observatories have differences, so a full plan or guide may not exist for your location. You are welcome to my copy if you send me your address via a message. And I am aware you are in the Holland.

Ags, I have the book, for a never built project in my case, relocation calls in the not so distant future.

I have been in the hobby for a great number of years, most dedicated to it for the past 15 or so years. The observation you make about kit is as I see it as well, things are very much more available and at more affordable cost that when I started out. The one thing I wish we could solve above all else, sadly is unlikely resolvable, because its the flipping cloud that gets me. Cloud feels far more freely available than when I started out. On a serious note, what I do hope is that the wonder of visual observing is not lost in the technological frenzy in which we find ourselves. I like the simple and to me 'more pure' form of the hobby, this is no slur on those who love the technology side of thongs of course, we all walk our own paths after all.

Dr Mike, Surgeon of Optics..... has a nice ring to it 😉 Nice job, and well executed as I would expect from the fine surgical hands of Dr Mike. I think your frustration with said retailer has been documented before, but I have always managed good communication with them, if not immediate communication. As to frustration with technology and business methods, I fully fall in that camp, just done with awkward and stupid these days. You are not alone, it a club of at least two of us. Nice outcome all the same and a fine piece of glass in my book, enjoy my APM one.

And I was talking about tripods too Unlessyou have one that levitated from place to place, then you touch them.

Looks a nice set up, the tripod is the icing on the cake Clearly the SW Alt Az is bigger than I gave it credit for.

Nice, very nice Can you bring my one on order for my Solar scope along 😘😘

Dampening for one and thats a big one. They look rather nice, Nice in the cold when you handle them. I had a Uni 28 and it compared weight wise to the SW 1.75" metal one. Sold my one to raise funds as I often do. Rgeretted selling it ever sine, as I often do as well. Its on my to buy list, but not at the cost of other items on the same list.

All the Berlebach tripods are made from Ash.

Postie has been this morning, amazingly managed to not talk Astro but skips... we had one being delivered as he called. Delivery from @FLO and one from @Mr Spock A replacement rubber eyecup for the LE series, my mint 12.5 had a strange cup from new, so replaced with a new one thats normal. And a Vixen SLV from Mr Spock, I will start to be called @Franklin with all this Vixen kit buying going on.

Oh Michael, you are in the wars. You have my sympathy as I too have done the same on a counterweight standing up. Wish you well.

Very nice image indeed, one to be proud of. I like widefield images, make you take in the reality of just how much is around us to see.

@Littleguy80, very much the response we probably expected, sadly. I think Vixen have missed a trick as a higher priced HR would still sell, all be it into a small market.

That obsy you link to Agnes looks very nice indeed and I can see the temptation of such a structure. Being metal I expect it will make noise when opening and when rained upon etc. Perhaps it would benefit additional insulation, or is it already insulated and ouble skinned? As a visual observer, one of my joys is being out under the stars. The slide rood observatory design allows this, but with kit in a stored ouitside space and ready to go. A dome does not allow that in the sameway of being so open, but it does block light intrusion from all directions excepting the slot. I have been in both types of observatory and for me the slide roof would work better. I would also add that a pier fixes you to the spot, I know this as have now done it twice and regretted it twice. Kit on tripods or dob mounted in a slide off roof would for me be the perfect solution. Be interested in which way you choose to go and will watch with interest and if honest just a slight bit of observatory envy. One day I too will have a slide off roof jobbie, but not in the present abode as we will downsize in the future.

@mikeDnight I do wonder if you have an odd one out, perhaps contct with Altair will confirm if its just the one or the whole range. As others have said above, the APM UFF 30, has a dark ring where the Altair you have is not. A real shame as the APM and most probably the SL UFF 30 are the same items, including the darkened parts. As a focal length and the field with, makes a super item on f7-8 refractors and indeed any other scope, I still reccomend the UFF 30, but clearly some versions are not quite equal, which is a great shame.

They have the two weeks muddled up, don't you worry 😉

These days it would be a tight one on observing dates when Lunar and Solar were at the front of my recorded time, But Solar is a second love to Lunar for me. But it is not the only observing I do, no I have a broad church of observing interests. I also have tried and like Binoviewing on Lunar, to date not on WL Solar. But I also like monoviews of Solar and Lunar for some reason. I do need a driven mount for Lunar I think to some extent, but that's a drives on my Vixen GP needed for now.

Because it would look like a dogs breakfast in my case sadly. I also like the Vixen Green, something traditional about it really that has kerb apeal to me. I did have a white GP2 and regret ever selling it, but story of my life in truth.

Can any of you fienpeople point me toward the Green to repaint a Vixen Counterweight? Probably doen before, but cannot find any clues at the minute. I have a fain recolection of it being a Sage colour or the like?? TIA Alan

I would purchase a 3.4 if I had the funds and sell a Kidney if I did not, it was / is a super Lunar eyepiece.

Great find you made, not at all envious......oh no, no no, not a bit... OK I am. I used to love my HR 3.4, it stood out as special, but I then passed it on to someone desperate for one, thought I was doing the right thing, then it got sold on fairly soon after, sad about that. Oddly my regrets on selling often are about Vixen kit, yes I know I am a fanboy, but all the same. The HR series is quite an engineering marvel for light control. Are the Tak TOE of a similar build I wonder?

Nice comparison between scopes and the images help as well. The outcome is of course as many would expect with a short Achro and a longer Apo compared. I think the forum has plenty of room for scope comparisons, not to make any one scope look good, but to show the differnces that do exist. Nice one @Stu and I hope Mrs Stu enjoyed watching Better Call Saul with you as well.