Anthonyexmouth

Here you go

10 minutes ago, vlaiv said:

Note the values of MnMo (min mo / min motion) in that screen shot.

It is set to 0.19. That value is in pixels rather than arc seconds (for some reason).

From same screen shot I can see that RA error is 0.17px = 0.72", so you are guiding at ~4.24"/px

If you set min mo to 0.19px - that is same as setting it to 0.8"

You are telling PHD2 not to issue correction if error is less than 0.8".

Maybe stars are round, but are they tight (as they can be)?

If I set MnMo lower, how much should I reduce it by to start? What are the signs I've gone too low? Should I lower both Dec and RA the same?

these are the current numbers a bit lower as I think the last one was just after a dither. 

Thanks, guiding seems to be ok, stars are nice at the moment. Just never noticed it all bunched up in one quadrant before. My mount is on it's weight limit though, trying to be greedy and have a lunar imaging setup alongside my DSO. Tossing up whether a mount upgrade or going mono is my next purchase in the new year. 

I was a long time user of APT after a brief stint with Backyard EOS at the start of my AP hobby, very recently migrated to NINA and it's the best thing I've done for my image capture. 

What would cause all my corrections to be in one quadrant if the circle?

Grabbing a few hours on the Pelican before M31 clears my neighbours roof

3 minutes ago, Lee_P said:

Dualband filters don't just block the Moon; rather, they make it possible to image narrowband objects like hydrogen-rich nebulae. More info here.

I'm currently conducting a dualband shootout: Optolong L-eXtreme (7nm) vs Optolong L-Ultimate (3nm) vs Askar Colour Magic (6nm). Nothing beats real-world tests as far as I'm concerned! I hope to have the results in a few weeks.

Oh I get that, but I'm kinda lucky where I am having a kinda good dark garden. Last night's moon tipped me over the edge, new triplet and crystal clear sky but fooking impossible to image anything. 

Certainly don't want to spend out on the l-ultimate, just wanna make moon lit nights a little more worktable. 

Can't quite afford to go mono at the moment after the last month's purchase of a new scope so thinking I need to get a NB filter for my 294 osc camera. 

I'm in a low bortle 4 zone so really only need to block that annoying moon.

Is an l-extreme my best option or would an l-enhance or something else be better. Thinking the askar dual band option or one of the Altair offerings. 

2 minutes ago, scitmon said:

Took delivery  of mine today!  Can anyone tell me what the screw on the red part behind the tube rings does?  

Rotator. 

It's got 2 

13 minutes ago, Anthonyexmouth said:

I dont have a tilt adjuster so really glad it can detect backfocus issues too. If thats ok and it's tilt I guess I'll be abusing the credit card again and a bike ride to FLO. 

Guessing this is tilt then. 

5 minutes ago, Fegato said:

Key points are:

1. Work out which corner of an image from the camera matches which corner of your camera / tilt device. Not always obvious -  I had to block parts of the light path with a defocused image in day time to work it out.

2. Work out which direction your focus step changes are moving the backfocus. Not sure there's a failsafe way of doing this other than trial and error using the method below, but once you've worked it out, you will know where you're going.

3. Run the Aberration tool. The graph will show 5 curves (can be a bit hard to see, but the table below summarises the results). If say, top right corner focus position is way out from the others, you need to move this corner (this is where you need a tilt device) in the required direction (trial and error method - if it gets worse, go the other way!). If all corners are quite a way from the centre, this implies you need to move the whole sensor (i.e. backfocus distance isn't quite right). And so on...

Sorry, that probably makes it sounds even more complicated...   The beauty of it is that it's not based on one image alone. - all the focus steps are being analysed for each corner. But obviously the results produced are inevitably busy! 

I dont have a tilt adjuster so really glad it can detect backfocus issues too. If thats ok and it's tilt I guess I'll be abusing the credit card again and a bike ride to FLO. 

2 hours ago, Fegato said:

There's a lot of information provided, and some might find it too complex I suppose, but I really like it.  The basics are that it produces a focus curve for the centre and each corner of your image. So you can see where focus is falling for each corner. From there you can work out which corners are closer to the sensor than others, and then the idea is to adjust so that you get these curves reasonably close together. There are pretty graphics of tilted sensors and so on, but I largely ignore those and use the curves and the associated table of relative focus positions for centre and corners.

I've found it by far the easiest way to adjust my setup, which is horribly sensitive at F/2.2.  I do have the Octopi tilt / backfocus device on my RASA as well - so it's the combination of being able to see what's going on alongside a tool that allows for precise adjustments that has kept me sane! (at some cost, I might add....)

Do you have any hints on decyphering this?

1 hour ago, Fegato said:

Yes, I would think a bit of tilt and possibly backfocus not being perfect. The earlier image is better, but still has some issues in corners - so maybe you just had slightly different focus on the second one which exacerbated things?

Try ASTAP Image inspector, or if you use NINA, the Hocus Focus plug-in has a great Aberration tool.  But you need to be able to adjust your tilt and backfocus somehow.

I'll have a look at the Nina option. I do use hocus focus. Is the aberration tool easy to use? 

8 minutes ago, scotty38 said:

Are you using dynamic brightness? If so try setting it above 0%

I was using the sky flats mode, pretty sure that's the ones I've always used, not changed it, unless an update changed it. 

Anyone seen the "Matrix is singular" Error? 

Keep getting it when trying to use the flats wizard. All other imaging works ok. 

1 hour ago, pipnina said:

Seems like something has been knocked out of kilter then. Struggling with something like it on mine right now too : /

Have to have a look in the daylight. It's an all screwed image train, no compression fittings. Hope it's a simple fix. 

3 minutes ago, pipnina said:

Looks like tilt to me, but discerning the various misalignment optical effects from eachother has always been challenging for me.

Egg shapes on one side, and defocused and round on the other makes me think tilt at least.

This may manifest if the focuser has slopped somehow. Maybe if it's a crayford, the tension is not high enough or unbalanced, causing the camera to present to the objective lens at different angles?

I am unsure how to solve it if it appeared suddenly, but for manufacturing faults you either return the scope (if scope is at fault, i.e. lens cell collimation) or use a tilt adapter for the camera.

Good luck!

Focuser feels solid good, R&P focuser. It's a stellamira triplet. 

this was from my last outing about a week ago. 

Got a full clear night tonight but first test subs are showing eggy stars, guiding looks flat but is this maybe a guiding issue? 

Only had a few nights with this new scope but from the outset its been producing nice round stars. 

How does tilt manifest? 

60sec sub. 

15 minutes ago, AstroKeith said:

That doesnt look like a IP56 or IP66 rated socket (it isn't BTW)

Is it on an independent 30mA RCD, if so was it notified under Part P?

Do you have a Completion Certificate from a qualified electrician?

It's going into the workshop underground with swa and terminates into an RCD plug then into a socket so the pier is just an appliance. 

The workshop is also fully RCD protected. 

30 minutes ago, AstroKeith said:

I think the problem is that you are posting a photo and giving advice showing your illegal and dangerous installation. You might accept it, but others shouldn't. Your insurance, including 3rd party liability will be invalid too.

I've known people that have had shocks off dew laden mains kit.

It's neither illegal or dangerous. 

1 hour ago, michael8554 said:

I wasn't suggesting your equipment was in any danger.

Your BBQ cover could move in strong winds and rain could get into that socket.

Or dew, BBQ covers are good generators.

Michael

Can't really see it the pic but the BBQ cover extends down way below the socket. 

Dew has never been an issue in the nearly 5 years it's been there. My full kit, mount, cameras, scopes stay out all year, even in the storms. When I first built it I considered putting a little fan or low wattage heater under it but so far it's never been needed. 

I do towel down the kit in the mornings before covering so it's not dew covered when the cover goes back

2 hours ago, michael8554 said:

This one of those examples where there is the proper way to do it, such as :

Armoured cable from an RCD in the consumer unit (fuse box) to a IP rated enclosure by the mount.

Or a fairly safe and practical way such as the OP proposes.

Anthony, IMO your non-IP rated socket protected by a BBQ cover is really pushing your luck.

Michael

 

It's really fine under there. RCD protected and if there was any risk of rain getting in I wouldn't be leaving £5k of equipment under it all year round. Ip rated outdoor sockets are good when exposed. Got 6 of them scattered around the garden. 

39 minutes ago, malc-c said:

I came across a similar post from a few years back by accident when I was looking for details unrelated to this issue.  I seem to recall the poster (on one of the other forums) was unable to locate a drop in replacement and had no choice but to shell out and buy a new handset.  

The screen appears to be  COG (chip on glass) which is a graphical screen and you would need to know the pixel array size and the controller used to ensure you get legible charters.  One other possibility is that Synta had these mass produced under its own specifications and is proprietary to the handset.  this SGL thread provides the part numbers which don't return much information, and if you read the last few posts you can see you are not alone, and that someone tried a similar display which didn't work.   

Seems like such a waste. Had less than an hours use from new. I keep looking out for broken handsets but people seem to want silly money for them. 

It won't be a problem at all. Roofing for 30 years and used extension leads in the rain when doing emergency repairs and that was before RCD plugs were a thing. A bit of dew won't be an issue. I always have an RCD plug on the end of my extensions now. 

You say you pack away every night so it's not like it's left out all year. 

I have permanent 240v to my pier and it's only covered with a BBQ cover 24/7/365

Are there any budget friendly NINA controllable dew controllers?

I've never used a controller, I just leave my bands on. Never been a problem that I know of but wondering if it's worthwhile automating the control. I work from a permanent pier fully powered from a workshop so never had to be conscious of power draw like I would be if I had a small battery or little PSU running from an extension lead. So is there any benefit to automation?