Anthonyexmouth

9 minutes ago, fwm891 said:

Needs to be as close to the camera sensor as possible. Your heater is doing nothing but warming the outside air so entrapping it behind a tilt plate might make your heater more efficient.

Are you sure you need a tilt plate. Your using a refractor, what appears to be a matching reducer flattener - try small changes to your back spacing. Or even try placing a slip of paper in different positions around the spacer/camera to give a little 'tilt' and see if you detect a change. (Single thickness of printer paper is thick enough about 20mm wide).

It might be you heater that's not an even thickness. Try removing that and see if the error remains...

Sorry lots of suggestions but your basic kit looks outwardly sound.

I'm not 100% sure i do. I moved the filter drawer away because I did have tilt, due to the heater film. It's better now but I do need to sort out back focus. Then tackle tilt if there is any. I just wondered when I would put it in this setup. 

Results from NINA inspector. 

Going to buy a tilt plate but unsure where I should install it. It seems my filter drawer will be in the way. I dont want it right against the camera because of the dew heater, I think it might be an issue, my tilt reduced greatly when I put  the spacer between my camera and filter drawer. 

Anyway, was looking at the astro essentials 48-48 tilt plate.

27 minutes ago, Peds said:

I got them straight from Xiaoming Li at Startrip. His email is the first listed in Wanderer's website's contact page.

 

edit: I'll add that they arrived quickly and well packaged.

What did you pay for the 125mm? Is that the overall size or the internal size of the ring/lit panel? 

8 minutes ago, Peds said:

I got them straight from Xiaoming Li at Startrip. His email is the first listed in Wanderer's website's contact page.

 

edit: I'll add that they arrived quickly and well packaged.

I like the wanderer version because it'll adapt to different scopes. The dsd one is kinda limited. 

9 minutes ago, Peds said:

I have a 125mm and a 190mm Wanderer Cover Mini 3 and they work really well. I connect them via usb to my Pegasus powerbox and automate my flats using NINA.

A big difference between the DSD and the Wanderer is that the latter only needs usb power.

I really like the look of the wanderer astro one. Where did you buy yours? 

4 minutes ago, teoria_del_big_bang said:

I have one for my Esprit 100 and very (very) happy with it. It works great and also means I can automate my flats during an imaging session using NINA.
Regarding the heater I personally think the intention was good to include it but find it of no use, whether  to replace a dew band on the scope or to heat up the panel itself to stop dew on that. But everything else about it I love.

How it would stand being outside under a cover in heat is another matter and I too would be a bit worried. On a normal day I think it will be fine but on the almost 30 degree days we seem to get now and then for several days in a row then under a cover could get a lot hotter. In theory it should be okay and the PETG should be fine at those temperature, but maybe you need to ask Pavle  about the workings themselves such as the LED panel itself and the electronics.
I know a bit of a faff but it's not too difficult to remove the panel if you know the hot days were on their way, and maybe in the summer months you do not do too much imaging anyway so might not be a big problem removing it for say June to September , just a thought.

You need to remove it to take darks anyway as it will allow light leaks so you need to do this every so often anyway. I remove mine a lot for one reason or another without any issues. I keep intending to 3D print an adapter to make this even easier maybe without having to loosen even the one screw you have to now 🙂 

Steve

I do darks about once a year, same kinda period I check my PA. Think I'm gonna seriously consider one. I'm lazy with flats so this will really help with that. 

9 minutes ago, teoria_del_big_bang said:

It is PETG, I have one and definitely PETG.

 

Top Guy I have had a few items from him and had great after service with some issues that he went out of his way to help me with (one was a software issue not of his making and the other I damaged the electronics and he sent me a replacement part for a real goos price).

Steve

So no issues with it melting or distorting under a cover during the hot weather?

56 minutes ago, scotty38 said:

here you go:

 

 

So for a refractor the heater is pointless. 

1 hour ago, scotty38 said:

I don't have one, although I did consider it, so just in case you don't know (and I didn't) is that the heater is a "dew heater" and not a panel heater as I mistakenly thought. If you look for the review on here I think there's a suggestion it might not work too well as a dew heater and hence may not be worth spending the money on it. YMMV of course....

The site says it's a panel heater to stop dew on the panel but can work as a dew heater on smaller scopes, although I doubt that as the dew shield would put it too far from the glass. 

Anyone here using one of these Deep Sky Dad or Wanderer Astro flat panels? I like the idea of the DSD one with the heater but concerned the £D print wont hold up well as I keep my scope setup all year round under a cover on the pier and worried the heat might be a problem in the summer.

Can someone decypher this please. Watched a youtube video saying this was a better method for determining tilt but think it might have been a much older version of hocus focus as it doesn't look like this. 

9 minutes ago, scotty38 said:

Yes, use the message box instruction

Thanks, totally skipped passed that thinking it was just for making notes. 

Is there a way to in Adv Seq to make it pause after taking flats and require a manual prompt to continue? I'd like to have a sequence setup so I can try and get in the habit of making more regular flats and have the sequence folder structure keep it all together after a session. I like the idea of the DSD flat panel on the front but its a lot of money for a panel dedicated to a single scope. I would be nice to pop the panel on, set the sequence going, it halts at the end of the flats , go out in the garden, take the panel off and finally come back in and just click "go" or something for it to continue. Not played with the Adv Seq much so something like this might make me get into it more. 

I want to stop being lazy with my flats. 

Anyone got any views on the STC dual band? Only review I've looked at showed that halos were minimal but it's got a bit of reduced transmission rate. 

2 hours ago, Gary Clayton said:

Difficult one this, I started off with the Optolong L-eXtreme and was mostly pleased with it apart from the halo issue which seemed particular bad so I ended buying the Antlia ALP-T "Gold" dual band 5nm filter and have not looked back, this was before the new L-Ultimate came out though. I am not sure that there is a cheap option if halo's are an issue for you.

The Antlia would be my choice if I was brave enough to spend that much on 2" of glass. I guess I really should. 

What's the best bang for buck dual NB filter at the moment? preferably one with minimal halo issues. 

15 minutes ago, Gary Clayton said:

If you look at the bottom corners you have cross shaped stars indicating that your sensor is to far way from the reducer as well as having some tilt as the top ones are not as bad 

Top stars look like they are doubled up. but nowhere else. 

16 minutes ago, SAW said:

I was using my 2600MM last night on the 90mm for the first time, normally use the 183MM without any problems. What is causing the really bad star shapes all along the bottom ? Can I fix it or do the optics need collimating ?

Looking at the top of the frame it looks like it was knocked or lost guiding. Is that a single sub? Exposure time?

On 28/01/2023 at 15:01, Gary Clayton said:

Just a heads up guys to let you know that the William Optics camera Rotator fits and works on the SM90's focus tube, it's about 5 mm thinner than the SM90 version which is easily compensated for with the available focus tube travel.

Was just about to buy one of these and noticed FLO have a new one for sale at nearly half the price. Not quite as good with the scale resolution but hopefully just as well made. 

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/rotators/stellalyra_caa_m63.html

9 minutes ago, 900SL said:

I've gone side by side. The vixen plate and bracket adds a kilo or so, but the  center of mass is lower, and I can separately align each scope. I also have the guide scope side mounted, reduces the counterweight and keeps the top clear for PC, powerbox etc. The increased PMI about Dec axis doesn't seem an issue

I'm pretty sure that side by side is the best but just thought I'd check what others are doing. 

Which option do people consider best? 

I've been running my imaging scope next to my ST80 guide scope for a few years but recently started to wonder if my thinking was off. I was thnking keeping the weight closer to center of rotation is best but would the reduced weight of not having the side by side bar and the easier balancing be better? 

That's fantastic, thanks. I don't need anything yet but got a little panicked when I nearly butchered the thread on my printed part. Had it nearly 6 years now and wasn't new then so lasted pretty well. 

Anyone know the larger female thread on the SW 9x50 finder scope? I bought mine second hand with a 3d printed adapter to male m42. almost knackered the threads today and was wondering what I'd have to order if it ever broke. My calipers are reading 50.4mm

19 minutes ago, Adam J said:

Shape of the heatsink cut away. Not sure on options for AA I know Rising Cam offer both. 

Adam

Don't think anyone other than RC give the option.

Anyone here ordered a rising cam? Did you get hammered on import duty?

1 hour ago, Adam J said:

I would never consider anything but AR coated. Better to be in full control of what gets to your sensor. Looking at AAs 533m it is the newer version most of the other cameras are not pictured as such yet. 

Adam

Whas the clue that the AA 533 is the newer version? The AA cameras come with IR Cut don't they?