JOC

That's a neat idea John pity I didn't think of that before I made the bigger cover!! LOL Edit. Given the comment below perhaps John's idea could still be deployed if an additional cardboard shape was firmly glued into place thus sandwiching the film in place and then care taken when storing the cover - which should be checked before use, to ensure the film isn't damaged. Mind you it doesn't apply in my case as I have a the full home-made cover pictured anyway.

I've just checked my attachments and look I've got a picture showing mine using the adapter @John showed in the stock focusser that came on the scope - the same as in your current setup so it def. is the original focusser as suggested above and you Def. need that tall adapter

The Focusser in your picture is identical to the one in my 200P. Mine needs the adapter that @John shows above - you won't get anywhere without one, but should be able to purchase the same at modest cost from FLO and I think it will solve your issues. I've had a quick look on FLO website and can't easily spot one, but give them a call and I bet they can help.

That sounds a great amateur set-up and better than many people will have. I'm sure someone will be along soon with a list of things you can view, but before you get stuck in it is important that your expectations are correct. With this in mind I commend a browse of at least the pictures on the first page of this thread - the text in the post is useful, but it is a thread where the pictures speak a thousand words.

I bought these for my kids as presents for taking on holidays and walks just to see that bit more. They have been really pleased with them and they have been much admired and envied by their peers. I've peeped through them and for the cash paid (I think about £40 a set - brand new with damaged boxes from an astro buy and sell place) I think they were a stupendous buy,

I haven't waded through tbe rest of the answers, but my telecope has a focal length og 1200mm. I always assumed that if I put my dslr into the focusser with no other Eye piece in place that it was like stcking a 1200mm lens onto the DSLR

I don't know if I'll find the time, but if the details are posted somewhere - or sent, I'd be interested in having them if I find I've got the time join you all. The organisers are to be congratulated for making the effort 😄

A lot of people on SGL are ambivalent about zooms, some seem to rate them some say they lack quality and single mag EP's are better - it also depends on the quality/make/bit of glass on the day they were made. If you are using the zoom that came with the scope, it may lack quality - often cheap eyepieces are bundled with telescopes and are quickly replaced. SGL classifieds often have nice EP's for sale at less than full price and you might find that the result makes the purchase worthwhile - you can always sell it on again if not.

Once you have a telescope it is then the size marked on the eyepiece which changes the apparent magnification - you do have to watch that you don't try to get too close - each telescope will have a maximum magnification and you might already be at it, it is said to 50 x the apperture of the scope in inches so in theory you might (and I emphasise the 'might') be able to get x137 out of the scope. Since magnification is focal length / EP size your 750 Focal length scope used with a 15mm plossl is giving x50 magnification. You might therefore get something useable out of an 8mm eyepiece which would give you x93 magnification or almost double what you are currently getting

I think that's your limit - though the size of the eyepiece might be varied just a little to show a marginal difference as you don't say what size it is. If you haven't seen it yet - look at the pictures (at the very least on the first page of this thread it might help with your expectations

FWIW with my 8" Sywatcher Dobsonian my view of Saturn is only marginally better than your current view. Maybe just a tad larger depending on eyepiece in use, but still essentially a white circle a gap and a loop in the white (rather than dirty yellow of the second image) colour of your own approximation. Certainly no-where like the second image. I would say within 10% of your own approximate image and probably 90% away from the second one. I can also only just about see two bands on Jupiter.

It might sound a daft suggestion, but I've accomplished a great deal with just pushing a blob of blue-tack over the end of the offending bolt. Or else, how about one of those spring loaded locking nut washers?

I would commend this thread if you haven't already seen it - just look at the piccies on the first page even if you don't read further into it: Colour in anything is unlikely with what you have unless you are looking at the coloured stars that do exist out there.

Whilst it doesn't sound connected you might do worst than check your synscan settings with the Synscan Init 2.0 app. which will present you with all the necessary information in the correct format. Including all the leading zeros that are sometimes necessary to enter for locations and the correct format, as mentioned above for date and time.

If you are collimating you might be better off with a cheshire and this accepted definitive guide on the subject - follow every step in turn no matter how odd it sounds http://www.astro-baby.com/astrobaby/help/collimation-guide-newtonian-reflector/

It's a specific lead - mains plug on one end, appropariate black square in the middle and the connector into the scope. I'm not sure that a RCD is absolutely necessary - plug it in inside a house and just run the extension roll outside - I just use common sense and don't let it all get wet.

Its more expense, but not a hige amount more, but you can also get a mains power adapter for these telescopes.. I have one and it works well with an extension lead run from the house.

It might be worth trying to slew without an eyepiece in or just using the small light plossls that may have come with the telescope. My Goto mount is very sensitive to weight at each end of the telescope and I find having a large EP in place affects the ability of the scope to move.

Some eyepieces have different optimum heights to have your eye held above them. Some are far easier to peer into than others - it's called 'eye relief' and is mentioned above, It varies from eyepiece to eyepiece and maker to maker. The dob doesn't want to be too tight, you will need to 'nudge' it to keep up with the rotation of the earth to keep the object in view and 'nudging' will need doing more often the higher the magnification you use (the lower the number printed on the eyepiece) for example an Eyepiece marked 24mm will keep things in view far longer than an Eyepiece marked 8mm because it the view is not as highly magnfied.

So we know that with the right equipment the sun can be seen during the day. The moon is also an easy win on some days. There is a thread currently running about seeing venus during the day. I just wondered how much can be seen during the day time and how is it found? Do you rely on a tracking scope left on from being set-up overnight?

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Deleted as I know nothing I've also seen them both regularly, but I'm looking forward to seeing them through my set of Morpheus EP's later in the summer.

I've never seen anyone with a large collection of binoculars. I;ve actually got several pairs myself. My first set I don't tend to use, but they were my granddad's and as a child I used to feel very special as granddad would let me use them (with the cord over my head!) to see special birds where he and nan lived. When he died Nana gave them to me. They are officers' binoculars from WWII in a hard case and I think granddad used them when he was in the Home Guard as he had a reserved occupation in the railways during the war.

I've got The two in my signature. With SGL's help I got the Skywatcher Skyliner 200P (8") FlexTube GOTO 1200mm F/L (F6); Alt-Azimuth Mount; SynScan AZ Handset (now WiFi widget and phone) about 4-5 yrs ago, then I got the Grab 'n' go vintage (1970's) Vixen 80S Tabletop (if telescopes can be 'cute', it's 'cute'!!) 1.25" adapter and 45" prism and 90" mirror diagonals for it from SGL classifieds about a year later - it's also now got a perfectly adequate cheap tripod from SGL classifieds, but I think it would still be classed as an Alt-Azimuth mount as it only moves up and down and left and right on little twiddly knobs and doesn't track. It came entirely self sufficient with a little baby table top mount and mini tripod that all sort-of folds up inside itself

If you want something useable above a 'Toy' level, but at 'toy' price check out these: https://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-heritage-130p-flextube.html https://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-heritage-100p-tabletop-dobsonian.html Or push the boat out just a little and try https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-skyliner-150p-dobsonian.html# For a Beginner a Dobsonian reflector maybe a lot easier to set up than spinning things around on a tripod