Icesheet

Thanks, there’s been a lot of good words about the telegizmo covers now. Maybe I jumped the gun a bit but I have already sold the EQ6-R. Ordered a CEM25p, cancelled that and ordered a CEM40! Should I decide to keep stuff outside I will definitely look at the telegizmos!

If you have the funds available why not take both and decide with your own eyes which is best for you. They’re both desirable so I doubt you would lose much, if any, money on the one you decide to sell. Nice problem to have 😉

Thanks for all the replies! In a way the decision has been made for me. Turns out I need neighbours permission to even put a small shed up and that’s not worth the hassle if we plan to move in next year or two. I put the EQ6-R up for sale and have some solid interest so I put an order in for the CEM25P. Going to put it on a Berlebach UNI tripod I have. I don’t think this setup will handle the Esprit 100 so I might be looking for a good 80mm scope soon. I was thinking the Esprit 80 but if anyone has any other suggestions happy to hear them!

Really! I didn’t know that. I was hoping to go ASI air route with EAF on my Esprit 👎🏻 Yes it’s true that NB is more than possible in light polluted skies, even more so if you have the pockets for 3nm filters. However, I’m sure you will go deeper and have much cleaner data in less integration time from the dark site. Someone with more knowledge than me might comment on that.

In theory probably not, but in practice who knows. Remember you would essentially be lifting in and out four times for each journey away. Packing and unpacking 40+kg of weight from potentially awkward positions in a car is not my idea of fun. However, people do it but just so you’re aware. If it were me it would be a CEM40/ GEM45 plus Esprit 100ED job too (unless you’re really sure you want a bigger refractor later). With ASIair pro and ZWO cameras/ filters I think you’d have a very nice portable(ish) set up! Plus I would consider getting as much of your narrowband and lum data at your darksite too if possible.

To me your biggest decision should be around condition 1 and being manoeuvrable. That may have different meanings for different people but I don’t think many would consider an EQ6-R/ CEM70 and 130mm APO with all associated equipment as a mobile unit. I’ve just decided an EQ6-R isn’t even mobile enough for me to move in and out my house! 😂 If you’re happy you can shift all that comfortably to a dark site then I would say any combination above could work and none in particular would be the limiting factor in the quality of your images. The CEM70 may be more suited to the 130mm once you start considering the extra weight of imaging equipment though. Petes advice may be wise. Perhaps it’s safer to choose the tried and trusted as there will be plenty of support and advice available if you are having issues. One thing I would say regarding the scopes is that you might want to consider what focal lengths you want to image at. Native they are quite different at 550mm for Esprit and 910mm for the Photoline. If you did plump for the Esprit you might want to add the CEM40 or GEM45 to your list as they are a lot more portable than the EQ6-R and CEM70.

Hi, you don’t need to post it here. More interested to know if there are any obvious flaws in the lens. I’ll pm you.

No the GEM and CEM are different product lines. GEM for German Equatorial Mount and CEM for Centre balanced mount I believe. With regards to the RA encoder there seems to be a bit of debate whether they are worthwhile. Couldn't really say myself.

Yeah, I was actually deciding between the CEM40, CEM60 and EQ6-R at the time. That's when I thought weight wouldn't be an issue and because there were good reports and it was significantly cheaper I plumped for that. Don't know if I could stretch to it now, considering I'll have to take a hit on the EQ6-R if I sell.

Yeah that's the one I read. That might rule out one option straight away!

I can't confirm that but FLO have them as unavailable and I read a post on here I think that they are being discontinued. They don't actually seem to be in stock anywhere just now.

Definitely not practical or fun! I had a look at the Telegizmos covers there. They look really good but I'm still not sure I could bring myself to leave everything outside like that for an extended period! Does it stop moisture condensing on your equipment? I think I would actually get one anyway if I went down the mini obs route. Looks like a good extra layer of protection.

Sounds ideal to me! The ASI air seems very popular too. I would be interested to hear how you get on with the GSO RC. That will be a real test at that focal length, I imagine they are not that light either.

Thanks, I vaguely remember a post along these lines, I'm guessing it was yours. Good to know you are happy with the mount and don't seem to regret selling all your gear! Looks like you are making good use of it too. Were you imaging with that 102mm? Did the extra load deteriorate the guiding? The Esprit is ~6.5kg but with all equipment I'll be around 8.5kg.

Thanks for the replies. You have both certainly given me a little hope and something to think about! Thanks for these links @Skipper Billy, I can see you are a lot more handy than me though! I'm not sure calling that a wooden box is doing it justice haha. Plus the website looks very informative, looks like a lot of good information! I will be back to look in more detail for sure!

It is something I considered last year actually. However, we had been talking about moving house and it put me off then but I suppose it's a consideration. I'm not too sure about leaving it out though. I'm living on the west coast of Norway which can be very wet and very cold. How reliable are these weatherproof covers?

Hi @Adam J , have you managed to get this under the night skies yet?

Normally these posts are what should I upgrade to but this is a should I downgrade (and what to) post. Hoping you can chime in with any experience you have had, regret or otherwise. My current set up is an EQ6-R and Esprit 100ED with ASI1600mm as imaging cam. This is my 'dream' set up but I just haven't been using it enough. Unfortunately, I put that down to the EQ6-R mainly. Not that it is a bad mount but I have just grown so tired with the weight, dragging it in and out. It's not even that far to move but it has just become so cumbersome. I remember actually saying that the weight wouldn't bother me as well! Coupled with the fact that with the weather here you have to be ready to move on short notice it just isn't getting the use it deserves. I find myself reaching for my AZ Gti mount and Samyang 135 more often than not even although that set up has it's own frustrations, again mainly with the mount. So now I'm at a cross roads as to what to do. I could just sell up and keep going with the AZ Gti/ Samyang combo but I know at some point I'll want a bit more reach again. The other option I'm considering is buying a CEM25p before they disappear. I know it isn't really suited to the Esprit 100ED but I could always give it a go and if it's not working sell that also and go for a good light weight scope in the 70-80mm / 400-600mm range. So what would you/ have you done? As far as I can see the CEM25p should be a good match for camera lenses and small refractors.

Looking forward to more pics and first impressions as I won’t be seeing mine for a while. Turns out I had an email in my junk saying they sold out. Wasn’t best pleased. Anyway hoping you will have positive words about it!

I got the order confirmation so should have one too 👍🏻

Ignore that. I just checked back and it’s showing again but out of stock.

I note it’s not even listed anymore on the site I presume you ordered it from @Adam J. I cancelled an order from another supplier as they were showing stock so I hope there’s not an issue. Have you heard anything since you ordered?

Nice one! You'll probably have a chance to get it out before me. Will still be a few weeks before I have skies anywhere near dark enough.

Yeah, I see their ACL 200mm lens is probably more of a RedCat competitor. Interested to see how it compares to my Samyang 135. Also looking forward to see how it does with a 1.25” star diagonal attached. Since it’s modular I’m hoping it will be a very compact travel companion.

Probably right. I’ll find out anyway as I couldn’t resist temptation and ordered one 🙈