Gabby76

Not everyone wants/ needs a GPS on their goto mount. Just personal preference and I for one am glad that there is still options available that do not require it. Even though I have goto mounts my favorite is still a older CG-5 with a single tracking motor and occasionally I may even plug the Argo Navis in. I seem to be in a growing minority though as I do not take electronics (phone/ tablet/ laptop) anywhere near my telescopes when viewing.

The Stellarvue Access line are imported but must meet SV QC spec and then they go through the telescope from focuser to lens cell to bring it to their standard. All I have talked to have found them to be excellent telescopes. The X series of refractors are made in house with a guaranteed Strehl ratio of 98-99, a friend just received his SVX 102mm which is at 99.6!

The telescope seems to be slightly cheaper if purchased from TS: https://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/language/en/info/p10133_TS-Optics-PhotoLine-125mm-f-7-8-FPL53-Lanthanum-Apo---2-5--Focuser.html They most likely are made by the same manufacturer, the Photoline series are normally good telescopes. Manufacturers will build and re-badge telescopes for many different retailers, the difference comes down to what level of QC the customer has paid for/ maintained. I tend to go with the retailer with the better reputation for high QC for purchases like this.

Though I am using refractors I prefer the Feathertouch over the Moonlite though the Moonlite is a very good focuser. I have a multi decades long issue of "steering" my refractors by the diagonal which puts a lot of stress on the drawtube. The Moonlites I will have to adjust at least once a year due to slippage but the Feathertouch focusers have never had to be adjusted at all and my oldest FT is 13 years old now.

Another good zoom is the Antares Speers-Waler 5-8mm though getting harder to find on the used market. My top 5 favorites in no order: 1. Baader Mk IV 8-24mm 2. Vixen LV 8-24mm 3. TeleVue 3-6mm 4. TeleVue 2-4mm 5. Speers-Waler 5-8mm

Hello and welcome to the forums

Hello and welcome :)

I use the aluminium/ pluck foam for most accessories and eyepieces as well as a few HPRC cases for more expensive eyepieces. This is my HPRC2700 travel case, it holds the SV80mm refractor, BV/ OCAs, various eyepieces and filters as well as my Herschel wedge, Zeiss/ Baader prism and mirror diagonal. Under the blue foam section are 3-2" eyepieces.

Is this a ASGT or AVX mount? The cord Celestron provides has very thin wire and can easily start cracking/ breaking. A aftermarket cord would definitely be a better option to try out.

I sent an email to Celestron and the response I received in reply was that I could replace my Nexstar (Version 4) handset and CN-16 module with a new Nexstar+ (Version 5) handset and module.... Using the old one when require still works other than having to change the date when aligning so 10 seconds of my time is not worth spending the extra money.

Is the Cat allowed to be on a refractor thread? How else are you going to get a good scan of the optics train? ?

This is my travel telescope, a Stellarvue/LZOS 80mm which I use on a Manfrotto 055b/ RC128 combination I had just finished doing some solar observing. I also just finished refurbishing a new C6R and CG-5, I missed my big refractor while working away from home. Lots of time spent tweaking the cannon but it works well now.

I have a Celestron CN-16 module that now reverts to 1999. It still inputs the proper time and location into the mount though, just the date is wrong. The other night I powered on the mount and waited for the GPS to link. Once done I went into menu and shut the GPS off and proceeded to alignment. At that time it asked if the date was correct which I changed and all the other information I left alone.

Some apo lens cells have "shipping screws" that are supposed to be backed off before delivery and can produce image artifacts such as this. I would contact WO and ask them about it.

I emailed a friend last night who has a viewing partner that is an Antares dealer in Canada to ask about these. The dealer knew nothing about them either, hopefully some kind of answer will emerge in the future.

I just came across these today so hopefully someone will review them soon! My Series 1, 5-8mm is still one of my favorite eyepieces.

The aluminium tripods that come with a majority of beginner and mid-range scopes have had a bad name for years as being poorly made, sloppy and people have tried various ways to make them sturdier such as filling the legs with sand, lead shot, or even expanding foam. I just read an account the other day of where a person was fitting steel rebar into the legs to see if it will help… The only problem with these solutions is that you end up with a very heavy cumbersome tripod that is really no better than what it was when the modifications were started. I will show you what I do with these to help take the shakes out of them. The tripod modifications can be done to any of these aluminium tripods and not limited to adapting the SLT mount. Before starting the modifications, read the instructions thoroughly! If there is any part you are not sure of feel free to PM me. The tripods are manufactured cheaply and are not a precision work of art but can be fixed to be quite usable for only a few dollars. There are 3 different pivot points on the tripod that total 21 different places that the tripod can move so these can all be stiffened up. Tools required: Robertson or Phillips screwdriver Drill and ¼” and 1/8” drill bits Skilsaw Hacksaw or angle grinder Fine flat file White glue Paint or varnish of choice Socket/ combination wrench if using nylocks All the needed supplies should be available at a local hardware store. 18- #6 flat washers 18- #8 x 3/8” sheet metal screws 3- 1/4” x 3 1/2” bolts 3- 1/4” wing nuts or nylock nuts (preference) 6- 1/4” x 1” flat washers 6- 3/16” x 1” bolts 6- 3/16” wing nuts or nylock nuts 12- 3/16” x ¾ or 1” flat washers 1- 1/8” x ¾” aluminium flat bar (need about 9”) Container for all the old bolts and screws Note: If you wish to paint your tripod and mount I recommend a degreaser and an aluminium etching primer to help the paint adhere to the aluminium parts. For this I will show what I did to adapt the aluminium tripod to a Celestron SLT hub/mount. The supplied screws/ bolts holding everything together are cheaply made and it does not take much to strip these so all the hardware will be replaced with better quality. Start by taking the tripod legs off of the hub and set the hub aside as it will not be reused. Take the legs apart and remove all the factory screws/ bolts holding the cast metal pieces together. Check all of the plastic end pieces in the legs to make sure they are tight. If not they will need to be removed for now. You may wish to mark all the pieces so they go back together on the same leg but it is not essential. If you are going to paint your tripod/ mount now is the time to do it and give it a full day or two to properly dry. Use either #220 grit sandpaper or a course scotchbrite pad to scuff the metal to help it adhere to the parts. Do not forget to scuff the primer before painting! Now that you are ready to put the tripod back together we will stiffen up any of the plastic leg inserts if they were loose. The only piece you do not want to do this to is the top cap for the center leg. Do not install this cap or the center tray support brackets at this time. Put a bead of white glue around the inside of the leg where the insert goes and then push the insert into place. Using the new #8 x 3/8” (6 per leg set) screws, snug all the parts up. Picture 1: Set aside and let the glue harden. The #8 screws are slightly larger than the original size and will snug up nicely. You can see the difference in the photo above. I tend to reuse the lower single leg bolts as they are usually fine for this job. I use the glue on the insert and then the bolt. Before you reinstall the cast lower leg pieces run your finger around the hole that the center leg slides through, if there are any rough or sharp spots file them down smooth. Now that everything is dry start reassembly by installing the side legs and then slide the center leg up through the bottom. Set the legs aside for now. Now we get to the fun part, power tools! Using the 1/4” drill bit enlarge the holes on the SLT mount hub to match the larger hole in the tripod legs. Once done set this part aside. The next step is modifying the center tray supports. The supplied tripod tray is a flimsy piece of stamped metal and using the 3 original screws and wing nuts leaves much to be desired for tripod stability! Using 6 bolts in the tray will hold the legs firmly in place and not allow any play. Using the drill and the ¼” drill bit, drill a hole at the furthest end of the slot and another half the distance of the support. Picture 2: Now to make the new center tray. This tray will spread the legs out a bit more making alarger ground triangle which helps with stability. I used a piece of 3/8” plywood with dimensions of 15 3/4” on the flat side and 13 5/8” flat to peak. Your 2 holes should be approximately 2 ½” and 5” from the peak. Drill ¼” holes and set aside for now. TIP: Use the tray support as a template to mark out the holes to ensure alignment. Picture 3: Using the aluminium flat bar cut 3 pieces 2 3/4” long. Use the file to smooth and round off the edges of the piece. (I used the edge of a quarter as a template to round off the corners.) Now to reassemble the tripod! Take a leg assembly and lay it flat on your work surface, insert the center leg cap at this time but do not screw it into place. Take one of the flat bar pieces and lay it across the legs butted up against the lip of the center cap and mark out the location of the screw hole on the flatbar. Using the 1/8” drill bit make a hole and then install this with the center cap. If you have ever noticed on these tripods, as soon as you put some weight on them the center leg tends to slide/ lean inwards which causes only a small part of the leg to actually be making full contact. This flatbar brace will keep the center leg inline with the other legs when the scope is mounted. Picture 4: Optional: I drill a second hole and rivet it into place so that the flatbar cannot loosen off and the cap can still be unscrewed and removed if needed. (3/16” drill bit and 1/8” rivet) Once the flatbar is attached turn the leg section over and it is time to install the tray brace. Screw one of the pin brackets onto the leg and then insert the pin. Put 3 of the #6 flat washers on the pin and then slide the tray bracket on (flat side up). Install 3 more #6 flat washers and then the other pin bracket. Screw bracket into place. The tray support bracket should be nice and snug between the brackets now and there will be no slop for it to slide around on the pin. Repeat for other legs. Picture 5: So now the tripod should almost be done, take the mount hub and install the new 1/4” x 3 1/2” bolt. At a minimum you should have a flat washer under the bolt head and one under the wing nut. Check the gaps between the legs and hub to make sure they are in full contact with each other. If there are gaps between the legs and hub use 1 or 2 appropriate thickness washers to fill the gap. Plastic report covers can be cut to make washers if the gap is small. You want the legs parallel but not squeezed to the point you cannot adjust the center leg smoothly. Use a 1/4” x 1” flat washer and then your choice of either a wing nut or nylock to tighten things up. Tighten until the leg is stiff but can swing without fighting it. Repeat for the other legs. You should now have a complete tripod minus the tray. Final step is to install the tripod tray using 2- 3/16” x 1” bolts and 4 flat washers for each leg. I use one washer on top of the tray and one underneath the bracket so you can tighten these up very well with the wing nuts or nylocks. Picture 6: You should now be the proud owner of a very stiff aluminium tripod that no longer has a bad case of slop/ shakes when you put your scope on it.

Some of my eclectic collection The first is my first Celestron C6R with a few modifications, the yellow one is my second C6R which I did a complete refurbishment on in 2016 and the last is my Stellarvue 80mm NHNG