moggi1964

I use plastic storage containers of varying sizes (food storage with lids that seal) and then some form of padding where required.

 

20 hours ago, Stellaris said:

20mm

I still haven't managed to find them, I think they are in storage however I found the manual for the mount and it was an EQ1 which has a 12mm countershaft hole so they wouldn't be appropriate for you anyway.

Sorry about that.

16 minutes ago, Stellaris said:

@moggi1964 thanks a lot for the offer, I’d greatly appreciate it. I gotta say I think the SGL is awesome. Being able to talk to so many different ppl with the same passion.

As some of you may have understood already, I’m somewhat stuck with my rig, I can’t return it or upgrade it without it costing me a small fortune. So I gotta try and make the best of it (for imaging).

ive been told that the SW150P wasn’t great for imaging (after having bought it 😑) but it does produce some pictures. I can upload a few on m’y profile as a reference point. If anyone has ever used this scope or a similar setup, any more tips or advice would be greatly appreciated.

BTW, I happened to get an upgrade in cam from the Fujifilm x-t2 to x-t3. So at least there’s that.

What's the diameter of the counterweight holder on your setup? I'm digging around in the basement to find mine and will compare and then we can see if it would fit.

Woulld this work? Available form the site sponsor FLO.

TeleGizmos Cover for 18" or 20" Truss Tube Dobsonians

Wouldn't come all the way down but that likely doesn't matter too much if you tie if off.

8 minutes ago, saac said:

These little babies were patiently for me when I arrived home - nice postman .  My old wheels, well let's say if longboard had MOTs it would be a definite fail.   80 mm of sheet rolling  happiness  

Jim 

 

Takes me back to drooling over Kryptonite wheels and Gullwing trucks back in the 70's. My mate could afford those for his skateboard, I had to settle for something from Woolworths but I was faster than him when I laid down on my skateboard 😁 Totally bonkers now I think about it: chin about 3" above the road. The naivety of youth.

Thank you. It really is a lovely image from a beautiful part of the world.

I recall I would extend the zoom on the Ixus and either stick it in the focuser tube or to the eyepiece. I shot the first two of these on my Orion XT8 dob and the second on a Celestron C6 back ion 2005 and 2006 respectively. The last one I have no idea how it was shot.

I think they came out quite good given the 'imaging setup' I used 😁  I'm now really excited about doing some more lunar and planetary imaging on the cheap (not this cheap maybe).

Gorgeous!

Were you able to get a 13s image on a regular camera tripod Paul? 

On 09/08/2023 at 17:23, HollyHound said:

Latest addition to my "other" (and daytime) hobby... photography... the Olympus OM-1 😍

Arrived yesterday, and I had a few hours to play with it (ahem, set it up properly 😆).... within a few hours of it arriving, I spotted a Buzzard on a nearby (ish) barn roof and took a quick "snap" with this camera... the bird auto detect, auto-focus, ergonomics and image quality are just amazing, and it almost feels like cheating (some skill still required... so more practice needed!)

Coupled with the Leica 100-400 (equivalent to 200-800 full frame), this is for sure going to become my primary camera, alongside the Lumix G9 I started with. I have no doubt it will be great for lunar photography too 😃

Now, I just need to find more time again 😬🤞

A fabulous setup Gary and a great 'first image'. I own an Olympus EM1 MkII and it's a terrific performer with my Oly glass and my vintage glass too.

Can't wait to some lunar shots from it. Do you use an LPL filter? (Sorry, drifted off topic - you can PM me if you like).

 

3 hours ago, tomato said:

Just read an interesting article in the latest AN about the future trends for astrophotography by Nik Szymanek. I would agree with his views in that hardware development could plateau but who knows what AI based software will be capable of delivering?
 

But it did get me thinking about where the visual side of the hobby is going. Undoubtedly there are plenty of eyepiece only enthusiasts still around but my observations over the last ten years are that amateur astronomers are mostly, how shall I put it, of a certain age and with the arrival of cheaper all in one smart scopes and camera packages, will the upcoming smartphone generation embrace these and eyepieces/huge Dobsonians will go the way of film cameras and become a real niche market. Maybe not,  but look how many folks nowadays view a live event through their smartphones rather than take it in through their eyes.

Of course, this assumes future generations will have sufficient disposable income in their retirement and a planet left to enjoy the hobby on, but I’ve probably strayed into forbidden territory with that comment so this thread might be short lived.

I just read this thread from last to first post and before I got to the first post I did wonder if visual scopes may go the way of film cameras but it appears Alice (I think) already had that thought. A new niche at some point in the future.

Having familiarised myself with the new generation of EEA (or is it EEVA?) technologies (I remember the Mallincam I think it was called) I think there is certainly a good chance that will be of ever-increasing interest. Seems easier than traditional astrophotography and certainly less expensive and the fact the smart phone or tablet can play a significant part means it does fit with that 'smartphone generation' of which I consider myself one at 59 years old.

That said, whenever we showed someone Saturn through a scope for the first time it was a fabulous moment for all involved. That look of awe that you could see the rings of Saturn with a simple bit of glass and a tube never ceases to make me smile. WOuld it be the same seeing Saturn for the first time on a tablet? I don't know.

Sometimes good enough is exactly that.

There will be other occasions when it just drops into place and you get 'spot on'.

I found I wasted a lot of time over the years in a number of hobbles trying to get 'spot on' when good enough would have done the job.

That said, sometimes only 'spot on' will do.

I think I am beginning to spiral out of control 🤪😁

On 23/07/2023 at 08:13, Piero said:

I use a 2" Howie Glatter (650nm) with 1mm aperture stop attachment and collimate both focuser and primary, also matching the 1/4" white triangle mark on the primary against the concentric rings projected by the laser onto the attachment surface.

The tublug is used sometimes, when I am tired.

Other times, I use a 2" Catseye telecat for both focuser and primary alignments. This tool is also used for positioning the secondary correctly. This is easy for me as I don't value the theory of "benefitting" from an excessively small central obstruction at all.

Howie's setup is exactly the one I use though I only used the TuBlug once.  Super easy, super consistent.

I got my laser from Howie directly when he came to NEAF in New York and he talked me through how it was constructed and how he had never had to recollimate his. When you see the way it is built you can understand why. Howie was a lovely chap (sadly no longer with us) and his wife, a lovely lady.

Here's an image of the rings projected onto my attic ceiling for anyone who's never seen this setup. It has a squares option too though I never did figure out what that is for.  These are clearly not representative of what it looks like when you use it properly with a mirror 😀

I've also used Cheshire which were fine for daylight collimating.

On 15/08/2023 at 21:48, Stellaris said:

So you don’t think it’d be helpful for me to add a counterweight.

so far, the weight load didn’t seem to be an issue (apart from the fact that I can’t balance the right ascension axis)

If it turns out you need an extra small counterweight let me know. I have a couple left over from an old Orion AZ mount, not sure if the diameter of the hole will be the same but I can check this weekend.

Happy to send you one for the cost of postage so you can try it if the diameter is the right one.

23 hours ago, Starfazed said:

Can you hire a scope in the place you are visiting?

Have a brilliant trip and let us know how it all worked out when you get back home.

I've used sand in the past to get tripod legs more mass. It is easy to get, cheap and can be removed easily enough. You can also experiment with various amounts to see what is effective. I also used the same principle in other applications (audio).

Alternatively, buy a used widefield refractor and save your newt for visual until you can afford to buy a more substantial mount/tripod combo. It will save you the heartache of trying to get nice round stars when your setup wants to give you something less acceptable.

Alternatively, you could just package it up as if you are shipping it to someone and pack extra tape to seal it again for the return trip.

Did that myself when getting a large, relatively expensive scope to a star party in Canada.

On 12/08/2023 at 11:30, carastro said:

Welcome to being an active poster.  Enjoyed your story of being banned and the T Shirt saga.  

Carole 

Thanks Carole. 😀

I recall now that I bought it with the intention of keeping it as a novelty then forgot all about it. I haven't actually taken it out of the box so the image below is from a Cloudynights post.

The Celestron 50th Anniversary edition Firstscope.

I've no plans to part with it, maybe it'll be worth something in 2060 when Celestron reach 100.

Anyone used any of the Firstscopes? Did they sell them in the UK?

59 minutes ago, Cornelius Varley said:

The buy/sell section used to be visible guests but this was stopped due to scammers. Please read the notice again, the buy/sell section is now only open to members with at least 30 days membership and more than 25 posts. Once you have reached the requirements the buy/sell section will become visible to you.

Giot it! Thanks Peter, I was being thick 😀

On 08/08/2023 at 17:43, Cornelius Varley said:

To sell on SGL you need a minimum 30 days membership and more than 25 posts.

 

Peter, it says it is visible to guests bur I can't seem to find it. Am I just being thick? Feel free to say 'yes' 🤪

On 10/08/2023 at 19:31, LaurenceT said:

As has been said the Classified section here is the first choice but I have extensively used Facebook marketplace. There are 2 groups that are exclusively UK based and you can find them easily enough, both seem well moderated.

Of course if you don't/won't use Facebook which is perfectly understandable then the other options can be explored. eBay is a dogs dinner and IMHO best avoided.

I have looked on the FB Marketplace before for things but never actually sold on there. Something to keep in the back pocket.

I seem to be stuck on 12 posts so it could be a while before I am able to add a few things to the classifieds here. 😇

45 minutes ago, John said:

Hello and welcome to the forum (at last !) 🙂

I recall that quite a lot of folks parted ways with Astromart when they introduced their membership charging (myself included). It was implemented rather clumsily as I recall.

 

That did cause a lot of upset when it could have been handled better. Herb was very much my way or the highway.  It was and remains a fantastic resource for mostly Northern American users as far as selling and buying. Like most fora, there is good stuff on there that one can learn from. Cloudynights too and I never got banned from there 😁

Just now, Franklin said:

Sunny Rossendale! 

You are very close to the Astronomy Centre, Todmorden, worth a visit.

Yes, I've been in touch with a couple of the chaps from there but haven't yet paid them a visit. I do plan to.
Thank you.

I don't recall exactly but I remember that I disagreed with Herb in the Forum and then next thing I know I cannot login. I was then informed I was banned for a period.

I was let back in and then got quite a few PM's from people warning me that Herb ruled with a heavy stick and that many people had been banned over time, some for good reason but many because they disagreed with Herb or his 'entourage'.

Anyway, I figured a t-shirt would be a good seller if it was well known that Herb liked to ban people. Some got the joke, Herb didn't and threatened me with all kinds of things starting with lawyers which I explained was a non-starter. He then started threatening what he was going to do to me if he saw me and then a few days later he banned me again.

He actually ended up wearing one of my BFA shirts at a NEAF event when my pal Alan Traino convinced him to put it on for an interview. I of course didn't charge him for it but I did smile when I handed it to him 

I've posted a few times in the last week or so and found the response to be friendly and very helpful. I found some US fora could be a little heated at times and I even got banned from Astromart by Herb - though that isn't an unusual thing to happen I went on to learn. I did make a t-shirt about it mind you
I started with astronomy when I lived in the USA, going through a few different scopes, starting up my own astro-tshirt company and working for APM America for the period of its brief life. I also helped out at NEAF and NEAIC.

Came back to the UK in 2015, bringing my Telekit 10" F/6 dobsonian and all the associated bit and bobs I collected over time.

Anyway, just wanted to say hello from sunny Rossendale, Lancashire.