Uranium235
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Everything posted by Uranium235
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Thats what I love about astrophotography, its the perfect mix of computing, science, and engineering
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I found to going all threaded to be a must-have due to the weight of the imaging train, as im a fan of mosaics - and if you have a dodgy side/corner... you cant mosaic, so I needed a perfect field. The cc (baader M48 cell) screws into the underside of the adaptor as you can see. Additionally, I adapted the SWCC by hacksawing off its stop collar - turning it into an M48 cell so it could also simply screw in.... that allowed me to chop and change at will. Absolutely rock solid, and also allows for threaded collimation so its repeatable every single time. Proof of the pudding: (10 panel mosaic)
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Probably easier to explain in pictures: That threads directly onto the drawtube and provides an all threaded connection with built in coma correction and tilt control.
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Unsure as Ive never used the Baader without the custom adaptor, but with it the drawtube is almost completely clear of the primary without modification.
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I had no problems with the drawtube protuding into the lightpath because I used a custom built adaptor to sink the corrector inside the drawtube (the only one of its kind I believe). For you the only option would be to either move the primary up the OTA a bit (to push the focus point out a bit), or shorten the drawtube by about 10mm (most people choose the latter). Or alternatively, you could not let it bother you
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Thanks, I'll check out the clusters but with the focal length of my 200pds being nearly double that of the 130 its doubtful I will be able to fit them both in the same frame of the camera. However, I do have a 28mm EP which might cover them both visually. For star tests I always use the double cluster - or cocoon nebula if possible becuase it sits in quite a dense starfield. My location is quite light polluted, so with that and a full moon - galaxies are usually out of the question (visually or photographically) until the Moon goes away. lol..... me doing "visual".... now theres a novelty!
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Good luck with that. Oddly enough, its also kicked me into squaring the steeltrack focuser on my 200pds this evening.... for which I need to remove the focuser and secondary (yikes!). However, getting the secondary round under the focuser is greatly aided by first blocking off the primary then using a sheet of coloured (I used red) paper opposite the focuser, then just rack it far enough so you can make out a concentric circle of colour around the the secondary in the sight tube. Then remove the blocking card and adjust to match the primary, replace the blocking card, get it concentric again, then so on and so forth until its collimated... took me about half an hour and not a laser in sight! Next time its clear... which will probably be a full moon, I'll take it out for a bit of visual then bung the DSLR on it to check out the corners on a starfield or two.
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Nope, not right at all! Loosening the centre screw is the worst thing you can do because it messes up the factory set up/down tube position of the secondary. If you want to adjust the three collimation screws all you need to do is loosen one of them a little and then the others should move freely. Dont make bold adjustments, just a little at a time (1/4 turn). The only time you tamper with the centre screw is if you are squaring the focuser, replacing it, or you find the collimation is seriously out of whack from new (unlikely). Sounds like youre pretty close already with just being able to see the third clip, just give it a little tweak and you should be there. But dont sweat too much about getting the clips perfect, the best test will be under the stars.... as long as you get round stars in all four corners (should not be hard with your cameras) thats all that matters... dont try to chase that last 2%... it will drive you bonkers!
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1) Dont tamper with the central screw unless absolutely essential! 2) Hex keys are about 2 quid for a set from wilkos, buy three sets just in case you lose one or two 3) Dont use a laser, get a combined cheshire/sight tube (lasers dont tell you about secondary rotation) 4) Be prepared to take time with it, collimation is an acquired skill. 5) As for collimation, get the secondary appearing round and directly under the sight tube first. Then make further adjustments to get it lined up with the primary, then adjust the primary. If after those adjustments are done the secondary is no longer directly beneath the sight tube, dont sweat too much over it.... its a far lesser evil to have a slightly shifted secondary than it is to have one that is rotated. The only effect a slightly shifted secondary has is that it reduces the overall illumination of the CCD chip. If youre still stuck, bring it along to SGL12 and I will take a look at it using my threaded collimatior (as play in thumbscrew/compression rings play a large part in miscollimation)
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Another 130 user for the growing list! Youre going to be quite surprised at just how dinky it is. The whole rig (with finderguider and CCD attached) can be easily carried in one hand.
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Fireworks now?? Really?! You've gotta be kiddin me! (grrr...)
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DSLR Cooler project finally started
Uranium235 commented on michaelmorris's blog entry in Blogstronomy
I wouldnt worry too much about the weight Michael, I had about 1.5kg on the 80ED and it coped alright after I tweaked then tension a bit. Looks like a breeze block, but its not a beauty contest eh -
Yep, I'll be there. Not sure if im bringing my 130 yet, as depends on a few factors (ie: how much space is left in the car)
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Youre getting a bit good at this
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DSLR Cooler project finally started
Uranium235 commented on michaelmorris's blog entry in Blogstronomy
Im thinking some polystyrene might serve as some good cladding. -
Guiding tonite!
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Erm.... Orion already?! Not fair! We have to wait unit November before we get a good go on it.
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Guiding tonite! And attempting my nemesis... NGC7023.
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200pds on the Veil:
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Yay! Its clear(ish) so im just doing some testing on the Veil.... lets see if I can get a colour pic out of this 8"! One thing I can say though, is that the PA requirements for 1000mm are radically different to that of something like an 80ED or 130pds... if youre a little bit off - you get punished for it.
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Boo hoo... not fair! It was raining here last night, but I may see some action tonight.
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the finished article will be knocking on the door of 100 megapixels.
mind you, your computer probably isn't too happy 