teoria_del_big_bang

Hi, Processing data is not something that comes easy and as a relative newbie I am still learning all the time and there is no easy remedy but to practice and keep practicing with lots of searching on Google for methods used in your particular software. I found it good to borrow somebodies known good data to do some practicing then you know that the data is good and see if you can create a worthy image. Trouble I found when learning is that sometimes my data was poor and so did not help with learning how to process as the lack of strong data was making it hard for me. There are often small competitions on SGL that give everybody the same data (maybe it might be mono not from a DSLR) but the processing is similar so that may help as you would see what others are achieving with same data and you can even ask them how they did various things. I too have had a quick go at processing the original stack and also struggling to get any different to Adrian without getting overblown bloated stars, so whilst I am by no means competent at this I fear you may have done as well as you can with the data. If your tracking is good enough maybe try longer exposures. I also wonder if your IDAS LP filter also is not helping, particular with this target and is also blocking a lot of the nebulosity from the horsehead ??? How was the moon when you shot this, that could also be a factor. If your LP is not horrendous then I would be tempted to try a shot or two without the filter to see what data you may be loosing. What software are you using ? Steve

Are you sure you are waiting until PHD had finished calibration before imaging ? I assume you are starting the mount tracking first, then starting PHD2 guiding, depending on the setup PHD2 may then start calibrating by deliberately moving the mount and detecting how many pixels the target star (s) move, you will see a message in lower left say something like "nudging South". When finished the box at bottom right that says "Cal" will change from red to green. Only after this should you start to image. Calibration can take a minute or two. You should then start to take a series of images and all the time keep the mount tracking and PHD2 guiding. So really the issue of 2 stars should only happen on 1st image if that is the cause then others should be fine. Maybe post one of your images in your next post may give us a clue. Steve

Although I would add that as I am on one of the flight paths to Leeds / Bradford airport often some nights start of with loads of con trails that take time to disperse (dependent of wind direction to which way they are landing) and on the few clear nights I had that was far improved (obviously 🙂 ) Steve

Yes I was watching that. Difficult for me to say about any change in light pollution as certainly around me it seemed to be far few clearer nights due to cloud cover than since I started the hobby 3 or 4 years ago, so all in all I had less imaging time than normal (unless its me getting lazy) I would think overall maybe there was less in generally heavy polluted areas as there would be less industrial lighting, less car headlights but in many back yards on outskirts of towns etc there would be little or no difference. Also from an imaging side the increase in the amount of satellites probably offsets any positives that a slight reduction in LP would bring. We have a long way to go to be able to see the skies anywhere near like those from Kielder Forrest it showed on the News. but we can all dream 🙂 Steve

No I was just going to post the same, also it doesn't come cheap for the NEQ6 at £300 including postage. Steve

I think it very much depends on what you intend to do with it. One question I would ask myself is if this were not a mate would I be buying one at all ? So if you are buying it just because it is a mate that is offering it then if you really did not want one then at any price it is really not a bargain. My understanding is the PDS is intended really for imaging not visual (not saying is can't be used for visual but I think you may need extra spacers to achieve focus as opposed to the P model) and for imaging I would think the EQ5 mount is not ideal for a big scope like the 200PDS although not impossible. So all I am saying is that if it i actually a 200PDS and is an EQ5 then I would think the setup is not ideal for visual or imaging. If it is a 200PDS then in my opinion it should be on a HEQ5 not EQ5 (Ideally) and would be good for imaging and if in good condition worth £750 to £850 I would think. If it is a 200P then for visual it is fine on a EQ5 and worth about £350 to £450 again in my opinion. If it is a 200P on a EQ5 goto pro then again great for visual and worth about £550 to £650 again in my opinion. If a 200PDS on EQ5 as stated then as above - for visual maybe I would pay £300, for imaging I would only pay £250 and that really for the OTA as I would want to use a better mount. The above is only my opinion and not necessarily from a friend but knowing the items are in good condition. Buying from a friend raises other complications, if they were not in dire need of cash then personally I would expect mates rates and a bit of discount but if I thought they were selling as they need the cash then would probably offer a bit over the odds. Steve

Lovely image, and enjoy that retirement 🙂 Steve

Looking Great. I really must do something, I am getting too old to cart everything out and back into the garage each time. Steve

Same for Yorkshire so I also expected they were taking the Michael 🙂 Steve

I don't have that guidescope but I do have a zwo mini ccd for the guidescope and also had to pull the camera back a long way in the guidescope to achieve focus. I would put the focus adjustment on the guidescope back to somewhere about midway so you have fine adjustment both ways. Then in daytime try to focus on a distant object (something on a distant hill or whatever you can). Then pull camera back by hand whilst monitoring in real time in some program like ASICap and fiddle with this distance till you get best focus. You then have the adjustment on the guidescope to get good focus. To focus on stars the exact focus will be a bit different to the object on earth you focussed on but you will then have a good starting point so should not take too long in the night. So you can do the same things as this in the night, you can even focus on the moon first if you want and then focus on stars will be not too much different from that and in fact pin point focus not necessary for good guiding but needs t be somewhere close. Then all that's left is to mark the position of where the mini ccd sits in the clamp in case it is removed. I have 3D printed spacers before but a bit of tape r a black marker pen works well as well. Steve

Oh agreed, and this forum and seeing some of the images is probably what got me into AP. But that image (for me) must be one of my favorites for sure. Steve

I don't think anyone has replied yet with a definitive answer to say exactly what the OP should ask but have said what they would do in the same circumstances and really that's all anyone can do as it is up to the seller. And the ones that have replied that suggest around 2/3rds, with the exception of @Steve Clay, have suggested that it is 2/3rds of the cost of new. Many members will sell a bit cheaper if they bought 2nd hand to begin with ,or it is not s new, but again it is up to the seller and that is what Steve said he would do and probably what many SGL members would also do. But as most have indicated that is just a "rule of thumb" and what has been the trend for as long as I have been on SGL and probably much longer. It is only a rough guide and some items will command much more, some less and some will be difficult to sell. Without seeing what a similar item went for recently it is difficult to help the OP to an exact price and also why they had to ask the question . Steve

I think that's fine and understand but it is difficult for others to suggest a price and hence why most long term SGL users will always suggest around 60 to 70% cost of new, that generally in the past has held pretty true for a lot of kit. The massive price hike is unusual but shortages where we have to wait for months sometimes is not that rare so items sometimes can command more than this. Personally, I would just be honest in your post when selling and say what the current price is and that it is almost unused, but no box, also say the reasons for selling (the hobby is just not for you - that's fine and not unusual also) and that you just want to minimise your losses. Rules dictate you have to give a selling price so you can put what you really would like. So long as you don;t add that the price is not negotiable then people may either offer you the asking price to secure the sale before somebody else does or may offer slightly less to see if that is acceptable. Good luck withthe sale 🙂 Steve

And I think that's generally what most have said in posts above. However, I still tend to think that most users of SGL would not pay full price or even much above 2/3's the cost of new and most are pretty patient and would wait to see if prices either settle down or place an order for new and wait to get the warranty back up if the other only option was to pay full price or over to get an item quickly 2nd hand. There are of course exceptions and some bits of kit are either very sort and people will pay over the odds. Ebay just amazes me sometimes, not just Astro stuff, and I am convinced that shill bidding still goes on undetected to artificially increase the going bids. And yes selling on Ebay may get you a higher selling price but I doubt many on SGL would buy much kit from Ebay (but that maybe just me who is sceptical and maybe SGL users do buy from Ebay regularly). I think the 2/3 s or 60 to 70% suggestions are from regular SGL members and is what they would be prepared to pay or in my opinion is what SGL is about - helping other serious SGL members and not making a quick buck - and yes I agree that is the way I would like the world to be and maybe not reality for many sites but it would be a sad day this forum becomes like that (in my opinion). Personally I would revert the system to how it was when I joined not too long ago whereby you could buy from SGL but not sell until you had 50 genuine posts (not just "nice one" or "! Agree" 50 times). Anyway no point discussing all that, I think reading between the lines all above have suggested to advertise at whatever price the OP would like and see the responses. If someone is prepared to pay the price they will pay it or offer what they think it is worth. Steve

Not much to add to what has already been said. That is a truly astonishing image and in my own opinion quite possibly the best image I have seen on SGL. I am biassed in that it is my favorite part of the sky but it has all my favorite targets in one image and in some detail/ Well done (apart from making us wait so long to see it 🙂 ) Steve

I think you have to ask a price you are happy with and if somebody is willing to pay that price they will message you and either pay the price of offer what they think it is worth. The way your OP is worded makes it sound like you are hoping to make a profit on your purchase price and if you are happy to advertise it at a mark up then you can , there is nothing in the rules to say you can't. But, in general new (or "as new") items tend to sell for around 2/3's the cost of the item new because of the reasons above about the risk not knowing how the item has been cared for, the lack of warranty and for items such as scopes the need to travel to pick it up as most would not buy without seeing first. The recent larger than normal price rise, of some items, obviously could mean some people will pay a bit over the odds if the item is particularly sort after or there is no similar alternative. In my opinion I would prefer the SGL Buy and Sell section to be more of a place to sell well looked after equipment on to others that maybe cannot afford new gear to get a decent setup together and as such would always sell at a reasonable price that helps me to put the proceeds towards upgrading my gear and also in turn helps somebody else get established in the hobby or upgrade their gear. Also one good point about selling n SGL as opposed to some well known on line auction sites is that if the item is pick up only (which is normal for scopes) then you will get the full amount of the sale and no auction sit fees or Paypal fees. Steve

Nice image. Take good care and I hope you have a quick recovery. Steve

I would 2nd that. So certainly in UK it is sufficient as I do not see any need to cool below -10 C as there is no real benefit. Maybe in hot countries where it is 25 C in night it might not reach the -10 C but otherwise should be ample cooling. Steve

Daniel, The problem is that very few people will have both cameras so people can only comment on the camera they have, with any certainty. I had a SX FW with my ZWO ASI1600MM and like yourself very happy with it, it did everything I wanted and never failed me. But when asking similar questions I was advised that due to the size of these cameras they ideally should be bolted to FW rather than screwed. Certainly the QHY is considerably bigger and heavier than the 1600 and despite being a bit lighter the ZWO version is still much heavier. So taking this advise I went for the QHY camera and bought the QHY filter wheel to go with it then I know they would all bolt together correctly without bodging spacers of drilling holes. The price of the QHY camera and FW was still about the same as the ZWO camera on its own. Now I have the camera and FW I am not convinced you would suffer too much from screwing the camera to the FW but it could be the case especially if the front and back panels of the FW flex, which with my SW FW I think would be the case. Also I am not sure how you would get the camera close coupled to the FW without bolting it on as I imagine you would have to use one of the spacers to do this and so the distance between the camera and FW would be greater than by bolting them together. So if you have 2" filters then this may not be an issue but I think with unmounted 36 mm filters it may give you some issues with vignetting. Regarding the USB hub that was something I was also not happy to lose, but the QHY filter wheel does connect directly to the QHY camera so I actually only lost one USB 2 port that I had used for the guide camera. All in all I a really happy with the QHY camera and Filter wheel. The FW is very sturdy with a strong outer aluminium case that does not flex. Onl the downside it is a real PITA to get inside to change or clean filters when fitted to the rig but to keep the whole thing rigid then maybe no easy way around that. I never had a ZWO FW to comment how they connect to cameras and what issues they have. Steve

Very odd, when you click on the image it really does become a very good image indeed. This is an excellent image: Steve

I really cannot recommend the Lindy Cromo range enough. They are available in lots of lengths so you do not have loads of cable to tidy up and they are very reliable and a reasonable price. LINDY 36640 USB 2.0 Type A to B Cable, Cromo Line LINDY 36663 USB 3.0 Type A to B Cable I do not think they do a type C in the Cromo line but they do in the black line line you may only need a 0.5 M one if going from Mini to the USB hub on the 533MC thats what I used and makes a really neat setup with no extra cable to lose. USB 3.1 Type A to C Cable But to be honest I never had any issues with the ZWO flat cables. Steve

That is one incredible image Richard, that's not something we see every day - Stunning 🙂 Steve

Yes, I must admit my first telescope was a Dob and I used to love visual on the moon and not done any for a while since I started imaging. So not a bad idea 🙂 Steve

Welcome to SGL, looks like you have a lot to offer to the forum and hope you find it a great place to meet and talk to like-mined people. Steve

I would definitely keep on to your local authority about the shading, I thought they were obliged to do this when requested. Steve