Raph-in-the-sky

Fair enough

The problem with this is that you have to reprint them regularly as the pages get wet/dirty/fligh off...

OK, glad to hear it's not too inconvienient on the other side. I'll probably order a Telrad today!

Hello Guys, So far I 've been printing maps from wikipedia which do a decent job but tend to fly off at the slightest breeze and end up soaked so I was think about getting a sky atlas. If that matters, I'm planning on using a Telrad finder so anything that includes telard circles would be a plus. Obviously I'd like something robust enough to bring on the field. Size isn't really a concern as I m already shleping a 10 inch Dob. Which sky atlas would you recommend? Also, I hear a lot about "Turn Left At Orion"... What is in this book? Why is it so popular? Cheers, Raph

And doesn't it get annoying to go around your scope each time?

Planning on doing this. First meeting with the club on Saturday!

One more thing... how about a Rigel Quickfinder?

Hey guys, Just a quick question: is it possible to fit a Telrad finder between the focuser and the 9x50 finder on a Skywatcher 250 px? If not, is it convienient having it on the other side? thanks, Raph

So... I ll finally got to try the EPs. And to me the GSO 32mm is the clear winner over the 30mm Bresser. To me it seemed that the GSO was clearer and sharper overall. I tested them on Andromeda and the disc seemed fainter and smaller with the Bresser. For the other EPs the BSTs were great (but I already had/knew these EP). The 8mm Omegon Cronus gave me my best view of Jupiter to date. Later the 5mm BST gave me a good view of Saturn although I wasn't able to make out the Cassini division. The BST 15mm was great on M13. THe 6mm Planetary was good for the ring Nebula... From my experience during this night, I think the 30mm Bresser, both ultrawide 66 and the 25mm plossl will colect more dust than photons. The 4mm might be useful when seeing is better. Obviously this is not the most professional EP review but I was like a child with my big new toy. I didn't want to intelectualize too much and just enjoy myself

Thank you guys for all your answers! The skies seem to be clear tonight so I ll bring out my new scope for the first time. I'll briefly let you know how it goes and how the EPs perform. Cheers, Raph

And one more question: Am I right in assuming that any of these EPs will be better than my 8-24mm Celestron Zoom ?

Thanks so much for this reply. Could you please explain a few things? What's SAEP/kindney beaning? how will I notice it? What do you mean by simple positive/negative positive? And will it impact my views?

I m not sure I m the best person since I have very little experience but I ll try to report what I can see.

Hello guys, I just bought a second hand scope (Skywatcher 250 PX) which came with a lot of EPs. Since I already had a few, I now find myself with some redundancies and some EPs with very close focal lengths. Obsviously, I ll go out when I have a clear night and find out by myself but in the meanwhile I was curious to know what more expercienced people would keep and what they would sell. None of these EPs are premium and I don't plan on getting any for the time being, so don't tell me to get rid of it all and buy Naglers 😉 Here is the list of EPs as best as I can describe them (All in 1.25'): -4mm Skywatcher UWA-58° -5mm BST starguiders ED -6mm Skywatcher UWA-58° -8mm Omegon Cronus WA 60° -9mm 66° UltraWide Long Eye Relief Multi Coated (No brand - with a gold ring) -15mm 66° UltraWide Long Eye Relief Multi Coated (No brand - with a gold ring) -15mm BST starguiders ED -25mm Super Plossl multi-coated (No Brand) -30mm Bresser PL -32mm GSO Super PLossl Keep in mind that my new scope is f4.7 and that I have a very decent 2x barlow (Celestron Ultima Japan). Give me your thoughts! Cheers, Raph

OK ... We got 2 winners dweller25 and JOC. The asking price is 400 EUR which is equivalent to 370.75 GBP. I have to say that I am very tempted to buy it ... another present to myself ... I'll justify it somehow 😉

Hello guys, A local amateur is selling stuf (in the pic bellow) as a bundle. How much do you think it's worth? I'd like to get your guesses first of what would be a good price for second hand and then compare that to the asking price. What's in the bundle? -Skywatcher 10'' Dob -9mm and 15mm WA (I beleive Omegon) - 30 mm WA (not sure) - 4mm, 6mm planetary EP (Skywatcher) - 8 mm planetary (not sure) - 25 mm Plossl (skywatcher) - Touptek camera 1200 ?? - OIII Filter (Omegon) - Omegon Aluminium case - Lunar filter Here is the picture. Maybe you ll be better than me at recongnising the pieces. Please give me your toughs! Cheers!

Hello Stargazers! I want to get a 32mm EP to complete my set. What do you think about this super cheap plossl I found? https://www.befr.ebay.be/itm/Oculaire-32mm-Plossl-Lens-1-25-pour-telescope-et-Blue-Moon-Planet-Color/192741696716?hash=item2ce04ce4cc:g:JRwAAOSw5cZb~51W Obviously I m not expecting much from the filter but it's a nice addition. The EP is advertised as fully multi-coated. My other options are a skywatcher plossl for 33GBP or I can wait and try to buy second hand. Give me your thoughts, Cheers, Raph

How about the Andromeda Galaxy... Huge, easy to find and very rewarding!

Wow... I love this kind of map. It gives you an idea of the scale of what you re supposed to see. Where is it comming from? Do you have some similar maps for other DSOs?

Thanks for the advice. I don't have great expectations (especially with my set up) but I was hoping to locate them at least. What should I be looking for if I can't see some kind of dust or gas clouds? What could I try to improve my chances of spotting them? Since Orion is only visible in late night/early morning at this time of year (and I m not a morning person), what should I be looking for? What would be the easiest one to spot?

Hello Stargazers, I am pretty new to this hobby and I love it so far. During the few nights I managed to go observing I saw some planets and some DSOs that are easy to find (Pleiades, M13, Andromeda, Albireo, M15,...) which was great! Naturally I wanted to try the other type of DSO that are Nebulae, so I turned my telescope towards cygnus. I tried seeing the North American Nebula and the Veil Nebula for hours ... to no avail. Then I tried the planetary nebula in Lyra with the same results. I was under a clear, pretty dark country-side sky, was using a skywatcher 130/900 EQ 2 with a 15mm BST starguider/Super 25mm wide angle long eye relief (the one you get with the telescope that is not so "super") and an Explore Scientific UHC filter. Why can't I find those? What am I missing? Thank you in advance for the advice, Clear Skies, Raph

What is the cheapest webcam would you recommend? Should I buy a generic one or one made for astrophotografy like this one https://www.astroshop.eu/astronomical-cameras/orion-starshoot-usb-eyepiece-camera-ii/p,58253?

How do you attach it to the barlow?

That 's interesting... I ll probably try to get my hands on a super cheap second hand camera (I guess any digital camera where I can change the objective would do the trick?) to play a little bit.

Thanks for the advice. How can I use the barlow for planetary imaging? Will I need a motor to track the object across the sky? Would my celestron 8mm-24mm zoom (which is treaded for T-ring) + this barlow be sufficient?