Raph-in-the-sky

4 minutes ago, Ships and Stars said:

Hi all, been ages since I was on here, hope everyone is doing well. I'm counting down the days once more to true darkness here at 57N-ish. August 12th is the first evening the sun dips more than 18deg below the horizon, so the official start of observing season once more and the nights will rapidly get longer from there of course.

Haven't been up to much astro-related over the summer, bought some second-hand Pentax 20x60s bins which are absolutely brilliant, by far my favs out of the four pair in the inventory. 

I removed and gently cleaned the 20" mirror on the 500p over the summer with tap water in the bath tub (big mirror! haha) and am keeping the leisure battery charged.

I'd like to try and catch Neowise soon before it disappears. Don't know how quickly that will happen, but from home I can't see it easily due to buildings etc.

Anyway, thought I'd check in and see what everyone is up to.

Hoping to train the 300p on Neowise soon, need to read up more on timings and location.

Cheers, S&S

 

Hello again!

I've been playing as much as I could during this early summer ... which turned out to be just a few times 😞. These short nights are really annoying. I don't like starting my session at midnight.  I did see a few nice things for the first time though (including the eastern  veil nebula). 

I also got some binos, Nikon action 10x50 which were great on Neowise... On that topic, you have to hurry up! it will fade quickly. I am no comet expert but this was an amazing display. 

Raph

Hey guys,

FYI, Pierro Astro sells an adaptator for a Barlow cell that is supposed to help with the placement of the Barlow in the optical chain when using an ADC. To be honest, I haven't understood all the ins and outs but I thought this might be of interest to some of you.

https://www.pierro-astro.com/materiel-astronomique/support-photo-t2-pour-barlow-ou-reducteur-porte-oculaire-136_detailµ

Cheers,

On 09/06/2020 at 16:50, Barry-W-Fenner said:

Hi Merlin,

I am a big fan of the BST 15mm in the 200p - I find it gives a nice clear image and a very handy x80 magnification. I seem to be in the minority as most people prefer the 18mm, find myself coming back to the 15 over and over!

 

I hope you enjoy the eye piece.

I also love the 15mm BST. It's the first EP I bought (with a 5mm) and it still sits in my EP case... although now it has to compete with a Nagler 11mm

On 20/06/2020 at 03:06, SteadyMercury said:

Hiya, newbie so sorry if the questions have already been asked beforehand.

I've been looking at trying out some eyepieces and wondered how the BST performs in a f4.7 dob? (Scope is a dob 250px) I currently have ES 8.8 82° and 20mm, 26mm 62° from ES with a focal extender x2, i have heard some good comments about the BST and was looking at getting a high power EP (5mm) - who better to ask than those using it? 😆

They really don't seem all that different than the ES 62° series, except the price is double for ES 😆

Thank you

Seing you other EPs I think you should have a look at the SW/OVL Nivana 7mm. It works great in my 250/1200

8 hours ago, maw lod qan said:

Great idea, but drinking and viewing doesn't work for me, unless its strong coffee at 3am.

I prefer left over Space Shuttle fuel, which is quite a bit more potent than Romulan ale. 

After a couple drinks and the only thing i view is nebula in my dreams!🙄

That's ok, I m gonna specialise in double stars! 😉 

Amazing picture! The best picture of the comet I have seen!

3 minutes ago, Pixies said:

You'll need a bottle opener too!

I'm more of a lambic man, myself.

Not true! I can open a bottle of beer with just about anything...keys, lighter, a chair, a tree, you name it!

Hey guys,

If you are like me and like to enjoy a couple of beer while gazing at the sky, you ,no doubts, have know the issue of kicking an open bottle in the dark (which for the less lucky of us might end up in the EP case).

THIS IS NOW A THING FROM THE PAST! 

I present to you the lastest dob mod, derived from technologies inspired by NASA itself, ... the retractable cup holder!

Clear skies,

Raphael

PS: you could even use it for tea... you lot sure seem to like it

I just spent my first £19.95 for AP. I feel this is a slippery slope.

2 hours ago, Chris Wright said:

A pack of Haribo with a couple of other bits and bobs in the parcel! 

 

Haribo Starmix. Very appropriate!

Just received those second hand bino. Nikon Action 10x50. It should be easier to move than the 10'' Dob. 

24 minutes ago, Louis D said:

If you can get them for between $50 and $100, they should be a good deal.  Check that the images align, look down into them to see if there is obvious fogging or mold on any of the optics.  Minor dust isn't much of an issue.  Make sure that the focus and eyepiece diopter move smoothly.  If they are near mint, you could go over $100 for them.

These were made in Japan in the 50s and early 60s.  They had oversized prisms and usually had large eye lenses.  Eye relief is tight to get the 77° AFOV.  They often employed aspherics in the eyepiece to get decent correction in the outer parts of the image.

I would contact SMark on CN for further guidance.  He is about the most knowledgeable person on these vintage binoculars on the planet.

Thank you so much Louis. Very helpfull as always! 

Hello, 

Looking on a local second hand shop I stubled upon these Viking 7x50 binoculars. Apparently, it has a field of view of 11°. Is that even possible? If it is it should be super expensive right?

If anybody has some info / insights that would be appreciated.

Cheers,

Raphael

1 minute ago, Supernova74 said:

Well if it’s japenese may be onto a winner there from intiall impressions might be worth taking a punt on is it in dollars or Euros?

Asking price is 180 Euro

2 minutes ago, Supernova74 said:

Personally I’ve heard of the brand name However first impressions look very inviting regarding build quality looks very 80,s perhaps similer to a TAL 100mm refractor has a very slight Russian look a bout it 

Actually it seems to be japanese.

10 minutes ago, DaveL59 said:

I've not but looks like a typical 60-70's japanese scope and solid build. Couldn't make out the makers mark in the info label but I've seen the larger aperture ones go for £60-80 on the bay when I've been hoping to get one (failed so far). Does it come in a wood carry-box as well, along with all the accessories?

It does come with a great looking wooden box. It also has lots of accessories of unknown quality including optical finder (6x30 or 5x24? idk), diagonal, 3 EPs, wooden tripod, EQ mount, slowmotion controls and what might be a barlow. 

Do you know if the focuser takes 1,25' EPs?

It seems that its a complete original package however the seller is asking for EUR 180 which seems a bit steep

Has anybody at least heard of these?

Hello,

I have found on a local second hand website an Eikow 77mm/1000mm refractor similar to this one https://www.cloudynights.com/gallery/image/23913-eikow-telescope-008/

Does anyone have experience with this and could comment on the quality? 

How much do you think it's worth assuming good condition? I'd like to make a sensible offer to the seller.

Cheers,

Raphael

I Just took my 250px on the balcony and I was able to see M81 and M82 for the first time. I never thought I would be able to see those despite the light pollution!

The 200p is basically the same but a bit smaller. It's a great scope

On 11/03/2020 at 16:50, Stephanos said:

Hello everyone!

I am new here and about to buy my first telescope and wondering if you could help me make up my mind!

I have been looking at the skywatcher explorer 130P on an eq2 mount and the skyliner 200P Dobsonian. There is obviously a price difference, as well as the diameters and mounts are of course different.

The skyliner supposedly has 'direct slr connection' which is a big plus, as I would like to connect my ancient Canon 1000D to the telescope I buy. Would it be that hard to connect the camera to the explorer (i.e. would it be more than a t-adapter?)

Also anyone had experience with the EQ-2 mount? Not worried about the alignment etc as I am confident I can do it with a bit of practice, it're more if it's stable enough and offers a good experience? Also does the optional motor help with taking long exposures or is it not that precise? 

I like the simplicity of the Dobsonian but as far as I know there is no option to 'motorise' it (so I'm wondering whether I will need a completely separate rig in the future if I want to take long exposures etc?)

Thank you so much, apologies if any of the questions are a bit obvious to the experienced. Any other advise (or alternatives) are most welcome

All the best,

Stephanos

 

Hello,

I started with a 130/900 on EQ-2 and moved to a SW 250 px Dob (which is essentially the same as a 200p but a big bigger).

Let me first say that none of these scopes are good for astrophoto. The EQ 2 is way to wobbly and you would have to spend a lot of money to buy a wedge and a go-to system for the 200p... all that to get a result that is far from ideal. My advice would be for you to start with a scope dedicated to observing and buy another set up for imaging. HEQ 5  mount + SW 80 ED is a common combination for beginner imagers or a star adventurer for wide field.

Secondly I would strongly advise for the 200p. It has great aperture, is easy to use, reasonable to move/store. The difference between a 200mm aperture and a 130mm is quite significant. For example, you would be able to resolve the individual stars on globular clusters (at least 2/3 of the way ti the core) with the 200 while the 130 will only show you nebulosity. And again, the EQ 2 is quite wobbly even for visual use and an EQ mount is far less intuitive.

One last thing i'd like to add is that you should set aside a small budget for a couple of decent eyepieces as the ones you would get with either of those scope are pretty bad. BST starguiders are highly regarded on this forum (and for good reasons) and are reasonably priced.

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/bst-starguider-eyepieces.html

16 hours ago, Ricochet said:

I think AC is a typo in one shop, it's AR elsewhere. From comments I've read on them, you're better off going for one of the 102 options as the 90 options have significant amounts of plastic parts (including the focuser).

I just had a look at those focusers and I have to say that the ones on 90 options really look like [removed word]. Thanks for the heads up, I would have been disapointed.

10 minutes ago, johninderby said:

As per above link a Televue Renaissance 101 with tripod went for £1200.00 on SGL.

OK, I will get one of those when I hit my mid-life crisis... still much cheaper than a Porsche!

50 minutes ago, Louis D said:

Of course, if you have the money and one came along used, I can't think of a better looking scope for the living room that also performs very well than the Televue Renaissance 101 or 102:

I haven't checked the price ... and I won't 🙂

If you wish to gift one of those to me I will happily accept!

23 minutes ago, GlenM said:

I remember selling that scope to Marvas. They are excellent scopes. You wouldn't be sorry buying the scope.

 

Glen.

 

 

I would totally buy it if it wasn't collection only... I live in Belgium, going to Watford just to get this scope seems a bit much

I bought most of my kit second hand from SGL ,UKABS and 2ememains.be (belgian generic second hand site). 

The only issue I had was for a ES 82° 11mm. In that instance the seller did not answer for 4 days after receiving my money. It turned out that the seller had a major family emergency, he got back it touch with me afterwards and I received the item a few days later than anticipated.... all very understandable.

Contrary to what @Carbon Brush says I find usually that the packaging is over the top.