Stu1smartcookie

A little treat for selling a couple of scopes recently saw a trip to the Widescreen Centre ( thank you Simon and Elena ) .. to pick up this little beauty … to be mainly used for visual but I’m sure my  camera would love to meet it and make lovely photos together . Of course it’s cloudy tonight zzz

in the end i bought an iphone !!! ... Now it works flawlessly 

Fantastic image mate , hope you don’t mind , I downloaded it and used it as one of my wallpapers on my phone . 
Stu 

On 05/02/2022 at 13:51, JDF said:

It stayed clear last night so I had another pop out just after midnight, 15x70's again, Perseus was really opened up in these bins and spent a bit of time there. On moving back into the Orion area I noticed a very red speck of light against the blackness of the background, I had never noticed this before. Only upon reading the Feb issue of BinocularSky this morning did I learn this is R Leporis (Hind's Crimson Star) so another first for me. I have a feeling I'm really going to enjoy owning these bins.

Earlier in the evening I had a nice detailed viewing of the crescent moon through them as well. These might actually encourage me to leave the garden and look for darker skies.

I have just secured a pair of 15x70’s … just being collimated , can’t wait to use them .. like you I think it’s an incentive to go further afield to a darker site to observe .   

Picked up a fine pair of Binos today, many thanks Pete. Going to need a tripod with these though  

2 minutes ago, TerraC said:

A couple of snaps.  Not brilliant I know and need more integration time but i'm happy with a few first attempts and for an unguided 50mm guidescope.   I'm still learning processing and have a bit of a light pollution issue.  

Why did you write " not brilliant"? ... just think about what you have done ... these are great photos . Especially the flame and HH . 

Coming at this from a slightly different angle , as you have a scope , and a tripod ... buy an AZ-GTi and you can track the moon and planets without worrying about slow motion controls ... the scope is light enough and ii'm sure your tripod will suffice for now . The only problem i see is the AZ-GTi is a liitle over budget , but ... thats what happens in this hobby 

Stu

3 minutes ago, Philip R said:

Remember to add a dew shield as these are not included… (don’t ask why)!

There must be someone out there that can patent a retractable dew shield for a Mak . Its a necessary item ... lets face it , you wouldnt buy a tv without a plug ( although i am old enough to remember when you did !!!!)

Although it was clear all evening i elected to get out early and have a "scan the skies " session with my newly acquired SW ED80 . Mainly to test the difference between the stock focuser and a baader steeltrack . Using a 36mm Baader EP i hit the usual winter targets . My mount was an Omegon AZ-baby ( weight limit 4kgs - which i exceeded ) on a skywatcher ally tripod . 

Obviously the Orion Neb screamed out for more magnification but even in the 36mm it was , as usual , a lovely sight . Plaides , Hyades , doubles ... and andromeda which was a very small smudge and very high up . Its just nice to be able to actually see some clear skies isn't it ?

Stu

wow Dave , were you a tripod in an earlier life.... super steady !!!!! Great images.

Smartphones have progressed so much and now images like this or hovering the phone over an EP to take a snap or two are proving to be a brilliant addition to the hobby . 

A dob may appear large but has a surprisingly small floor space when stored ( having said that i had a 300mm dob "living" with my wife and i in our small living room!!!! )

Value for money they cant really be touched , get the 200mm version if you can . But , and i am alluding to your other post , the Mak sitting on the GTi is a brilliant combo and you have the advantage of a compact scope that excels on planets and has the advantage of a  GOTO system that is so portable. 

Choice is sometimes a wicked thing  

As above , and something that i am actually thinking of doing , the 3/8" SW steel tripod can only be a good thing , with one caveat ... ie the weight of moving the gear around . But that is a very small minus against the undoubted plus points of having a sturdy mount . As people on here regularly comment , the mount is the most important part of a succesful set up .

Also if your rig is close to its weight limit a better tripod really helps . Going slightly off track the AZ5 mount head can take up to 9kgs when paired with a steel tripod whereas the payload is only 5kgs with the skywatcher alluminium tripod . ( its in the Blurb that ships with the mount) . 

As for the clamp , yes , a good upgrade , ... if you can find one at the moment , they sell out really quickly .

Stu

Agree with the above sentiment about weight of the ST120 , although its a fairly short scope . The accesories tip it over the edge . 

If you did like the look of that scope though , you could go for a Star discovery mount which is a bit more sturdy than the AZ-GTi but that can only be used in Alt Az mode ( see how many strands a new option opens up! ) . 

Going back to your initial choices the 127Mak is a favourite ( i have the same set up ) but if you go for it , factor in a dew shield and a bit of time for it to properly cool down . As John suggests , the wedge is an option and at that point you would need to upgrade the firmware on the mount . That isnt a difficult process but it does involve mouning the scope on the right of the mount , not the left . Of course you are limiting yourself to planets , lunar and the brighter DSO's with this scope ... oh and double stars ... hang on ! , there is plenty to see . Lets face it distant galaxies are just smudges in the EP , however cool it is to view them , so i would say the Mak is a good choice , with the AZ-GTi . And to be honest its quite satisfying to see that little mount operated from a smartphone  

Stu

10 minutes ago, StevieDvd said:

That's a confirmation that yours (the older model) does not have the same 5 accessory screw points as the new Diamond model.🙁

You are correct Steve ... i was (almost ) onto a winner when i suddenly thought , " i need to check" ... Elena confirmed this  

Thanks , John .... its as i thought ... but to have it confirmed is great . 

Sorry to revive this thread , or maybe not sorry ... but i have just inherited a skywatcher ED80 with a Baader Steeltrack... Can somebody just confirm that to fit a finder base onto the focuser i can remove any 2 of the flat head dummy screws on the top of the focuser . I did read the manual and whilst i think i am right , maybe somebody could confirm this . 

Stu

4 minutes ago, vlaiv said:

That really depends what sort of views you are after.

I have 102mm Mak for lunar.

Biggest issue that I have with that scope is size of exit pupil. I guess that is just because I'm used to faster scopes for general observing and the fact that I observed mostly from light polluted areas. With F/6 scope and 32mm eyepiece - sky will look bluish/grey at low magnifications / wide field in light polluted skies.

For me it feels strange to use 32mm eyepiece and get very dark background - not something that I'm used to. Mind you - I don't really feel that boxed in as far as field of view goes. My main observing scope is F/6 8" dob - which has 1200mm of focal length - only 100mm shorter than my mak at 1300mm. It is just that when I use 32mm on 102 mak - it feels like using 8" dob with 3/4 of aperture covered with something - image is darker (again - it is due to what I'm used to).

I usually use ES 82° eyepieces with my Mak. These give good sharp view (11mm, 6.7mm). I also have 16mm 68°.

If you want a bit more expensive / better eyepieces / wider field of view - I'd say look into ES 62 and 68mm lines for longer focal lengths and ES82 for shorter focal lengths.

Why did I mention exit pupil? Well - those more expensive eyepieces have wider field of view and that means shorter focal length for same field stop.

ES68 24mm will show you the same amount of sky as say 30/32mm plossl (52° or 50° degrees AFOV) - but will do so with smaller exit pupil. You'll be around 2mm exit pupil with such eyepiece on F/12 scope. You might not mind that and you might find it nicer to have dark background - for me it feels sort of strange.

In any case - most more expensive eyepieces will have wider field of view and hence smaller exit pupil than simple plossls and alike.

If you are after best planetary performance with tracked scope then look at Vixen SLV line - these are very sharp eyepieces.

Again - don't go below about 8mm. I have ES82 6.7mm and it gives too much magnification for my eyes even on lunar (which can take up quite a bit of mag). I'll probably get ES82 8.8mm for that scope at some point

 

 

Really informative ( not just for the OP ) Vlaiv . I like the look of the ES 82 degree EP's .. and i totally get the max power of an 8mm EP ... giving 187.5 x mag . on a 127 mak . There will be times when the magnification can be pushed of course and theoretically this scope can take in excess of 200 x  , but as we know , UK skies are very unpredictable . 

6 minutes ago, KP82 said:

Otherwise I'd suggest you will need a different scope for it because your Mak isn't really suitable due to its long focal length and slow focal ratio. You will also need a reliable EQ mount with tracking capability for it.

generally i would whole heartedly second this , but , i stumbled on a YouTube channel the other day where a guy had a 127mak on a star adventurer mount , using it for planetary photography with stunning results ... of course , dim DSO's , forget it !!

EP's are easy for others to reccomend as most will have their personal favourites . One thing which might help from your side is to let us know what budget you have for EP's .

You may want to consider a zoom EP ?

Maybe a very low power Ep , a mid range one and a high(ish ) power one ... i have a couple of baader hyperions that i quite like . But its horses for courses , and some might point you in a certain direction due to the scope you have . 

Stu 

47 minutes ago, ScouseSpaceCadet said:

Yeah. It worked OK but the ticking started and I decided for longevity sake to stop, then I found the P150i tube - a new customer return. Cheap as chips and brilliant with the focuser upgrade. To aid balancing, the existing vixen dovetail was removed and replaced with tube rings. It looked great too... 🙄 That setup served me well during Mars opposition 2020.

And was one that i was sorely tempted by when you had it up for sale

12 minutes ago, ScouseSpaceCadet said:

A slight diversion from the very latest chat, however some of the scopes I've tried with the AZGTi...

ST120. Seemed OK at first but proved too heavy - the mount started ticking...

 

Skymax 102. Perfect but just sold. I've been considering selling the AZGTi but it's just so good at grab and go. I may buy a 127mm Mak or SCT.

 

A P150i with upgraded focuser and tube rings added. I'm trying to remember why I sold that scope! 

 

The Altair Ascent 102ED. Too heavy and long. A used Celestron AVX mount saved the day.

 

A cheap used Canon 450D with zoom lens practicing lunar shots in alt az mode still.

 

A versatile and quite cheap mount. 👍

yeah , the 120 is a step too far , i think. But it looks good on the mount 

1 minute ago, Ed the Fox said:

Cheers Stu

The tripod us very stable now especially since I filled it with kiln dried sand...

Good idea , i usually place my power tank on the spreader plate which gives stability . I was going to buy a steel tripod as i have an 80ed on the mount but i'm not sure i need it with the counterweight system i am using . 

8 hours ago, Ed the Fox said:

Thank you for starting this thread.

It's great to look at other people's GTI set up. I posted a tread today in this forum about converting my eq2 to a GTI system using my Skywatcher 130m  on it and having used it only once so far I was absolutely made up with it. Everything I wanted to look at the mount put it almost in the middle of the field of view

I have seen right ups about how the skywatcher app to use your phone with the mount is not that good. I disagree as I found the app very intuitive and you could set parameters so you don't trash your scope. 

Having said that if you are going to use it on android I would use an older phone that is using android 10 and older as using it on android 11 is a bloody faff as you have to download an spurious app at the same time (which you can delete but still annoying as its a long winded process)

Nice one , Ed ... the tripod is a good fit for the AZ-GTi ... its actually quite stable ,especially if you don't extend it fully ...i would say its even more stable than the skywatcher one that is supplied with the mount . Oh and the counterweight is a good fit .

Amazing , Neil . 

Just a little view of my setup… and I was only out for about an hour tonight as it was actually quite cloudy but the scope performed admirably and so did the mount.