Stu1smartcookie

Hi , the more i get into this hobby the more questions i ask . I reset my mirror in its cell , and , used cork pads without sticking them to the mirror . This has worked admirably for the last few weeks but last night i had a nightmare whilst collimating . One of the collimattion bolts was having none of it and the mirror on one side had excessive movement . I belive that maybe one of the clips have come loose , investigation will take place tonight . I am also thinking about sticking the supporting triangles to the mirror instead of leaving it "floating" , for the want of a better description . I hate the idea of this but this mirror movement has had an unsettling effect . Im thinking of just introducing double sided tape onto the cork pads . A good solution ? or is it better to leave the pads unfixed to the mirror ? Also the locking screws are a nightmare ...you spend your time collimating only for those screws to push the mirror zzzz By the way , i have installed Bobs Knobs for collimation . Stu

I actually had one of those and the two scopes you mention , and i regret parting with the EP and the ST120

Mark , those ES EP's certainly fare well it seems . Its all a bit of a minefield , thats why the questions were posed of course . Thanks for the reccomendations , Mark

AAAAAANNNNND , RVO have one too .... i have heard good things about the Nirvana's indeed my friend @Grumpy Martian has the 4 and 7 which i am hoping to try out .Thanks Heather

To be honest if i am only buying three then i might stretch the budget a little , thanks Jonathan

Ok , so i will go to a maximum £120 on each . although like everyone i do like a bargain .

Lovely report Mark ... Jupiter is a real WOW at the moment isnt it ? I have just put up a post on EP's and reading your post has already theoretically emptied my bank account as i read about the lovely EP's you have lol Looking forward to another clear one tonight ...I do find it difficult to star hop though ... there is so much to see using a larger dob that i wander off course very easily Stu

So , Armed with my 12" Dob i settle down for an unobstructed view of the night sky ... and it made me wonder what would the views be like through some lovely new eyepieces . Now , i am not completely "green" on this subject , but despite that i still have what can only be descibed as a questionable eyepiece collection . Put it this way .. i reckon they let down the optics in my scope pretty badly. So , my scope , having a focal ratio of 4.95 and a focal length of 1500mm deserves better . Now before a few of you start spending my money on Tele Vue EP's please let it be known that i am not in a position to spend hundreds of pounds ( although i really would like to) . I want a good barlow and three decent eyepieces which will compliment my scope . At present i have a revelation 32mm , a celestron 25mm , and a few other EP's that honestly are not worthy at all , oh and one of the cheap barlows that work ok-ish. So , people , please think about what will compliment my one and only scope ( as of now ). I don't wear glasses . I do like 2" EP's . Any reccomendations would be gratefully received . May i add that i do want to look at the lovely planets but of course at DSO's from my bortle 5 garden Thanks for reading Stu

Even if you upgrade the firmware , there is no need to use the mount in EQ mode as it asks whether you want to use Alt/AZ or EQ mode before you start . Upgrading the firmware gives you the choice of using EQ mode . Sorry if someone else has already mentioned this

Hi Dave first of all put some mint in the shed .. spiders hate it … the dob cover has a drawstring but my wife also made a cover for the scope base that should prevent intruders . ALARMING EDIT I will be sending the cover back .. the cover is superb , but , the scope won’t fit in the shed!!!!! The wife has a lot of gardening stuff in there already . So peace has broken out and Elena has agreed to live with the scope in the house ! Therefore no cover needed ! Lol

Ok , so you know Christmas Day when all the presents are under the tree.. they look so big when they are wrapped … er , it’s the same with the dob cover lol

I will upload one later ... i am hoping it will be clear tonight so the dob will get some action befiore it settles into its new home ( ps , wife will be pleased to get her living room back)

i went for the Telegizmo vertical cover as the scope is left in the shed rather than outside for any length of time ... i think there are nore durable ones available, but this will do a grand job i'm sure

Yes it doesn’t give away a lot with its obscure packaging and it’s definitely not the sexiest astronomy buy ever but inside this bubble wrap is a cover for the 12” Dob to keep it nice and protected on its new home in the shed ! Thanks RVO for the speedy service .

A really nice report ... Neptune is something i have yet to see , but now with a 12" dob of my own i will hopefully be able to achieve my goal , especially as its favourable in the sky this month . The only trouble is , its been cloudy every night for the last week in the east of England . zzz.

Lol I read through the whole of this post … it had everyone grasping at their own straw trying to think about every possibility … they needed the “year of the goat “

Looking at the sky for the foreseeable future on the east/southeast of England I see no clear nights forecast so it seems last Friday and Saturday were my last opportunities for a while .. isn’t it frustrating ? We get so few clear nights add to that the variable seeing conditions , wind , and dew it’s no wonder we try to make the most of every clear opportunity. This summer has been particularly cloudy ☁️. Makes me want to give up , but my view of Jupiter on Friday night was my best ever .. with so much detail so let’s look forward to the next clear night in , er, a couple of weeks !!!

Just to add . Used my 12” Dob ( with its “new” primary ) for the first time last night ! Wow ! Never seen the gas giants like this before .. echoing the views of @Pixies. With my limited EP collection my best views cane at about 120x , but I did get a decent view albeit a bit “soft “ through a barlowed 10mm . But I soon realised that less is sometimes more and reverted back . The only problem .. and this really is a first world problem, is that I was overawed with the amount I could see , even from my bottle 5 location when trying to find things .I went out with a bit of a plan but ended up stumbling on many star clusters and even a few distant smudges without even knowing what they were. Ie a distant patch of grey a few degrees below Vega , when I was looking for M57 ! ( which I still didn’t get chance to see) . This scope has really opened up the sky for me . It also means I didn’t know the night sky as well as I thought I did . Fascinating isn’t it ?

Wishing you clear skies with your new purchase

So glad that you have your scope up and running … this is one reason why this forum exists . Everyone on here wants to help and for everyone who is new to astronomy and new to SGL remember that every question is treated the same way with respect and knowledge. In other words NEVER be afraid to ask .

Hoping to give my Dob first light tonight as its meant to be clear ( we will see) , some great targets there John . Nice report

UPDATE .... So , primary mirror has been recoated and collected from Galvoptics , Basildon ... i fitted it yesterday . The mirror is pristine compared to the original coating. I have hopefully left enough of a gap when tightening the clips on the mirror . Collimation was performed using a cheshire . I prefer using a laser to a cheshire ( awaits howls of derision from purists ). I did re-spot the mirror using the catseye template. ... and after all that , clouds appeared and have pretty much stayed ever since .... zzzzzz .

So , I reckon my postman keeps having time off , because I end up going to collect everything.. but after a recoat I wasn’t letting my mirror get into the hands of the post butchers . Special shout out to Galvoptics of Basildon for the quick turnaround and the superbly friendly service . So , collimation on the cards tonight and I suspect .. loads of clouds !! PS I Also centre spotted the mirror …thanks FLO for the catseye.

Case Closed guys .... i have bit the bullet and ordered the springs from RVO . To be fair to them , they explained exactly the inside diameter and length , and were very helpful as usual . ( i am a bit peeved about the price but if you want it then you have to pay for it i suppose ) Thanks for your input . Stu

Craig , i empathise with the collimation arrangement . The springs are less than adequate .