Stu1smartcookie

You are right about the prices ... i bought a Geoptik one for about £35 !!!! crazy ! ... in the end i actually used an old skywatcher one that i had lying around .. i drilled one hole in the bar and it works ok . Still got the gold coloured Geoptik which actually looks like a gold bar ...with a matching price !!!

Hope you get this mount working

Late to this thread ... but its such an interesting one that i want to comment . I am the typical "never satisfied " customer who is ALWAYS looking at the next purchase . In that time i've had the same astro gear on more than one occasion ( three az-gti's Ahem!) . I was literally just saying to my wife that i am really happy with the gear ive got at the moment , and then i saw a celestron 8SE up for sale !!! . Maybe its the thrill of buying new gear . Even i realise though that there will ALWAYS be something better out there . I have two fairly modest scopes now that have given me more pleasure in the short time i've owned them than anything else . Yes i need better eye pieces , yes i want a better barlow lens yes i want another star tracker but they can wait . The fact remains , although the gear is expensive " the sky will always be free !

Nick , yours is probably the best answer ive seen on this thread . A realisation that money is in fact just a commodity .. yes we cant live without it , but its there for a reason . Some people will save and save for the metaphorical rainy day that gets hijacked by unplanned life changes . It doesn't mean they were wrong just as it doesn't mean spending on new astronomy gear is wrong .

Carole , not sure why them being women is that significant ... from my experience women tend to be far more patient than us men (especially me lol) . Collimating a scope is built up as the pariah of the astronomy world when in reality its easy and only takes a couple of minutes . Learning gives knowledge gives confidence gives enjoyment .

i am really fed up with this weather ... especially as the weather app shows partly clear but its so cloudy zzzz . Tonight i was going to use the skymax as i have bought a planetary cam ( and have had some issues setting it up) to use on the moon ! Alas i think i will need to wait until tomorrow now . I had a 130 pds and it was a fantastic scope but i really like smaller scopes. Anyway i wish you luck with your purchases . The FF really does make a difference so, yes , its kind of a must have. By the way i had an HEQ5 Pro but i actually downsized to an EQ5 Pro and added the synscan upgrade . Its a much lighter mount but still stable enough for both the 127 and of course the 72ed .

OMG i have this exact set up lol . To be honest both scopes are quite new to me so i can't give you too much advice .. but with the short time ive been able to use them (pesky clouds) they are an absolute delight . i changed the visual back on the skymax 127 to a 2" one .. and i bought an ovl FF for the 72ed as i intend to try imaging ( again!!) . The 72ed gives very good crisp ( although small) views of planets but its main purpose will be for imaging . I used the skymax last night for viewing Jupiter ... the seeing conditions were far from ideal but it still gave me a great view .

The one i had which was faulty was due to the motors or gears slipping rather than an alignment issue ( freaked me out to see my little z61 and dslr "falling" albeit fortunately still attached to the mount ). These are great little mounts but , like anything there can be problems . I hope you get this sorted .

I've had a couple of these mounts ... three actually ! one was faulty , the other two were fine . After looking at your photo , do you not have to have the scope level at the time of alignment , If you were using the mount in AZ mode ? I only used mine in EQ mode so if im talking rubbish please forgive me .

just seen your reply Uplooker ... i use an eq5 pro synscan .. good advice about the movement and adjustment .. many thanks

Thanks guys . I will let you know how i get on .

Michael thats sound advice , and something i will try tonight for sure ,thank you .

Hi Peter ... yes it was supplied with this ring ( sorry for being a bit of a novice with this ) .. the instructions are not that clear how to use it .

Hi Michael... firstly , thanks for the reply . i have a skymax 127 , using sharpcap (which i honestly havent begun to understand yet) i changed the visual back to 2" so i have put in a 2--1"1/4" adapter , and i inserted the cam into the adapter ( i also tried with a fairly cheap single lens barlow) I pointed the scope at jupiter , focussed visually , and then replaced the EP with the cam. Result = black screen ! i tried to up the exposure by changing the parameters on the software . i too am sure the cam is working .. as when i point the camera directly at my laptop it pics up the light from the screen ( albeit out of focus of course).

Hi All , So i have the QHY5-LL (colour) ... i have downloaded everything but i cant seem to get the camera to work. When i put the cam in the scope it doesnt pick up any light .. nothing ! so , if anyone thinks they know what is wrong , please tell me before i go completely mad . The pc says the camera is connected and when the camera is not connected to the scope i can point it at a lght source and the camera portrays a blurry light image on the pc screen. Any help would be most welcome

Also your elevation

interesting thread with two popular scopes "in the frame " .. if i can add , i once owned a 130pds which still remains the best scope i had for imaging and for a bit of visual , but i now own a skywatcher 127 mak which is fantastic at planetary ( ive not had chance to view the moon yet but ive heard that its superb through this scope), and a few DSO's . Both scopes will serve you well. But , i have had the same dilemma on more than one occasion regarding what scope to buy... Indecision can cost you a lot of money ! Take your time before choosing , the sky isn't going anywhere ! I now have two scopes , one for imaging and the Mak for viewing . I second , third and fourth the above sayings ... there isn't a scope that does everything .

lovely photo .

I have owned the z61 and now own a 72ed .. personally i think they are both superb . Williams optics gear has a build quality second to none , but , you do pay for it ! .. I think there is a z61 MK2 out now and its in excess of 400 pounds ...add the dedicated Field Flattener to it and you are looking at almost £600 , which is almost taking you into Redcat territory ( of course you dont need a Field flattener with the Redcat) . If you want to do a little visual as well as imaging the 72ed also has the advantage of a bit more aperture . I too bought the ovl flattener which is £ 100 cheaper than the dedicated one for the 72ed . I posted about the quality issues with the latest batch of skywatcher field flatteners ... it put me off buying another one as mine was faulty. In truth you cant go wrong with either scope .. but the saving you get with the 72ed and the great results which are on par with the z61 swung it for me in the end .

The weather has been awful lately .. there is a possibility of clearer skies later in the week .

Hope you were able to use the scope last night ... once again i was clouded out zzz .

Think its back in stock at FLO ... so i had better put my order in ! .. I saw a couple of You Tube videos where people were impressed with it ... and its £100 cheaper than the dedicated one !

thanks Louise ... dust is everywhere lol .

which i probably have done ... if there is a bit of dust on the sensor , how can i clean it ? Would i use a small soft brush ? or even a lens blower ?

Crazy how the view can change in just a few metres ... from my little garden the planets just clear the roofs ... 30 mtrs down the road they are literally riding high in the sky . All down to elevation of the viewing site of course .