Rustang

Looking to get a dew heater at the best price possible but also one that will work well!. I have started looking and came across these and wondered if anyone has any experience with them or similar as they seem good for the price and even better that it has a built in controller. https://www.amazon.co.uk/COOWOO-Temperature-Regulator-Universal-Telescopic/dp/B07MHGW4DG/ref=asc_df_B07MHGW4DG/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=309904628344&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12196029910973461519&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1006786&hvtargid=pla-709730107637&psc=1

Its amazing what some better processing can do. Much better I think.

What's your light pollution like? If its not great then you might want to invest in a light pollution filter. There are other filters if you wish to get into narrow band imaging but you don't necessarily 'require' a filter.

Thank you 😊

👍

This is my 3rd attempt at the Heart Neb. First was using my 130pds but I didn't realise I was out on the orientation, second go, same scope and better orientation but I realised i couldn't fit it all in!. This attempt was with the SW EVOSTAR 72mm ED DS Pro that i picked up, more data captured this time round as well, approx 2.5hrs. I'm still very much learning but im really happy with the image and really pleased with the scope, for the money I think its great. Details: SW Evostar 72ED DS PRO scope, SW HEQ5 Pro mount, Canon 650D modified, Optolong pro LP filter, OVL field flattenner. No guiding. 80 x 120 sec Lights, 25 Darks, 30 Bias and 35 Flats. Stacked in DSS and edited in PS and Lightroom.

With the brief browse of the results, to me it sits in the more money than sense bracket, I mean that politely ☺️

Browsing on ebay (it happens) (alot) and came across this. I'm pretty sure it's a movie prop right!? That's way to futuristic for my liking and judging by the photos it's taken in the add, a total waste of money!

I will look into counter balance kits but for now to get me out imaging tonight (fingers crossed! ) I've borrowed the 21mm dovetail off my 130pds and drilled a hole to get me balanced and it's done the trick temporarily.

Being very camera end heavy I thought a longer dovetail would work for mounting, which it may but before i start drilling and tapping to get the holes in the right place i wanted to ask how others have mounted this or a similar size frac to a HEQ5 pro mount to achieve the correct balance? Ive looked at the universal Vixen bars but the price is a bit ouch!!

True but I have just picked up a SW 72 ED DS Pro which I was able to afford and they seem well rated. It will be nice to a wide field along side the 130pds. And I'm hoping a little easy to care for.

Thankfully my secondary in the 130pds seemed ok, it was round, off centre (just learnt that!) and clips all visual the same how they should be, I just needed to just tweak the primary ever so slightly to centre in the Cheshire Cross hairs and I'm leaving it alone now! 😂 But now I've got to rescue the 130p! I'm guessing being an f5 also that will probably have to be off centre as well. I should have got a refractor at the beginning!!!

And it would help if I read it properly!!, things get missed when your frustrated, I'm guilty of that. I need to look at doing a star test so when I'm next out I will. It does appear after calming down a bit and realiseing that my scopes secondary doesnt have to be central, that my imaging scope appears in collimation. My photos with my little lack of knowledge have seemed ok in terms of how sharp they could be. It's the laser collimator that threw me into a tiss. Ive since read that they are not great to use but as a beginner your naive and rely on what you think will be simple tool to alleviate problems. Now I just need to try and rescue my visual scope!

I missed where it said that some scopes may be offset on this guide I was trying to follow: http://www.astro-baby.com/astrobaby/help/collimation-guide-newtonian-reflector/

I didnt notice that but yes your right! Cheers

Firstly sorry for the long read, I'm going to further embarrass myself but here goes! I'm someone who struggles to understand some processes, especially if there are a lot of steps to it. There are times I just cant get my head around it even after hunting down info on the web as I'm far from lazy and enjoy finding out things myself. The reason for the help I'm seeking is due to collimation, the very fact I have to ask for help is really frustrating. I brought a lazser collimator last year, a Baader MKIII, which as far as I was aware you just get on with it and it seemed to work fine, great I had got that sorted. I however noticed something recently that has just thrown everything out. While checking collimation, i tried rotating the laser tool in the 1.5 inch adaptor which then sent the dot of the beam to slightly different points around the centre of the primary mirror dot. I have drilled and tapped a 3rd hole in the draw tube so the 1.5 adaptor and the draw tube have 3 bolts 120 degrees apart that should hold everything central so why when turning the laser around does the point move?. So I researched this and I cannot believe that even the laser tool can be out itself and need basically collimating/adjusting, what a pile of crap! I tested the laser by putting it vertically in the 1.5 adaptor, secured up high, pointed it at a cross on the floor and indeed it slightly rotates around the dot, so its out! I have borrowed a premium cheshire eye piece (I have one on its way to me!) thinking right that will sort things out. I started reading up on how to use it and my god, even that seems like its massively complicated and I honestly just cant get it. I have really done my best. I started off by looking down the draw tube without anything in it, that's what the picture is of (its what i can see) and it appears that my secondary isant central. I decided to look through my visual scope, the 130p and that was the same. I thought I would give that ago first instead of throwing out my imaging scope out (the 130pds). Well after reading that it was the central screw that you turn to move the secondary mirror back and forth, i set about doing this and all it did was loosen the mirror and completely throw it out to the point I don't think I can correct it. So that's where I'm at and why I have jumped on here. It would be amazing if there is anyone local to Hemel Hempstead that knows what the are doing to try and show me but I understand with Covid extra some may not wish to do so but I'm really annoyed with it all at the moment and there is no way I'm touching my imaging scope till I know exactly what I need to do.

Thanks guys, I think I will look to tackle it from the rear of the scope for now before removing anything. Thanks everyone.

Photo attached, no obvious screws on the outsids, dew shield slides on and off the outside which has black felt around it, I don't believe that is covering any screws.

That would be my question, lol. I dont know if the back of the cell is fairly tough to take that if anyone can advise!?

I picked up a Sky watcher Evostar 72 ED DS Pro yesterday, thanks Raul 👍 I know that dust should not matter for visual and imaging as it will focus pass the front lens anyway so dust is just one of the things you either get on with it being there or not. Most would say leave it. Dust and debris has settled on the rear of the doublet cell, Ive tried with a blower and its a little to stubborn to remove that way. So, I will probably use as is for a while anyway but wanted to ask about removing the front cell. I can see a retaining ring the same as old cameras have to remove the lens, I have the tool so that's ok. I'm guessing that once the retaining ring is unscrewed the cell will pop out? I dont want to risk taking the cell apart so can it just be carefully handled with out risk of the cell coming apart? Can then the same cleaning solution be used to tidy up the back of the cell and remove the dust? Are there any coatings to the rear to be concerned about and in regards to coatings both front and rear of the sell, are they fairly robust to take a gentle clean? Thanks in advance. Russ

Thank you Ed, that really helps, much appreciated 👍

I moved house recently and for around two weeks now I've been storing my telescope (skywatcher explorer 130PDS) out in the shed because theres more room and its easier to get it out and set up that way. It's horizontal, locked in a flight case. The shed is dry but my concerns are the temperatures the shed can get up to, I've seen it at close to 40c. I did some reading before posting this and like much on the Internet there was no clear answer as to weather storing it somewhere that can reach these temperatures is ok? I know about cool down time and that doesn't bother me, it's just the temperatures that the shed can fluctuat too. Also, I wanted to ask how dirty does a mirror have to get before it effects viewing/imagine. I learnt the hard way on the one occasion in regards to condensation and I've been concerned since, although it looks ok apart from some dust, it's hard to say if where the condensation was sat then cleared that it's left a very faint witness, it's hard to discribe and may well just be lots of tiny dust particles. It's not really dirty but I just no it's not 100% clean, it depends how you catch it in the light the reflection does look clear and nice and sharp one way but not quite as so the next.

Thanks guys 👍

Opps sorry! so Nikon D750 at approx 70mm focal length, ISO 1600 1 sec exposure f2. 8