Ships and Stars

I've tried the Leica against Ethos and the Delite series, can't tell any difference. Both terrestrial and astronomical. Besides the field stops, the Leica just wins over an over.

I'm lazy - I have a Leica zoom - http://apm-telescopes-englisch.shopgate.com/item/33383038 it is tack sharp at any length! The Ethos are nice, but I do like to see the field stop. The Leica at 18mmFOV is about the same as 9mmFOV, the FOV just gets wider as you zoom in. A proper work of art, great images at any magnification, mirrors willing.

I hate when that happens! haha... no looking forward to it. I managed to pick up some very nice eyepieces this year, I think everything is in order. Fingers crossed, mid-August will get properly dark here.

Stu and Gerry - just got your posts at once. It's a bit funny having a 130 and a 500, but you can guess which one gets used the most now! I'm shopping for tyres to bolt onto the 20" frame so I can wheel it into the van with the loading ramps. 90kg of GOTO, synscan, primary mirror and secondary.

You are right, but the sky was so bright, it was futile. Mid-August I'll wheel out the big guns....

Sorry, just answered my own question! Hey, if I can get 15 sec exposures, I could do that from inside the prison. Ta!

If there is anything you want to do in life before you have children, I would heartily recommend you attack it right now. If you are single and childless, we have a three year old demon to stir your motivation. You'll laugh, you'll cry....you'll probably end up dialling 999 a few times as well. Don't worry about the choking fits, I just turn them upside down and knock the spine a few times until the pear or apple falls out. I feel like God when I do that. See how imaging suddenly became easier?

Ah thanks, I was wondering about that. Stay away from zenith, makes sense, moving faster from our perspective. I;ll do some standard long exposures next time I can escape. I'll have to abseil down the prison wall with all my gear and leg it before the wife sounds the klaxon and searchlights. Wife.

Yep, it was bright. Deneb was like a coin in a water fountain. I could see everything.

I haven't read the comments, but I hear you man. Yep, find a farmer who understands and park your gear there in one of their sheds (minus cattle). The hardest part is finding a farmer who understands. Not as hard as you might imagine, farmers are pretty keen on the outside world around them for obvious reasons, and do appreciate the land they work and the skies above. I'm not a farmer, but I survey farms all the time. Best way is just to knock on the door or chase the tractor down and say 'hey, I know you're busy but...' They can only say yes or no! PS Some of the most insightful conversations I've had in my close to 50 years on this planet have been with farmers. They spend all their time thinking!

Hi all, My first observing report. Despite the better half saying 'no, no, for the love of God why did I marry you, you spend more on used eyepieces which hold their value extremely well' (I made up the second part) which is a frequent event, I cranked up the old country outlaw music and took the camper and a SW 130 to my closest semi-dark sky spot in the hopes of seeing the North America nebula. Around 1:13am which is the darkest point now at 57N. No joy. I tracked Deneb, but looked all around for the nebula. I was happy with the little SW 130, super portable around the tall pines, no finderscope needed, stars were needle sharp, just aimed along the tube clamps. I swapped OIII filters, but nothing. Airy disc was perfect, so at least I know that's in order. Having said all of this, the sun never dipped too far below the horizon, it was basically dawn the entire time. Glad I didn't drag the 20" dob out. I had a great time out in the sticks, singing to myself and the squirrels, despite the lack of nebulosity! Dark skies return in mid-August. Welcome to NNE Scotland! Cheers

Looks nasty, but I bet it cleans up fairly well. No idea on dismantling ones of those, but as a former motor mechanic, my advice is mark and index everything, and if you have something with adjustment screws or threaded retaining rings etc, mark the alignment before dismantling and then count the turns as you remove it so it goes back close to where it was, if not bang on. I'm sure it can be salvaged! Awaiting a triumphant post!

Thanks to Alexandros for asking in the first place, and thanks Gerry for the information. According to the ol' light pollution map, 21.93-21.95 for my dark sky spot away from home, so I should be in business on a good night. I've had some really clear nights there camping. If a cottage nearby ever comes up for sale...I will be extremely jealous of whomever buys it! 😆

Thanks Geoff! 10 second exposures aren't too shabby for an alt az setup I suppose! That opens things up a bit, great. I'll look at sharpcap, etc. Lots and lots to learn here. Cheers!

Ah cool, I'll have a look and see how they're approaching this in more detail. I'm hoping the 500p mirror will make up for short exposures. I don't suppose I'd be able to use the full sensor size of the D810 (36x24mm I believe) through a standard 2" focuser, but that's kind of a side issue... I bought the Stargate to get away from obsessing about photography and just enjoy the views, but a few shots would be ok!

Hi Craig, the scope is a Skywatcher Stargate 500p with synscan/goto capability. Based on my limited knowledge of most things astronomy-related (I'm new to this but have been reading up every chance for a few months now), I'm assuming the system will track targets in an alt-az fashion, but not equitorial rotation? If that's the case, I'd be limited to taking very short 2-3 sec exposures, etc. An eq platform would be great, but I'd probably have to make one, so that's something for later on in the year perhaps. I'm hoping the light gathering ability of the large mirror will allow me to make useful short exposures of DSOs... hoping!

Ah yes, he'll probably know! Cheers

Hi all, do you reckon I would be able to do any DSO photography with a 20" dob on a SW synscan tracking mount? As in alt az tracking, but not equitorial (haha, I wish). I don't have an eq plate for this beast and guess I'd have to make one - someday. My camera is a Nikon D810, so it has a pretty good sensor at high ISOs. I was thinking 2-3 sec exposures max, and crank up the ISO for the faint stuff. I realise I'm not going to get fantastic DSO images, but more along the lines of some record shots. Ideas? Cheers all.

This thread has me thinking - I haven't used my 20" dob in anger yet, bought it in April. Does anyone know what to expect colour-wise with a scope of this size under dark Bortle 2 skies? I have an astronomik OIII filter as well, but no UHC or H-B yet... I can't wait to use it properly at my dark sky site with the synscan and GOTO set up, especially with the nice eyepieces I've miraculously managed to pick up this summer For the first time in my life I'm waiting for summer to end! First true darkness here in NE Scotland begins third week in August, it's in my phone calendar already!

I won't be impressed until NASA can do this with a big dob strapped to a hang glider. A modded Boeing 747 full of fancy kit to make this image is just cheating.

Hi Nikki, welcome. I'm fairly new here myself and everyone has been very helpful. I used to do a lot of photography, both film and digital. Medium format Velvia 120 with a Fujifilm GSW690 was my fav, amazing details in those images, but digital a lot more practical. I still have three old Russian Zenit 35mm cameras, they just keep working. Regarding a telescope, I frequently checked eBay and Gumtree before I found mine, but AstroBuySell UK I have found is excellent for scopes, eyepieces and accessories and tends to be cheaper than eBay, perhaps as there are no 10% seller's fees etc. I'm way up in NE Scotland, so a lot of the telescopes on eBay were collection only and much to far to consider. There are always a few Skywatcher Skyliner dobsonians on eBay for a good price though if one pops up near you. Best bang for your money in my opinion. Others like the NexStar scopes etc, but which scope is a long discussion, haha. Unless you want to do astrophotography, I'd go for the biggest dob you can afford and can move around comfortably (they get quite heavy and bulky as size increases). Otherwise a nice new refractor is on my list as well. Happy shopping and stargazing!

Hi all, Someone on here mentioned an astronomy book called 'Faint Objects and How to Observe Them' (I can't recall who it was, but thank you!). After a quick web search I came to the Springer website, and they have hundreds of titles, including the 24 books in this series. If you know anyone with university access to Springer via Athens or Shibboleth login (standard access for university staff and students), the entire series can be downloaded as a .pdf, along with a host of other books. Not every single astronomy book in their inventory, but more than enough to keep you busy for many, many years if so inclined. Anyway, thought I'd share this little gold mine of information I came across today. Here's the link to the series: https://www.springer.com/new+&+forthcoming+titles+(default)?SGWID=5-40356-404-173623345-5338 Cheers all.

Gerry, or anyone interested - you've probably already heard of this book, but do you have the Springer book 'Faint Objects and How to Observe Them'? It's in their excellent astronomy series, there are around 23 titles I believe in total. Series I objects are for 10"-18" dobs on up, Series II targets are for 18" to 30" dobs on up, and Series III targets are for 30" dobs and up, lol, no messing around!

Thanks for the tips on that Ricochet, I've heard of barlowed laser collimation somewhere along the line, but had forgotten about it. Shall look that up now, cheers.

Thanks yes, the Howie Glatter laser one the one I was trying to think of. I don't fully trust the cheap laser I have. Why spend all the money on a big scope and fancy eyepieces, then have collimation out because of a £15 laser, haha. So that shall be on my list as well. For the first time in my life, I'm waiting for summer to end (in a way) so dark skies return!