RobH2020

I'm up for doing some simple mods to my 150p version of this scope... What does adding a dew shield do, given the scope is effectively a 1.2 metre dew shield for the primary? Does it just move the end of the tube a bit further away from the secondary? What length shield did you go for? Did you reckon it was worth flocking the whole tube then rather than just the area behind the secondary? Thanks for any tips!

Stu can i ask what phone you took that on? I've a Samsung galaxy s7, which is looking quite old now in terms of camera quality... and i can't take a quality photo of Venus through the scope at all! Totally washed out with the full 150mm scope aperture, and can't even see it in the camera with the lid on and the little viewing hole opened (dunno what you call that).

Hi all, Last night i was reading Turn Left At Orion for some viewing inspiration, and it suggested M35. Thought that sounded good (not seen it before) so had a go. I did eventually find it, I'm certain it was the right object from the description and from seeing peoples photos. It looked nice through my 150p skywatcher dob. But i couldn't see it in my 9x50 finderscope at all! I just had to point at the rough location i thought it was using SkySafari handheld on my phone, and then sweep around with a 33mm 70deg eyepiece. I live in a red / bright suburban zone, so obviously that limits what i can see, but should i expect to be able to see it through 9x50 finderscope? I also couldn't see it in my 10x50 binoculars, but i might've just not been pointing in the right place (handheld). I'm a bit confused because lots of material suggested it should be seeable with the naked eye... granted maybe not at my location but i thought a 9x50 scope in a brighter location might be equal to naked eye in a darker location. I also couldn't see NGC2158 at all through the scope! I was pointing at exactly the right place because i could see the brighter stars that guide you into it... But it was just black empty space where it should've been. I'm guessing i just need a bigger scope or darker skies to see it.. Or camera + exposure time. Would welcome any thoughts Thanks! Rob

Hi all, I've recently got a few heavier accessories for my 150p skywatcher dob: a 2" 70 degrees eyepiece and upgraded the finderscope from a 6x30 to a 9x50. The upshot is that my scope is now very front heavy, and so always wants to tip over in the mount. I can tighten the tighteners further but makes it less smooth to move around. Has anyone ever added weights onto the rear end of the optical tube? Seems to me the perfect solution. I'm sure i could upgrade to a better mount to solve this, but I'm not looking to spend that money at the moment. Any thoughts on what weights to use and how to attach them? Thanks! Rob

Never mind found it! https://www.screwfix.com/p/organiser-bin-storage-system/1821p#

Not sure if this is of interest, but another recent discussion was around wider field eyepieces in your price range.

Looks interesting! I love screwfix. You got a link?

Interesting! Is that to go on top of the Teflon washer that's provided, or instead of?

This is such an impressive project Ville! I can't even get my printer to work remotely one room away, so i could never conceive of doing something like this 😂

I've got the 150mm version of this 200mm scope. Only got it recently as a beginner myself. I think it's great. I'm sure the more expensive one the others recommend is better, but I've got no complaints. The 150mm is closer to your £200 budget, but i do always think i should've got the 200mm one you link to! It does take up a bit of room and is a bit heavy and cumbersome to carry, but you say you've got lots of storage space and if he has no problem carrying things generally he'll be fine. I quickly wanted to upgrade on more eyepieces etc, the BST StarGuiders someone mentioned are very well reviewed for the price by more experienced people than i.

This makes me want to upgrade from the 150/1200 skywatcher!

Thanks!

What does the violet filter do for Venus?

I'm new to observing Venus too, and I'm not clear how sharp i should be able to get it. So far I've been able to see the phase but it's pretty blurry with a 6" f8 dob. Do i need to wait for better seeing, collimate better, or is that all i can hope for? Thanks!

Thinking of my own set-up, would you reckon it's worth upgrading to 200mm f6 dob from a 150mm f8 dob at some point? Kinda wishing I'd got the 200 originally, as now i might always be wondering haha.

I got one of these last year... tried using it but the mount sucks! Just about usable for the moon but not really for anything else, I've found. Too much "ping back" when you've moved to where you want to view. Is that the balance? For some reason I overcame this and bought a 6" dob in January this year, which I'm enjoying. However, I'm wondering about keeping the 70az as a travelscope. Is there any advice you can give on this... I don't want to spend loads on a new mount/tripod, will try some things like Rocket's suggested in another thread... but want more views on whether it's worth it! many thanks, Rob

Great link, thanks!! I particularly like the upturned broom suggestion at the end 😂 now that's an affordable mount!

Well it's the absolute opposite today... no wobbly moon at all!! Absolute beaut of an evening. Quite a bit of twinkle going on with Rigel i noticed though. Could see red and blue in it when moving the view near it. It almost looked like a double star - i know it is, but i thought it would be too hard to split in a small scope...

Got these today, they're beauts! Does anyone have tips to stop the stars dancing around when you're holding the binoculars by hand? Just have to support the elbows somehow i guess...

Looks like an artillery park!

Thanks all! Great you liked the video - it was just me holding my four year old phone camera up to the eyepiece! (Samsung galaxy s7). The moon for me was right above some people's houses, so that could very well have been the primary issue. Interesting about the jet stream, i didn't realise that was the main thing for the high level seeing ability. Are there times of year when this is better than others? Feels like seeing has been rated bad by telescopia for my area for most of the year so far! What's the issue with wind at ground level or lower than the jet stream anyway. Does that disturb the air significantly is that more about blowing your equipment around? Cheers! Rob

Hi all, Very basic beginner questions here but need help understanding... Was viewing the moon tonight and it was very wobbly. Like heat haze on a hot tarmac road. What precisely is the issue here? I'm guessing it's the seeing, which according to telescopius was "bad". The wind was also "bad", 20mph. Are the seeing and the wind directly linked? Equipment is 150mm f8 skywatcher dobsonian, kept outside so at ambient temperature. I've attached the stargazing weather report and a video of the moon where you can see the shimmering taken through an 18mm 60deg eyepiece, taken at about 10pm so the moon was relatively low in the sky. I found looking at stars it wasn't so obvious that conditions were poor, although they didn't seem great. Many thanks! Rob Moon vid.mp4

My two cents: don't get the celestron 70az. I got it as my first scope and the scope itself is fine but the mount is a real pain, doesn't make viewing a pleasure.

Thanks for the recommendation! Do you prefer refractors at these price points then than reflectors or cats?