Gemineyes

I am arriving pretty late to this party! I just got a TS152 RFT for myself as a Christmas gift, and am having a ball with this slick refractor! I have been playing with this quite a bit until just after new years, our weather here in NW Central Canada went south with an arctic front plaguing us for now... will do some more shortly. 50+ years at the eyepiece, and have both APO and achromats. About 18-20 years ago, when the 80-100mm, f/6-f/9 achromats were much more common, I designed a novel (at the time, and IMO still a superior solution) filter for CA control. What makes this one unique is its method of color balancing. While Baader didn't do a bad job, theirs still either heavily tint an image, or kill WAY too much color information for planetary use. IMO. I designed one for Stellarvue, and they offered it as their XLCR-1 filter. It does a VERY good job as a CA filter, though more color-laden scopes still need a bit more to trim the residual, and this varies with scope design, observer tolerance, etc. In the RFT, the semi-Apo Baader is not bad, but due to the combined curve, it "flattens" the subtle tints on planets like Jupiter. The Fringe Killer gets the CA out, but at the cost of intensity of image. So, as expected, always a tradeoff. My 2", SV-prototype XLCR I still have, and used it on this scope (and my ST120 f/5, which also works well with it). It did need a touch more, to trim the mauve on the deep red CA side, so I added the Astronomik L-3 (and also tried with the Baader UV/IR-CMOS cut) both pass ~420-680nm, I think my samples of the Baader is closer to 670-675nm red cutoff, and so is the L-3. This is needed as the SV curve sloped past 700nm, cutting around 720nm. Without the red cut, more mauve is present. I will post some shots of this combination, and my scope with CW rail, on the SV-M2C mount on TR3 tripod with Berlebach 3kg CW system shortly. I will also post another "RFT" type potential filter system I am playing with on this scope for wider field sky sweeps: It is an Optlong L-Pro with Baader FK filter. Passes all relevant critical bands: H-beta, O-III, SWAN C2 cometary, H-a, and is pretty well color balanced with just a hint of pale bluish hue. But also does pretty well (better than Semi-APO) on Jupiter and Saturn, though the XCLR filter allows more peach tint of Saturn to show. The FK/L_Pro combination is a bit more useful than the SA filter, IMO, as the curves of the L-Pro are in slightly different areas and allow more orange color information to be retained. Also, passing the green more offers some advantages also. Still, some work to be done. I am also trying a Hoya-Y1 (Y44 equivalent) I got on eBay and has yet to arrive (winter storms here anyway so no loss yet! lol), and with the L-Pro may also be interesting to play with. Stay tuned on that. SCOPE Setup this "Boxing week" after Christmas photos attached. Also note the L-PRO curve: with the FK killing to ~455nm, and a bit off the red end, this acts as a good color-balanced stack for general DSO/cometary! Finally: IF I can get my SV XCLR curve to be augmented for more colorful scopes, would a version available to the general astronomy populous with achromats be of interest? If it took say 95% CA out and color balanced for planetary, but did not kill too much light (my current version is like a ND0.1 filter, or 78-79%T). Something worth having? CS all and happy 2024! Darren

I've been doing solar observing (continuum) for over 30 years. While it has become pretty much "routine", I ALWAYS remember that this is a risky endeavor, and remember safety first!!! Whatever the kit I use, I always make sure everything is a "go" before deployment. I use routinely (depending upon instrument) either Baader AS film-equipped full aperture solar filters, or when employing refractors, my Wedges. For those that have not experienced the sun in a 120mm SD binocular, it is truly stunning, I assure you! I almost always also employ a polarizing filter on the rear end of the AS film filters on the eyepiece side. I find granulation and subtle plage structures show much more vividly using these. I have an Intes Wedge (2"), a Baader (2" Vis/Photo vintage ~2004) wedge, and an APM 2" Wedge. I use these on my Stellarvue/TMB 105 APO, my SV90T APO, and SV80ED (80mm f/7 ED doublet). I also have had a hoot playing with my Skywatcher ST120 (120mm f/5 Fraunhofer doublet achromat). While the APOs show a bit more detail, that ST120 is NO slouch! When used with my Baader FK filter (FK=fringe killer) and sometimes my IDAS P2 filter (really color balances the image!) or my Stellarvue Chroma filter (MV2, which I designed for Vic Maris), the Achromat does pretty well indeed! Whether wedge or Baader AS-equipped, I find I personally prefer using NO 538nm green filter, and prefer the whitish image more. I also have employed a 589nm/10nm FWHM filter I procured and mounted in a custom filter cell, and use it sometimes in with the polarizer in the wedge, or aft of the film. The image is yellow, but some of the Na D-lines show in this filter, and it shows details more like a Ca-K filter - plage really stands out in that filter! Anyway, so long as you CHECK a front filter before aiming Sol-ward, you will be fine. Just keep little ones with sticks in their hands away from the instrument! Is one better than the other? Well, the wedge should edge out by a bit the Baader AS film, but with proper mounting and care in fitting the front filter, you can get very close - the big plus with the wedge is being able to tune the brightness with magnification. That is a huge advantage. Another way to achieve this with a Baader AS filter is to employ the ND3.8 photo film and use variable polarizers, or a ND4 (25%T) filter and a polarizer, or a 12.5%T (ND8) neutral filter to achieve the appropriate image brightness. By using crossed variable polarizers, one can also tune image brightness. Is a wedge worth it? IMO, yes, but make sure that your optics are sort of "worthy" of the investment. A poorly make refractor using a wedge is not getting the full advantage it should. One can get pretty close using a properly made/crafted (not cardboard or elastic bands!!!) filter system which minimizes strain on the film mount system. Then the Baader AS film shows it capabilities. There are several AS film filters that do this. APM sells Solar EMC filters, which are superbly made! The Kendrick classic style is very nice, but sometimes they get a dud produced. Baader also has their ASTF line of filters which are also superb. I witnessed this past month (October 14, 2023) from Edmonton AB Canada the solar eclipse - it was partial there, not annular like in the continental US. However, using a APM 120-45SD binocular telescope at 47X using twin 14mm ES82s and polarizers (the 120s were equipped with my Solar EMC 120mm binocular filters), the views were actually surreal. We have been eclipse "poor" in North America in general and this was the first eclipse I have viewed in a bino-telescope. Well, I can tell you that the experience was superb! 3D perception of the moon "over" the sun was possible, as was pulling out fine limb edge details of the moon during the event (along with the spots, granulation, plage, etc.)!! A LOT of fun. My favorite solar setup I use and used during the Eclipse in October: APM 120mm, 45-degree SD APO binos with 14mm ES82s/polarizers: Here is my most recent acquisition, my APM Wedge (mounted on my SV90T APO - 90mm f/7 LZOS triplet - using my Skywatcher AZ5 on an Oberwerk TR3 maple tripod and mini-pier): For either, Wedge or AS Film, I highly recommend using the best filtering you can get: Baader, B+W, APM, and Hoya are all superb choices. (for polarizers, and first two for ND3 (0.1%T) filters. Clear skies and loads of sunpots! Darren

Great reports guys! I just recently got the AZ5 for my Manfrotto 028 mount. The cranking column easily handles this load (tested before on other heads). I find that I get some backlash with the mount... When in standard lower configuration with my SW120 Star Traveler (which I primarily got it for). I can also mount this with the 8" extension on my wooden Oberwerk tripod, which I may use it with eventually most of the time, but the MF028 is just SO stable, convenient and light it is hard to beat. Very stable too! I Tried the scope in the upper position but the tube cannot come to near zenith with the 120. Only about 70 degrees and then I risk hitting my focus knobs. So I will likely HAVE to run on the lower position for the head. Motion is smooth and I note some backlash in both axes, but mainly the Az axis. Is this at all adjustable? I just got this so it has some workout to be had before I can fully evaluate it, but it is a very nice utility head for quick viewing and general field observing. the FLO folks were GREAT! Shipped and packed VERY quickly and excellent communication during transit and POP as well. I really enjoy these folks - a great vendor to buy from. Anyway Clear skies all! More to come later as I finish evaluating it. Darren

I know that I am coming in a bit late here on this topic One Option is a binotelescope and use a pair or UWA eyepieces. The pricetag will be significant, dep. on budget and available resources in the near future. The Vixen models are pretty nice from what I understand, though the lower priced models are NOT sealed against moisture incursion. At least on the outside prism side. I got a pair of APM 82mm SD APO 45 degree binos around 20 months ago and that is a while lot of fun, I must say! Not inexpensive either, esp. when adding twin EPs to the mix. Using a set of ES82 8.5mm EPs, Jupiter looks pretty nice at 55x. My favorite is the ES82 14mm pair of EPs. They give me ~2.5 degrees at 33.5x - dig deep, and nothing but stars across the FOV!!! Wonderful experience! I have the 25x100ED APMs and love them too, but an earlier comment is correct, in order to use this kind of heavier instrument effectively, you need either a good parallelogram and tripod, or a good solid cradle or fork mount on a good tripod. Does limit super quick setups, but worth it when skies are really nice. I used to leave the 25x100IFs on my tripod with an eLLe single fork mount, and was able to grab it in a flash to do backyard fun. Having said ALL that, as with anything optical, the larger the magnification, the narrower the true field. Immersive effects can be had by larger apparent fields of the oculars, but there is a trade off optically (and physically w/our brain) that becomes counter productive in a way: I find 60-70 AFOV to be the sweet spot for me, but do enjoy the 82 and even on occasion 100 degree apparent fields. Realistically though, our eyes have best resolution in the +/- 30 or so degree range, and our retinal cone density drops off significantly beyond that. We only see peripherally and most sensitive to motion way beyond that range. So I guess the big question for those wanting MAX fields is WHY? To have an explosion of stars in the view almost overwhelming the observer? Or is it for the ability to see lots and extended objects more easily in an optical system? Just throwing that out there... CS all - FYI, Usually widest TRUE fields I have enjoyed are in the 8-9 true field range with smaller wide angle binos - tons of fun! Satellites and meteors crossing all over... lots of enjoyment, esp. in a darker site. GeminEyes (Darren)

I recently got a Sky-Watcher 120mm f/5 for rich field observing also. I paired it with a TS Optics 2" Crayford, and an APM erecting prism diagonal. So far, in two brief checks, the APM prism is doing a bang up job. We have had very heavy smoke/haze lately plus moonglow recently - I used a 24mm TV Panoptic and star images at near the lower end of the useful magnification range are very nice. very small diffraction spikes, and field is in focus, with a touch of curvature, nearer the outer 8-10% or so of the field, which is compensated by observing slightly off axis and then they are crisp to maybe the last 1% or so. Totally so far very happy. I will do more testing but the combination is a winner and chroma on this doublet achromat seems so far to be very well controlled using this prism. I currently plan to use it mostly on my Porta II head on a Manfrotto 028 tripod - Excellent field-ready setup! Darren

Thanks Ships! One of the nice things with this type of solution is in my case, I can use them for all my APM Binos, since these all have the same size eyecups. I too see a slight reduction in FOV, but very little, and certainly a worthy tradeoff when considering the added observational dimensions the filters provide when hunting aloft for those tenuous critters... I also leaves the binoculars "AS IS" in the fact that these being removed puts the binoculars back to normal without mods per se. I also highly recommend the Kaiser caps for those with binoculars. I retrofitted ALL my binocular kit with them, including my Canon IS models. The caps are tougher and more stiff than the often provided soft plastic or rubberized end caps, and provide extra ocular protection. FYI, my 25x100 APM ED-Apo binoculars are around 4.7kg. Right around the 10lb. mark. I use a Technosky eLLe single Fork mount for my binos, including my new APM 82-45ED pair I got last week! The eLLe single fork is nice and apparently can handle 16lb. Max. I figure 10 is a safer bet. Their dual fork might be an option. These are pricey, but VERY well made, and include encoder stalks for use with an external astro-computer, should that be optional for a user... I also recently got (yes - had a nice windfall this spring on tax return!) an Oberwerk PM1 mount - fantastic bino mount for instruments between 2 to 5.5kg or so... Clear Skies! Darren AKA - GeminEyes...

Nicely done! I use an on board filter cap adapter for my APM ED-APO binos (all three of mine have the same size caps - 10x50/16x70/25x100). I will post photos here of this as the technique can be used for virtually ANY binocular. I use Kaiser caps, dremmel out a size ot fit the TFA1s from Scopestuff - these are cells which have integrated 1.25" threads on them. Adding filters to binos adds a whole new dimension to observing. I use Orion SkyGlows and polarizers a lot in mine. The latter for solar, lnar and dawn/dusk/daytime planetary observing... :) CS, Darren