Neil P

13 hours ago, DirkSteele said:

Did you retrofit those encoders or did they come installed?  I purchased mine before such an option was available but would be nice to add it possible.

Hi, I actually had a non encoder one but was unsure about adding encoders to it, so I am moving it on and bought another one with the encoders direct from APM.

3 hours ago, badhex said:

Cripes, that is a big lad! What's the OTA weight? 

It is not too bad, it is 17kg, no rings needed which lowers weight, the dovetail is attached through the tube to internal ‘half rings’ fixings.

4 minutes ago, John said:

Very interesting refractor 🙂

Is that an APM Maxload mount it's on or something else ?

 

 

Yes it is the APM AZMaxload (I think is it’s full title), I have the one with encoders, I am a Nexus DSC fan so mostly just use all/az push to for all my scopes now. I actually put a Rowan saddle on it so I could attach the Rowan handle, there was not a ‘native’ option for the APM mount strangely.

I have my FC100DF on a Uni18 and AZ75 and it is perfect, I leave the tripod fully down but have one of the Rowan extensions on it so it is very sold and no vibrations, I observe sitting on a BB chair and find this a great height for me. I used to have it on a Vixen APZ and Hal Tripod and that was very stable as well and the Hal is very light if you leave everything setup for G’n’G.

I don’t think I have seen any of these on here, my light bucket Frac, a Tecnosky Goliath 210/1200. Only used for the Deep-Sky, though with a Baader minus violet filter the CA is not that bad.

I have all three, but the 2.6 is the least used of them, it very rarely gets put in. Mostly I use the 1.25 and then change my eyepieces. I have the Mark Vs and it is a bit of a pain to have to disconnect from the diagonal each time or change the GPC. Also can be a bit scary in the dark to be fiddling about with the connector. 
 

I have had a disaster where I dropped my binoviewers while disconnecting and had to send them away to get collimated, so whatever GPC I start with I generally keep in all night. I know the 1.25 works in most of my scopes, so it gets used most. I have to use the 1.7 for one of my scopes to get focus. 

I don’t have the FC100 DZ but I do have the DF version and I use a hard case I got from Telescope Service. It fits it pretty nicely.

15 hours ago, Stu said:

 

I agree with josefk that it depends on the use case and it depends on the scopes used and whether they happen to match up or not. For lower power views it’s not likely to be a problem. For me, I often use two solar scopes side by side (WL and Ha) at high powers and any misalignment shows up quite obviously and can make it hard to compare features.

I’ve actually just acquired an ADM Maxguider adjustment plate to allow easy, tool free adjustments to be made and I’m very pleased with it.

Not a cheap bit of kit so I do agree that waiting to see whether you actually find it’s a problem or not is the best option.

That looks a great option, but I don’t see them available on any uk retailer’s list, I think FLO used to stock it but it is not on their list of ADM products that I can see now, Did you get it direct from ADM?

19 minutes ago, Stephenstargazer said:

I too have recently become a user of the motors on my AZ100. I did not think I would, but when my go to Eq main mount sold rather quickly I decided to do it. Delivery was slightly shorter than expected too. Parts arrived well packed and I had already watched the installation video and read the pdf instructions. Checked the parts all present and laid them out. Installation went smoothly, just be aware that the fit of the cover with bearing over the pulley shaft is a very close fit - it has to be put on dead square and not forced. The web interface and Sky Safari connection worked fine and the Wi Fi link was solid (if you have problems you may have to change the channel to one without a strong local router signal). I had to indoor test initially, but managed a very brief Quick Start outside to see how it tracked (Jupiter) and was pleasantly surprised. I am patiently waiting for the DSC firmware as that will be my preferred control. I do have a few comments on the Rowan web interface which I have passed on to Derek. Due to clouds and other interruptions I have yet to get out under sky and see how it goes just using Safari.

The manual AZ100 itself is quite chunky and it has to be said that it gets heavier by 1.8kg with the motors and 50mm taller and wider. Also with the the controller and cables on the front it is not quite so transportable. OK for me as at home it will replace the Eq mount on a pier, and it still fits in my storage box (just) and on UNI tripod for transportation. Considering the absolute quality, total capacity for two scopes, no absolute need for counterweights, it is still a competitive weight  mount at ~10.5kg depending on options fitted. If it suits you put it on your wish list !

 

That is a pretty neat power pack solution, I have been wondering how best to hold the power pack myself.

20 minutes ago, Alan White said:

@Neil P what Uni tripod are you using?

 

It is the Uni28 with the heq5 top, I have the AZ100 on a planet.

1 hour ago, Stu said:

@Neil P Here you go, AZ100 and AZ75, both go on nicely and easy to swap round. You loosen the screws on the pillar and rotate it slightly and it just lifts out. Swap the top section onto the other mount and pop it back in again. The top plate is designed to take both mounts.

Thanks Stu, I never even tried that, I have the riser for my AZ100 so I will that for the AZ75.

Hi, I have had the AZ75 for a little while now and love it, so light and portable and the Nexus dscs are very accurate and easy to use. I don’t miss the slo mos at all and find it easy to nudge with the handle. 
 

I have it on a Uni tripod and one thing I was wondering is if anyone knows if Rowan intend to bring out risers for it in the same way they did for the AZ100? I would like to lift it up a bit more from the Tripod.

I have the APZ and it is a good mount and the slo-mo controls are smooth but I think the length of the 150 might be a bit.
 

11 hours ago, Second Time Around said:

What is your IPD please, Neil?

I had never measured it before but had a go this morning, looks to be 58mm.

Hi, 

I suppose it might also depend on what you want to observe with them. I pretty much exclusively use binoviewers now. For planetary and lunar viewing I just use Televue Plossls which are very sharp but for deeper sky I mostly use the Panoptics (19s and 24s) which work very well will the Binoviewers, Naglers up to about 16mm also work well.

IPD is the big thing with binoviewers, my IPD is pretty narrow so rules out most wide barrel eyepieces. I have a friend who swears by the Baader Mark IV zooms for his binoviewers but I could not use them.

On 21/06/2022 at 15:09, Neil P said:

Thanks all. I will order it with the M10 fitting and see how secure I feel it is, if I am not happy I can still get a BB.

 

Well the AZ75 arrived, it is a lovely bit of kit, just as I expected. It sits fine on the Hal tripod and is secure enough for the wee Tak. I am waiting on the AZ75 handle becoming available to fully complete my new grab’n’go setup. 

I have only had a few hours with it but so far I am loving it.  I got the Nexus DSC with it as well, I am always impressed when I use a nexus. I am visual only so the speed of setup and accuracy of a good alt/az and dscs is perfect for me.

Thanks all. I will order it with the M10 fitting and see how secure I feel it is, if I am not happy I can still get a BB.

Hi,

Does anyone know if the AZ75 will fit on a Vixen Hal Tripod?

I am not sure of the fitting on the Hal, I think it might be M10, can anyone confirm? I am looking to pair the AZ75 with my FC100DF and want it as light as possible for my grab and go setup.

Hi,

I am patiently (well nearly patiently) waiting on this mount to complement the AZ100. I notice you have it on the Vixen Hal, does it fit out of the box on it or have you an adapter? Also how does it ride on it, is it stable? 

I am looking to get this to replace my Vixen APZ for my Grab 'n' Go scopes, the APZ is already on a Hal tripod (which I like for it's lightness) and if it is a good fit, it would save me getting another BB (though BBs are hard to resist in the long term).

Thx

Neil

Well I sent my binoviewers off to Denis to be re-collimated and we agreed he would supercharge them while he had them. First class service from Denis they are back better than ever, he even repaired the paint chips on the casing.  Would highly recommend Denis to anyone thinking of supercharging their binoviewers.

Hi all,

Thanks for all the advice, I think I will reach out to Denis to see if he still does repairs and recollimation, there was a post on CN that said he might have stopped because he got some complaints.

Thanks again

Neil

Hi All,

I was wondering if anyone knows of anywhere that can repair and re-collimate binoviewers?  Last night was a disaster, I dropped my Baader Mark Vs to the ground. At first I though I had got off lucky as there was only a scratch on them but when I re-seated them the images will no longer merge. I am too scared to try and work on them myself and was wondering if anyone knew of anyone who can collimate binoviewers.

Thx

Neil

5 minutes ago, John said:

OK - that's answered the question for me as well. The Maxload makes sense with a scope like that. Matthew uses one for his 200mm APM / LZOS.

 

 

Mmm 200 APM / LZOS, now that is a serious dream scope.

4 minutes ago, JeremyS said:

Wonderful, Neil!

What's the altaz mount on your larger scopes?

I see you use the tripod tray on your Berlebach for the same purpose as I do 🙂

The 152 is on the APM AZmaxload, the 115 is on the Rowan  AZ100 with the glasses carrying tray lol.

1 minute ago, Gorr_77 said:

how is that Losmandy working for your TMB? Solid?

It is actually just the Losmandy tripod there, the mount is an APM AZmaxload, setup with the solar filter there. I used to put it on a G11 but recently been using a CGX-L which is more stable than the G11