BS269

I’ve just received the baader neodymium filter and have the same problem. The box for it is far too big for my equipment case for such a small thing. Hoping this message serves as a bump and if I find any solutions I’ll let you know

My first filter! Hopefully it’ll help with my planetary viewing. Very excited!

Can’t argue with a good deal! Just saving up for an astronomik 2” Oiii filter to aid in my deep space hunting which I’m very excited for! Think it may be a while before I purchase another EP.

Ooof that is a lovely collection. Sadly way out of my price range though 😂 I was close to going for the ES 100° 20mm but read about the APM being the best bang for buck out there so changed my mind. I’m not sure about their other ranges though so may consider ES 82° if they’re cheaper.

Thanks! I checked the location of the dust lane I thought I saw and it matched with the sky safari app, so I’m quite confident now. Makes me want some higher power EPs with large FOV now though!

After my first report from Monday night I thought I might be waiting a while for the next. But here it is! This time I went for my 12” dob and APM XWA 20mm. Such a different experience! Went to M42 first.. the wider field of view was lovely, allowing me to take in NGC 1975 (running man nebula?) easier. I’d say I got more detail in the core the other night with my TAL, but only because the higher mags gave me far more contrast. The dob allowed me to see more of it spreading away. Next up, Pleiades. I got lost in admiration, having 100° FOV I couldn’t take in the whole image however hard I tried too, but it certainly made me realise the scale of it! It felt wayyy bigger than the other night. The hazy glow around the stars was larger and more common as well, again I’m guessing this is nebulosity? I turned to andromeda afterward and this time it actually felt like I was looking at a galaxy! I could see further out than just the core/inner galaxy, and I could gather an oval shape. I think, though I’m too inexperienced to be certain, I may have just about noticed a dust lane. I’m in bortle 4/5 skies so if anyone could tell me if that’s even possible then that would be great. Highlight of the night though has to be seeing M31, M32 and M110 in the same FOV for the first time ever! Shortly after my secondary mirror was covered with dew, because stupid me made a rookie error and forgot to put the dew shield on!! The night was cut short but great overall and looking forward to the next one!

Next time I’m out I’ll take a look at these. I’ve tried andromeda but struggled to see any detail besides the core. I’ve since gotten my wide angle EP so I’m hoping for a much better view next time. Would love to see some spiral arms or dust lanes on any galaxy! Can’t wait for a clear night for my dob so I can do some proper deep space hunting, thank you for the advice!

Thanks for the advice, I wasn’t hopeful on seeing it to be honest with 4” aperture and only having a rough idea where it was. I actually live on the border of bortle 4/5 skies so hopefully I’ll be able to catch it with my 12” dob and wide angle EP? I’d love to get a decent view of a galaxy but the only one I’ve managed to find so far is andromeda. Which would you say is the easiest to see?

Finally excited to tell my first worthy stargazing night! I’ve had a few nights out over the last few months but they were right next to my light filled house and were mainly just chances to get used to my dob. I looked outside to see the sky was about half clear, with the clouds mostly reigning in the lower altitudes. So I took a gander up to my new observing location, where my new Astro-shed is built and found myself just gawping at the sky for a while. Feels like a very long time ago since I got to spend some time just taking in it’s beauty. I realised recently as well that putting on my glasses completely transformed my naked eye viewing, which I have been surprised by as I only have a very weak prescription and never use them otherwise. The stars become pin point sharp, 100s of dimmer stars pop into the fray and I can look directly at the Pleiades and the Orion Nebula and see the stars within them. During my gawping, I had completely forgotten this is the time to observe the Geminids, and was abruptly reminded as the largest shooting star I’ve ever seen shot right across where I was looking. I only saw about 4 more but it was enough for me! Due to the rolling clouds I was worried about setting the big dob up, so opted for my neglected TAL-1. I wasn’t able to use him for months, and it’s the first time I’ve been able to look at DSOs with it. First turn; Pleiades... granted it doesn’t all fit into the FOV with my baader zoom, but still a lovely sight none the less. There’s something so simple yet captivating about this cluster I think, with it’s striking blue stars. Around some of the brighter stars there was a slight blue haze around them, not sure if this is a sign of the nebulosity? Very exciting if it is! Next I went to M42. I tried looking at this last week with my dob but there was a full moon quite close so was almost completely washed out. Tonight was far better, and I got a much better view at a higher magnitude, boosting the contrast as the sky around it got darker, making it much easier to see detail. To be honest, I don’t know which part of the nebula I was looking at but I definitely couldn’t see all of it. I’m guessing I could see the core as it’s the brightest area? Amazing view regardless. Afterward I just started aimlessly navigating around, seeing what was out there. I searched for the pinwheel galaxy but no luck, I’m not well acquainted with that area and the old 1993 EQ mount isn’t the easiest to control. The scope might have too small an aperture to pick it up, I’m not sure. What I was impressed by with the TAL is it’s optics, for such an old scope, and it’s ability to hold collimation. I got it perfectly collimated in June, and it’s been moved about a fair bit since then. I didn’t even check collimation tonight, and achieved sharper stars than I ever have in my dob, which I check every. single. time. Really lovely views in my Russian rocket launcher! I don’t know if this is too long for an observing report, but I’m just glad I can finally give one worth telling. I’ve added this lil pic I took tonight on my iphone 12, testing out it’s night camera mode. Not too shabby!! Thanks for reading!

Going to revive my old topic as it’s finally here! The shed is finished and my equipment is in. Very exciting for me having my own little pad and I can now observe in an area that has a much larger view of the sky. Can’t wait to get my new APM 100° 20mm EP in and get some serious deep space viewing on. The ventilation seems to be good as there’s no trapped moisture In the shed.. apart from in the tube of the dob. There’s been some dew on them for I imagine a few days now, hopefully it’s nothing to be too worried about and it will be fixed shortly.

Sorry to jump on the thread.. I’m interested in the talentcell batteries but read a warning on Amazon to not use in humid or wet places. Given how bad we get dew in the UK have you ever had problems or worried about it getting wet??

Also came across this one, any opinions? https://www.amazon.co.uk/RoyPow-Portable-23400mAh-Cigarette-Travelling/dp/B08JV8MPHK/ref=mp_s_a_1_8?dchild=1&keywords=12v+power+pack&qid=1605824249&sr=8-8

If I’ve read this right, then you use your car to power it? I don’t really want to use my car tbh, not sure why I just don’t like the sound of it. Thanks!

Just came across this also, says there is a 15V 10A DC port? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Meterk-Starter-18000mAh-Portable-Battery/dp/B08BNK7PVT/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=starizona+power+pack&qid=1605822078&sr=8-3

Ahh okay no worries, thank you for your help anyways!