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Everything posted by HollyHound
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Cleaning a Takahashi FC100D Objective!
HollyHound replied to mikeDnight's topic in Discussions - Scopes / Whole setups
Thanks for taking the time to show this procedure Mike ๐ I have both Caloclean and Baader Wonder products and probably should give my DZ a clean sometime too, but always been very wary of going anywhere near refractor objectives ๐ฌ This gives me some confidence to give it a go... very very carefully ๐ค -
Small aperture APO for visual
HollyHound replied to SwiMatt's topic in Discussions - Scopes / Whole setups
Have to agree with @JeremyS here, as I own the first three of these scopes. They're all superb scopes. The FC-76DCU is my most used and grab and go scope... I could easily live with jus this scope if necessary ๐ However, the FOA-60Q is sublime for double stars and lunar... it just keep delivering magnification when required, far outweighing it's (small) aperture ๐ Good luck with your choice, there are loads of superb scopes out there ๐ค -
Havenโt used it in anger yet, but Iโm impressed so far with the layout, clarity and of course itโs laminated too ๐
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Got this superb Lunar atlas for Christmas, to add to my collection of Lunar books/atlases... really love this one ๐ Happy New Year everyone ๐
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Merry Christmas from Japan - TSA120 ๐
HollyHound replied to dweller25's topic in Discussions - Scopes / Whole setups
Congratulations, that's a beautiful set of scopes ๐ Noticeable size difference between the TSA120 and FS128 ๐ฎ Enjoy.... hope for clear skies soon ๐ค -
Pentax XW 16.5mm and 23mm 85 degree eyepieces
HollyHound replied to John's topic in Discussions - Eyepieces
As mentioned in my post above, I have fitted a Dioptrx within the eyepiece of my XW40, which works perfectly. Iโve yet to try or need to do the same in my XW16.5, but will certainly try it when I get the XW23 ๐ค๐ -
Pentax XW 16.5mm and 23mm 85 degree eyepieces
HollyHound replied to John's topic in Discussions - Eyepieces
Hi again @Louis D... I see that you and @Don Pensack did discuss this here... so I've linked it in case any use to anyone ๐ -
Pentax XW 16.5mm and 23mm 85 degree eyepieces
HollyHound replied to John's topic in Discussions - Eyepieces
I don't currently observe with glasses, although that may be around the corner one day ๐ค I note that both the 16.5 and 20mm XWs have a quoted eye relief of 20mm (as per the other XWs), but also noted that usable eye relief is 12mm from the eyecup, so seems that might be an issue indeed. I do have some astigmatism, which shows itself on lower power eyepieces (20mm and up), but have solved that on my XW40, by installing a Dioptrx inside the eyecup of that eyepiece... quite an elegant solution, as I align the mark with the label on the eyepiece and just rotate it appropriately to set the correct position for correcting astigmatism ๐ More details here... -
Pentax XW 16.5mm and 23mm 85 degree eyepieces
HollyHound replied to John's topic in Discussions - Eyepieces
Hi John, I've had the 16.5mm since it was launched, and although time for astronomy for me this year has been very limited, for the times I have used it, I can say that this eyepiece has been a superb replacement for it's predecessor in my set (the XW 14mm) ๐ There is very little field curvature (the 14mm suffered from this), contrast is excellent and I find that (for me) 70-85 degrees is the sweet spot for being able to take in all the field comfortably and not feeling constricted. You have XWs in the lower focal lengths so you will also know how comfortable the view is on these eyepieces, and the 16.5mm continues with that same comfort. I always find my eye feels relaxed when using any of the XW eyepieces ๐ Ergonomics and comfort are also up there with the 75 degree versions. Being able to set and fix eye relief, plus the rubber tops make them very usable. In short, they continue the excellence of the original XWs, remove the FC issue from the 14 (and 20) and provide an additional useable field. Their only downside is cost, but then I would put them up against TeleVue anytime and these aren't exactly cheap either ๐ฌ Now that I have a bit more time, and with darkness back again, I am about to order the matching 23mm this week, to complete the set again... which shows the confidence I have in these. Hope that's been of some help... -
Glad it's arrived safely, and thanks for contacting me (I'd completely forgotten I had the sales post running still ๐ฎ). Hope it works well for you... I've got the 0.75 version now, which works perfectly for me now too ๐ค I'm also, at last getting some free nights back to start observing again, after many many months of hectic work, so hope to be out joining you all under the stars again very soon. Just had two weeks away cruising in the Caribbean, to ease myself into it, which was rather fun... especially seeing Orion at an almost horizontal angle against the horizon! Unfortunately, I only had my Nikon 8x30 binoculars, but got some good views of the moon, even though it was "challenging" keeping it in view with the ship moving around ๐คฃ
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Nice one @JeremyS, you'll love this one... I've had the 3.7mm and it was pretty awesome in my 10" Dob ๐
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Jupiter with GRS under ok seeing (04/09/23)
HollyHound replied to Kon's topic in Imaging - Planetary
Lovely image... thanks for sharing ๐ -
FS-60 Tak ?
HollyHound replied to Stu1smartcookie's topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
Looks a great setup, and so glad youโre getting so much use with itโฆ itโs a great scope ๐ -
I am always in awe of your sketching (and observing) skill @mikeDnight, this is an extraordinary image ๐ I've not been as active on here recently (work) and hadn't realised you've also got an FS-128 too... I have no doubt you'll make great use of it, and look forward to your observing notes/sketches ๐
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FS-60 Tak ?
HollyHound replied to Stu1smartcookie's topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
Not 100% certain, as I no longer have my DC (which is very similar to the DF, apart from focuser), but the DZ might actually be significantly shorter, due to having a sliding dew shield... Of course the dew shield on the DC/DF can be unscrewed I believe ๐ค I found no perceptible difference in my usage between DC and DZ, however my observing skills are nowhere near that of @mikeDnight and likely needs exceptional seeing to notice much anyway ๐ฌ Where the DZ is better is in ergonomics... that sliding dew shield and much better focuser ๐ -
FS-60 Tak ?
HollyHound replied to Stu1smartcookie's topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
They seem to have a good stock of a fair number of the Takahashi range again... good to see after the last few years of supply issues ๐ -
FS-60 Tak ?
HollyHound replied to Stu1smartcookie's topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
Wow, I hadn't fully comprehended how much bigger than the FC-100DC that FS128 really is ๐ฎ I thought the Mewlon was big compared to my FC-76DCU and FS-60CB... but that thing is enormous ๐ -
Takahashi FSQ-85EDX [visual]
HollyHound replied to josefk's topic in Discussions - Scopes / Whole setups
That looks like it could be a really superb wide field scope... will be very interested to see how this pans out (no pun intended) ๐ This is of course normally used by imagers, so visual use could be awesome ๐ค Congratulations on the addition to your stable ๐ -
FS-60 Tak ?
HollyHound replied to Stu1smartcookie's topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
The StellaMira 80mm f/10 is a superb scope, and will give you superb lunar, planetary views... only thing to bear in mind (as has been mentioned), is that it is quite heavy for an 80mm scope... the FC-76DCU is much lighter ๐ค It does work on exactly the same setup as I posted earlier though ๐ -
FS-60 Tak ?
HollyHound replied to Stu1smartcookie's topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
It's as far as I would ever go, carrying scope/mount/tripod in one unit... the FC-100DZ always goes out (in it's bag) separately to the AZ-75 mount... no way I'm risking carrying that ๐ I am fortunate, in that I have literally only a single corridor, two doorways to go through and no obstructions ๐ฌ -
FS-60 Tak ?
HollyHound replied to Stu1smartcookie's topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
Agreed, the FS-60CB is a superb little scope, and on a lightweight tripod it's super easy to carry out and about... however, I still think the FC-76DCU (especially given the it comes apart for packing) is a more versatile and (arguably) better "one scope" ๐ค -
FS-60 Tak ?
HollyHound replied to Stu1smartcookie's topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
Having (or had) all the scopes discussed - FS-60CB (with and without extender), FOA-60Q, FC-76DCU (with and without extender), FC-100D, FC-100DZ, and if you're looking for a truly versatile grab and go scope setup with absolutely minimal setup and pack away time... my suggestion is the FC-76DCU ๐ Here it is on the Berlebach Report 272 tripod, ScopeTech Zero mount, right angle finder and the APM 7.7 to 15.4mm SuperZoom... this setup has remained pretty much like this for almost three years now (minus the zoom), ready to go inside my home office, along with the Berlebach observing chair. The telescope/tripod can be carried out (one handed if needed) in 2mins, followed quickly by the observing chair, and I'm observing in minutes... reverse to put it away. It has been without a doubt, my most consistently used setup, even with 100m, 180mm and 254mm scopes available and is going nowhere ๐- 115 replies
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No worries, I knew what you meant and just eager to show the advances in eVTOL (having been working quietly away on it for a few years now)... we all have had those "in a few years, we'll all be doing (or not doing) this"... then it rarely happens ๐ FWIW, I think visual astronomy will remain around for a good while, but might go the way of film camera and vinyl records... something that is done, partly for nostalgia. However, I absolutely love it and will hope to be doing this for however long I have left ๐ค๐
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I think EAA is the only type of "imaging" I would consider for the reasons you outline... great to hear it's working so well ๐
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Without taking this off topic... you might find, this is now really close to happening... I've been working with various eVTOL companies (for their flight sims) and whilst I was initially sceptical, it's definitely "when" not "if" now... and we're not measuring in many years either anymore ๐ค Article about one company (Jobs), but there are many others ๐ฎ https://techcrunch.com/2023/06/28/joby-aviation-receives-permit-to-fly-first-evtol-built-on-production-line/?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAKIiX37gQdqr7G8o4QPGoizEwM1KW4Bd3M5M_EmrUbDY0X0SEENf9rD45CCvrpJ_qfd2on44U9EGWPznL9UP3-YaL-6GBnAT_Ezg_PvhvnJCvOc_lRi0QqUH8eJFcz3zPhy-wA1BNyA6SmAKhxlcHz_O4UKrogCOd5oPWLHShJRt