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Mackem

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Everything posted by Mackem

  1. I had made a card Bhatinov took me ages with a Stanley knife.πŸ€ͺ Couldn't print one as it was to big for my print bed for the Evolution 9.25. The card mask is top the PLA+ lower I found a STL that split it into quadrants bolted together.
  2. What I wanted to print first was the fitting for the EAF. (When it finally was available to buy it was expensive.) The actual fastening holes in the print were distorted so I just ignored them and drilled fresh ones. The distorted hole is visible on the tube. Any similar small holes on any prints now I ignore them and drill.
  3. My daughter got me into it a while ago. She had the Ender 3. But she suggested I wait and get one of the early Ender 3/ V2s Took me quite a few benchies to get it tuned in, what was causing me problems was the belt tension got it right by printing a small disc between tightenings. Have to say I was impressed with this intricate test print not much later.
  4. Handy to know about the Vonets power, I was looking at them a couple of weeks ago. It's still sitting in my basket on amazon. Also did some searching for whether you could butcher an aerial onto the pro. It is possible (and I have a mini rechargeable soldering iron on the way via aliexpress.) I see there's people offering to do it for around Β£50 on the likes of ebay. Can't believe they thought having the WiFi inside a metal case was a good idea? Looks like they've done better all round with the new plus version. Yeah I now realise about the limitations of the az only mount, I should have done more research before jumping in head first πŸ˜… but the offer on the Evolution was too good to risk missing out. Hopefully don't follow suit with my choice of guide scope. Thanks all for taking the time to respond. Barry
  5. Thanks for the info Geoff. Forgot to say I got the Celestron f6.3 focal reducer from FLO same time as the above stuff. Found out the hard way about the camera hitting the base 😲 😳 on the single arm! Even without reducer. Luckily I was standing right next to the scope as it was automatically slewing. Interesting about using the diagonal, haven't tried it but I think it will still be close especially with the wires out the backend of the camera. I will have a look see some time. But as I think I will be doing imaging as well as EEVA I was thinking along the lines of an equatorial mounting system . I have had this in my FLO basket for two days Sky-Watcher EQ6-R PRO 😳 Haven't clicked through yet and so tempted. If I do I will have to sort a scope to go with the celestron mount to give to my grandson's. My daughter and son in law along with the boys have recently moved to woolly back country, no street lights and open country all around their home. Barry
  6. Well that didn't go as planned πŸ˜• 2 years later and I may be a bit further informed but no further on with the Astro! Took a strange wobbler that knocked me for six and still none the wiser as to the cause. ( Had to give up my beloved Jag too because of blinding headaches and short term vision problems. ) still not a 100%. But getting there. Did manage to get a couple of hours viewing and a few stretches but no saved data. But thanks to the excellent advice from the nice people on here I got mostly sorted πŸ‘ From my startup of home built PC . Samsung Tablet S4. Google Nexus. Celestron Nextstar Evolution 9.25 ( Huge discount 🍸 damaged box. The box that was damaged was the tripod and the packaging had protected it anyway ☺) StarSense Explorer ( Heavily discounted ) And from FLO. ASI 533 MC PRO Asiair Pro ZWO EAF ( Didn't have the correct attachment to focuser for the 9.25 ☹ they were extremely helpful and took back the incorrect one supplied no problem. ) and no replacement available at the time. So I 3D printed a few different designs which all worked perfectly πŸ‘ . HP ENVY X360 Ryzen 7 13.2 foldable touchscreen laptop ( another sale item. When I was 3D printing the focuser attachment I did a search for anything else for the 9.25. Ended up printing brackets etc. And perfect sized backfocus adapters for the camera in different versions. When I was laid up I made a bhatinov mask out of heavy card horrible few hours with a Stanley knife πŸ˜₯. But it worked. I knew you could 3D print smaller masks, the 9.25 mask was to big for my print bed. I kept searching and found a design that split the mask into parts and clipped together. It was spot on 🍺. Couple of quids worth of PLA and saved a bundle. I also made a dew shield from a Β£6 silver backed yoga mat. Bought a Β£5 flock heated steering wheel cover from ebay undid the stitching opened it out and voila 12v dew heater. Just to be on the safe side bought a temperature adjuster with thermometer off Aliexpress I think it was Β£4 πŸ€” Less than Β£10 for a dew heater for my scope. Yep that's me saving pennies while splashing out on the big stuff πŸ˜ƒ.. Barry
  7. Once again my thanks for extremely helpful advice. David lot of food for thought there. Thanks for taking the time. The problem with the night owl looks like it will be lack of availability. I have decided to go for a better camera from the start, hopefully making the right choice and it lasting me! My main program image processing work will be done on my desktop with NVMe drives and built in wifi, bluetooth. So the priority for the laptop or windows tablet would be capture software etc. And being able to run them. Whilst out and about as well. As if I'm correct some software only runs on windows. My Tab S4 is a brilliant android tablet fast and high resolution very responsive, I'm typing this now on it's keyboard. I have an assortment of external drives for storage. I have done a lot of reading and viewing on YouTube to try to find the information I require, but once again end up with mixed messages or a problem I hadn't thought of popping up. Or I end up watching astronomy videos with nothing to do with what I'm looking for.πŸ˜‚ Ended up on an Aussies tube a guy called Dylan O'Donnell, who just seemed to make sense even if I hadn't a clue what he was talking about half the time. I have no problem viewing my PC, tablet and phone wirelessly to my TV. Using Samsung's own software and I also have HDMI and ethernet powerline and wireless senders available which I use now and then with my projector. (For 3d movies usually. ) My router is near my TV and cable box in sitting room, both connected by ethernet, I have a hidden ethernet cable which leads to my dining room where I will set up an Asus wireless router as an access point specifically for astrophotography. Which would mean one pane of glass between scope and wifi. I will put the Hyperstar on the back burner for now, and get a focal reducer . Definitely purchasing depending on availability. Celestron focus motor for the 9.25 the only one I have seen and know for certain fits my scope. Either the celestron f6.3 or the Night owl f4, any advantage with my scope of one over the other? I will get the ASIAIR pro and a ZWO camera. I can run from the mains to start with, then will think about a power pack for the accessories. Dr Strange mentioned the ASI533mc on another thread. Which to me after viewing reviews, looks like it would suit my needs. I have also looked at..... ASI294MC PRO ASI183MC PRO ASI533MC PRO The three of them cooled. Any thoughts? (Or a better camera in price range for what I intend to do?) I find it strange that less and larger pixels can be an advantage sometimes in astrophotography, over smaller and more megapixels. Just seems counterintuitive. Once again thanks for any information you can supply. Just to reiterate I know very little on this subject, so if you see I'm making a mistake or I'm missing something totally obvious, please tell me. The one thing I can't do is slow down, I have set course and need to start rowing.πŸ˜‰ I haven't used the scope outside yet! Skies have been woeful when I have had a chance to view. Also why I think a colour camera would be advantageous, as I would need more viewing time for getting all the filters done for mono. I bought my grandson an led white A4 tracing board a while back, that got me thinking about the needed flats. So I bought an A3 one with 3 brightness levels, it's pure white and has no obvious banding. Would this work? Or has my grandson got a better tracing board? Cheers Barry
  8. Thanks Stu. Yeah I've hit the EEVA Section. Like you say it can get confusing, I'm having to learn a whole new vocabulary just to understand the basics. I'm steadily jumping about topics to try and grasp the basics. Which I should have done first.πŸ˜‚ Barry
  9. Thanks for the warm welcome people! Also thanks for the useful information Dr Strange . Just been reading some back issues of your old Marvel comics! πŸ˜„ Still breaks my heart my father threw out my comics collection when I left home to get married. I had the originals of Dr Strange and Spiderman and the Hulk! Ah well who wants to be a millionaire. πŸ€‘πŸ˜‚
  10. People once again thank you for taking the time to respond. Your dedication to your hobby does you proud. I should make it absolutely plain that this is just a way for me to fill my time when I'm bored on an evening and can't sleep. (Which sadly happens a lot after I turned 60.) I can't count the times I've been sat in my garden with a cigar and whiskey, looked up and wished I had a telescope to get a closer view. It being reasonably portable I'd be able to stick it in the car for use at the caravan in Teesdale. Where my grandsons will be able to use it too. Where viewing on a screen will stop any fighting over the eyepiece. I also love looking at your wonderful pictures, both here and ones I've viewed on the internet. And yes I know I will be lucky to get close to the quality of the pictures on here. When I decided to jump after reading the reviews for the Evolution on Sky at Night. (Probably should have called here first. ) As it had a lot built in, naively, I expected to wack an astronomical camera in and view on a tablet or laptop. But the choices are so numerous and the chance of making a mistake huge. That's where I'm going to start with a camera and with remote viewing on a tablet even if its standing next to the scope. I seriously have no interest in squinting through an eyepiece, my eyesight is terrible. But I would like the camera to be able to be used with Fastar in the future. I will make a start on Noahs posts hopefully something's will sink in. So as it stands I need a camera and the means to send the pictures to a tablet. I was mightily impressed with controlling the scope with the tablet and was hoping I could have the image from the scope on the tablet or laptop as well. Maybe I will get seriously hooked who knows. Thanks for your advice. Barry
  11. Thanks Olly I have reread your post 3 times to try to force the information in. This is nothing to do with the way you have written it, all down to the way my brain works. As soon as numbers become involved my brain shrivels up and hides in a corner. I've had this problem all my life not exactly number blindness but if it isn't obvious my brain does a runner. Yet I can replay Jim Montgomerys save in the 1973 FA cup final in my head as if it had just happened. As it is I think you're correct and maybe I should leave the Hyperstar till later. But still leaves me with looking for a decent camera that would still be good for use with Fastar in the future. Thanks for your time. Barry
  12. May I ask if that's your choice of 2021 or the availability of the Hyperstar? And the reducer, is that is another part I need to acquire for my 925 and Hyperstar? Thanks for your time. Barry
  13. Thanks for that Gfamily. I notice that has a power brick, hopefully the one I'm after will have it included. But looks pretty standard . Might give me a bargaining chip in purchase price. Hopefully someone will have experience with these.
  14. Well there's an hour of my life I'm never getting back. πŸ˜‚ I've read it all so feel obligated to comment. And the glenfiddich told me too. I came in to learn what eeva was, thinking, as being new here start from the beginning. Took me quite sometime to realise nv was night vision, confirmed a few posts later by a helpful contributor. Yes I waded through it all. As an ex admin on a footy forum I have to say I was impressed with the restraint, (and lack of anglo Saxon.) We always had 1 or 2 posters insisting on posting in the wrong forum. No one got banned, but eventually they would end up on everyone else's block list and posting to each other not realising no one else could see their posts.πŸ˜‰ And no I'm not saying anything like that should happen on this happy site. No matter what the hassle surely it has to be majority rule? Visual observing is not my cup of tea, that was one of my main reasons for not continuing when I was younger. To be honest visual observers impress me, their patience and dedication and only a written note or sketch to remind them of good seeing. Now with all the fantastic electronic equipment available and turning into a night owl as I get older, I'm back with a passion and raring to go. As for NV surely a sub forum in eeva is the way to go? It's electronic and I would get to it eventually as it sounds interesting. I wouldn't even know about it if it were only in the observer's section. Or this extremely long thread. No offence meant to anyone 😎 Lifes too short as it is. Barry
  15. Hello all new member needing assistance. I have already started a few threads with my newby needs. I told my children of my spur of the moment purchase of the Evolution. They just thought I'd totally lost it! To the point of this thread unbelievably my son in law was chatting to a friend of his on some other forum none astronomy related and mentioned that I had bought the telescope and was looking for advice on cameras. It turns out the guys father may have the Starlight Xpress SXV-M8c for sale for Β£200. My question is would this be a good buy? Especially as its quite old now, but was very expensive when purchased and highly rated. I eventually, if not straight away want to use the Fastar system, I checked on Hyperstars listing and this camera is compatible. By all accounts it's in excellent condition but may only be the camera no leads or anything. Any advice or comments welcome as my knowledge in this area is null. Getting a camera at low cost will help in my purchase of the expensive Hyperstar. I want to be doing videos and imaging preferably remotely. Theres no panic time wise but I would like to get a camera sorted soon. Barry
  16. Thanks for that Robert. My DSLR went to the grandsons last year as it wasn't getting used at all here. I'm on my own now and decided now is the time to go for it. Get everything I can as soon as I can to get up and gazing. I was going to say I'm not lazy and that's not why I want to go automated. But! I do have back problems. (Plus I'm seriously lazy!πŸ˜‚) I also wear two pairs of glasses one for reading one for every day use. (Another excuse for going wireless viewing.) Yes I definitely want to go down the dedicated colour CCD or CMOS route . With Fastar in mind after I get the scope up and running. So I will need to double check the cameras that work with it. Or some nice person points me the right way. I will keep an eye open for second hand Hyperstars, haven't seen one as yet. I'm 99% sure I want colour I'm pretty sure I can handle the processing of the mono images. But I would also like to view the transmitted images and video in real time, then do any post processing later. Barry
  17. Yeah I've looked at it Mick πŸ€‘ I have to say it surprised me, the cost I mean a grand for what surely is just an adaptor,! I know there's more involved than that but still. Basically I want to make my viewing as easy and fast as possible. I never really enjoyed squinting through the eyepiece of my old 5 inch newtonian. That to me means wireless transmission of image and video to me sitting comfortably in the warm. Hopefully I can get all this information from you wonderful people and I can settle down to a few happy years of gazing. So all advice gratefully recieved. I have to replace my laptop too, it decided to go downstairs without me. Would there be a one that's preferred for what I'm trying to do? I built my own PC with 64 GB ram so that's sorted. Yes I know I'm being a pain hopefully only in the short term. Barry
  18. Alacant I was thinking along the lines of as much info as I could supply, so you helpful folk would be able to point me in the direction of a camera that would suit most if not all my needs. The money looks like it's going to fly from my pocket, before I get where I want to be.πŸ˜‚ Barry
  19. Thanks Olly I have browsed some videos and comments about Hyperstar and have to say been impressed with speed and quality of the produced images from exposures in seconds rather than lots of minutes. Even single exposures. But like you say I am going to need persuading to splash a grand after my original outlay. Barry
  20. Pointed in this direction with this post. Never heard of Eeva until today. I'm a complete novice in astronomy. So feel free to treat me like a child, my knowledge in the area is zero.. I'm looking for an astronomy camera in the Β£500 range preferably lower as it's clear I'm going to need more quipment to get this up and running. I want to be able to track and view from the comfort of my dining room. I saw FLO is the lounges sponsor and noticed this on their site. https://www.firstlightoptics.com/zwo-accessories/zwo-asiair-pro-wireless-astrophotography-controller.html I do like the look of their ZWO line of cameras too some look nice and narrow for fastar. So many options and so little knowledge on my part. My new purchase at the moment is.... Celestron starsense autoalign. (Attached but not plugged in as yet. ) Celestron Nexstar Evolution 925 computerised goto mount with wifi. I have a good desktop PC and a Tab S4 Both at this moment erected in my sitting room to make sure of no obvious problems I have controlled the scope no problem with my Tab S4. I went with the Evolution as it seemed to have most of what I required built in. So please help , what should I be looking for? I want a Jack of all trades Solar Lunar Planets deep space etc. I know I'm going to need filters for solar pictures so advice there too. What extra equipment do I need as I would prefer to view on a screen and also in comfort indoors? Would the above ASIairpro be needed or does my new scope handle what I want. I know I'm starting at a trot but would much prefer remotely viewing and controlling my scope than freezing my old bones the middle of the night. Any and all advice gratefully recieved . I know I'm asking a lot but I'm starting with a knowledge base of zero. Yes I have done a lot of reading, but I have ended up with a migraine more times than I can count. None of it has managed to sink in or I have then read something that contradicts what I just read. Your help knowledge and experience is appreciated. At the moment the Evolution is erected in my sitting room just to check all was well motor wise etc. I successfully ran the scope with Skyportal using my Galaxy S4 using it's GPS Etc. So please treat me like the fool I am and tell me what extras I will need for astrophotography with the scope in my garden and my old bones in comfort in my dining room. Hopefully viewing on a screen beside me. If it helps with the advice on what I'll need I have also been looking at Fastar systems, which as you know will reduce exposures down from minutes to seconds. And was totally shocked at the price a grand? I love my gadgets but I want to make best use of them. I have a huge Samsung 8k TV always on but only ever watched the space station in 8k πŸ˜‚ Yup that was a spur of the moment purchase, just like the telescope. But I did get very good deals on them.😎 Barry
  21. Thank you for the warm welcome people. I know I have a lot to learn , second time I have come across EEA or similar never heard of it till today. Hopefully we will cross paths again when I'm not so dumb 😎 Barry
  22. Thanks for the response SP and Mr n, I was just thinking I would be best off getting the camera best suited for the job, at a reasonable price, straight away. I gave the DSLR to the grandkids as it was so unused . As for running marathons I couldn't run one when young never mind now.πŸ˜‚ I do get what you're saying. But this well worn back needs its comfort these days and to my mind sitting in my dining room beats being outside. EEVA ? Ok brand new one to meπŸ˜‚ I of course will move to that forum, I just assumed my query would have been to do with getting started with imaging. Thanks again for the replies. Barry
  23. By the way what about Fastar? I know celestron stopped making a Fastar add on but still made some of their scopes compatible. The reading I've done seems to think that it's much better for imaging . Like I said I'm hoping to do all my imaging on a screen, preferably remotely and don't want to be standing over an eyepiece. But once again if I'm wrong please feel free to set me straight. Maybe that would influence my choice of camera now if I went Fastar in the future. Barry
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