W0nderste

So what 2" EPs is everyone else using on small 70ish refractors?

Thanks Louis

thanks for the info Hmm, why bother with the 2" functionality then if they are not practical to use 🤔

Thanks. dumb question then, but why give the scope a 2" connector if you are better with 1.25 diagonal and 1.25 EPs

Hi, I have a Baader Hyperion 8mm I bought a while ago, but not really had much chance to use it. but I also just bought an Evostar 72ED. I intend to get a 2" diagonal, and thought great, I can use the baader hyperion with the 1.25 nose piece removed. unfortunately I just found out that 1.25 nose piece has optics in it so removing it changes the focal length of the EP in 2" mode. has anyone used a hyperion with 2" only connector? What focal length does the 8mm become with front optics removed? ta

Thanks @Louis D good place to start. looking at the 2" EP's is much more confusing than the 1.25s as it appears some 2" EPs are poor with faster scopes

I've gone as low as 5mm BST EP on the firstscope and could just see the rings of Saturn and you can easily see Jupiter's moons

Hi, i just got a nice Evostar 72 ED today, thanks @Trevor N what would be good EP choices for this scope? I currently have an F10 SCT with 1.25" EPs although I did acquire a Baader Hyperon 8mm recently, so haven't got any experience with a faster scopes. Assuming I can make use of Hyperon 8mm, i was looking for mid and low power EP. i've just been reading that some EP's are poor for faster scopes but finding it hard to work out what good options are with making expensive mistakes thanks

Hi @Jiggy 67, does the free version do day time align. You have to pay for the Pro-version. I'm allergic to paying for Apps 🤣

Hmmm, bummer reading this as I just got a D3500, although luckily I work for a company owned by Nikon so only paid a couple of hundred quid for it. Wishing I'd got the 5600 now ☹️☹️

@miketw There's a goto scope on FB for £225 https://m.facebook.com/groups/240391446118062/permalink/1943586612465195/

Hi, has anyone 3D printed a bracket to fit a Red Dot Finder to a DSLR hot shoe? Rgds steve

I could be wrong but isn't the astromaster a bird-jones affair, if so it's best avoided. I had a similar celestron starsense 127 Lt which I think is the same tube as the astro master and although you could just make out the rings of Saturn it was pretty crap. It probably needed collimating but Collimating a BJ reflector is not easy. for what it's worth If tracking is the highest priority then I'd get a virtuosa, or a 2nd hand skywatcher GTi mount with any mid range scope. i got a GTi goto mount for £150 and a celestron omni 127 SCT for £100 here on SGL. so a full goto tracking system that will be far superior to an astromaster

What about getting a tracking mount like the skywatcher GTI or Skywatcher discovery. You can fit your existing telescope on it, and then upgrade the telescope later when stock is better and you have a better idea if what you want https://www.firstlightoptics.com/telescopes-in-stock/sky-watcher-star-discovery-wifi-az-goto-mount-tripod.html

I wonder what the record is for the same scope being sold between 2 people?? perhaps we could 'time-share' it?

Jeepers Stu, how many scopes have you bought in the last few months? Lol although I'm also looking to get a 72/80 ED.......

Welcome to SGL the only dumb question is the question Not asked. Everyone is very friendly and helpful on here

Thanks @Paul M I didn't realise there was a PC version of Stellarium....very handy. So I ran the simulation forward and roughly speaking we won't see Sat/Jup until around 1st May where they'll be visible at around 4am. 1st of Jun they are viewable around 2am 1st of Jul they are viewable around midnight.

Hi everyone, probably a dumb question, but when is Jupiter and Saturn viewable again in the evening in Uk?? I assume it is much later in the year thanks

I bought an Xbox live cam a few months ago for this purpose. There are a couple of threads on here showing how to do it. however I doubt I'll do it now as I ended up also getting a ZWO camera. you can have the Xbox webcam for the cost of postage if you like? £3 should cover postage. PM me if you want it? regards steve

He He, that just reminded me the first time I saw Saturn's rings and I raced upstairs and woke my wife up so she could share the experience. apparently waking her up at 2am with cold hands was not so exciting for her....... welcome to SGL

You can do astronomy and planetary science through the Open University

Welcome to SGL sounds like an exciting course, if only I could turn back time and make different choices

Hi @wobblewing sounds like I'm on a similar journey to you with a similar background. I initially bought a telescope for the kids and now I'm hooked. Can't quite believe it took me so long to he honest to try astronomy. hopefully I'll be able go to some Cambridge astronomy meets when they get going again next year. good luck with the new telescope

Thanks Geoff, glad you're still happy with it. Do you use the Mak127 on it much? I'm not so worried about stock, this will not be my main scope. I'd rather pick the right option