Spile

After looking at  this post I am now less certain as to which object is the Nova on my sketch!

I struggled with this too. I eventually decided to locate the area by jumping four times from Ceph using my 9x50 finder.

The first time I made a basic sketch of the area in the hope of locating the nova later, however I was unable to match the stars and failed.

Then I tried again (using my 42mm 65°) and was 90% certain I had the correct area and noted the "W" asterism which I sketched. It took a long time to match the sketch with other peoples photos but I am pretty certain I have the nova just above the left arm of the "W". 

On 28/03/2021 at 10:50, jonathan said:

The best thing to do is get outside when the stars are visible and perform the star test (Polaris is the recommended star, easy to find and doesn't move), look for concentric rings around the de-focussed star using a high power eyepiece, if it's obviously off-centered then do more adjusting.

I adopt the same "star test first" technique.

I am sometimes tempted after a few cloudy nights to play with my secondary mirror but I am seeking help for that condition.  

I find a combination of techniques depending on what I am targeting and what mood I am in works for me...

Telrad

RACI

Wide angle, low power EP

SkEye Indirect mode

I prepare a few targets from TLAO, recommendations/observations made on SGL or from the top 500 binary list. I base the targets on likely visibility from my location, so South and South West are the areas of sky I am going for. It often doesn't go to plan. The Cass Nova has the habit of dipping out of sight so I always plan a few reserves. For example, I've just printed off three sheets of A4 with just Auriga doubles! A planisphere is a good way to get an idea of what is "coming up".

Clear Outside can be unreliable but I've not found anything better.

Heavens Above is a good app for locating and tracking artificial satellites.

The zoom option with one wide angle lower power option works for me. I appreciate the additional cost but I worked out it would it would be a long term investment.

The Baader fluid and cloth work for me. The instructions are worth the money on their own :-)

Any reason why you cannot use the downloadable version?

I was also going to recommend the ocular view with a finder or wide angle option as per Tiny Clanger.

Ref https://astro.catshill.com/finding-dim-objects/

17 hours ago, Astro_Dad said:

a lightweight chair is a good thought

A number of people use ironing chairs and they are reasonably priced and lightweight. Just make sure you tell your partner* before nicking theirs if they might notice it is missing 🙂

* non sexist get out of jail free card. 

I have the 200P and this is what I do...

Using a simple cap (an eyepiece cap with a 1mm hole in the centre and a shiny washer glued to it) check the secondary is a centred. I had to tweak my secondary slightly using the three allen screws and the central screw. It hasn't moved since.

For the primary, looking through the cap I make sure the "polo" is between the cross-hairs. Your looks slightly out but I would check the secondary with a cap to make sure that is central first.

Finally and most important, I do a star test to ensure everything it spot on.

Ref:

https://garyseronik.com/a-beginners-guide-to-collimation
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi6UI5BvXm9lyZg5AG0X1g/videos
http://web.telia.com/~u41105032/myths/myths.htm
http://uncle-rods.blogspot.com/2009/07/zen-and-art-of-telescope-collimation.html?m=1

A lot of folk were moaning about Clear Outside being inaccurate yesterday as they had clear skies and it was showing red. I went outside and although I could see stars, the moon was surrounded by haze so I didn't even bother setting up. So for me Clear Outside was spot on.

On 21/03/2021 at 23:35, Trucker360 said:

I'm not putting my camera on the mount. Why do people keep thinking that?

Because in order to capture images like the ones you posted, you need a camera but that could a DSLR, a smartphone or a digital eyepiece. They are all cameras.

I would echo Jiggy 67's advice to develop your skills with visual astronomy.  You won't be able to share photos with others but finding and looking at the Trapezium or Almach knocks me for six and is far more impressive than any photograph can attempt to replicate.

Welcome!

I have the Skywatcher 200P and the BHZ IV with matching Barlow and a lower power WA EP works really well for me.

As well as eyepieces, I have worked on the finder options to make life a little easier and more comfortable.

I would definitely consider a finder safety harness and I've gradually built a set of accessories.

This forum is great for picking up tips and checking up on observation write-ups.

I have printed these inverted maps ready for clear skies. One for my finder and one for my 42mm 65°.

I have a NAS drive and keep all my images and videos (as well as music and backups) on that.

23 hours ago, PeterStudz said:

We are finding things if a bit slowly. And it’s disappointing to find a target only to be let down by a poor quality eyepiece. So these seemed far more important.

I adopt the same "slow" strategy and like you upgraded my eyepieces before my finder. The issue for me was as much my back. Bending down to use a straight-through finder was not a big deal 50 years ago 🙂 

A thought.

Last week, I spoke to a local micro-brewer who lives in a very dark area and he offered me the use of his site for observing. Perhaps you could befriend a resident or farmer who would be willing to offer the use of their site to set up your telescope? 

I suppose the default eyepieces were chosen on the basis of keeping down costs but giving buyers the chance to see the difference between low and higher powers. I have no problem with the 25mm but the 10mm is pretty dreadful so that would be my choice for an upgrade. However that is going to be problematic as it will increase the price of a telescope that has just had a £100 price rise up even further. So maybe just drop the 10mm?

Sorry to be boring but I am very happy with my choice of Zoom, Barlow and Wide Angle. It is a lot of money compared to a couple of plossls  but the flexibility and convenience works for me.

First of all, ignore the rest of this post if you already know it.

Otherwise...

In terms of targets, there are plenty to look at and a search of these forums will come up with lots of recommendations.  I would definitely get a copy of Turn Left at Orion and I would also check out some targets like the Double Cluster, the Beehive and a few coloured binaries like Almach. 

Just be careful of the astrophotographers who lurk in these parts and may try and tempt you to the dark side.

13 minutes ago, Tiny Clanger said:

if I was going to only ever buy one extra item to make an existing telescope more useable , it would be a 6x30 RACI.

Interesting - A RACI over a Telrad?

Don't get me wrong, I am glad I changed the straight through finder for a RACI but it wasn't as much as a Eureka moment as the Telrad or even the low power WA EP for me.

On 19/03/2021 at 15:46, Stardaze said:

I note you're just down the road too

Now that tells me you use a telescope that inverts N and S 🙂

One thing that may help is to print out one or more snapshots of the ocular view from Stellarium and use that as a "map" in order to find your target.

On 16/03/2021 at 16:01, Tiny Clanger said:

I saw it as a joke, especially given the rest of the post , I don't think offence was meant.

Me neither - but my attempt at a witty riposte (hence the smiley) didn't work either.

On 18/03/2021 at 14:46, domstar said:

The map isn't big enough for me to see which ones I should be looking at.

That was exactly the problem I had and why the screen capture method works for me when the going gets tough. I did the same when I had problems with M1 - https://astro.catshill.com/finding-dim-objects/