Neotox

7 minutes ago, SpookyKatt said:

I did this with 50mm guidescope by taking the dovetail off the gudiescope rings and attaching a
longish arc swiss plate and then screwing a camera ball head onto the 3/8 screw your indicating.
Then the gudiescope sits on the ballhead if that makes sense.

Kathleen  

Ah ok, so i guess the ballhead is needed, was hoping i wouldnt need one. Thanks.

Damn im feeling stupid atm, how can i attach Orion guide scope 60 mm. as seen here: https://www.astroshop.eu/guidescopes/orion-guidescope-60mm-multi-use-guide-scope-with-helical-focuser/p,51934 To my star adventurer? What do i need, been trying to search for something suitable but cant find it... guess i need something for the dove tail, there is a screw there but what do i need to attach here? All help appreciated or other suggestions. Thanks...

Wow, thank you very much for that post really helpfull!

Thanks for the input (gonna check out you pics), im going to use it on a Unmodded Canon 800D. Mainly for DSO nebulas etc, to be able to get more detail. I mean is there more value in actually buying one expensive filter instead of  a CLS for a 1/3 of the price of the expensive ones.

Hey! Been reading around on net and trying to get a grip on all the filters around. What im looking for is actually ONE filter (as they are so damn expensive...) to buy, but wich is the best alround filter for a Canon APS-C 800D camera? 

Optolong, Astronomik, diffrent versions...UHC, CLS, L-ehance, L-pro etc...

Anyone have any experience?

.

Hi!

I just bought a Skywatcher AZ3 for my Star Adventure Pro pack, the store (teleskop-service.de)  said its was a working fit. Have someone removed the az part from the tripod and modded it so you can attach the az part from the SA instead? Or should i just run as is, (ofc remove the az part from SA) and just use the tripod as it is? 

Well, ordered a redcat 51 instead. Hope it will work out for the better. 

32 minutes ago, AnonymousAnimosity said:

I've been using a star adventurer with camera lenses for some time and I was contemplating the same decision recently, I can offer a few comments on the scopes you have linked based on my limited knowledge.

• You will need a field flattener (more or less specific for each scope) unless you buy one that already comes with it, such as the TS Optics EDPH 61/274, so budget that in as well
• I have seen some good results from people shooting at focal lenghts over 300mm on a star adventurer, but keep in mind that your polar alignment will have to be spot on every time, the lengths of your subexposure will be limited without autoguiding and you will probably have to discard a significant portion of your frames due to wind and periodic error. I think that using an 80mm refractor could get very frustrating.
• A good knowledge of the night sky (aided by software like Stellarium) is necessary to frame targets manually, you may want to look into platesolving solutions to make life easier

I ended up buying the Samyang 135mm f2 lens rather than a telescope because pretty much every refractor I considered in the €800 range didn't strike me as of particularly great value for the money (if you are patient and wait for good second hand deals that's a different story). 

The cheapest option for a telescope might be the Skywatcher Evostar 72ED, you can buy it new with a flattener for about €500 but (based on what I read) I'm not sure I would recommend it without autoguiding (€200 or so for a cheap guidescope and camera). 

Ok thank you for the input, i had the similiar thoughts. Maybe im thinking the wrong way, that a small refractor gets me "better" images then a samyang. All input as im new to this is appreciated!

10 minutes ago, TerryMcK said:

There’s a ZS61 including flattener for sale on here 

Great, thanks!

8 minutes ago, Kyle Allen said:

Currently I use a William Optics Zenithstar 61 with my Star Adventurer (guided). It’s a good combination but I have just ordered a Samyang 135mm F2 lens after seeing the amazing images people have produced with it and the possibility of being able to capture multiple DSOs in the same frame! 😀

I wouldn’t put anything bigger than a Zenithstar 61 on a Star Adventurer. You will lose field of view because of the longer focal length but you won’t gain any extra resolution because the mount won’t guide accurately enough. Even with my set up, I downscale my images to sharpen them up. 

If you do decide to go for a small refractor rather than a fast lens, be sure to budget for a guide scope and camera.

I had my thoughts on the Samyang also (looking for a second hand one) the images is great as you say. But with the Zenithstar isnt that one delivering better images then the samyang?

What kind of guidescope and camera are you using?

Hi!

So i have just ordered a sw adventure pro 2, now i need a small refractor for it. Im gonna use a DSLR for the imaging part. 

So it stands between these three alternatives, i cant decide wich will be the best scope for taking nice shots:

TS Optics Apochromatic refractor AP 72/432 FPL53 Photoline OTA : https://www.astroshop.eu/telescopes/ts-optics-apochromatic-refractor-ap-72-432-fpl53-photoline-ota/p,56139

William Optics Apochromatic refractor AP 61/360 ZenithStar ZS61 II OTA: https://www.astroshop.eu/telescopes/william-optics-apochromatic-refractor-ap-61-360-zenithstar-zs61-ii-ota/p,67480

TS Optics Apochromatic refractor AP 80/560 Photoline OTA: https://www.astroshop.eu/telescopes/ts-optics-apochromatic-refractor-ap-80-560-photoline-ota/p,52328#tab_bar_1_select (maybe to heavy for the mount...)

Or is there any other small refractor that get me more bang for the buck?  its around 800 Euro i guess is max. (wife is already mad)

Sounds great! Appreciate all the feedback!

3 hours ago, Somerled7 said:

If you are buying the whole setup as a used package, then it makes more sense - especially if you can get it all at a good price. It should work very well for visual if that's your first priority and the long focal length would be good for planets and lunar when you don't need long exposures. As I said in my earlier post, the scope is a bit big for the mount for long exposures.  However the good new is that the HEQ5 is a very good mount for astro-photography, so if you want to get into DSOs later, you could always add a smaller scope.

 

Any thoughts on the age as I wrote above?

How much do age matter in telescope is a 7 year old scope still ok if its in good shape, or do optics get worse by the years?

Sorry for not being clear, the setup i wrote above is what i intend to buy as a "used" package. Im planing to use the above with a Canon EOS 800D also for DSO.

@TerryMcK good tools, whats the URL?

If i had the choice i would also prefered alittle bit smaller scope, but as i will get this used package for a decent sum i hope i can "complete" it with a smaller scope later on. Unfortunatly its always the budget problem  

Thank you! 

The Setup i plan to buy is the following:

Sky-watcher explorer-200 PDS + HEQ5 PRO
Baader-planetarium baader-planetarium hyperion zoomocular mark IV, 8-24 mm
Baader-planetarium Hyperion wideocular 1,25 tum/2 tum, 5mm
Meade 12 mm ocular
Sky-watcher SYNSCAN WIFI modul
Motorfocus
Moonfilter
A.S.I. ASTROKAMERA 120M

Im getting the above for a decent sum (for what a new HEQ5 cost) thats actually why i consider it for my first setup. First i was thinking of getting a ED80 instead with a eq3. But is it a to big step to hope for some AP use of this setup for a n00b like myself? 

With the above i can later complete and buy a refractor as the HEQ5 pro is the big cost in the setup. Or am i thinking wrong/missing something?

Hi!

My first post, i have searched around and not found so much photos/images from the scope Explorer 200PDS. Anyone have any experience from it?

Im hopefully gonna buy this one very soon, but is it a good setup for AP, is the HEQ5 a good choice or will i be disapointed? 

I have seen the long thread on the 130 version of the scope and that one seems really good.

Im greatfull for any thoughts and considerations