NGC 1502

The Skywatcher ED80 cell easily unscrews as a unit. As mentioned, when reattaching be careful not to cross thread. Removing and reattaching the cell as a unit won’t affect collimation. With the cell removed this gives access to clean the back of the inner lens element. If the problem is between the lens elements it’s a very different situation. Perhaps consider contacting a specialist repairer like the well known Es Reid. If you’re feeling brave you could DIY. An adjustable lens spanner to engage the holes on the front retaining ring would be a good idea. Note the orientation between the 2 elements plus the orientation of them with respect to the cell. Note any spacers. Pencil marks will help. Go carefully and methodically and don’t rush. Finally please understand you can easily mess up. If it were me I’d consider using it as is, or if you can’t live with that contact a specialist as previously mentioned. Hoping you sort it👍

I definitely would not stress about this. An old saying in our hobby is repeated below- “The best scope is the one that gets used” In your situation portability is king. Something larger would likely be a chore and would show you nothing at all if it were too much hassle to use. Enjoy the views😊

Welcome to SGL, you’ve come to the right place, lots of folk here ready to help😊 A good start would be to do as suggested by Louis D in post #2 The various ETX scopes were all “go to” technology. That is once correctly set up, use the handset to let the built in motors find your desired object. Once found the scope should follow the object to compensate for earth’s rotation. Sometimes it’s not quite that simple, but that’s the intention if everything is correctly set up and working as it should! From the pic I can’t see the handset, do you have that? It’s an oblong shape with lots of buttons. What’s the tripod on the left? Doesn’t look like the regular ETX metal tripod. A good start would be to open the battery compartment. Hopefully the batteries previously used have not leaked. Replace with good quality batteries. Cheap batteries are a bad idea, and keep at least one spare set. Please come back with that photo when you can😊

Indeed it’s possible to lose the lower areas of sky in the way you describe. However depending on the surrounding houses etc it can work to your advantage. For me if my scope is lower then my fences hides lights from nearby houses. Several years back when Jupiter and Saturn were very low in the south then I used to put my Dob on a raised brick built flower bed to access those planets…… When I had an 8” Dob then on rare occasions I lifted that onto my workmate to access the lower sky. A bit wobbly but a wobbly view was better than no view! Necessity is the mother of invention 😊

Agree with above. There’s no reason at all that a Dob mount should be unstable, it will have 3 very short feet, so if the ground is not perfectly level, no problem. If the ground is too much on the slope, or a bit lumpy just place something solid under one of the feet. Long thick grass or shrubby ground may be more problematic. In fact a Dob mount is potentially more stable because the tube assembly is supported on both sides rather than one. Ed.

I cannot precisely answer that. However I can get very close, because I have a NZ 3-6, and an original series Vixen LV 2.5. The LV 2.5 is more comfortable in use because of its 20mm eye relief. But in other regards it compliments the 3-6 excellently. I’m a double star fan, and on nights of decent seeing the 2.5 teases out those very tight doubles that are so satisfying when finally, a split is confirmed👍 For me, the 2.5 is a specialist tool, the 3-6 more useful more often. Off topic- Those of us who remember the LVs introduction in the 90s will recall how amazing they were. The 20mm ER was a game changer, especially in the shorter focal lengths! Similarly the 3-6 with 10mm ER is luxurious compared with times past when very high power meant almost attaching your eyeball to the glass! Ed.

If you pm me your address, I’ll send you a 1.25” parfocalizing ring for free😊

I’ve enjoyed many times at Kelling star party, the great skies, great company, the trade stands and secondhand stuff…. One year we had FIVE consecutive clear nights in a row. I felt compelled to use them all, but enough is enough and I was desperate for a cloudy night so I could…………😔😔😔😔😔😔😔

The mirror must have a tiny amount of slack. With due respect to popular opinion, a credit card is a bit too thick for measuring how close the mirror surface is from the clips. I’d suggest something much thinner is sufficient, whilst still leaving a tiny gap. This works for me- A piece of stiff paper. For radial movement, gaffer tape or similar can be used to fine tune the tiny gap needed between mirror and side restraints or cell.

On 25th March 1991, George Alcock aged 78, using 10x50 binoculars through double glazing, made his final discovery. Nova V838 Her. Confirmed by Denis Buczinski

As above….. About the only exception could perhaps be with binoculars. You would need the room lights off to prevent reflections. The late great George Alcock used binoculars through glass as he got older. If you’re elderly and poor health makes heading outside in the cold a tough call, then the compromise of viewing through glass would be better than no views at all.

Welcome to SGL lots of folk on here ready to help😊 Never used Stellarium but many do and recommend it. The smartphone adapter may be useful. But please be aware that many of the fabulous images you have seen will have been obtained by dedicated imagers with expensive kit. Best to start with visual and see how it goes. The BST Starguider eyepieces available from our sponsor FLO are recommended as likely the best available for the price. I’ve used most of the BSTs and the best of those were the 5mm 8mm & 12mm. Cheers from Ed.

Hi Gerry, enjoyed your enthusiastic report👍 My highest power eyepieces are the venerable TV 3-6 zoom, and a Vixen LV 2.5. In excellent and rare moments those eyepieces work well, giving satisfying views on double stars. But I’m told by a trusted local friend that high end fixed focal length eyepieces beat my 3-6 zoom, and my LV 2.5. I can see in your equipment list you also have a 3-6 zoom, your comments appreciated. Ed.

Welcome to SGL! There’s several reasons for poor views with your scope- Collimation- alignment of the mirrors. Not in precise focus, stars should appear as tiny points. Cooldown- applies especially to mid to high power viewing. Possibility of viewing a galaxy which will always look like a fuzzy blob. Bortle 3….I’m not envious, I’m VERY ENVIOUS INDEED😊

Late to the party (again🙄) I noticed this scope has 3 pairs of collimation screws, same as my early model Vixen 80/910 achro. Never needed to collimate mine, but their presence shows they cared how they were made. Simple but effective ‘old school’ construction. Nice to meet some of you recently at Kettering 👍

I’m not bothered if they match as long as they keep my feet WARM🥵😊

Ditto eyepiece advice👍

Thanks Stu. Your image shows NGC 1502 at the lower end of the Cascade. For those not familiar with this, take a look at the lower end of the Cascade in Stu’s image, where it divides into an upside down Y shape. Next to the shorter part of the Y you can see tiny NGC 1502, with Struve 485 as an elongated star. Higher power brings out this open cluster and the double star nicely. You don’t need a large aperture to do this, even from town. My 70mm Pronto gets the job done. Genesis would do it better😊 For new folk. Don’t believe those who say you can’t do enjoyable astronomy from town, because you most definitely can!! Ed.

Yesterday at the Practical Astronomy Show I got into a discussion with visual observers about my use of NGC 1502 as my name on SGL. So I thought an explanation would be fitting on here. It’s quite simple actually…… Many of you will have heard of Kemble’s Cascade (Kemble 1). It’s a 2.5 degree long alignment of stars in Camelopardalis, a dim far northern constellation. It’s an asterism brought into prominence by a Canadian monk called Lucien Kemble. Lucian wrote to Walter Scott Houston (Sky & Telescope magazine) about a “beautiful cascade of faint stars tumbling from the northwest down to the open cluster NGC 1502. In 1980 Walter called the line of stars “Kemble’s Cascade” and the name stuck. NGC 1502 is a tiny true open cluster. Within the cluster is double star Struve 485. So- three objects in one, an asterism, open cluster plus double star. It’s circumpolar from northern latitudes therefore available all year, but best viewed in winter. Kemble’s Cascade is a nice binocular or low power wide field scope object. NGC 1502/Struve 485 best viewed at higher power. Enjoy😊 Ed.

I suppose I have to reluctantly agree, that in today’s market a TV Genesis can easily be beaten by modern premium refractors. And yet I have to admit that ownership is not always completely logical. Some of us yearn after cars made decades ago. Have you ever watched “Bangers and cash” on television? Owners and potential owners (and me) drool over cars from yesteryear. There’s just something about them that modern cars cannot satisfy. Are those cars more efficient, more reliable, more comfortable, easier to maintain, have better performance than modern cars? No……but as I said earlier, it’s not always completely logical. I own both a TV Pronto and a Skywatcher ED80. Same comparison! So if you already have a TV Genesis, or still want one, just go ahead and enjoy it😊 Ed.

Whilst I’m not able to help with the scope questions…..I’ll just comment on your sad loss. That’s because I share your pain having lost my dear wife Ann 6 years ago. I know how hard this is to cope with. We’re all different in the way we go forward after we go through deep pain. But one thing I can say is if you can fill the void as best you’re able, to build a new life. We have to accept that life will never be the same. But that doesn’t mean we cannot go forward building a new life. Your request for help with your astronomy kit does mean that you are picking up the pieces and attempting to go forward. Your journey will be different to mine, but I wish you well and hope that eventually the pain will lessen as it has for me. One further piece of advice if I may. Best not to make any big changes for a while, like moving or finding new love. Give it time, you’re still in shock even if you don’t realise that. Take care, and all good wishes, Ed.

I’m assuming your 150p is a solid tube. No need to leave the tube pointing up for cooldown. Removing the dust cover will allow air to circulate to help cooldown. Having said that a 150p shouldn’t take long to cool unless stored in a heated room and it’s sub zero outside. And for viewing at low power hardly any cooling needed. Al Nagler at TeleVue is on record as saying that eyepieces don’t need cooldown. With a Newtonian a dew shield to extend the front end of the tube will help to reduce dewing of the secondary mirror. Keep any eyepieces not in use covered in a box, or capped and in an inside pocket. Those eyepiece racks on the side of a scope are ok for brief storage but not for extended use, that’s an invitation for dewed up eyepieces. A 12v dew gun is handy for removing dew from a Newtonian secondary. Remove the eyepiece, fire the gun down the focuser. That’s only useful for light misting up, if water droplets have formed it’s game over. Next time out perhaps don’t use any filter at all to start with. If all is ok then you could try filters later. If during a session dew forms then stop and think it through. If eyepieces or secondary are dewed then the 12v dew gun mentioned earlier may sort it, at least for a while. In severe conditions I’ve had Newtonian primary mirrors dewed up. Game over, unless it’s a truss tube and a dew gun can be carefully pointed at the primary mirror after removing truss tube and shroud. Bringing cold gear into a warm house will greatly increase moisture forming on everything. If you have a shed/conservatory closer to ambient that possibly could help. Hoping the above may help at least a bit, or others chip in with their thoughts. Above all please don’t let these frustrations put you off. Your efforts to succeed is your gateway to a lifelong passion. Cheers from Ed.

Not heard of that first book….sounds good, enjoy. ”Turn Left” as it’s often abbreviated to is just brilliant. Expanded over the many years of production and deserving of a place on any astronomer’s bookshelf. Please don’t think of Turn Left as only for beginners, even years down the line it remains useful.

Welcome to SGL from another Essex member. Lots of folk here to help👍

It’s a mystery to me why an Orion UltraBlock should not be excellent. The one I had for years gave wonderful views when used on the right object. This was even with very modest apertures like my 70mm TV Pronto, although that was under an excellent sky at Kelling Heath in Norfolk. The only issue I had with the UltraBlock was thread compatibility. I replaced it when a friend was selling off equipment and I bought his Lumicon UHC. Direct comparison did show the Lumicon was marginally better, depending on the object in view. And zero compatibility issues, it fits any eyepiece or accessory I’ve tried it on.