Gazereths

8 minutes ago, AlexK said:

No prob. But perhaps it would be easier to simply install the pointer on the OTA or even on the mount in parallel with the optical axis? I'm using just 2 ropes on my Astroscan:

  a) - pointer;  d) e) f) ropes.
 

Yeah I was just thinking that might be simpler, i'll have to look at my mount to see where it could be positioned, but hopefully something like this:

Or on my smaller MAK/DOB scope I could just strap it to the existing finder?

I was actually thinking of trying my air rifles illuminated reticle scope, but I think this will be a better option. And much lighter and easier to balance.

3 minutes ago, AlexK said:

Yes, the EP is a must, and it must be focused at infinity, as the whole point is to keep the laser beam collimated (otherwise it will fade very quick and will be useless for pointing). But if you plan an adapter for a particular telescope, you can try to reach the focusing lens inside of the GLP and try adjusting its focus to match your telescope objective. Just watch the beam, it must exit your telescope collimated. Or you can dedicate some cheap EP for that (still both need to be focused at infinity).

Ahh yeah that makes sense, it would just scatter otherwise.  I have a cheap 25mm eypiece I might use, but will experiment first, thanks for the tips!!

14 minutes ago, AlexK said:

Sure thing you can! Just keep it safe (for passing aircrafts and yourself, as the back reflection from the eyepiece eye lens may blind you).

A red dot finder (RDF) will work as well, actually. And is in fact a preferable way, but it has some issues indeed.

Yeah I'll be safe and considerate of aircraft for sure. Maybe I could make an adapter for the focuser so the GLP can sit in there. Does it need to go through an eyepiece?

On 07/01/2021 at 16:24, Spile said:

I would give it a go and like you I would choose to go floor mount. I cannot see why raising the pivot would be an issue as long as you increase the base accordingly. Why not use the same dimensions as the Skywatcher?  

It just seemed like the mount would be very thin and top heavy on the drawing I made. The CAD drawing is on my office PC, when I get back there I'll grab a copy so I can show you what I mean. I think I might build one anyway as it's something to do during lockdown. I have the tools and skills, just need the materials (either MDF or PLY I'm thinking)

12 minutes ago, AlexK said:

Sadly, you forgot to mention your telescope and mount models. Knowing what you have to deal with would attract more folks with the same or similar instrument willing to share their experience wit them.

But in general, if you don't want to learn for too long and just need the result get a cheap green laser pointer (GLP), set you scope to point to the pole (0/90 on both setting circles or command it to go-to there), and just shine your DLP into the installed low power eyepiece. Match the end of the green beam exiting from your telescope with the Polaris. Then work with the optical pole finder for more accurate PA.

That's a fantastic tip! I suppose that method could be used instead of using a finder scope/red dot finder while looking for specific stars/planets/DSO's as well? I'm gonna get one for sure as the finders on my scopes are not up to much, and my small scope's finder is always in an awkward position.

I suck at it as well! I was looking into certain apps that might help but none I've tried so far have been great, I just don;t think my smartphone is accurate enough with it's sensors to be of any real help. At least you have a polar scope on yours!

One of the app's I've tried shows you what you should see through a polar scope from your GPS coordinates, but getting it to match is still the trick 😛

Star walk 2 is a decent app for general finding of stars/planets, but like I said it's no where near accurate enough for aligning imo. If you do get that app it's worth it to get the paid version as the free version blasts fullscreen ads at you every so often, ruining your night vision.

On 07/01/2021 at 08:33, SStanford said:

Welcome @Gazereths. 

It's certainly true stock is limited! Lot's of members here have their eyes on kit that pops up on the Wanted section.

Who knows when stocks will replenish...

Absolutely, I've been drooling over a new 8-10 inch dob but stock is very scarce.

On 07/01/2021 at 08:33, DanWri said:

Welcome aboard, Gaz. Hope you find someone from your area that can recommend decent dark sites, however you can look at the known ones for yourself in the meantime here (Peak District is probably your best bet). Clear Skies!

Thanks for the link, I thought the peak district would be the best bet, maybe Blue John cavern or 'Surprise View' though I've heard there maybe a few late night "Dog Walkers" 😛 around.

On 07/01/2021 at 08:49, Stu1smartcookie said:

Hi Gaz , welcome ... you could check the latitude angle of the scope by using a smartphone placed against the mount . Might confirm your suspicions .

Ahh good idea, I'll check that next time we get clear skies here, wall to wall fog and clouds tonight Although I suppose I could check that anytime night or day really. Would be better to get Polaris in view first though I'm guessing.

On 07/01/2021 at 12:12, banjaxed said:

Hi Gaz, welcome to SGL. I f you can stretch your budget a little bit more I can recommend the SvBony 68 degree eyepieces as imo they are excellent value. 

Yeah I've looked at those also, they look decent for the price, I think I'll pull the trigger on one over the weekend. Thanks

33 minutes ago, theropod said:

I have C90 and have owned it almost 5 years. I built a long dew/light shield and flocked the inside. I added the blacked wet/dry sandpaper to the focus tube. With my 2X Barlow and 12 mm EP I can make the Cassini split on a good night. With my 32mm EP Andromeda almost fits in the FOV, and becomes a living monster made of stars. A couple times under great conditions I’ve managed the ring and lagoon nebula. M42 is an evening killer as it’s hard to look away once my C90 has it framed. For the aperture and cost I cannot imagine a better deal. I wonder if two would make uber binoculars?

Sorry to hijack the thread, but do you have any pictures of the mods you've made and how you did them? I'm all about modding stuff to get the best possible performance out of anything.

58 minutes ago, Tiny Clanger said:

https://binocularsky.com/binoc_choosing.php

gives you a few options and some guidance which may help, as will this thread:

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/347301-recommend-me-10x50s/

Thanks for the links, I've gave them a quick glance over, will definitely give them a thorough read  after work tomorrow, gotta get to bed now.

I have noticed that my smaller but better quality 10x26 ones are much sharper and more enjoyable than the pair of no name bigger ones I got for free from my dad (they don't even have the aperture or magnification marked on them, just a name 'inpro' but by the size I'm guessing 10x50) so quality counts more than aperture and mag in my limited experience.

I do remember my grandad left me a pair of Zeiss binoculars but can't lay my hands on them at the moment. Has the quality of lenses and coatings made the vintage ones obsolete nowdays?  Or are high quality vintage still good?

Thanks again @Tiny Clanger

I don't want to spend more than say £50-75 on a pair, I have a half decent pair of small ones (steiner 10x26) that are great for day to day use at the coast or whatever, I just wantsome advice on cheapish 10x50 for general stargazing. I've seen the Pentax ones but they are a little more than I want to spend @ £125-150, then we get into no name ebay specials for around £20-30, is there anything in between worth buying?

Thanks for any input

Thanks for the welcomes @Mr Spock @Philip R @laudropb

Loving the forum so far.

Sorry if this is in the wrong section.

I have the 130m Skywatcher but am less than impressed with the cheap EQ mount, I was thinking of making a Dobsonian mount for it. I did a few quick designs on CAD but found that to get the eyepiece at a reasobale height the mount would have to be too tall and thin to be stable.

I saw this DIY one online but it seems you'd either have to table mount it or be on your knees to use it. Neither is really acceptable for me. (see pic at bottom of post)

How does the circumference/size of the bearings change the stability and smoothness of the mount?

D'ya think it's feasable for such a small scope or am I better off just saving up some pennies (and waiting for stock) and getting a purpose made 8 inch or above Dob?

I am interested in Solar viewing, I obviously need a solar filter for either my C90 Mak or Skywatcher 130. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Is DIY a reasonable option? I've seen the solar film available quite regularly but the pre made filters always seem to be sold out (as with most things atm)

Does aperture matter when viewing the sun as it's so bright? Could I mod the main cap of my 130mm newt? (it has a small removable circular cap on the main cap, would that be suitable to modify? see pic below)

Any advice is most welcome, thanks.

I have the C90 on a Omegon mini Dobsonian mount, it's great for windowsill observing in the warmth/comfort of my own bedroom. I've not had a great deal of time with it yet but have managed to seperate Castor into two stars using a 8mm BST eyepiece. Also had a great view of the moon with the 8mm and 2x barlow (around 300x magnification I believe) though it was a little hazy I could make out really small craters. Not sure if the below picture was just the 8mm or with the barlow. Also not perfectly focused and my sensor on my A6000 Sony definitely needs cleaning (see the black spots). Also this was just taken though the eyepiece (I have a adapter now but haven't tried it yet)

I think Deep Space stuff depends on how dark your shies are though I'm FAAR from an expert. In a truly dark sky I imagine you'd see loads, in an urban area it will struggle.

Hi all Gaz here.

I'm just really getting started at the astronomy game. I have owned a telescope for a few years now but never really got into it until this lockdown business started. I'm guessing a lot of people have taken up the hobby, especially looking at all the out of stock telescopes and equipment online lately.

Current equipment is:

• Skywatcher 130 newtonian reflector on a an EQ2 mount
•  Celestron C90 maksutov on a Omegon mini dobsonion mount (scope was free from my Dad!!)
•  32mm Celestron Plossl, 25mm no name plossl, 10mm no name plossl, 8mm BST Starguider ED, no name 2x barlow
•  T2 adapter ring for my A6000 Sony mirrorless camera
•  * I have a 15mm Celestron omni plossl and matching 2x barlow on the slow boat from China *
•  * Am looking at the SVBony 23mm aspheric 62° eyepiece as it's cheap (will it be better than the no name 25mm that came with the 130 skywatcher?)

I have owned the skywatcher 130 for a few years now but never really got the hang of it, I have trouble polar alligning it to be honest, I'm thinking now the lattitude scale on the mount is slightly off and I need to adjust.  Just waiting for a clear night to see Polaris clearly. It is also a bit of a pain rotating the tube to get the eyepiece in a comfatable location without messing up the balance. But as with everything pratice makes perfect.

My location is just outside of Mansfield in Nottinghamshire so it's pretty badly light polluted, plus I back onto a school that has bright white LED lights on at all times (you'd think they'd shut them off at night but hey ho) and have the new bright white LED street lights on the front

To be honest I find myself using the C90 on my windowsill much more than getting the EQ 130 out in the garden, though the 130mm aperture does give better views for general stargazing. But I was surprised to learn the C90 has a longer focal length and therfore higher magnification for a given eyepiece (upto a limit of course)

I haven't seen a great deal yet, mainly the moon and Mars (though it's small atm) The Saturn and Jupiter conjunction was missed due to poor weather. Though I seperated my first double star tonight, Castor in Gemini . I doubt any nebulea or galaxies will be visible from my location. If there are any East Midlanders here do you have any recomendations  for a good dark site?

Anyway just looking for like minded people to have a chat with and maybe get some advice on reasonably priced upgrades that would make sense.

Clear skys

Gaz