PeterStudz
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Posts posted by PeterStudz
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8 minutes ago, Stu said:
These were all smartphone images! I wish my sketches were that good 😀
If someone thought that my smartphone pictures (well, any single shot picture) was a sketch I be well chuffed! Nice images @Stu. Sketching is something I’d like to learn/be able to do. I have far more interest in that than trying to go full on astrophotography using a PC, software and stacking. It sounds far too much like work
Out of interest. I recently asked a friend of mine, who is a very good photographer, mainly nature/landscapes, if he’d considered astrophotography. His reply was “I seriously thought about it but couldn’t be bothered with all that stacking”. It’s not for everyone. I have an interest in seeing what a smartphone camera can do but that’s as far as it goes.
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Interesting, I have a similar problem (could be the same) on a similar telescope, a neglected Skywatcher Skyliner 200p Dob which I’ve been restoring.
However hard I tried and whatever I measured I could not get the secondary far enough away from the primary. a>b in @Spile excellent article. I had the whole secondary plus spider out at least half a dozen times. For me the centre spring was maxing out (fully compressed) before the secondary holder physically came into contact with the spider hub. The work around was to cut down the spring, just a little, to ensure a bit more travel. I actually have a spare spring but that’s another story.
In the picture you can see how little wriggle room I have left. This was after I cut the spring down. At this point it was just roughly collimated, paying attention to getting a=b. I’ve also added the milk bottle mod yet there’s barely room for that. It’s now fully collimated but with the room/movement I have after cutting the spring down I can only just do it. Somethings not quite right but it now works.
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I was able to see it from Southampton at around mid-day, although a total cover of thick haze/mist spoilt the view it was still worth seeing. Stood out like a sore thumb and could still tell it was something unusual. I left the telescope out in the hope it would improve but the haze just got worse until it was cloud.
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@PeterC65 I’m in Bortle 7, although until recently ClearOutside had it as Bortle 8. I’d say Bortle 7 is more accurate but it looks the same to me. Bortle 4 is a dark sky for me! I’ve got a few likely spots to check out that are about a 30 mins drive from me that are Bortle 4. Still, there something special about observing from your own garden.
Here, I find that light pollution is at its lowest from about 1:30am. In the past I’ve set my gear up outside and slept on the sofa downstairs, or, when it’s warmer, slept on an air bed outside without a tent. Then got up in the early hours. Of course sleeping outside can only really be done in the warmer months when there’s not so much to see. But I’ve done this with my daughter who loves camping even if it’s just the garden. We’ve then looked for shooting stars and used the binoculars before sleep. It also means that when she does get up to look in the telescope her eyes are dark adapted. Trying to get a 10 yr old to sit outside and get use to the dark isn’t easy. We also camped in the garden last summer when Jupiter and Saturn were in the sky at around 2am onwards - great fun - she does prefer the planets.
One other thing I’ve noticed. I’m sure that there was less light pollution during the lockdowns. Even in Bortle 7 it can be surprising. I know that certain areas of my sky are darker than others and if an object is high in the sky the views are always far better.
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That’s fantastic! Seeing has been OK here but transparency poor. Don’t like saying it but I think we need a spot of rain to clear the air.
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5 hours ago, PeterC65 said:
I think open clusters sometimes benefit from lower magnification so that you can see some context and see that they are a cluster and not just a bunch of stars right across the field of view. I don't even bother to look at M45 with the MAK as it looks so much better with the widefield of the refractor. I was expecting to find the same with M31 but despite its size I can only ever see the relatively small bright centre.
The best view I’ve got of M31 was with 8x binoculars while on holiday in Southern Crete. The area is Bortle 2. It covered just over half the FOV and I could just make out M32 as well. It was quite low in the sky too.
Here, all I can see (so far) is the bright core if I’m lucky.
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As has been pointed out by some for me it’s time. And it’s easier to post a quick picture. Eg I have spent a good 5 hours observing in one night, then taken a smartphone picture of something I’ve seen before I pack up, spending around 30 mins taking the images. Then posted one of those images on here.
Sadly the observing report gets left. In fact I don’t think I’ve written one. I also find it difficult to write something like this but must give it a go. In fact I have a backlog of things I want to post/discuss.
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18 hours ago, Kon said:
I was out with my nearly 5 year old daughter trying to photograph it through the telescope. Awful images since it was too low in the sky and too much atmospheric disturbance, but made for a great 'night out' with her guiding me where it was. I loved it! Wed is a W to E at 86 degrees Passover so that's your best bet for nice pics.
I know what you mean by great “night out”. My kind of thing too. And from what I’ve learnt it’s always worth practicing and learning. The seeing was poor here but I used the night to iron out some bugs, try my new DIY dew shields in action and finally look at the moon. However, the moon was boiling away and the views somewhat disappointing - to be expected but hoped it might be slightly better!
Tonight looks like it could just might be better.
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The ISS just made a long bright pass as I was setting up. I must try and see it or even try and take a picture through the telescope.
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Nice one @Penumbrella. Here’s my attempt from last year using an iPhone on an even smaller telescope (Skywatcher Skyhawk 1145p pictured here doing some solar) in Bortle 7, although last year ClearOutside gave it Bortle 8. However, I could see it in the telescope as a faint fuzzy patch. Then M3 was high in the sky. My advice is to wait, or stay up into the early hours, when the object you want to view is as high as possible. Then, especially in light polluted sky, it’s darker.
I find it fun trying to see what smartphones can do without stacking and minimal processing on the phone.
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9 minutes ago, Stu said:
Oh, and regarding collimation, I agree that the standard springs are not up to the job, but I found the best method was to get it basically right, then fine tune using the locking knobs rather than the collimation adjustment. This lead to a much firmer setting which held well.
This is exactly what I do now and wish I’d known - took me several months of trial and error before I worked it out!
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Nice balance review.
Having made a Dob base I’d make another. My experience of trying to strengthen something made out of wood is that you never quite get there and will never be happy. It’ll also bump up the weight.
Plywood is lighter and stiffer than chipboard/MDF which I assume is what it’s made out of. I used standard relatively inexpensive 18mm Far Eastern plywood for my base and it turned out as solid as a rock.
And as for weights. Personally I prefer to balance a Dob with weights rather than totally depend on tensioning. I like to balance the OTA and use the tensioning knobs so that it moves in both directions with equal force. Having it move one way easier than the other makes tracking a less pleasant experience.
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This thread made me revisit this interesting article…
https://skyinspector.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/SandT-1999-10-Improving-Dobsonian-Motion.pdf
I’d seen it about 10 months ago when building my base but at the time couldn’t work out exactly what “Teflon sheet” is. The article is from 1999. However, looking at it now it’s obvious. It’s basically PTFE sheet often used for heat presses and is now easily available and cheap eg…
Moreover, I might have already used something virtually identical without realising. I experimented with PTFE tape on my Alt bearing and found it good. The construction of PTFE tape sounds very similar to this sheet. It also has a dimpled surface. I’ve attached a closeup picture of the bearing/tape that I used.
I’m going to order some of this sheet to see what it’s like and do a few experiments myself.
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2 hours ago, Louis D said:
Rick Singmaster of Starmaster Telescopes preferred using teflon pads riding on FRP (Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic) wall board (or glass board) for the azimuth bearings.
Yes, I saw that. Although I couldn’t find anything quite like that in the UK. If there’s a place to buy these here I’d be interested.
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As for contact/impact adhesive. I’ve tried a few types but keep coming back to good old Evo-Stik. Get it in a tin (a few sizes available), like my well used example, rather than a tube. Can do large surfaces, spread with a foam brush or thin piece of plastic or ply. I haven’t tired it on Formica but it should work. Creates a very flexible bond. I’ve used it to bond foam mat for dew shields and if you attempt to pull it apart the foam will split instead of the join.
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On 22/01/2022 at 13:39, Dark Vader said:
If you can't find a replacement cover, as a workaround try a collimation cap and put some tape over the hole.
https://www.firstlightoptics.com/other-collimation-tools/rigel-aline-collimation-cap.html
Edit: a quick google came up with this: https://www.nipon-scope.com/lens-caps-covers/31.5mm-lens-cap-cover-for-telescopes-binoculars-monocular-and-eyepieces-b-31.5x8mm-b-.-plastic
Re the dust cup. I leave the 1.25 inch extension tube in and as suggested above, use the collimation cap with tape over the hole. I find the collimation cap really useful to check collimation before every session by looking down the little hole just to make sure everything is in order.
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1 hour ago, Mr Spock said:
Just had my first look at the moon. Part of my report:
"The sharpness and contrast of this scope is staggering. I've just been viewing at x447 is if it were x200. Huge amount of detail on the floor of Atlas. Also some of the tiniest craters I've seen. Absolutely spanks the C9.25 I had"This scope is a keeper. I'm usually very critical and it takes a lot to impress me. I'm impressed! I'm having right now the kind of lunar views I've always wanted 👍
Hmmm… I can feel my flexible friend getting excited. Must resist! Might put it on my birthday list (which is next month) and hand it to my wife. Although history has shown that something of this value & fun is immediately discarded.
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I used 2mm textured ABS sheet running on PTFE pads for my AZ bearing. I fixed it down using small countersunk screws (no glueing). The idea was that I could easily remove it and try other materials. But it worked so well I didn’t bother. Smooth and virtually no stiction. The sheet is like this…
Surprisingly (well, for me) the Alt bearing I settled on uses PTFE pads running against PTFE tape. I tried all sorts of things instead of the tape but in the end simple PTFE tape was the best. Maybe that’s because the tape does have small dimples.
PS - this was for an 8 inch Dob
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@Sky-J - OK, I’ll take some pictures and write something up in the next few days. Will try and remember to tag you in!
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Plagued by high level clouds here in Southampton but I had fun testing out a second hand PanaView 2” 32mm eyepiece on my Skywatcher 200p Dob and fiddling with the PushTo function in PS Align Pro (phone strapped to the telescope). This worked well, maybe I’ll do a write up when I have time. Mostly a selection of open clusters, but had a look at M81/M82 and M3. I really need to get to a dark site as M81/M82 & M31 are the only galaxies I can see in my light polluted back garden.
First time I’ve seen M37. Why I don’t know as it was stunning in a low power eyepiece.
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lovely images @Stu! And @MalcolmM I also do everything on the phone. In fact I try and keep to the standard phone camera app, even for processing (which is basic), although occasionally I’ll use soothing like Snapspeed or Lightroom. For me a big part of using a smartphone in this way is that it should be as immediate as possible.Mind, I don’t even have a PC (just a smartphone and tablet) so I’m kind of forced to! Out of interest - I use to work in IT. When I left I’d had enough of PC’s, couldn’t stand the sight of the things, and got rid of mine 😀. I Much prefer visual observation. The only reason I started taking pictures is that my daughter wanted to try. She’s shown our pictures to friends and sometimes teachers at school who generally think it’s wonderful. It’s not all about trying to recreate astrophotography standard images.
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Hi,
I started out 15 months ago with something similar. A Skywatcher Skyhawk 1145p on an EQ1. What mount do you own? The EQ1 is very wobbly but there are improvements you can make. I also now have a much larger 200p Dob but I still use the 1145p.
Here it is doing a bit of solar which I can highly recommend. Much depends on the direction you want to take.
If your setup is similar I can give some suggestions learnt from this forum and a dose of trial & error 😀
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Sounds fun and my kind of thing!
About this time last year, when I first found M81/M82, using an even smaller Skywatcher 1145p on and even wobblier EQ1, I used my late dads old 7x50 1960’s binoculars to do the star hop to M81 even though I couldn’t see M81/M82 in the binoculars in my light polluted sky. Then used a combination of red dot finder and low power eyepiece (as a finder) to follow the hop I’d done in the binoculars.
I now also have a 200p Dob with a 9x50 finder and when I’ve found a target for the first time, centred in the eyepiece, I’ll often go back and look in the finder then do a noddy sketch of the star pattern I can see. I then look at the sketch the next time/night I have a chance to go for the target again. It’s amazing how this jogs my memory and enables me to instantly recognised the area of sky in the finder once again.
Like finding your way around a forest without a map these things eventually become second nature.
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White light solar image - AR12975 and 976
in Imaging - Smartphone / Tablets
Posted
@Stu I like those! I’ve done a little experimenting with electronic sketches too. I do have an iPad plus Pencil and what I tried doing was drawing over a smartphone image of a DSO (I used one I’d taken of the Orion Nebula) using a very basic/rubbish pencil sketch I’d taken at the eyepiece for reference. The original image does mean I can get the stars in the exactly the right place. Will see how it goes.