SuburbanMak

Good point, which I have twice experienced. The first time was looking at comet Neowise, which kick-started my midlife journey back to the hobby. While marvelling at the view in my 10x50s from the car-park behind my house, a group of "yoofs" rolled down the window of their Ford Fiesta to shout "Pervert!!" as they roared past - it was also a brilliant illustration of the doppler effect. I will never forget it. As for the "nerd" tag, I was mildly affronted to hear myself branded a nerd after bumping into a radio amateur occupying my usually deserted observing spot on the South Downs, we were mutually startled by each other's presence so I explained I was up there to do some astronomy. I could then hear him joking over his radio about this massive nerd looking through his "big telescope, phnaar, phnaar". Seriously, to be branded a nerd by a radio amateur - some people have no sense of irony...

This is a good topic for a cloudy day... I like to identify (to use the current terminology...) based on the situation, but certainly for me there is a hierachy - I'd consider "amateur astronomer" a higher status than "stargazer" for sure. If I go out to a darker site with a list of double stars to split, a specific DSO object to hunt down or solar system event to observe I like to think of myself as an "amateur astronomer", particularly if I record and share the results. If I head out with no plan and just gawp at my favourite objects & targets of opportunity, I would consider this "stargazing". Both are great! It's a purely personal definition for me based largely on the amount of forethought and effort that goes into a session. Could easily be argued that everything I do falls into the "Stargazing" category as I've never got my act together to contribute to citizen science programmes like variable star measurement, contributing to scientific knowledge being very definitely in the "astronomy" rather than merely "stargazing" category (which is why @JeremyS is well justified in "identifying" as an astronomer!). One of my favourite post-observing activities (alongside a generous single malt) is to read up on the astrophysics of what I have observed that night, hopefully this puts me in the "astronomer" camp at least spiritually

Looking at the Met Offie Cloud cover map as the rain patters against the windows and almost convincing myself that there's a chance of some views tonight round Hampshire way, also possibly Sunday evening. I do hope so, itching to get first light on my new Tak FS60Q which has been taunting me all week & basically currently functioning as an ornament...

I found the Hyperion 24mm a great option in the Mak 127 who's long Fl is very forgiving on eyepieces - it gave the max possible FoV in the Mak (1.04 degrees) giving 63x mag and a nice bright, contrasty image with a good dark background - this was my main galaxy hunter in the Mak and with it, from a mid Bortle 4 site, I was able to track down most of the Messier galaxies (M109, M77 & M83 still elude me...) as well as delivering superb crisp, flat-field views on star clusters. Might not fare quite so well in your ST however - having said that though, I used the BH24mm regularly in my ST80 and it wasn't too bad - losing focus slightly over maybe the outer 15% of the field but not to a disturbing degree (the Hyperion 31mm Aspheric was quite another story, delivering a massive field in the ST80 but an almost sea-sickness inducing level of aberration!). Verdict: Hyperion 24mm definitely a great value option in a long Fl 'scope.

Hi Neil - that SW 8x50 finder on the Mak stays pretty true, certainly I took it off the 'scope to & from every session outside the garden. I just used to make sure I pushed the mounting bracket fully home so it got locked into the same place each time.

Thanks Al - it’s been a very enjoyable transaction and great to meet up in person (& see all your fab ‘scopes!). The 30mm should give me 3.5 degrees in Q mode and just under 6 degree field in CB, widefields all round! I’ve lots of exciting options to test out once the sky clears, hadn’t registered with me that the Feathertouch will fit on the DC so thanks for that nugget too.

Likewise great to meet you Neil - look forward to reading of your adventures with the mighty Mak! With all these new telescopes though we have pretty much guaranteed cloud for the foreseeable!

I was the postman today - great to meet up with @LondonNeil to pass on the Skymax 127. The pang of regret at parting with a much loved ‘scope eased by knowing its going to a good home and by the excitement of heading over to meet up with @astro_al to pick up his lovely Takahashi FS60-Q, complete with Feathertouch focuser. Inevitably cloudy tonight but it’s all looking good on the mount!

Absolutely agree with this - the same thing is in the back of my mind whenever I look at a Messier object through “The Gentleman’s Telescope” a lovely brass Clarkson 3” f15 c.1909 - Messier made many of his earlier discoveries through a refractor of similar aperture. To have this venerable old ‘scope slewing around the sky on a modern Wi-Fi guided mount is a very satisfying steam-punk experience. The magic of those tight, ball like stars and high contrast planetary views against inky black backgrounds has led me down a path of eBay childhood wish fulfilment for the white enamel tubes I saw in Dixons showroom as a kid - in addition to the edwardian Clarkson I’ve a Hilkin f13.3 60mm, Prinz f11.8 60mm and a TOWA 339 80mm f15, then there’s the widefield 2” converted ST80. All of these seem to have been gateway drugs to a severe bout of Tak-itis. Since buying a Tak FC100 DC a year ago I’ve rarely been motivated to look through anything else and it will be joined by an FS60Q this coming weekend! A sell-off will ensue but I will briefly own 7 refractors. (Rest assured though, that brass Clarkson has a home for life…)

I’ve run a Tak prism in the SW Mak 127 for the last couple of years - it definitely tightened things up as regards light scatter.

I am no eyepiece expert by any means but to me it looks like one of those cracking value items that occasionally crop up. (The last one I succumbed to being the APM clone 30mm UFF). Thanks also for your kind words - I am really fond of my Mak, it got me back into the hobby and has shown me some amazing things - but I am taking a leaf out of my better half’s ultra practical book in that if it’s not in regular use then it’s a missed opportunity for someone.

Thanks Nik - not at all trounced, you can see the difference as to be expected, but like so many things (thinking Hi Fi in particular) incremental improvement whilst appreciable is by no means proportionate to cost. What’s interesting to me is that bit extra in terms of contrast, star presentation, colour and seeing cut-through (for want of a better expression) add up to more sessions where you get drawn in and stay at the eyepiece for hours on nights when you might otherwise pack up.

Another clear Friday combined with the arrival of my SGL-crowd recommended SV Bony 3-8mm zoom eyepiece had me itching to get out last night. With the full moon blazing away I had no particular DSO plans so took the opportunity to mount up the Skymax 127 Mak alongside the Tak FC 100 DC for a little side by side comparison. It struck me that in the year since buying my 4 inch Tak, I haven’t looked through the Mak at all, & I need to decide whether there’s enough difference in their function to warrant keeping the Mak or move this much loved ‘scope on to someone who will give it the use it deserves. The arrival of the 3-8mm zoom also meant that I could compare the two scopes at a range of similar magnifications without too much eyepiece switching. My methodology was far from scientific so if you’re expecting a detailed benchmarking test I apologise in advance… The Mak had a slight disadvantage on the diagonal front as I had a Tak prism in the refractor vs a standard SW mirror in the Mak. I’d have switched to even the field but with the Tak in its current configuration I can’t reach focus with the mirror & as I say, this was a casual comparison. First up I popped a 24mm Baader Hyperion in the f12, 1500mm Mak alongside a 12.5mm Morpheus in the f7.4, 740mm Tak - giving 63x and 59x respectively, close enough for jazz…. First up Polaris, for North-Level GTiX alignment and a good first test. Both ‘scopes showed a nice split and revealed seeing to be quite good, although the Mak’s view a little scruffier as it was still finishing cooling. Both showed the pale white ghost of a secondary well, what was noticeable was that the colour differential was much more pronounced in the Tak, yellow white primary vs grey white secondary. On then to Jupiter, via a first alignment star of Regulus rising in the East. Both scopes showed a cracking view at this 60x ish mag level. Crisp banding in the NEB & SEB with hints of texture and occasional glimpses of the temporal bands N & S. Time to rack up the magnification and get a first look through that SV Bony zoom in the Tak. I popped the Baader Mk IV zoom in the Mak and set the 2 EPs to 5mm & 10mm respectively- around 150x. Through the Tak-Bony combination the detail was superb with a couple of festoons and a notable elongated white spot just E of the equator. Excellent contrast and a pleasing field that took in all four Galilean moons, showing as tiny discs. View in the Mak-Baader combo was also good, with certainly more detail showing than at the lower magnification. I could make out the same features as in the Tak albeit slightly less well defined, I’m not sure with this view alone I would have noticed the white spot for example, although knowing it was there could discern it as a lighter feature. The Tak-Bony combination offered more contrast and sharper definition. I racked up the magnification with the SV Bony to 4mm (189x) and then 3mm (246x). The view at 4mm was superb with I would say a slight softening at 3mm - no way of telling whether this was due to the eyepiece or the sky conditions, one of those rare nights of exceptional seeing required to really test this. Nevertheless the view at these higher magnifications was very good indeed and, for someone quite happy to look through Baader Classic Orthos with their 45 degree field, the 56 degrees on offer here felt positively expansive! The image looked very crisp with light scatter well controlled and no apparent dimming even at the shortest focal length. Another plus point is that the SV-Bony zoom seemed to me to be genuinely parfocal as I stepped through the very positive click-stops for each MM of focal length. I’d never really thought about it until then but my Baader Zoom definitely requires a focusing tweak each time I change magnification. Not having to do so is a definite step up in Zoom user experience. All this coupled with what feels like robust build quality and a smaller form & weight factor add up to a package that I’d say is excellent value for money and gives me the magnification options I’ve been wanting to complement the Tak. Most importantly I am confident it will see a lot of use! The next item of comparison was M42, moonwashed and still rising, but as a very familiar view still a great test object. Both ‘scopes showed a fab view at the 150x mark. Both splitting the trap into a steady 4 stars and showing the encroaching nebulosity well. In this case I noted that the Baader-Mak combination was picking up a distinct greenish tinge, which was great to see! Where the difference came out in the Tak was in the level of texture and contrast shown in the nebula - the sense of stars shining from within a 3D cloudscape. It drew me in and I looked for a long time, stepping up to 4mm (189x) and at this stage seeing glimpses of the ‘E’ star, which I couldn’t replicate in the Mak under last night’s conditions (although I have seen both the E & F stars with the Mak on good nights with a 6mm Baader Classic Ortho). I eventually tore myself away to test out on a couple of doubles, first up Sigma Orionis. Sitting just below Alnitak, Orion’s easterly belt star, this is one of my favourite multiple stars. Both ‘scopes immediately showed a great view of the A/B, D & E components in a field with the nearby triangle of Struve 761. I love this view, which always puts me in mind of Star Trek as it really does look like what I imagined a “star system” to be. In the Tak-Bony combination the faint ‘C’ component that completes the dogleg line was popping nicely as a pale white dot. Going back to the view in the Mak it was there intermittently but harder to spot. I think just that bit of extra contrast coupled with the refractor’s tighter star presentation making the difference. On to a nearby slightly tougher target, Alnitak itself. Not all that well positioned as still fairly low and over the section of my view that has the most heat plume interference from nearby roofs. Views were a bit scruffy in both ‘scopes at 150x but in the Tak, the secondary stood out due to a marked colour difference, yellow vs white-blue. Pushing the magnification further confirmed the split, albeit wobbly. In the Mak the seeing issue meant that I could only really identify that this was not single, not truly split despite the 20mm or so aperture advantage (more on that later). After a break for taxi duties, food and possibly some wine, I was back out at around 10:30. Looked at Iota Cancri - a lovely split in both scopes with the pale blue - orange combination visible in each but more prominent in the Tak. Then on to the last of the objects I had thought about testing, Tegmine, Zeta Cancri - at around 1” this is on the theoretical diffraction limit for the Mak. In the 100mm Tak with the SV Bony at 3mm (246x) I could achieve no more than a “snowman”. For this one challenge I switched the prism diagonal and SV Bony into the Mak and achieved a clean split at 6mm (250x) under gently swimming seeing. Just goes to show that despite all that Flourite, you “cannae change the laws o’ physics” when it comes to aperture. By now, having reached some conclusions, I was tiring of the slight realignment of the ‘scopes required to centre each target for comparison, having not taken the time to fiddle with this at the start of the session. With the Mak on the RH limb of the AZGTIX it was also effectively upside down, rendering the addition of its finder impossible, so the comparisons had required a little bit of target hunting each time. I spent another happy hour looking at a few more doubles (Leo 54, Castor, Algieba) before dropping in the Morpheus 12.5mm into the Tak for a moonwashed star cluster tour taking in M44, M35 (which looked particularly lovely) M36,M37 & M38 - of which M36 was presenting best in the moonlight and local LP - finishing up with a sweep of the Alpha Persei cluster and watching the Pleiades drop below the roofline. Inside for a warm and a glass of red while I pondered my conclusions. The Tak unsurprisingly pips the Mak at the post on the tightness of its star presentation, higher contrast and most notably last night, colour fidelity. It has the edge in “cutting through” the seeing somehow. The Mak stands up very well indeed, delivering great views all round and scored that aperture win in resolving Tegmine - on balance however, I can’t see me selecting it over the 100mm Tak so it’s probably, reluctantly, time for it to go to someone who will regularly give it the starlight it deserves. The SV Bony 3-8mm Zoom is a hands down winner for me. It extends the range of magnification I have available in the mid-focal length Tak up to 246x - that’s as much as I’m going to need on all but the most exceptional of nights. I didn’t compare it directly with my Pentax XW 5mm, will do so at some point, but neither did I look through it and immediately think “this is not as good as the Pentax” (which is in addition a big thing to lug around ). Well made, crisp & contrasty, truly parfocal & amazing value. It’s over £300 cheaper than a TV Nagler 3-6mm zoom as well as having a wider focal range. Very happy punter!

Having fun with the new SV Bony - 3-8mm zoom tonight (I’m impressed!) + have mounted the 127 Mak alongside the FC100 - so it’s Tak v. Mak, report to follow…

Joining the SV Bony 3-8mm Zoom club…

What an amazing trip! And a great read, thanks so much for sharing. Looks like Disneyland for astronomers, one for the bucketlist for sure!

My FC100 DC - one of the best things I have ever bought

Full report on last night’s Winchester shenanigans here:

Work and the start of a cold that had me shivering before I even left the building meant me missing out on this week’s clear skies and enjoying others’ observing reports vicariously on SGL. Friday’s forecast was showing cloud from mid evening so I was keen to get out as soon as my last zoom call ended. I was up and running in the garden in five minutes with the Tak FC-100 DC and ST80, AZGTIX and Berlebach report carryable in one careful trip. Saturn at this point was sliding toward the roofline to the SW but I managed around 15 minutes on it with a 5mm Pentax XW (148x) & Baader Contrast Booster filter, which remained. Between the ‘scope cooling, atmospheric CA and urban heat plumes, seeing was quite poor for the most part but I always get a thrill from viewing Saturn, it’s just what I dreamt of seeing through a telescope as a young lad. I was granted a few 2 or 3 second patches of stability which revealed some banding in the Northern hemisphere, the shadow of the planet on the rings and, once, a hint of the Cassini division on the rings’ Western lobe . Happy with that as it’s probably one of the last views for a while and when it reappears in the summer the rings will be heading toward edge on. Slewing then to Jupiter at a much more favourable elevation and dramatically better seeing. North and South equatorial bands were packed with detail, and I was sure there were two darker areas (barges?) on the Eastern side of the NEB. The Southern temperate band (I think) was strong and constantly visible on the Western side and intermittent with seeing to the East. In the most stable moments the darkening of the Northern area resolved to a polar region and a separate band. Galilean moons, tiny discs, were all to the West, three in a close dogleg that really gave a 3D impression of their orbits, the fourth slightly larger disc further out. Attempted a sketch at the eyepiece (need more practice): Turned to the moon, which was a sickly greenish yellow. I swapped the Contrast Booster out for a Neodymium and normality was restored. Superb views of the terminator, the Tak-Pentax combination delivers such crisp detail. The mountains (Apennines I think) looking fully 3D. Many craters displaying terracing and their central mountains. I didn’t take time to identify individual features, other than the straight wall, which was very prominent, its symmetry looking out of place amid all the complexity. The albedo colour shades due to differing mineral deposits were quite apparent (although came out slightly exaggerated in the iPhone snap I grabbed). By now it was nearly time for my Friday Dad-taxi run, just as well as my fingers had lost feeling in the hard frost. I sneaked a last, moon-washed view of M42 & enjoyed switching between the wide view of the whole sword area in the ST80/SL 30mm UFF (13x) and the much tighter view of the Trap and central nebula in the Tak/Pentax 5mm (148x). Still stunning despite lacking some of the contrast of a moonless night. Didn’t spend long but certainly caught a fifth star in the Trap (E I suspect), then headed in. Duties, food and TV completed I noticed that despite the forecast we still had clear skies after midnight, so as others went to bed I put my big coat on and headed back out. The sky was completely changed, Jupiter and the moon gone from view and Orion dipping West behind houses. Sirius was quite steady low down, and I lingered there on alignment but can’t definitively say I caught the pup. As Leo was high I had an optimistic punt at the Trio, but a vain hope given the light show from neighbours both sides. M81 & M82 just about visible but basically galaxies a waste of time from the garden. Enjoyed a nice split of Polaris while I was up that way though, the Tak rendering the yellow primary and cool white secondary very satisfyingly. Algieba brightened my spirits further, two golden eyes looking back at me through the Morpheus 12.5mm (59x). From there to Castor via a bathe in the Beehive (M44), another target where it’s great to have the widefield side by side with the magnified view. On to M35, some high cloud coming in now starting to degrade the view a little but still lovely at 59x. Swept through the Auriga Messiers - M36, M37 & M38 all still glittery despite the local LP. The gathering high cloud got the better of me, ganging up into bands rolling in from the Southwest rubbing out the stars, the weather had turned, there be a storm brewin’…. Still clear to the East my last target was Izar, Epsilon Bootes - one of my favourite doubles and although lowish and suffering wobbly seeing, was able to achieve a messy split at 148x - confirmed mainly by that fantastic colour difference again, light orange primary vs turquoise secondary. By now I was again very cold and it was gone 2 a.m - that Tak time warp striking again, where what started out as a quick half-hour look becomes a happy two hour stint! In for a warming glass of red and to slowly thaw out under the duvet.

Finally managed to get out twice tonight after many life factors had me missing out on clear skies earlier in the week. The first a planetary and lunar tour pretty much the minute my last work call finished , some last glimpses of Saturn for the year, fine detail in Jupiter and Staggering crispness on the moon. A washed out but still satisfying look at M42 - ditto Saturn, there is no bad view of the Orion Nebula! Then, dinner and two movies later, a second, relaxed garden tour of early spring favourites - mix of obvious doubles, clusters and a couple of LP-washed galaxies. Observing report to follow, but great to be out and definitely achieved that mild, de-stressing euphoria that comes from contemplating the cosmic perspective.

Interesting citizen science opportunity with Southampton Uni reported by the BBC today: University researchers looking for 'black hole hunters' https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-68016276 Link to page on Southampton Uni site: https://www.southampton.ac.uk/news/2024/01/black-hole-hunters.page

I would leave your hair untorn tbh... I haven't owned an ST120 but used a 127 Mak as my main scope for a couple of years + own the ST80, your 'scope's little brother. With the Skywatcher Mak the working aperture is in reality around 120mm anyway, so your resolving power for double stars and small features on the moon, planets etc is essentially the same. The only big difference is in focal length, so you'll need some shorter FL eyepieces to get up to comparable magnifications with the Mak. The ST120 is a 600mm I believe so if you pick up a 4mm eyepiece you'll be getting up to 150x, which will show you some nice detail on the moon & Jupiter, Saturn etc and is for the most part getting up toward as much magnification as UK skys will support on all but the best nights. With a 10mm on board at 60x you should have a super DSO hunter to enjoy! On the plus side, you can enjoy the ST120's widefield views for sweeping clusters and rich starfields - it will take 2 inch eyepieces so something like the superb Stella Lyra (APM) 30mm UFF would give you a 3.5 degree field of view at 20x. If the colour fringing on brighter objects really bothers you, you could in time pick up a Baader Semi APO filter which really cuts it down - https://www.firstlightoptics.com/achromat-semi-apo-filters/baader-semi-apo-filter.html Enjoy what you have, you'll almost certainly buy another telescope in due course! Clear skies.

Had to take my daughter to ice skating in Basingstoke tonight & picked up the Canon IS 10x42s as I left as an afterthought. Drove a few miles out of town after dropping off and enjoyed a short, very cold but stunning binocular session. Seeing and transparency excellent and I reckon a good Bortle 4 if not a bit darker. Spectacular views through Orion, best I’ve seen in Binoculars with real form to the nebula and a myriad of silver stars weaving through the belt region. Hyades, Pleiades, Alpha Persei, Double Cluster, Kemble’s Cascade all very rich views on an inky background. Swept through glittering Auriga with M36/37/38 very apparent. Likewise M35. Gawped at NGC things in Cassiopeia that I need to go and look up. Highlight though was a great view of M31 - the most extent I’ve seen in Bin’s and I could swear some texture in AV. So glad I picked up the binoculars but my goodness that wind is numbing.

Fabulous, inspiring post and congratulations on your 1000!

Spent a happy hour chasing sucker holes from Winchester just now. Too much cloud drifting around to warrant setting up a ‘scope so elected for the 10x42 IS bins. They lend themselves beautifully to views of wider open clusters. I swept around a few objects including the Double Cluster, M35 & the Auriga clusters but, with slightly ropey sky conditions tonight, it’s the views of the Hyades, Pleiades, Alpha Persei cluster and Orion’s Belt regions that will still be there when I close my eyes.