Quetzalcoatl72

Here's the most recent log, i have no idea how to read these so it could be a mess, if there's any settings i should change that show on there please let me know for next session thanks PHD2_GuideLog_2022-01-07_180540.txt

neq6 with belt mod. i recently took it apart, found shredded metal in the roller bearing, idk where it came from but the only real damage i found was on the small bearing, theres 2 dints that cause it to rotate badly, just like the mount binding one way but not the other, the same thing happens rotating the bearing one way. I ordered a replacement, i think that may be the issue, not sure though till i replace it, regrease and re assemble Edit: The shredded metal could be from the thread around the 4 screws that hold the worm plate in place when tuning which i've done countless times to fix binding and backlash

I think i know what dithering is but i've only been doing that with lights during the sequencing in nina, do i need to do that for all my other calibration frames?

only 8 hours? you're lucky enough to get 2 in the uk

I use the standard skywatcher one for my other setup that works, I realized i always had 200fl set on phd2 for that finder when actually i found out last night people say its 180. The astro essentials one i use with my rc is apparently 240. I'm not sure how much difference this makes in phd2. I was guiding 5 minute exposure the night before with my other setup, in the end last night i did end up just imaging bodes because that was the only one i could find, could only do 3 minutes though, could be the wind but it wasn't really that strong at all. So i failed to mention that when i set it to go to the home position the gears would bind and make a sickening noise, I tested this last night when the clouds rolled in and it's pretty bad. I spend 2 hours trying to adjust the gear mesh ect but still no luck, It seems to bind more rotating from one side. This noise did happen on my other setup but i ignored it because it was still guiding perfectly, auto meridian flip always fails and it could the gears, sometimes it does it when i'm inside so i don't get to see what happened, but one time i sat with it and it didn't even attempt to move, just says meridian flip failed on nina. I seem to have more problems imaging with the scope pointing to the south in general which would explain why the crab and bubble nebulas did not appear on screen even after plate solving and entering the co-ordinate's manually in stellarium. Bodes and pinwheel however did appear after doing that and they're faced on the opposite side. I will post screenshots i took last night and phd2 notes

I just assume you recalibrated if you mess around with adjusting the gears etc. When do you do it?

I'm confident in my balancing. I did fix the zigzag after re-calibrating in phd2, and picked the correct focal length for the finder. Sometimes a star would be lost which caused it or the program just freaked and i had to relaunch but it could not do 4 minutes exposure, it was a little bit windy but nothing too bad, there is something wrong with the gears in RA i'm sure. I spent 3 hours trying to fix the binding

When i use my askar 180 or my ed80 the set up runs fairly smoothly but when i use my rc8" it all goes to hell, first off the finderscope is never in the same calibration as when i perfectly matched it up with the main scope(seriously why don't finderscopes just come permanently attached to the mainscope and corrected flawlessly?) seems that just me picking it up ruins it even though the screws are firmly tight. So i waste over an hour trying to find a bright star to get it all matched up perfectly, EVERY TIME I GO OUT. And Secondly the PHD2 software doesn't seem to work with this scope, when i do exposures, the stars are always zigzagged across the screen. I'm using nina and i refuse to try anything else, time is short and learning a new program is a night wasted, i only had 4 sessions in 2021 due to bad weather. FYI the finderscope im using is a Astro Essentials 50mm f/4 which is supposed to have a 240FL

i'm mainly using it for the askar 180 with my asi533, so i will be imaging the big stuff, rosette, horsehead, heart soul, m32,45 etc. Using a ircut filter atm. I already have a OPTOLONG 2" L-Pro Deep-Sky Light Pollution Filter, but it wont fit with this setup, needs to be 1.25, what do you guys recommend, should i just get the 1.25 version of what i already have or can you suggest better?

thanks, I never thought about the clutch tbh, need like a checkbox in my head when i'm out soo many things you need to run though problem solving setups etc. since the majority are using atp instead of nina i'm going to have to try it for one night. I'll try it without nina too

I hadn't been in the field properly for a few months until one night it was finally clear so i thought i'd give it a go, besides I had not tested my altitude mod so the mount can be used at 54 lat. Was tough to remember how to set up but i'm sure I did everything correctly, I use NINA as my main imaging software, which is also Connected to a few other programs like ASCOM, one of them being PHD2 Guiding, once I had setup everything, perfect balance slightly east heavy etc, I went to my target m27 for the night, I took a 3 minute sub, it looked fine so i set a sequence and started guiding with phd2, I was confident that it was going to work because i've done it before, So I left it running for an hour taking 20 3 mins shots. Came back to find that all the images were ruined, the stars were in a zig zag pattern and the nebula was no longer in frame. I tried to get it back in frame then started another 3 mins to check on it, I noticed the guide star that i chose was no longer on screen which it should have been and the image was again ruined by a zigzag trail pattern. So I decided to re calibrate, afterwards I started guiding and noticed that the star moved around lot more than it should, it should stay in one place the whole time right? I'm using pulse guiding, can anyone help with this i'm so frustrated with this hobby it's just not worth it with constant problems every single time i go out. I made sure I was accurately polar aligned using sharpcaps polar align method.

they told me they had to get another supplier and now they're in stock for 129.99, i just ignored them. that's way too expensive for a chunk of metal, i just got someone to screw a piece of metal on the mount for free and it works fine!

Wish you didn't include that there was a 60£ off previously lol, now I'm tempted to wait for the next one which could be anytime! When is the next clear night though, probably will be down to 200 by then 😑

there's even a spelling mistake on the ad, it has a lot of 5 sar reviews one of them mentioning the use for telescopes but also noting the bad AC ouputs which several have confirmed. It all points to China which is a country I never trust

Does anyone know if this product or something similar would be a better replacement for leisure batteries. https://www.amazon.co.uk/ALLPOWERS-Portable-Generator-Emergency-Technology/dp/B081DSC1HD/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=KJEGPKJZJYAVDYJ5BHD2 It seems like the perfect thing for me to use, It has sockets for laptops, cig sockets for dew heaters and the mount. My leisure battery doesn't charge all the way, maybe i need to top up the acid cells or something I don't know, it's a 75amp battery. I need something quick and easy to set up, no mods, no soldering, low maintenance and no pulling my arm out the socket with the weight! My laptop can last 2 hours, I'm only using the mount, but when it gets cold i'd need the dew heater and camera fan if it's a good night for dss.

I've got 1476 h17 files in the astap folder if those are the right ones

I can platesolve quite well at home because I use Astrometry.net, but when I eventually go out where there's no internet I will have to rely on other means and those do not work properly. I use NINA mainly, I have no time to learn how to use APP and it's not free, not enough dark skies to waste by testing it out. I have installed ASTAP, All Sky Plate Solver and PlateSolve2, I have no idea how to use these on their own but on NINA I have ASTAP set up as my plate solver which doesn't seem to work, I have the file locations correct, because it does run it but then fails and Astrometry boots up as the backup. I cannot waste any nights I've been waiting 4 months for a clear night, so I'm wondering if there is a way I can sort this problem out without having to set up? I'm planning to use sharpcap for recording the planets tomorrow night so I technically don't need to set up a lot of things, but I would like to find neptune right away and plate solving would definitely help with that. Any help is much appreciated thanks.

i remembered i spent 100 on a replacement glass on the scope so thats 950 in total, i will not make much off of that to be honest i'll just sell the mount

Guess i need to figure out if it's worth keeping or not when I already own a 8" rct, 80ed evostar and an askar 180

ebay and on here, even dropped it to 150 recently. Reason i'm keeping the sct is still figuring out if i still need it after now owning a 8" rct, 2 different types of scope. Never had the time to compare fully because of the constant cloudy weather

Trying to sell my used a dozen times Nexstar se mount and tripod. It came with the 5" sct but i'm keeping that(for now). The retail price was £850. If i was to sell the whole thing I'd want £600, because it's used. £250 off for a few surface scratches is a fair deal in my honest opinion. So the mount and tripod together I'm after is £200, scope worth £400, because the optics are more valuable (if I sell that), surely? I see the handset replacement is £100 by its own. So I'd say it's a fair price right? But no, I get offers like 75 and 100, why? 850 was a lot of money

They change constantly, unreliable app, just look out the window, they can't even forecast that. Green = maybe

Interesting, so the numbers do have a meaning. I'm not sure I'll use a filter wheel, my location is just not worth it I don't think. All my cameras are MC, cuiv the lazy geek on youtube uses a 533mc with filterwheel, not exactly sure what he's doing there but he lives in a white zone!

I got these in a neat eyepiece carrying case by Celestron, but I never really used them, just the moon filter a couple of times. There's no special name on them just the colour of the filter and a number. They're official Celestron so I assume they are of some quality but are they worth using for astrophotography in any way? was thinking of just selling them.

Looking for a wide angle lens for scenery and milkyway shots as well as one where I can take large close ups(microphotography) of crystal structure for my mineral collecting hobby and the odd insect I find. Would it be possible to get a 2 in one? if so can you recommend any for my canon 600d? if not then would anyone suggest both? no more than 250 each new or used Also as a side note, my camera is modded so pictures have an orange tint to them, I have the AA filter that was removed and either I want to put it back or maybe theres another option, like a correction filter of some kind so I can take normal pictures? I think it is a baader correction filter installed, not sure what that is exactly as i've had it for several years.