Daf

Ah, I've come across your blog before, great collection of tips and resources! Thank you. The mobile page doesn't show signatures though. Would never have known if you hadn't have said. 🤣

Thanks all. It is the 2" Stella Lyra (I guess GSO?) ED 2x Barlow, I already have. I know at some point I'm going to end up getting the two sizes for diagonals and Barlow's... at least knowing it can be done I can just put off buying a 2" diagonal and 1.25" Barlow and filters for another time, to spread the cost. That is interesting to know the Barlow position will change how it behaves! 🤔

Hi all, Dob 5hinking about getting a 4" refractor (for g&g/travel). I have a 2" Barlow but the refractor I was looking at has a 2" focuser, but I'm more inclined to go with a 1.25" diagonal so that I can use it with a small mak I plan on picking up at some point. Is it possible/are there any issues with putting the Barlow in the focuser, before stepping down to the diagonal? Thanks, Daf.

Hi Jacqui, welcome to the club!

Hi there! Welcome, please come in 😁

Nice report. And good choice on the scope! I'm glad I listened to the advice and started with an 8" as my first big scope... same thoughts as you've had. Other people's don't seem too bad, until you have to move and transport it yourself. 🤣 Hope you have lots more good viewing with it!

^^THIS! But.... then they'd be missing out on the the grant monies, back handers and general smoke being blown up their arses. "Each bulb is 300 lumen so all 4 gives each lamp a maximum of 1200 lumen..." yea, that makes all the difference! My 300 lumen torch looks like it could have been used to identify incoming bombers, during the blitz! .... but I'm sure they all mean well 😇

Thanks for sharing Mark. Definitely one I'll be trying out when I get a chance. 8" dob from 'reasonable' town skies, so will see how it goes 😁

You could always screw a strip of cloth to the rings and have a cloth handle... 🤷

Hi @Starslayer, I'm considering a similar setup to use as a G&G and thinking the ST102 AZ5 set from FLO and debating swapping in a 1.5" or a 2" diagonal, for my 2" accessories. How do you find that the stock focuser handles the weight of the 2" EPs ect? Adequate or something you feel you'd want to update sooner rather than later?

Thanks, I did see but I'm already away for that weekend 🙄

Thanks. I'm getting on really well with it and can only highly recommend it. There's nothing on it that I've felt the need to replace, which again just adds to the value. Only thing you might want to add is a good 2x Barlow to give you some different power options. Only slightest of niggles with it is that there is not enough out travel on the focuser, to focus with the 30mm EP and the extension tube adds too much the other way. So when putting the 30mm in, you need to lift the EP out about a cm before locking it. I don't think that's just me, I've seen it mentioned somewhere else also.

An observation report from last week. A new site for me and some new friends made that night.... Thurs 27th Jan. 23:30-01:00. Mountains above Deri (51.70, -3.28). Bortel4. No moon visible, clear sky above and to the south, low cloudbank to the north and east (never seemed to move). ~1.5degC. -StellaLyra 8"dob. 2" Superview 30mm EP. -10x50 Pentax SP WP binos on pistol grip tripod. An impromptu trip to my mates place up in the mountains, away from towns. Fortunate break in the weather and I'd promised to take a scope up for him to try out. Got to the site about 23.30... spent 5 mins zeroing the bloody finder scope because I'd knocked it all out getting out of the car. Despite the bumpy trip collimation was still good so was straight in to it. 30mm on M42 showed some beautiful detail. Put the 2x Barlow in to try and tease some more detail out of it.... If I was by myself I would have made a sketch of it, was some of the best seeing I've had. From there back up to 30mm and observered M31. Pretty low on the horizon at this point so just the standard fuzzy disk. When told how far away Andromeda was, my mate was genuinely in awe he could see something 2.5mil Ly away, and that enthusiasm alone made the trip worth it. At this point we became aware of movement around us ( it was pitch black and up the common and we didn't want to be mistook for doggers). My mate turned a torch on and all of a sudden, we were surround by about a dozen or so wild horses, less than 10meters away!... not bothered by us at all they went about their business and slightly freaked out, we went back about ours. Back to M45, hyades and the double cluster. My mate seem really interested by the view of the open clusters and various star colours, so I got the 10x50 binos out on a tripod as well and went through them all comparing views between binos and scope adding M41, M35 and M44 to our viewing list as well. Spent about 1.5hrs viewing in total until the cold moved us on. Ran in to our old equine friends on the drive home as well half way down the mountain... straddling the road just like sheep, eating grass and still completely unbothered by us, even in the car 🤣 A good experience for both of us before we embarked on a lads long weekend.

Hi all, My name is Dafydd, 'Daf', from Caerphilly, South Wales. Signed up to this forum about a year ago and long time lurker... but thought I should actually start participating more in the community, so here is my introductory post! Started off stargazing with my binos and picked up an 8" dob about a year ago - coincidence?! Completely disappointed with the British weather since!!! Feel free to say hello and hopefully I'll be able to meet some of you at some point at events. Cheers, Daf.