Astro_Nic

Please help! lol

Hi everyone! Hope you are all well. I get my 14" OOUK Dobsonian shortly and I'm thinking of adding another upgraded finder to an 80mm version to assist with hunting down faint fuzzies etc. I am considering the TSFRE80 finder - right angled, 90 degree Amici prism, 1.25" eyepiece attachment. Got no experience of this setup but hopefully you guys can assist: Does anyone have any experience of this model or 80mm finders in general and how do they find them? They state that focus is 3-4mm above receptacle and therefore suitable for Kellner or plossl eyepieces. They suggest their TSIR20 eyepiece - 23 mm illuminated crosshair. FL of scope is 330mm which will give 14 times mag which should compliment the existing finder. It has 55 degree FOV. Are there any better alternatives that will fit? is 55 degree FOV sufficient for a finder? I don't want to over-complicate this. They do a 35mm extension tube - would that help increase the choice of crosshair eyepieces? They do a 70 degree Erfle - no idea what that is or if it will fit the finder, but that is 20mm so 17x mag but at 70 FOV Trying to find another 80mm finder in the UK is almost impossible as nothing is in stock - the Altair version for example has no expected stocking date anywhere. One alternative is the APM straight through 80mm finder from the same supplier which is 2 inch. Would all I need to do is add a Amici prism to turn that into a right angled RACI? Does the 2 inch increase my options or is it not necessary in a finder as it is getting more expensive going down this route? Many thanks for any help you can give in helping me sort an ideal 80mm finder and matching eyepiece. Stay safe. Nic

I think maybe it’s a wait and see job - assuming it’s available as an aftermarket option. Cheers

Now thinking maybe Delos would would be better at that mag - won’t be used as much so paying ethos money for it to sit in a box is maybe not the wisest decision. Sis is coming over from the US shortly so the cost would be c£200 so basically throw away money so can’t lose!

Will the Delos cause more drift problems and constant adjustments at that magnification in a dob? Thanks

Wow the scope looks epic in blue! I enquired about a colour change and they wanted £250....was tempted! What's all the other electronics you have attached to it? and where did you get the cart?, light shield and finder?!

Sorry your scope isn't perfect....makes me think maybe it does need some extra support....but £450 for a piece of steel?

OK so I finally made my initial purchases for my 14" 1,600 FL f4.6 OO dob: 9mm APM XWA 100 degree 13mm Ethos 22mm Nagler Paracorr 2 UHC Astonomik filter OIII Astronomik filter Zebralight H502pr red head torch Some cleaning solution/brushes/clothes etc Wife is looking at an eyepiece for Xmas for me....I will of course try out the ones I've got once OO have built my scope, but do you think I am more likely to use a higher or lower FL eyepiece? I do want some great views of the moon and planets, as well as whatever DSO I can glimpse. Was thinking either 31mm Nagler or 6mm Ethos (I think the 4.7mm might be too much magnification). The 31mm would give an exit pupil of 5.9 - not sure if that is too much for Bortle 5/6 in terms of contrast. It would be (with the Paracorr) 59x mag. My current lowest is the 22 Nagler with 84x. Or I could get the 6mm Ethos for planetary stuff with mag 267x no paracorr or 307x with Paracorr. Still mulling over a powermate to increase options. Thanks for all your help!

So in the end, after much deliberation, I ordered the 14" Orion Optics Dobsonian. As you may know, this comes with a light aluminium tube. I have read some reports regarding tube flexing with heavy eyepiece loads, but I was wondering if anyone had any first hand experience of this? I'm sure it will be fine with just a paracorr and an eyepiece etc, but what about binocular use or if I wanted to get into astrophotography - would this potentially cause any issues? They offer an upgrade to strengthen the tube - a stainless steel part with a radius block inside the tube. What's a radius block? However, they want an extra £450 for this. This seems steep and is as much as a new scope of decent quality! Do I need it? Thanks! Nic

Thanks, I'll check out the filters. My other main concern was whether to go with the 20mm APM XWA 100 degree or the 22mm Nagler T4 - Most people seem to rave about their 22 NT4 so went with that, but I know the APM has a good following too. The other issue is whether I need a higher FL eyepiece than 20/22 such as a 30mm APM UFF - some have suggested that the 22 NT4 won't have a large enough FOV at the 83x magnification. I am concerned with a larger exit pupil giving a brighter background in my Bortle 5ish sky so thought the 22 would be a good compromise. A 30mm would give 59x mag. Thanks again. Nic

OK thanks for all your help. I think I am going to go with the following to start with: 9mm APM XWA 13mm APM XWA 22mm Nagler T4 Paracorr II Astronomix OIII Polarising moon filter - suggestions? Red torch How does that sound? Now need to read up on collimation....am clueless! lol Thanks

Wow this eyepiece thing is complex! so I've decided to ditch the 30mm UFF - too large an exit pupil in light polluted skies - so want something in the 20-24 region I think as my lowest - to start with. So there's the 24mm APM UFF - I assume this would be great without a parracor, or the 24mm Panopticon,or the 22T4 Nagler or the 20mm APM XWA - which I would assume both require a parracor at f4.6? Although the Nagler is stated as for f5 and above. Any views on which one to go for? I really want the wider FOVs in a manual dob if possible. I was then thinking of a 6mm, 9mm and 13mm to complete an initial set (4.7mm at 340x too much magnification?) Which of those am I likely to use most? For varied use - planets, nebulae and DSO? As I think I will get 1 Ethos and 2 APM 100 XWA. If I need a parracor I will probably only be able to go for 2 eyepieces initially with the rest at xmas - so the 20mm and which other would give me best bang for buck? Or if I go for three and no parracor, would you go 6,9,20 or 9,13,20 for example? Thanks again for all your great advice! Nic

Thanks.....think the jury is out in all the reviews I've read....half say go UHC and half OIII - only going to start with one for now - maybe flip a coin?!

Wow thanks guys! But stop spending my money! lol! I am thinking that the 30mm may have a too large exit pupil and hence be too bright - so looks like a 20mm might be the place to start. I'm still not sure I understand why not to use a powermate - looks like I can lose two eyepieces then! Although I get it's a pain to change and also adds weight and length to the eyepiece.....have I just listed the reasons?! Cheaper though! Ethos looks the business but I'm not spending that money on my first eyepiece! Will I ever get the opportunity to use 395x ? Seems very high...... So do I need a parracor - I do want an awesome view and I am the sort of person to look for problems after spending lots of money! Type 2? Have no collimation tools....aaaarrrrggghhh! What do you recommend? How do you balance an aluminium dob? Velcro straps with running wrist weights? Obviously can't use magnetism and don't want to start drilling into a brand new scope! Thanks!

I guess the Morpheus could be a good binoviewer choice. In the 17.5 with x2 barlow?

Thanks very much for your help!

Thanks - will take a look at the APM 9mm It's weird as all the beginner guides say get barlows to reduce number of eyepieces, yet all the advice seems to be to not to bother...... So say I get all 100 degree APMs - what targets would I use for each of the sizes - 5mm, 9mm, 13mm and 30mm ? Is that a good spread? 340x, 170x, 123x, 53x ? What's the main difference between OIII and UHC filters? Do you use both at once or just one at a time? Are the APMs suitable for binoviewers if I went that way? Thanks!

So I think I'm going to purchase a 14 inch dob - f 4.6, FL 1,600mm, PV 1/10. Need some eyepieces etc to go with it. I thought the following might be a good place to start, but open to suggestions of alternatives. Interest is DSOs but also some planetary, nebula etc: 9mm ES 100 degree FOV 2 inch - this would give me 170 x magnification; 30mm APM UFF 2 inch - this would give me 53 degree magnification; 2x Televue powermate 2 inch - this would then increase the above magnification options to 340, 170, 106 and 53; I could replace the the ES with the 9mm Televue Nagler 82 degree FOV as it is a similar price but seems to be much more easily available - how would these two compare? I could possible add another ES 82 degree field or similarly priced eyepiece if you feel I need an additional one; Moon filter - suggestions please? Nebula filter - ES CLS I don't wear glasses. Wife does but only long sighted so eye relief shouldn't be an issue. Please could you advise on the above? Many thanks!

I don't wear glasses. However, my wife does and I would like her to occasionally enjoy the views.

If I were to start with two eye pieces, which ones would you recommend? If I get quality eyepieces I won't be able to get 5! Would you recommend a x2 Barlow as well? Cheers

Thanks John

Yeah I probably need more basic help.....what makes will work with f4.6.....what are good FL of the eyepieces.....what eye relief do I need (not clear what that is!).....what field of view would be best - people have said 'large', but what is large? Do I need 100 degree or is 80 degree large....etc..... Thanks everyone!

Thanks, I will take a look. Now trying to get an idea of eyepieces and binoviewers / barlows / comma correction etc....seems a mine field for a beginner! Cheers

Firstly thanks for all your helpful comments. I think I'm going to go for a relatively large dob - looking at the Orion Optics VX range as a compromise. Size undecided at moment - I'd really like the 14 inch though! Good suggestion looking out for used scopes, but not sure how often a used OO VX would come up so might have to go down the new route. Assuming I go with an OO VX, which eyepieces and other equipment would you recommend? I actually like the idea of a binoviewer as well, so if someone could also suggest a binoviewer and suitable eyepieces as well that would be great. The OO VX 14 inch is f4.6, FL 1,600. If I'm getting a decent scope I really want eyepieces that will do it justice, but I also don't want to spend a fortune that I might not appreciate as a beginner. Thanks again! Nic

It's always only partially clear - unless it's totally not clear!