astro_al

Thank you @MalcolmM, the pictures are very helpful. I have a Mewlon 180 on order so very relevant (ETA between August and December 😞) I got a response from Vixen this morning and they confirm what @Franklin said. Adding the motors to the APZ drops the load capacity from 8KG to 6KG. As such I will be putting the manual controls back on the APZ as I need the 8KG limit for the Lunt. The FC-100DZ and binoviewers total about 5.2KG and have been fine on both the AP and APZ with the motors. I haven’t tried anything heavier and now that Vixen say 6KG with motors then I won’t. The AP is a nice tracking mount for the FC-100DZ, but in the end I prefer the alt-az format of the APZ. I have an AZ-EQ6 on a permanent pier in alt-az mode in the back garden and use that for a tracking mount. The APZ is my grab and go mount for the front garden. I was hoping to give it a little upgrade but never mind. Thanks everyone that provided input.

Agreed!

Yes, 8KG in its default configuration with the manual controls. My hope is that it is still 8KG when the manual controls are swapped for the motors.

I guess I was hoping that because the AP has a rating of 6kg with or without the motors that it was more to do with the mechanics. If it is 6kg then I will go back to the manual config and find a new home for the AP. I need 8KG for the Lunt and binoviewers.

I really like the APZ. I have had mine for about 3 years and it has been my most used mount. I recently bought an AP from Franklin which is also a great mount, however now that I have sold my FS-60Q I think it is borderline in terms of load for the FC-100DZ and binoviewers. I also typically don’t use EQ mounts as I like my binoviewers to stay level. As a test I added the motors and counterweight bar from the AP to the APZ and while it doesn’t automatically track I was able to set tracking at 0.8x and slewing at 0.6x and keep my thumb on up or down on the controller to keep Jupiter centered. Could be a decent solution for me. I also contacted Vixen to see if the APZ with motors is still rated at 8KG, but no response as of yet. Their brochure states the motors are an option for the APZ and there is no mention of it reducing the payload capability so I am hopeful it is the equatorial wedge that is the weaker point in the AP config. Either way they are both great mounts.

Also a Vixen half pillar came earlier in the week courtesy of @Franklin . Finishes the AP mount off nicely!

Pair of 14mm Starbase orthoscopics for my binoviewers. I have been enjoying the lunar views with my 15mm APM Ultraflats, FC-100DZ and 2.6x GPC and wanted to try a similar view but with less glass. They have a nice feel to them and the eye relief seems decent enough!

Great to meet you too @SuburbanMak! That set up looks very nice indeed. I bet that 30mm UFF will be good in the FS60Q 👍

This was my configuration when I had a Quark. Still pretty unwieldy with the binoviewers added though.

I have used the Baader Herschel wedge with a 6” refractor on multiple occasions. I do remember the same smell the first time but it seemed to dissipate. I have left the scope pointing at the sun for several hours at a time when imaging but for visual I moved the scope away from the sun when not observing as per the instruction manual. Overall I have had no issues using the wedge with a 6” aperture scope. From the manual: Maximum telescope size: We have used the Herschel prism succesfully with telescopes with 6 and 8 inch aper- ture. Because of the huge amount radiation, we recommend to point the telescope away from the sun when you do not observe - make a break every hour or so to give the equipment time to cool down. The limiting factor for the focal length is the 2" adaption. The image of the sun in the image plane is ca. 1cm per 1m focal length, so focal length should not be longer than ca. 4,5m. If you can project the sun with your telescope and a 2"- focusser, you can also use the Herschel prism.

Sounds familiar! Had me scratching my head for a while before I noticed the swarm of midges hovering above my garden.

It’s a well-used Takahashi FS-152

A bit breezy today so battling the seeing more than usual. 2022-04-24 10:42:23 UTC 152mm refractor @ F10.25 Baader CoolCeramic Wedge and Continuum filter (540nm) ASI178MM 0.3”/px

Very nice, on my wish list! I would try Rupert at www.astrograph.net as he is a UK reseller of Solar Spectrum kit. Regards Al

Short session on Saturday but had a brief spell of decent seeing. 2022-04-02 08:52:45 UTC 152mm refractor @ F10.25 Baader CoolCeramic Wedge and Continuum filter (540nm) ASI178MM 0.3”/px