MalcolmM

I'm a great believer in ease of use and portability. If I were in your position I would have gone for the 6". I think you've made a very good choice. Malcolm

Totally agree! Now all we need is for someone to come along with a better way of doing it! So I set it up a certain way and then change eyepieces to change magnification. I think @Stu does something slightly different for example. He uses the same eyepieces, but changes Barlows and/or adds extension tubes ... I think! Malcolm

And just for completeness (I'm enjoying this 🙂and it's good to record it all), here's the native setup, no GPC. Note the Tak coupling has had to be removed to shorten the light path enough! I don't really like doing all this screwing and unscrewing in the dark, so I try to set it up before observing, depending on what I'm observing! Malcolm

@ukskies, to come to focus with the 1.7 GPC, I put a 15mm extension between the prism and the nosepiece. Now the focuser is racked out about 11mm. Here's the 1.25 setup: And here's the 1.7 GPC setup. Note the T2 extension attached between the prism and it's nosepiece. Hope this all makes sense! It's a bit of a black art! I don't have the 2.6 GPC but it would probably require a longer extension. You could work it out from the respective light path gains the 2.6 gives you w.r.t. the 1.7 and 1.25 Malcolm

With the Tak 28mm Erfles in, the focuser is racked out about 14mm. Total range is about 30mm Malcolm

I'm trying to resist! But once the itch starts it's hard to ignore! I've enough trouble as it is choosing which telescope, which eyepiece, binoview or not, which binoviewer, which GPC, and back to which eyepiece pair 🙂 Thankfully I don't use filters! And they say choice is a good thing 🙂 First world problems I know! Malcolm

No, the GPC screws into the Binoviewer side of the diagonal in this configuration. The Maxbright manual (which can be downloaded from their website I think) shows all the different configurations. In some configurations the GPC screws into the Binoviewer itself. If you can download it, it would give you a very good idea of which accessories you might need. I have no experience with the 1.6x extender but it looks like a very tempting addition; a good way to push the FC100 to it's limits 🙂 Malcolm

Great tip @ScouseSpaceCadet thanks. Observing when the sky is brighter showed definite albedo markings. Great image @Mr Spock, it's much more detailed than anything I have managed so far. Malcolm

The pic in my previous post shows my default set-up. Note the tube section in front of the focus assembly is removed. 2" click-lock attached to the Tak coupling. Then a 2" to 1.25" click-lock. Then the Baader prism diagonal with a 1.25 GPC inserted. Then the Maxbrights. I can easily use and merge images with 7.5 LE eyepieces (which I find very difficult with Williams Optics Binoviewers), and for widefield I use 28mm Erfles. Native usage requires attaching the 2" click-lock directly to the focus draw tube. The use of the 1.7x GPC requires a small extension to be added, approximately 2.5cm Malcolm

Big thumbs-up from me for the Maxbrights too. They are fantastic optically and mechanically. I use light eyepieces as the binoviewers are quite heavy and it seems counter intuitive to heavily weigh up the eyepiece end of a very light scope. I mostly use the 1.25 GPC and it, the 1.25 Baader prism diagonal and the Maxbrights all work and fit together seamlessly. The short focus travel of the FC100 will mean extending and shortening the light path with extension tubes probably if changing between using the Maxbrights natively and with the various GPCs. Removing the tube section of the scope just ahead of the focuser will give you more options. It took me quite a bit of experimenting and various Baader parts to get it all working well. I find Binoviewers so relaxing to use, I use them for everything except the biggest DSOs and clusters. I don't use them all the time as they are slightly more awkward than mono but every time I get them out after mono sessions I say "Woh! why don't I use these every time!" Malcolm

When I started I thought all you needed was one scope and three eyepieces. Now I'm a few years in I realise you need one scope and three eyepieces for each day of the week! I must pay homage to my partner here who has actively encouraged me in this insanity 🙂 Malcolm

Great sketches and great observational skills! From my point of view, it's great to have something to aspire to! Malcolm

I can definitely see the bright ridge on the pic, I'll look out for it next time. Great detail too for handheld eyepiece shots! Malcolm

Thanks for all the tips, advice and comments. I'll definitely try daylight viewing for Venus and a variable polarising filter sounds like a useful buy! I wish I could say that was definitely a bright ridge rather than an accident of shading but I suspect it is the latter! I can say the bow on the Rill is genuine though 🙂 Malcolm

Sometimes I feel like sketching and sometimes I just want to enjoy the view. Here's my latest attempts! I struggle to decide what amount of detail to try and capture. And there is always extra texture you suddenly see, or an extra tiny craterlet or piece of subtle (or not so subtle) shading. The eyepiece view is so much more detailed. Anyhow, as @mikeDnight has explained, sketching really does help to concentrate the mind on what you are seeing and helps you see more. I enjoy correlating my sketches with a Lunar Atlas the next day. My sketch of Venus needs to be taken with a pinch of salt. It's so bright (even with a Neodymium filter) and sparkles and dances so much, I'm not sure whether I was seeing genuine dark areas or just aberrations. Markarian's Chain (my first time) was really just to draw roughly what I saw in order to correlate it with a star atlas. It was what I could see through a 180 Mewlon and it allowed me to compare the views with a 100DC the next night. The DC did not see as much, unfortunately I did not record which ones were visible! Thanks for looking, Malcolm

Yes, I do appreciate being able to see these, though I suspect with the local development that's going on, in a couple of years I may not be able to! A couple of years ago I was just able to see the milky way. I've not managed to see it this year! Malcolm

I was using a 1.25" diagonal. Your 2" will have a longer lightpath than that. Don't give up hope yet! @Stu is a bit of an expert on binoviewing and I think he uses a wedge. You also have the option of Baader solar film for example? Malcolm

I've used Williams Optics binoviewers on a SW Star Travel 102. I used a Baader prism diagonal with the WO 1.6 GPC attached to the telescope end of the diagonal. I have been told this is not the best place for the GPC (it should be attached to the binoviewer), but it allowed me to reach focus easily and gave me great immersive views of the moon and very relaxed viewing of star clusters. Note, this was not using a wedge. A wedge will have a longer light path than the prism diagonal and therefore require more inward focus which might be an issue. Malcolm

Great sketches, I especially like M51, and fabulous descriptions! Almost makes a refractor man want to go out and buy a big dob Malcolm

It's reassuring to me that someone as experienced as yourself @mikeDnight needs a little trial and error to get Binoviewers to focus with a Tak! I must have gone through half the Baader accessories to get my WO Binoviewers to come to focus! Then I went through the other half when I got the Maxbrights! Some people only seem to use them for lunar and planetary but with 28mm Erfles and no GPC (yet more playing around to reduce the light path), I find them very relaxing and immersive for low power wide(ish) field viewing. Malcolm

I popped into Jodrel Bank just a week ago on the way to the Yorkshire Dales. Closed for the day to casual visitors! Very disappointed. What a sight though when the large dish appears behind the hedges! Had also tried the U-boat in Birkenhead; also closed! Ended up in the Avro Heritage Museum which was very interesting. My grandfather flew an Avro during his training before flying under Squadron Commander Dunning off HMS Furious. That pub looks fabulous, I'll remember it for next time thanks. Malcolm

I'm getting very stable views through my Lunt 50 at the moment. Lots of different prom types. Worth a quick look if you have the time. Malcolm

I can't help with the comparison but would say I have been very pleased with my Lunt 50. Proms particularly are shown very well and there's also lots of surface features and detail. The scope feels chunky and very well made, the pressure tuner particularly has a very solid feel to it. The focuser is not the best but I find it adequate! It actually gives very fine focus control. I had a problem with my focuser after 6 months or so of use; the whole draw tube started to rotate slightly but @FLO very kindly replaced it for me with no quibble. A 'must have' accessory is the Tele Vue Sol Searcher. It makes finding the sun a doddle! Malcolm

Totally agree @josefk. Also very easy to pan around with the handle (take note @JeremyS🙂) and the quick release is nice too. Malcolm

That Skylight F13 is something else! Wonderful! Malcolm