bosun21

I just collimated a 130PDS recently for a friend and you can most definitely get the three primary clips in view. Place a sheet of coloured paper in the tube blocking the primary mirror and a white sheet flat directly opposite the focuser. This highlights the secondary mirror very well. As @Spile has stated you want the secondary mirror perfectly round and concentric with the focuser draw tube. Once you achieve this the crosshairs of the Cheshire will be in the centre of the secondary. Remove the paper sheets and you should be very close to seeing the three primary mirror clips. You can slightly tweak the three screws on the secondary to encompass the primary clips. Nip up the screws on the secondary and now adjust the primary screws to centre the doughnut.

Ask him if he has a receipt. I had to produce my receipt before they would release the codes. I have heard that they may have slackened this in recent times .

You need to email Celestron and provide proof of purchase of the Starsense telescope.

You need to loosen the centre screw and slightly rotate the secondary mirror until the mirror appears perfectly circular. It’s oval shaped at the minute and this is why the crosshairs are off centre. Forget about the primary mirror until you sort out the secondary. It’s also not central to the focuser draw tube.

The code is not tied to the head but rather it’s just to unlock the app functions. Each code will unlock the app 5 times.

Welcome to SGL 👋.

What would be a good lightweight tripod to mount a say 70mm refractor on a GTi mount? Simply for visual G&G. Thanks.

It’s still not practical as moving the focuser throws off the plate solving of the Starsense. You would be chasing your tail all night. This is the reason why Celestron only sell the Starsense unit on Alt/Az setups.

You are probably correct but I have to keep telling myself that I'm happy at the moment.

I'm perfectly happy with what I have at the moment.

Nice crisp images with good detail. Well done.

Have you checked that your new phone is compatible with the Starsense as not all are. The Starsense requires certain sensors that not all of the cheaper phones have. There's a list of the compatible phones on the Starsense website and in the literature.

Nice image? Lovely and clear 👍.

I have very rarely barlowed my Morpheus eyepieces however on the rare occasions where I have it is optically sound.

It will do as the heat transfer of metal is much faster than the sonotube therefore the dew will form much quicker.

The EQ5 has the means to accept motors on the RA and DEC. They are secured by allen screws in a fixed location necessitating the motors to be a standard fitting. If you are serious about AP then you should buy the full upgrade kit mentioned above as this will allow you to guide. If not so serious then a single motor on the RA axis will give you tracking after polar alignment.

Nice capture of the gas giant 👍.

Hi Lorenzo👋, welcome to SGL.

That’s ideal. Thank you.

Nice image of a rarely seen target 👍.

I was looking at this as well. Is there a clam shell for the 76, or would I be better sticking with rings and a vixen plate. Can the clam shell be fitted to a vixen plate as I know they are designed primarily for Tak mounts. Sorry for the questions.

It's actually the FC-76DCU and the 1.6 extender I have my eye on 🔭👀.

Like eyepieces telescopes can be a very personalised item imo. I am happy with the three scopes I have at present. A 12" dobsonian on an EQ platform, a 6" reflector on a motor driven EQ5 and a Starfield 102 on a full go to EQ5. The only thing I feel is missing is a quick G&G set up for those short sessions squeezed into the cloud gaps. This is what drew me to this thread about the small Tak. I still keep saying to myself though that I should just buy a different brand of small ED doublet and the difference between them would cover the mount for it. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to sleep on it AGAIN 😂.

I have no idea either, but I seem to have found myself in a Takahashi quicksand where I feel myself sinking. For some strange unfathomable reason I don't seem as though I'm making any effort to escape 😂.

I really, really need to avoid this thread. It's got to be the most dangerous thread I've encountered on SGL to date🧲 🔭 🧲😱.