bosun21

Why not put the Asiair plus in station mode and use your home WiFi?

These are the ones I bought and fitted to my dobsonian. 15mm in length, 12mm in diameter and 1.2mm gauge wire. These hold the mirror in my 12” really well and hold collimation.

I haven't seen any such kits for sale in the UK (yet). You can buy all the components of it separately though which I have done for my 12" dobsonian apart from the flocking.

I used to travel all over the Highlands and Islands of Scotland salmon and sea trout fishing. I always carried a pair of 8x42 binoculars changing in the later years to 7x50. There was many nights when the skies were simply too much to take in. The remoter the better obviously. In bortle skies 1-2 the true majesty of the heavens are unveiled to us, and they are sights I will remember forever. I don’t fancy handholding a 70mm binocular for any length of time and would also recommend a lightweight folding tripod or monopod. I hope that the weather gods are in your favor.

Yes, you have captured quite a variety of astronomical objects and features. Lovely 🙂

Better than my first attempt at taking a photo of the moon with my phone, well done 👍

The best low cost decent quality laser collimator I found to be the Astro Essentials one from First Light Optics(FLO). The one I bought was already collimated and it is also fully able to be collimated. I now use the Hotech model along with a cap and Cheshire. Once collimated correctly I just check with the laser before each observing session.

Welcome, and you will surely learn. In fact it’s difficult not to.

I wouldn’t be put off by other peoples experiences with a 12” dobsonian. If you are reasonably fit and mobile then with a sack trolley it’s no more of a problem than wheeling your trolley around a supermarket. Regarding the f ratio I also wouldn’t go below f5 which is what the Stella Lyra 12” is. I agree that you should try and view one in the flesh so to speak, and judge for yourself. I can easily remove the tube from the base with the aid of two wrap around carry straps and then place the base onto my EQ platform. It’s like everything in astronomy, what suits one person will be totally unsuitable for another. Good luck.

I use the Celestron Starsense unit i removed from their cheapest refractor the LT70. This alongside a RACI works flawlessly for me. I first used it on an 8” dobsonian but have now swapped it over onto my 12”. I slew to the target with the Starsense then centre it in the RACI before viewing it in the eyepiece.

Regarding eyepieces for the Stella Lyra 12” dobsonian the 30mm SuperView and 9mm it comes with are relatively poor and you should consider upgrading. They will tide you over at the start though. Regarding a Paracorr? It’s not required with this scope.

Signed and shared. The longest journey starts with a single step.

Congratulations and everything that highlights our small group can only be beneficial. I’ll be looking out for you.

I would also go for a telrad on a 2” riser plate especially if you are in the UK as lasers can bring their own legal problems.

This type

Been cloudy here for weeks now and I now have two first lights to look forward to. I have only had a few stolen minutes between clouds with my 12” dobsonian. My new Starfield 102 hasn’t even seen the outside yet. I’m patiently waiting ☁️☁️

I move my 12” Stella Lyra dobsonian the same way as @Ratlet. My sack trolley with a fold down toe slips under the base (after fitting longer rubber feet) and is relatively easy enough to wheel in and out of the house fully assembled. I secure it to the frame of the trolley with elasticated cords. Pneumatic wheels are a big help in buffering bumps and vibrations. An EQ platform gives you good tracking which is great at high magnification. Good luck.

I’m going to do this to mine tomorrow. Is it straightforward to disassemble and re-grease? I haven’t looked at it closely.

I would wager that the collimation is out. The collimation can still be out even after using a laser collimator. The secondary mirror is difficult to align correctly with a laser. Can you take a photo while pointing your camera down your focuser? Try and position your camera/phone central in the focuser tube. This will give us an indication of their alignment. Also a photo of the scope itself will show whether any extension piece is superfluous or missing from your focuser.

The only problem is that when using a 2” diagonal you have to repeatedly loosen the Axil lock to adjust the diagonal. This only applies to when you are using an EQ mount. With an alt/az mount no such problem.

Yes, that’s what I am doing with this Starfield. Cheaper as well. I am just going to swap it between the Starfield and my dobsonian.

The clicklock that fits the Starfield 102 is the M63 version for 2.5” focusers. It’s fitted with the M63 adapter, hence the price of £110-125.

Even more familiar perhaps?

My second Starfield 102ED doublet(keeping this one). Patiently waiting for first light.

This is my second Starfield and I use a full set of Baader Morpheus eyepieces accompanied by a 30mm SL UFF. This covers a wide range of observing although I am now looking to add a 2.5x powermate to use both in the Starfield and my 12” dobsonian for lunar and planetary work at higher magnification.