Bridgehouse

1 hour ago, Mr Spock said:

It certainly is a thing of beauty.

I don't want to drag the thread off topic, but, I'm a traditionalist. I prefer the Höfner 500/1 which of course features in my favourite group 

I've played a few Höfners - The 500 was nice, but the Verythin was really superb. Bit like scopes - there's loads out there and most are great fun!

6 minutes ago, Parus major said:

That bass is exquisite.
Not to say the scope isn't

 

Thanks! Shuker Uberhorn Fretless - the top is African Blackwood. Kinda feel it matches the TV for build quality and style

Got to be the TV NP101is…

Obligatory ADM saddle upgrade for the GTI. 
 

I just need to actually get a lightweight scope to use on it now 😂

3 minutes ago, Ags said:

The clouds are invisible at ground level. That's why FLO struggle to keep them out the boxes. The moisture only condenses into droplets at altitude.

If you’re really unlucky your package might suffer cloud inversion

51 minutes ago, Franklin said:

62mm fl 520mm f/8.4 petzval design I think. It's the Vixen A62SS, only an achromatic but quite a nice one it seems. Just wanted something that will fit in a rucksack with a tripod to carry out to dark skies. It only weighs 1.5kg!

Looks great, and indeed very lightweight!

12 minutes ago, Franklin said:

It's so cute!🙂

I've been intrigued by this little Vixen and have wanted one for a while. Mint off ABS.

 

Nice! What size is it?

3 minutes ago, johninderby said:

Air vents for the mirror end? 🤔

I’d be more concerned about rust on my primary tbh!

7 minutes ago, johninderby said:

Or a nice heavy duty iron one? 😁😁😁

What the heck kind of Bahtinov Mask is that???

6 minutes ago, Alan White said:

I agree on both counts, the competition will of course take an SGL detour to who knows where 🤣

 

So long as the prize isn't a newtonian tube made out of granite...!

1 minute ago, callisto said:

Nice mount...but I'm more interested in that extra large drill bit behind 🤣

That’s for making Newtonian tubes out of solid granite..

Postie delivered a new mount. Used but great condition AZ GTI plus extension pillar. Feels really solid on my 055b tripod.

All I need now is a lightweight second scope to attach to it as the NP101IS is too lardy and destined for the GM811G 

1 minute ago, badhex said:

Nobody move or the nebula gets it!

Sawn off telescopes... hand grenade eyepieces... what have I entered in to?!

12 minutes ago, badhex said:

I have the same, it's ludicrously large! I had to purchase a new mount just to use it!

What even *is* that?!

Dunno - but you have to keep it refrigerated apparently.....!

I can't add much to the suggestions, but I did find it amusing that you're considering the first two eyepieces I bought when getting back into the hobby. 24 Pan came first then the 3-6 Nagler Zoom.

I bought the 24 Pan because I borrowed one 20 odd years ago first time round and absolutely loved it. And I'm doing so again now. The 3-6 Zoom was purchased for the flexibility of getting the best magnification for the seeing conditions. In my NP101is it gives 90x - 180x which is pretty flexible for a session observing Jupiter/Saturn etc. 

I'm sure there's cheaper alternatives but I do really like these two eyepieces though, and they complement each other well - in case you wanted an opinion from someone who has both

If you're looking for under 3kg then I presume that's because you want to keep it on the existing mount? Don't forget you'll want to factor in the weight of any mount rings, extension tubes, filter holders, camera etc. and the tube is longer than a normal camera and lens so weight isn't the only factor. Then, you get onto guiding - you'll want to take longer subs, won't you?

Ultimately this means mount upgrade. Probably more than you first thought as well if you want an appreciable difference from where you are now. I'm just getting back into things again after a long break. I started looking at cheaper options and eventually got so frustrated that I totally reset my budget and decided to buy a bit at a time as I could afford it. 

I managed to find a really mint used Televue NP101is - a scope I'd always wanted - and that blew any budget out the water before even starting. Then, with the mount, I worked out how long it would take to get the next chunk of budget together and ordered a Losmandy GM811G. I'm already into silly money and I don't even have a camera yet. 

Now, you don't have to go to the extremes I've gone to, but I'd say upping the mount and looking at EQ5Pro/EQ6 territory is a good start. Once there, you'll have much better options in terms of scope weight - refractors are generally heavy (just the glass alone can be and the tube needs to be really stiff to keep everything in check). 

Just now, Jonk said:

That sounds like DHCP to me, i.e. an IP address has changed, unless teamviewer can automatically compensate for this?

Yeah, well it should do. All remote access software (broadly!) uses a local app to broadcast to a server saying it's alive and ready for connections. That will also tell the server what IP it's at and the name of the device. 

When you connect your viewer connects to the same and then establishes a connection. It can work on a local network - it just broadcasts locally instead. However, the actual connection itself is over a different protocol (usually a specific port on the router or firewall) and if that port is blocked then no connection. Similarly if you get a new router and it doesn't allow traffic on that port over the network it'll fail as well

Just now, newbie alert said:

Both are connected to the wifi

Have you changed routers, or any other settings or added anything significant recently?

Most instances of Teamviewer not connected are due to some sort of change locally. The "not connected to the internet" is a red herring - it's actually saying it can't find the other device which does suggest Teamviewer traffic isn't getting through over your wifi

Are both devices connected on your home network or is one remote?

Right. A quick update. 
 

I have an AZ GTI with extension pillar on the way used for a decent price. I also had a rummage around the “spares” cupboard and unearthed a Manfrotto 055b I didn’t know I had (!). So that’s the mount sorted.

It does mean that in reality I want to keep a suitable scope to under 5kg all up weight to stay broadly within the payload limit of the GTI..

I reckon that means it’s definitely something in the 70-90mm refractor size. Much as a Newtonian around 130mm appeals, I think a compact refractor would be easier to lug outside quickly. I’m happy to be dispelled of that idea tho!

If budget wasn’t an issue I’d be looking for a TV76/85 or a Tak 76 - but I’ve dropped quite a bit on the NP101IS and Losmandy GM811G already and there’s cameras to get yet…!

1 minute ago, Tiny Clanger said:

I've been giving this 'how to improve my views' a lot of thought recently, and it seems to me that the most cost effective major upgrade I can possibly do next is not a bigger 'scope, or better eyepieces, but trips to darker skies to make the best use of what I already have.

Heather

I originally started this hobby back in the 90's when I lived under Bortle 5 skies. I eventually ended up in a flat in a Bortle 7 area and gave up. 

In the last few years I've moved to a pretty rural location and am enjoying Bortle 4 skies now. It was enough to get me motivated to get started again. Moving house was, for me, a much bigger upgrade than any eyepiece or scope. So much so that I didn't even feel motivated enough to have any kit for years..

It looks like the nut either needs screwing into the tube a bit more, or rotating a bit to straighten it up. If it were me I'd have a play and see how it looked after, but I can understand why you'd want it right from new. 

How is the stud attached on the outside of the tube? Is it a screw thread?

Ok, this is an odd one and you'll all be thinking I'm a bit mad.

It actually turned up yesterday, but the postman delivered a roll of Flocking Material...

Now, I've got an NP101is - flocking material?? Well, in front of the front lens element group there is about 25mm of threads which is actually the bit that the screw in lens cap screws into. But it only screws in 5mm.. and having done a few (crude) torch shining tests to see how much scattered light there was in the tube, some light was bouncing off the threads a bit. The retractable dew shield is flocked.. so I thought why not flock 20mm of the threads so that only the threads needed to screw the cap in are exposed. 

20mm of flocking later and it's done. It's superb material to use, and when left overnight the adhesive seems to harden off a lot and it's rock solidly attached. I used some low tack tape beforehand to pick up any rogue fibres. It does appear to have cut down the scattered light (at least from what I can see on my crude tests). Either way, it's neat, and even if the benefit is minimal, it's hardly an expensive mod. 

Strangely, I decided to create a Windows 11 virtual machine in Parallels on my new M1 MacBook.

I was expecting a complete failure and it not to work, but rather bizarrely it absolutely flies along - it’s quicker than my Windows 10 virtual machine by a huge margin. 
 

Now, I suspect Parallels have optimised their VM code for it, but given the hardware requirements I’m still amazed.

Good grief… I’m in the clear (literally)