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Showing results for tags 'celestron'.
Found 134 results
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Hello, I'm looking to get myself a new telescope to get back outside and looking up. I currently have a Celestron Astromaster 130eq, however, I do not use it as much as it broke in a way where the mount and knobs cannot be fixed. I did enjoy using it, but now I am looking for a more convenient scope to use. I'm looking at smaller goto scopes around $400. I want to be able to take it with me anywhere, set it up in minutes, and get to observing without much hassle (punch in an object and have it be tracked). I'm currently looking at the two scopes below: Celestron NexStar 4se Celestron NexStar 130 SLT I realized the 130 is the same size as my current scope, but with its goto factor, I feel like I would use it a lot more. The 4se is very appealing due to its small form factor. In addition to the Solar System, I would like to be able to see some DSOs. As for the price, $400 is my comfort zone at the moment, but I'll consider going up or down based on recommendations. If anyone has any experience with the scopes above, or has a recommendation, please share your input. I would love to hear it as I really want to get back outside and observing. Thanks, Spriggs
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theskyx Celestron Nexstar 130SLT and TheSkyX GOTO Setup
OldManJ posted a topic in Getting Started General Help and Advice
I am considering purchasing the https://www.celestron.com/products/nexstar-130slt-computerized-telescope for my son for XMAS. I want the Go To functionality and I have looked into software and know I will want TheStarX software to point to objects in the sky. My question is what do I need to get this to work? How do I connect the telescope to my network so my computer can talk to it? -
Hi all, Although I've owned a pair of Celestron Skymaster 20x80s for over six years now, but because they went badly out of collimation, I haven't used them for ages. I sent them back to Celestron, but, apparently, they couldn't be repaired. Amazingly, though, they gave me a brand new pair (!), and these arrived yesterday. Once mounted on the tripod I took a look at the 69% waxing Moon. Absolutely incredible view! Sharp, bright, big, three-dimensional, and only the very slightest hint of chromatic aberration. Kept coming back to this over the course of the evening. Next up M31 and M33. Although quite washed out by the moonlight (as was everything I looked at), I was amazed at the brightness, the size, and the hint of detail in M31. Again, the three-dimensionality was obvious. M33 was only just visible. Open clusters: Double cluster, Owl cluster, Coathanger – all were fantastic, with a variety of star colours obvious, and only a hint of distortion around the edge of the fov (really had to drag my eyes away from the objects in the middle of the fov to experience it). The Coathanger pretty much filled the fov, and was pin sharp and bright. Double stars: Epsilon Lyrae, a very easy split, as was Albireo (again, the different colours were obvious). Mesarthim was just too tight to split. In passing, one of the things that amazed me the most last night was star colour. Mirach, Algol, Vega and many others were all pin sharp, bright, and their colours were very obvious. Globulars: M15 and 92 were small and dense fuzzy balls, M13 bigger, brighter, and with just a hint of granulation to it (like the Moon, I kept coming back to M13). Ring nebula: The ring shape was obvious, even at x20, though small. Being a work night, I was back indoors by about 10, but although just a brief session, it was hugely enjoyable, and a real buzz to be using 20x80 bins again. Cheers, Kev.
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binoculars Celestron Skymaster 20 x 80 Binoculars - A Review
Nigeyboy posted a topic in Member Equipment Reviews
Hi all, Been a while since I have been on the site – work has been really busy these last 18 months, and although it’s still manic, things are slowing down a bit!! Viewing my previous posts, you will see that I was in the market for a new scope to adorn my EQ3-2 mount that I had purchased ages ago now!! Well, things didn’t turn out as expected, and while I am still hoping to get a scope, hopefully at Christmas if Santa is kind to me (I have been a good boy lol!!) I decided to get a pair of Binoculars to fill the gap! Budget was tight, and I did want a pair of larger aperture bins. A lot of reading up on the internet, and I settled on the Celestron Skymaster 20x80’s. I already have a pair of 10x50’s so was after something with a bit more power, and larger objective’s. The skymasters seemed to fit the bill, and the price was right as well! I dropped into Rother Valley Optics with my cash on the off chance they would have a pair in stock – they didn’t, so I left my details, and less than 24 hours later, Adam from the shop called me to say they had a pair in! I drove over to their shop, tried them out outside the shop, as I had read that some pairs are known to have collimation issues. These where perfect, so I parted with my £99 cash and went home with them! First class service from RVO, and I will be using them again when it comes to getting my scope – thanks guys! So, onto the bin’s. They came double boxed up, and within the branded box inside the plain box, the bin’s were securely packed in foam and wrapped in plastic. They come with a basic carry case, which won’t protect them from hard knocks, but will keep the dust off them while not in use. The eye pieces are protected by a one piece cover, while each large objective is covered by its own, separate cover. There is also a basic neck strap, but it appears quite flimsy, and I won’t be using it. The bins have a built in tripod adaptor, on an adjustable slider, meaning they can be securely attached to a tripod and balanced up. Weight wise, they tip the scales at just over 2.6kg. This isn’t hugely heavy, and while I did use a tripod for some observing, when I wanted to look at things nearer the zenith, I hand held them, and did so for quite some time. I didn’t feel they were overly heavy, even after prolonged use. It seems that new scope curse also affects owners of new binoculars, as I had to wait 5 days for clear skies!! I went out at about 10:30pm into the back garden, and while the side of house has a street lamp directly over the hedge, round the back its cut off, and quite dark. I began by finding M31, which at is currently nearly at the Zenith. I could see the central core clearly, and with some averted vision, make out some finer details in the disk. Moving on to M45, the Pleiades, that was just rising over my neighbours fence – what a sight!! Even though it was quite low down, the cluster filled the view, and I could see loads of fainter stars within it. Moving through the Milkyway, the view was filled with thousands of stars and star clusters!! I was really impressed. I intend to go to a dark sky site up in the Peak District, just north of Ashbourne when time and the weather permit, to get some proper dark sky viewing in! I have not yet been able to look at the Moon or any planets through them – the Moon hadn’t risen by the time I turned in, and is now a very small waning crescent. I will have to wait a bit longer, and will update the review once done. Mars was up, but low in the sky, and due to the street lights, swamped with LP. With terrestrial viewing, they provide bright and crisp views. While there is some CA when looking at things with bright edges, general viewing wasn’t affected in any way. I plan to take them to my local nature reserve to test them out on some wild life as well. I am also a bit of a plane fan, and when time permits I park up near East Midlands Airport to watch the aircraft coming and going – these will be great for that, set up on my tripod for easy viewing! Conclusion – the Skymaster 20x80’s are a decent pair of binoculars. While they don’t have the build quality of more expensive ones, treated well I can see no reason why they won’t last for years. They actually come with a 5 year Celestron guarantee anyway! For causal use when you don’t want to set up the main scope I think these fit the bill nicely, and I would recommend them to anyone. Cheers all Nige -
COMPLETED - Reducers Meade - celestron - SOLD
hayju01 posted a topic in Sold / Expired Classified Ads
For sale meade series 4000 f/3.3 celestron #94175 f/6.3 £40 each -
I am associated with a college who had purchased a Celestron EDGE HD14 two years ago. Due to the high humidity of the place, there has been quite a bit of fungus which has grown on both the front corretor plate and the rear coma corrector lens which is inbuilt into the central hole. If anyone would know how to disassemble the EDGE HD 14 from the front and rear end it would be very beneficial. TIA
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COMPLETED - Focus knob for C9.25 - FOUND
michaelmorris posted a topic in Expired / Closed Wanted Ads
I'm after a focus knob for a modern Celestron C9.25. Mostly likely will be where someone has replaced the factory focus knob with a fine focus model such as the Feathertouch. -
Getting back into astronomy after many years. Really tasted the thrill as a youngster: eg Jupiter Saturn conj of 1981 viewed through a 4" refractor Splitting the double on the 'tip of the sword' of Cygnus - which as I recall were red and green. Naked eye all night sessions in Spain and New Zealand. For the last couple of weeks I have been getting off to dark skies a few miles from where I live and using 8x32's and I have just bought some used Celestron (Echelon) 16x70's which came a couple of days ago - since which time, in accordance with the Laws of Physics, the skies have been cloudy! I am probably going to get an Orion parallelogram tripod, but there are long waiting times - in the meantime would love to know of any advice people may have on monopods / heads and a mount that will fix to the Echelons.
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Celestron advanced GT handset lead
jambouk posted a topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
Is it possible to get an extension lead for the handset of the Celestron Advanced GT mount? Thanks James -
SkySync GPS VS Astronomy.Tools
Hiddenpalm posted a topic in Getting Started Equipment Help and Advice
So I'm trying to accessorize [flicks hair], and according to a review of the Nexstar 8SE (which I just got yesterday), the guy and a bunch of other reviewers recommend the Celestron SkySync GPS. From what I understand this device tells your GoTo your coordinates, speeding up the time it takes to align your telescope. Its over $100 US dollars. And it can take up to 10 minutes to locate your coordinates, date and time. If you're planning a trip or just out on your yard/local park, this can come in handy. But if all it does is give your GoTo your coordinates why can't you simply go to Astronomy.Tools (now known to me thanks to StargazersLounge) and look up the coordinates before hand? Wouldn't it be faster to type in your coordinates than to wait 5-10 minutes for SkySync to work? I'm bringing this here wondering if I'm missing something? Does SkySync do something else besides give your coordinates? After it gives your coordinates, do you still need it for the rest of the night? Are its coordinates more precise? And if so, does that in any way change your experience as a casual viewer or a hardcore professional astrophotographer? How so? And is it true that it can not work at the same time with the Skyportal Wifi module? The thoughts and insights of this awesome community would be greatly appreciated. -
Nexstar 6SE or 4SE for Astrophotography
Jason126 posted a topic in Getting Started General Help and Advice
Newb here. I have settled on my first telescope being the 4SE or 6SE and I have a Sony Alpha 300 DSLR I would like to be able to connect to play around with AP. I am barely starting to grasp the terminology involved with telescopes in general but it seems connecting a camera to a telescope is a whole different ball game. It seems as though the 4SE has a separate eyepiece and camera attachment? Looks like you can just flip a knob to swap between the viewer and camera? Whereas the 6SE it appears that you have to remove the whole eyepiece to connect the camera. After reading some reviews everyone says they immediately wanted a more powerful telescope so I am thinking the 6SE may be the way to go but I really don't like the idea of having to swap back and forth by removing the eyepiece, is there an after-market accessory that would allow it to work more like the 4SE (flip a switch from viewer to camera and back)? And I guess my other question is are the optics really that much better on the 6SE that it would be worth the hassle when connecting the camera? I see that the light gathering capability and magnification are better but how perceivable is that difference? My goal is to do some moon viewing but it would be great to see some cool deep space objects too. + One final thought, how much does the auto star tracking feature help or hurt the image quality? I mean on a 20 second+ exposure the object is going to move some amount, is the Nexstar tracking system really able to keep the object that precisely still in the optics? Or should I just expect to get blurry spots of light when photographing deep space objects? Thanks -
Hello everyone ! Im interested in stargazing , but i dont have any expirience. My question is : is celestron powerseeker 70az good enough to see jupiter and saturn rings clearly ?
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Unexpectedly i ran into a guy selling a Neximage 5 imager for just $70 canadian so i figured it would be a decent beginners camera and since i'm an imaging noobie i just grabbed it. I am aware it will not be for solar but i figured why not start with small steps in imaging before i buy my good camera, $70 is not a pile to waste should i only use it on limited objects then never touch it again lol. Does anyone out there have any tips and tricks that would be useful in my attempts for first time imaging??.
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Hi gang, I have a small issue with my CPC & need some information from other CPC owners. Basically I was having a look at the Fastar connection for Hyperstar but noticed that the whole Secondary assembly was a little loose & could be rotated on its own leaving the corrector plate securely fixed. Here’s where I made my first mistake, I lost track of the original starting position of the assembly but it didn’t end there. The only way to tighten the assembly & stop it rotating freely the corrector plate needs to be removed as the Secondary unit is tightened on the underside of the corrector. Next mistake, I forgot to mark the corrector position to aid refitting, not considering the fact that it’s position would be important on reassembly. Turns out that my corrector has no significant markings on it except in 2 places on the edge, about 45° apart are an arrow pointing to the outer face & the number 4. Through much head scratching & the use of digital calipers I think I have found the correct orientation of the corrector plate in order to reassemble but I am still stuck with not knowing the correct position of the Secondary assembly. I have read various articles that contradict each other stating that one of the 3 collimating screws should be at 12o’clock or 6o’clock. What I have noticed though is that when the outer retaining ring is unscrewed from the Secondary assembly, there is a small locating grub screw that sits within a slot on the assembly housing, see pic: a big ask I know but is it possible for other CPC owners, mine being a 9.25” if it matters, to unscrew the Secondary retaining ring & note the position, on a clock face (top of OTA as 12), of this locating slot. It would be much appreciated. Thanks I know there’s plenty of discussion pertaining to Primary & Correctors as marching sets, although from what I gather this was for earlier SCT models, plus 365 Astronomy lists the corrector as a replacement part: https://www.365astronomy.com/Celestron-C9.25-Replacement-Corrector-Plate-50984-1S.html so I’m hopeful that nowadays the matched pair issue is not relevant & ive got away with my stupid mistake. Regards.., Kirk
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Found an old (apparently USA model) celestron C8 SCT a while back, its a bit hit n miss with collimation and the optics - (some very strange star test shapes :P) but when it works it works well Here is a couple images from a couple months back. Thanks for looking. This particular night seeing was reasonably good, and collimation wasn't too bad either. Celestron C8 / ASI120MC / 2X barlow - captured in sharpcap2, stacked in autostakkert!2, wavelets in registax6
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Celestron Red Dot Finder Alignment Issues - Fixed!
ChargeNut posted a topic in Getting Started General Help and Advice
I recently got a Celestron Astromaster 130EQ Telescope for my birthday and have been having loads of fun looking at and taking photos of the Moon over the last few days. One issue I had with the scope was that I couldn't angle the Red Dot Finder down enough to align it with the object I could see in the Telescope. I have been using it by taking note of the distance the red dot was out and trying to direct the telescope taking this difference into account. It occurred to me (before I looked at this forum) that if I could only raise the tail of the red dot finder higher (I could see that to bring the dot down the LED at the back was raised), I could get the alignment accurate. I took the mounting bracket apart and looked at the design of the plates. I then designed some new ones in Sketchup widened the back dimension and, as I have a 3D printer, printed the new ones out. The new bracket plates are 2mm wider at the back hence raising the back of the finder higher by 2mm, which in turn lowers the red dot down to it's correct alignment point. I thought I'd post on here to say how I resolved this issue as I notice that others had also suffered from this problem. I have posted the STL (design) files for the 3D parts up onto Thingiverse should anyone want to download and print some for themselves, I will also put out an offer to print some for others should they not have access to a 3D printer (just PM me). Here is a picture of the new mount plates in place. Terry.- 14 replies
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Hi All. Need your help on my first try at M51. After stacking around 1 hour+ of 2 mins exposures this is what I got. I wasn't able to use darks and flats because I had a problem with the darks that I took during that night. I'm getting a slight red tone on the background when I enhance with levels and curves in Photoshop. I took the image in a fairly dark site but I used a UHC filter to see if it has any help on the image. My equipment is a Celestron C6N reflector, Nikon D90, and a Baader UHC filter. Thanks!
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COMPLETED - ** NOW SOLD - PLEASE REMOVE ** Celestron Sky Q module
MrsGnomus posted a topic in Sold / Expired Classified Ads
Celestron Sky Q module. Purchased new back in 2015 to use with a CGEM (which is also up for sale). The device creates a WiFi signal which you can connect to with an iOS or Android device so that you can control the mount with Apps such as Sky Safari (that is what we used). Alternatively you can use Celestron’s free Sky Portal App. £70 including delivery. The item is also up for sale on UK ABS -
** NOW SOLD - PLEASE REMOVE ** Celestron CGEM mount - £580
MrsGnomus posted a topic in Sold / Expired Classified Ads
This was bought new back in 2014. It was used for a short time in our observatory before we decided to get a Mesu 200 in late 2015. Following that, it received little use – we would occasionally get it out for visual work. Further purchases have meant that the CGEM is now not being used at all, and it is time to shift it on. The CGEM is, in most respects, equivalent to an EQ6, although you should be aware that it cannot be used with EQMOD. It comes with the original tripod and a 17 lb counterweight (as shown in the photo). It comes with the 12V cigar plug power cable. • Payload Capacity: 40 lb (18.14 kg) – visual • Computer Hand Control: Double line, 16 character Liquid Crystal Display • 40,000 object database with over 100 user-definable objects and expanded information on over 200 objects I kept the original foam for storing the mount, but the original box has gone. The total weight of the package is not far short of 80 lbs. I don’t know how much it would cost to ship (or quite how I would ship it), so I think collection would be required. I don’t mind driving a reasonable distance to deliver or exchange (maybe we could meet half way). Note that I am also separately selling a Sky Q Link which works with this mount and enables you to control it using an IOS or Android device. £580 The mount is also for sale on UK ABS -
COMPLETED - ** SOLD - PLEASE REMOVE ** Celestron Luminos Eyepieces - full set
MrsGnomus posted a topic in Sold / Expired Classified Ads
A full set of Celestron Luminos Eyepieces complete with end caps. These 82 degree eyepieces are 2” and 1.25” depending on focal length. We have since bought some 100 degree eyepieces so these are not getting used any more. Be aware that the 31mm is a BIG eyepiece at just under 3lbs in weight – it was great in the big Dob. I have the original boxes for all eyepieces except the 7mm and 10mm. All prices include delivery. If anyone wants to buy all 6 along with the Maplin ‘Peli-style’ case shown in the photo please message me. Prices as follows: ALL SOLD NOW 31mm - £135 23mm - £115 19mm - £95 **SOLD 15mm - £65 ** 10mm - £65 **SOLD 7mm - £65 ** I’m happy to send other pictures of individual eyepieces if folks want. These are also up for sale on UK ABS -
****Iphone Camera Adapter****Please Remove
Bino Pete posted a topic in Sold / Expired Classified Ads
Iphone 5/5s phone adapter that attaches your iphone to Celestron X-Cel LX eyepieces (may work with other eyepieces and phones). This adapter is hard to get hold of now and believe it or not cost me £50!! I've included a couple of photos taken using this adapter to show how good it is. £25 posted (fees paid via Paypal). -
hi all stuck the barlow and dmk into the 9.25 here the great results (rude of me to say when there loads of great images of the moon and craters on sgl) i did get some great vids to stack we have had a couple a great night jupiter tonight if this good clear skys holds 1000 caputured @15fps average 300 stacked registax 5 light edit ps6
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Hi - Was wondering if anyone could help me? I've recieved a second hand Orange C8 but it has a rotating secondary. It just spins around in the corrector plate with about .5 mm wiggle room. To make things worse I think the previous owner has attempted to remove the corrector at some stage so I'm not sure what to do. I know I have to align all 3 optical elements but not the foggest where to start. The corrector appears to have two lines etched on the edge at right angles. Say 12 and 3 O'clock - but dont know if this is 11 or 2 O'clock or what ever configuration. I can not discern an corresponding marks on the tube body or down at bottom on the mirror. Ant
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Read much on Celestron but not so much on Meade these days. How do the big 2 compare and with other SCT makes?
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bit more from a frosty last night c gem pier in obsy sct 9.25 hd 720* logitech some colds hands and i did some other stuff will sort later but for now enjoy these close ups sit at least 3 feet away from yor monitor please to get the full beauty of the moon pat
