Celestron Nextstar 127 centering after goto

[sticks]

I used my new Nextstar 127 last night for the first time and it went sort of OK. I managed to do an alignment and then selected Jupiter as a target. It found Jupiter but it was positioned off-centre at the left margin. The hand controller would not let me refine the view as none of the direction buttons seem to work when the scope is in aligned mode. The only way I could get a proper centered view was to turn the scope on and off so that the direction controls were active again - but now tracking was inactive until the alignment process was repeated...! I had three goes with the same result. I thought you might be able to get a rough fix on an object from the goto and then centre the object and get it to track but it doesn't seem to work that way.?

I have RTFM honest I have, but I can't suss what I'm doing wrong.

[Capricorn]

Cannot offer anything specific as what you are doing is what I would expect.

On Meades that is how they operate, the scope goes to the target and you adjust with the movement keys to get the object precisely in the centre.

Also on most goto's they have a precision alignment mode that relies on what you are trying.

Only thought is are you sure the scope is not moving?

Once it has gone to a target I suspect that the rate reverts to the slowest, also are you pressing the buttons for just a short period, say about a second to a second and a half? Just thinking that the scope may not do anything immediately. I don't think mine moves immediatly.

Could the rate be set to 0 ?

Only thing I can think of otherwise is that when the scope has gone to whatever, that you then have to press Enter/OK or whatever. As in acknowledge that the scope has gone somewhere and done it's bit. Don't see why but just a thought.

[Dunkster]

sticks, a couple of tips I've gleaned from others here and through trial and error (mostly the former!)...

1. level your scope carefully, within the circle is ok but centre as close as you can
   
2. ensure your lat/long, time zone are correct and that the time is accurate - some say within 10 seconds! I use emerald time on iPhone for time
   
3. pick 3 stars that are around 30 degrees above the horizon, 90 degrees apart from each other and with one over the meridian from the others. also, all 3 should not be in a straight line
   
4. when aligning, start with the 25mm for centre steps and use a shorter FL for the align steps, and get the star as close to centre as you can without spewing back and forth much
   
5. also when aligning, approach each star from the same direction, for example, approach each using down and right and (this is the part I've not yet grasped fully) in the same direction as it would slew itself
   

Once aligned, it should get the object pretty close to the centre of the eyepiece, or one of the above isn't right. Once you've done it a few times, it becomes easier.

For a quick view, try the solar system align - you will need to correct every now and again, but it should track more or less on target for an hour or more (the longest I've tried!)

You should be able to use the direction buttons at any time, aligned or not, but the tracking only kicks in once you've done some kind of alignment.

The current rate is displayed if you push the rate button. I find this to default to 6 after an alignment, which I find to be a bit coarse for tracking corrections.

One other thing is that if your alignment isn't great (even if it confirms) after a while you might get tracking divergence or drift, from what you see versus what it thinks is there. This is amplified over time if you make any corrections. You can sync with one of your alignment objects and it rethinks (if you're viewing Jupiter for example and used it for alignment) but it's usually an indicator that one of the list above is a bit too far off

Hope that helps a bit....

[Stargazer51N]

The hand controller would not let me refine the view as none of the direction buttons seem to work when the scope is in aligned mode.

It might be that your hand controller 'rate' is set to the slowest speed which barely moves the scope (and it sometimes takes a good few seconds at this speed before it moves at all due to backlash in the gearing).

Once you have done your alignment try pressing the RATE key followed by the 9 key (sets you to the fastest speed) and then move the scope using the arrow keys.

If this doesn't work make sure you're using the correct batteries (in my experience rechargeables don't work well as they are 1.2v not 1.5v) or a power tank / leisure battery.

If your still having problems I'm stumped

[LukeSkywatcher]

I'd say it is to do with the rate setting. I went through the motions the other day of doing a solar system align and the rate went from 9 down to about 5-6.

[GeorgeB]

Yeah, the rate change during alignment used to always catch me out. I now automatically hit Rate-8 after every auto-alignment.