Finderscope issues - stopped working!!??

[Gohan75]

I have only just bought a skywatcher 130p and accidently ran down the battery on my finderscope, which seemed to be working ok. Now all of a sudden it wont turn on, i have tried two different batteries both the same type as the original battery and I get no laser dot at all! it is very frustrating:mad:

any ideas?

[AWR]

Are you talking about your red dot finder? The red dot can be difficult to see in daytime (hopeful fix).

Despite being new, it's not a great loss if it isn't working as the supplied with finder is pretty rubbish anyway. If you decide to upgrade have a look at the Rigel Quikfinder (much better and you can get an external battery pack) or a proper finder scope.

HTH

Andrew

[Gohan75]

whats the difference between a finder scope and a red dot? is the finder scope better?

[AWR]

This is a red-dot finder:

First Light Optics - Baader 30mm Sky Surfer III

(Although a better one than comes supplied with SW scopes). They project a red dot onto a piece of glass/plastic which shows you which way the scope is pointing. I found that my old one had a dot which was too big and too bright - it obscured my reference stars (the ones I was trying to line up with).

This is a Quikfinder:

First Light Optics - Rigel QuikFinder Compact Reflex Sight

It works in a similar way, but it projects two red circles - 1/2 degree and 2 degrees. They are nicely dimmable, more adjustable and the circle does not obstruct what you are looking at. I use one to point the scope in the general direction.

This is a finder scope:

First Light Optics - Skywatcher 9x50 Right-Angled, Erecting Finderscope

This is a small, low power telescope with a wide field of view. It has cross hairs which you can use to line your scope up more accurately. I use one of these as well as a Quikfinder. The main benefit is that it enables me to see guide stars which are often invisible with the naked eye.

HTH,

Andrew

[Tribal-Wolf]

Make sure your replacement batteries are a known good quality not one of the cheapo type ebay sell as they are often just junk.