Gazer914 Posted March 7, 2012 Share Posted March 7, 2012 just wanted to ask what the recomeded cool down period for a explorer 200p is before viewing? and for this size scope would it be recomended to get a dew sheild? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skybrowser Posted March 7, 2012 Share Posted March 7, 2012 Trial and error really. I'm not sure how you actually know when it's sufficiently cooled down. I give mine 30-45 mins before I start observing. I've got a dew shield and it works really well (only had my 200P for a couple of weeks and not had any probs yet). After the cool down period I get my eyes really well dark adapted and then hit the eyepiece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazer914 Posted March 7, 2012 Author Share Posted March 7, 2012 i just got mine today the only thing i dont like is where the flexi grips have been replaced with just knobs for the r/a and dec adjusters but think i should be able to buy these for it shouldnt i?on the bonus side when i ordered it from RVO in the add its said it had a polar scope holder but not the polar scope guess what its come with hehe BONUS.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyjamjoejoe Posted March 7, 2012 Share Posted March 7, 2012 It varies night to night, depending on the temperature difference of course. Most nights i found about 40minutes to be properly cooled. I have had nights where even after well over an hour, it still wasn't cooled. I just keep it in the car now, it's always ready to go. Star testing will tell you when it's ready. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazer914 Posted March 7, 2012 Author Share Posted March 7, 2012 does the size of the scope affect the cool down? would have thought it would because of the size of the mirror. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyjamjoejoe Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Yep, size and type make a huge difference. Some larger mirrors never reach equilibrium without active cooling. Cassegrains take ages to cool down too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catweazel Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 I leave mine for about 45 mins to an hour Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazer914 Posted March 8, 2012 Author Share Posted March 8, 2012 ah right wasnt sure with the big scopes, another question i have and dont know if this is a prob or not, the eq5 that came with the scope i have balanced but when decreasing the alt with the T bolt the front of the scope kinda bounces, like i said not used to setting up such a big scope, would it be worth greasing the T bolt? have included a pic to show where i mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moonshane Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 as a general rule I'd suggest 5-10 minutes per inch of aperture for all scopes - refractors also need to be cooled to give best performance.that said, as others have commented, I can start observing with my 16" dob almost immediately at low powers especially when the fan is on.it's relatively rare for optics on a newtonian to dew up - possibly with the exception of truss based systems. all newtonians will benefit from a light shield rather than a dew shield especially if you have a solid tube design or observe from urban locations. stray light from kitchen windows etc creates a reduction in contrast if it enters the light cone. see this link http://www.urania.be/forum/download.php?f=1&file=baffling.pdffor ways to prevent this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazer914 Posted March 8, 2012 Author Share Posted March 8, 2012 lighting isnt too bad even though i live in town, they tend to turn some of the lights off after a certain time so have had some good veiwing, saying that because dont live that far from the coast tend to get alot of damp nights so condensation is a prob at times (sea mist) am hoping for a clear night tonight so will see how things go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.