4 more stupid questions.

[BiG JiLM]

Well call me a dutchman but I dont understand a few things on my scope (new to the game/ 1st scope).

Its a simple celestron astromaster 130EQ/ 5" reflector, on an EQ mount.

1) why do reflectors, which are quite clumsily lugged onto and off-of their mounts, a big tube our ape ancestors' hands didn't quite have cause for.. isn't there a simple carry handle on top? this really confounds me tbh.

2) why if as seems to be the case, Im fumbling around for the dec and ra clutch knobs in the dark so often, aren't these two knobs simply glow-in-the dark? seems such a simple design addition with huge functionality, for peanuts.

3) why does my ra clutch cable stick oot the front (actually I think the better side, in use?) and not the back? I assume its affecting the balance/ adding a bit much to the 'front' as I have to shift the tube's two brackets twds rear of tube to balance- no prob per se/ just looks odd and not as seen in manual/ ie clutch oot its rearside. If I shift the ra head around, so the cable does stick oot the rearside, the clutch knob clashes with the dec circle, and the two scope tube plate locking knobs (the ones that hold the tube's bracket into the tripod head) are t'otherside: completely impractical when mounting scope 'normal side'.

4) I have a MotorDrive, which I think works really well.. but wait for this: I can only see to mount it upside-down! not only that but I can only make it work, if I set its N/S switch to S! again no prob per se.. but I cant get my head round it! (have I got the 'decidely wrong' NZ/ Aussie type or something? ;-)

Its all terribly queer this lark. Thanks, JiLm.

[BiG JiLM]

Maybe if I stood on my head and did my scope malarchy, all the Q's would make sense. The image would be the right way up then at least.

[Qualia]

Maybe it's not relevant to the questions but some of the problems maybe due to the inherent design limitations of a newt on an EQ mount. I've seen a few in use over the past few months and they don't look like the easiest of systems to manage for an evening's viewing. If the users don't physical readjust and turn the tube in the mount rings, they're often in some very peculiar position. With that said, using a frac at zenith isn't exactly much fun either, you're more often than not down on your knees or bent buckled over. I guess for this reason, the purchase of an adjustable chair is useful and dob mounts for newts and alt-azimuth mounts for fracs as the wisest mount choice for visual observers.

[BiG JiLM]

Hi qualia- actually I havent found the scope on the EQ mount in any way problematic in use at all. The motor works great (tho its set to S not N ?! and its updside-down) the clutch knobs Im finding fine albeit after a quick scrabble (tho some quick ID such as Glow-In-The-Dark markers would be -hugely- helpful). The tube in its brackets is the only contortionistic issue.. but that's ok once Ive swizzled the tube round for another 20mins' hrs gazing, though this could be made far easier too with the most basic design additions.

I cant work out why no handle though- just seems so page 1. I mean look.. I get the tripod set up, then with two hands grab the 5ft x5" scope squeezing two fingers into the bracket/ base section for some sort of safety if I should stumble- preposterous, and once into the tripod dovetail base, I then have to take once hand off the scope to do up the two locking screws/ knobs. How easy is putting one small handle on the 'top'? It matters not if top doesnt remain 'top' it would still function just fine.

Most peculiar I think.

[umadog]

You can make or buy a carry strap. I'm surprised you feel the need for glow in the dark handles. When you are well dark adapted this sort of stuff should be easy to see without markers. Are you using an overly bright torch, maybe.

[pwalsh61]

If you don't mind (probably) invalidating your warranty, how about painting the clutch controls way day-glo paint? Alternaticely, we need someone to develop a rubberised/plastic luminous cover to fit over the clutch levers

Paul

Sent from my GT-I9100P using Tapatalk 2

[BiG JiLM]

No what I mean is when its dark, and I want to quickly whip over say 10* manually I have to grab the dec and ra clutch knobs. Unless I turn on the (red) torch I scrabble about for a few annoying seconds- sometimes I cant find them.. so I turn the torch on, obviously. If I could just have a g-i-t-d marker on each knob it'd only need peripheral vision to immediatly locate each knob.

Sorry I dont see how, even once my eyes have adapted, if its properly dark, I should be able to see black sections of my tripod.. unless of course I obtain owl's eyes, and selloptape them to my frontice-piece. Or use a torch- my Q was not reverting to the torch, its a bit of a faff if i dont choose to have a headlamp thing, and even so on-find-off gets annoying when it could be easily bypasses with 2 small markers.

[estwing]

get on dragons den!

[BiG JiLM]

Seriously, if you can answer my Qs- I lead with "4 more stupid Q's" yes but Im only being self-mocking to get your attn; I genuinely would like someone to answer as I do think they are two genuinely good general Q's, to which there must be simple enough answers to, namely again:

1) why no handle(s) incoporated? (I dont mean strap/ shoulder types, I mean specifically whilst mounting the scope onto tripod)

2) why no clutch markers?

..and the other 2 oddities of my scope Q's: you see I dont have anyone to help out here, or know anyone into scopes let alone have anyone local for any ideas. Another 3rd thing too is why my dec clutch is on the rearside of the tripod? forgive me but the scope/eq mounts I see (for eg the Ytube marvellous Scopes'N'Skies chaps' demos) are basically set up with the scope pointing LHS (focus unit with rack underside): so controls are -blindingly obviously- going to be this 'nearside' surely? But my dec clutch knob is rearside. That's either a pg 1 daft design error (no/ unlikey) or why? there must be a good reason/ maybe Im doing something daft I dont know (I am new to all these EQ mounts etc and perfectly happy to be corrected/ told 'eejet you've got yer X on wrong way up' or whatever it may be) but I really am scratching my head with these simple anomalies.

thanks JiLm.

[KenG]

Well, regarding handles...........

If you were to simply rivet/bolt a handle to the tube, I reckon there would be a good chance that the tube would deform. A 200mm Newt can be quite heavy and all that weight transferred to one point would not be a good idea - even worse in bigger scopes - so the only way round it would be a handle fixed to a couple of bands/straps around the tube to disperse the load, but then of course, any sort of external permanent strap is going to interfere with adjusting the tube in the mount, so are we talking about a detachable carry-frame?

Clutch levers are a pain in the proverbial derriere and because of the aforesaid necessary adjustments for each observing session you never know where the stupid things are hiding. The idea of having some way of detecting them in the dark is a good one and deserves discussion and input from all frustrated newt users.

[umadog]

Sorry I dont see how, even once my eyes have adapted, if its properly dark, I should be able to see black sections of my tripod.. unless of course I obtain owl's eyes, and selloptape them to my frontice-piece.

Then wrap some white tape around them

The reason I expressed surprise is that when one is dark adapted at a genuinely dark site it's still possible to read 1 cm high letters by natural sky glow and starlight alone. I find there's enough light for me to grab the correct eyepiece from my case and that's got black foam in it. Of course I haven't tried to use your tripod, but there was a reason why I asked the question I did

[Stargazer_00]

Hi there,

It can be difficult getting used to an EQ mount, some people just dont get on with using them. Personally I didnt think it was that bad. You get to build up muscle memory pretty quicklly and you will soon find your hands going directly to the right parts of the scope. I find I can set up and pack down my scope and navigate my eyepiece box with my eyes closed more or less. Remove caps, putting them back on, placing things n their right place and so on.

Spinning the scope in the tubes is normal and is probably why the scope doesnt have a handle If you plan out your viewing a little you can focus on the same area for a number of objects and reduce the amount of scope adjustments required. I found when I first got the scope I was spinning it all over the place going from one side of the sky to the other then back again. It does help familirise you with the workings of the scope I guess.

I since went to a dob mount, purely because I demanded more aperture. Dobs are alot easier to use, you need an adjustable chair though.

[Scott]

glow in the dark clutch handles would not work for very long i imagine. also i think they are harder to find the more light pollution there is. if its too light, your eyes don't get used to the dark. with regards to the handle, fix an aluminium bar to the top of the tube rings and you've got yourself a handle. the longer you use your mount the less annoying the clutches are.

Scott

[Capricorn]

Agree with Ken a handle will eventually deform the tube, handle in the middle weighty lump of glass at the other equals a bend. Add in that when you walk it is not just horizontal but vertically so you would be bouncing the whole thing while carrying it. Those mirrors move.

Get glow in the dark paint, some luminous beads or better the high reflective tape and put on the handles. Easy to get I use them all on fishing lures. Have you search the net for glow in the dark knobs? Bet there are some out there somewhere, maybe just get white ones. But get another set and play around with them so keeping the originals unchanged - I think the reflective tape will be the best option.

3 and 4 are design of the mount, I would also bet that if they put the cables elsewhere then people would complain equally about that. Simply no matter where they go someone will think it better if elsewhere. Concerning the motors upside down, not sure - motors rotate I have the feeling that upside down is irrelevant as it would still rotate clockwise or counter clockwise. Perhaps the motor fits either of 2 mounts and on yours it has to be the "wrong" way, it is wired up correctly and isn't just a motor wired wrong and so going backwards ?

[astrofox]

Dont drill your tube to fit handles, bolt them across the tops of the tube rings.

[Quatermass]

EQ mounts are confusing when you first get one but like anything new the more you use them the easier they become. I remember my first eq mount and the frustration of trying to understand it but I would suggest the following..

Take it out on a pitch black dark night and with out any lights on at all practice getting used to where all the controls are so you can move them around by touch rather then sight keeping doing this until you have mastered reaching them in the dark. It may sound daft but its what I did and after practicing this for a while I can now do it blindfolded. A small dim bike light will also help or one of those strap on head torches is very useful. Glow in the dark stuff is ok but another chap on here uses red led Christmas lights around his scope which works very well.

[BiG JiLM]

Terrific help chaps, thanks for your replies. I appreciate you taking my Q's seriously enough, even if they are 'dunce' ones to the experienced.

Ok now I understand why no handle (or, perhaps the most likely reason) if it may put pressure on a certain point (or points if there were to be one each end). That makes sense, although I still think if my cheapy tube is rigid enough (In my humble opinion/ not much kudos as Im a newbie I admit) for a light/ rigid well-secured handle on top, then the higher the expense of the scope/ the better the rigidity= a handle would be even more warranted! anyway i'll leave that one then! the answers made sense.

Ok I get why the knobs are not marked too: perhaps if I whack a 'funny' glow-rubberjohnny on each knob or something (I have, of course, no idea if such items exist..) as I get to know the scope, then as I adjust in the dark or get accustomed to it & the EQ mount etc. I have too, no conception I surmise yet, how good my eyes actually can be in the dark. last night for eg I stubbed my toe on a chairleg going for a leak, so their pretty rubbish at the mo thats for sure.

Still dont get the Motordrive tho. The manual pic's even upside-down! (but, then one wouldnt expect it to work like so if, in the UK, its N/S switch was set to 'S'.. as mine is!). I absolutely dont mind as it works great like so.. as does the EQ mount once ive scrabbled for the knobs; in fact the MotorDrive's small red 'on' led has the 'pitch control' toggle adjacent to it so I can see asap and nearest me, so upside-down it actually works better. Its just I like to have answers to things.. or my head clogs up with gubbins.

Thanks- BJiLm.

[CSM]

I have a 5in Skywatcher Newtonian with a motor and yes, the switch has to be S not N! Took me a year to find that out but it works fine. And yes, the designs are pretty primitive really. Rotating heads so that you don't have to unclamp on a freezing night and rotate the tubes, setting circles that you can actually see and don't need 3 hands to work....

[LukeSkywatcher]

1) why do reflectors, which are quite clumsily lugged onto and off-of their mounts, a big tube our ape ancestors' hands didn't quite have cause for.. isn't there a simple carry handle on top? this really confounds me tbh.

I think every scope sold should have a handle on the top or on the side to enable it to be safely lifted from the mount

2) why if as seems to be the case, Im fumbling around for the dec and ra clutch knobs in the dark so often, aren't these two knobs simply glow-in-the dark? seems such a simple design addition with huge functionality, for peanuts.

Such a small thing that really would be of great help

[BiG JiLM]

I have a 5in Skywatcher Newtonian with a motor and yes, the switch has to be S not N! Took me a year to find that out but it works fine. And yes, the designs are pretty primitive really. Rotating heads so that you don't have to unclamp on a freezing night and rotate the tubes, setting circles that you can actually see and don't need 3 hands to work....

Are you suuggesting the design is skewed ie "really, it should be set to N if its made proper like" or no the design is as it should be "your 'S' setting is correct you flamin muppet" ?

The manual says (after a pic of it mounted, upside-down, I kid you not/ just as mine is) "The drive also has a N/S switch to be set if operating in the Northern or Southern hemispheres".

Surely they cant have made such a design faux-pas? I just dont believe it would have slipped through to manufacture stage.

[BiG JiLM]

1) why do reflectors, which are quite clumsily lugged onto and off-of their mounts, a big tube our ape ancestors' hands didn't quite have cause for.. isn't there a simple carry handle on top? this really confounds me tbh.

I think every scope sold should have a handle on the top or on the side to enable it to be safely lifted from the mount

2) why if as seems to be the case, Im fumbling around for the dec and ra clutch knobs in the dark so often, aren't these two knobs simply glow-in-the dark? seems such a simple design addition with huge functionality, for peanuts.

Such a small thing that really would be of great help

Im glad someone agrees- I thought I was going potty tbh. I really would like to ask Celestron, SW, or any really for their take on the awol handle: perhaps they'd mirror what foks have said above as to the reasons. I mean one of the -first- things the marvellous Scopes'N'Skies say of the SW 10" dob on their Ytube fillum for eg is to point out the sturdy handle, albeit a base one as its a dob.

[LukeSkywatcher]

My main scope is a Celestron 8SE. While i love it, i do think that the OTA could do with a handle to allow easier mounting/dismounting. Every scope should be fitted with such a handle.

[BiG JiLM]

Ive just googled your celestron, now that looks a fine beastie/ a proper man-scope. mines but a piffle in comparison :- (

Have you thought about adding one? you know what- I reckon the reason might be as vain as aesthetics: a handle would faff X Co telescope's 'cool' serious-looking image up.

I can see its impracticalities with finderscope use, but as you say, a handle on the side is as good/ its just for the mounting dismounting bit: at the mo my knees start knocking- once a cold night with a right nippy tube hits Id really just want a handle then.

cheers folks.

[umadog]

"Ok I get why the knobs are not marked too: perhaps if I whack a 'funny' glow-rubberjohnny oI"

Again, it doesn't have to glow (be phosphorescent) it just has to be white. Under moderately dark skies a white painted object looks like it's glowing. You can paint it or use white tape. Then you'll have no problem finding anything.

I agree that stuff can be easier to find when it's dark than when you have direct lights shining on your site.

[Atlas]

Well call me a dutchman but I dont understand a few things on my scope (new to the game/ 1st scope).

Its a simple celestron astromaster 130EQ/ 5" reflector, on an EQ mount.

1) why do reflectors, which are quite clumsily lugged onto and off-of their mounts, a big tube our ape ancestors' hands didn't quite have cause for.. isn't there a simple carry handle on top? this really confounds me tbh.

I made a solution to this and it works fine. I put an extra mount support/handle on top.