Dobsonian Scope with Tube Rings?

[Radscanner]

I've found with my GEM that if I mount the tube such that the eyepiece is directly opposite the dovetail mounting to the GEM, that the eyepiece very rarely gets into a position that is difficult to use. The only place that it gets odd is between zenith and pole.

I have a 6" f5 Meade newt that I must get around to putting into a decent dob mount at some point, as it's not getting used much at the moment. It's not being sold on yet as I have hopes of using it for videoastronomy at some point, whenever I get around to that..

Regarding the OP, once you know what orientations you are comfortable with when using a Dobsonian mount, it shouldn't be that hard to reattach the cheaper scopes at the correct orientation. Most of the cheaper scopes are often "improved" by their owners with little touches like these

I get back pain (a lot) when stooping. I've got my refractor and reflector set up so I either sit down or am able to twist the tube to cut down on awkward positions. I did try a couple of dobs at a recent star party and they were very very good. One had a finder that was angled like the eyepiece and that helped a lot when searching.

[StarSteve]

I get back pain (a lot) when stooping. I've got my refractor and reflector set up so I either sit down or am able to twist the tube to cut down on awkward positions. I did try a couple of dobs at a recent star party and they were very very good. One had a finder that was angled like the eyepiece and that helped a lot when searching.

Yes, ergonomics is of course personal, which is why you often see dob owners with their own particular setup of finder aids, and a right angled finder is more or less a must-buy (which I believe is the reason almost all dobs come with straight-through finders, guaranteed after-sales). For viewing position, many use "piano chairs" or something like that. A friend of mine put her 6" dob on a low table instead, so she can stand straight and observe.

Steve

[russ.will]

I've found with my GEM that if I mount the tube such that the eyepiece is directly opposite the dovetail mounting to the GEM, that the eyepiece very rarely gets into a position that is difficult to use. The only place that it gets odd is between zenith and pole.

Not that I have a GEM since I moved to Dob, but that is exactly what I used to do. Okay, there was a bit of a faff when polar aligning, but the rest of the night was spent simply adjusting my ironing chair, in small increments, to keep up with the convenient EP location.

It has to said I also used a plastic track and big jubilee clip arrangement, with slightly loose tube rings, to accomodate rotating the OTA when absolute comfort called for it. Most of the solutions for comfortable GEM visual use, cost very little in my experience and only a little forethought.

Russell