Rigel quickfinder

[F1Bird]

I am having a nightmare trying to align the RDF on my Celestron 114 EQ. I know the theory to it and it makes perfect sense but I never know where to put my head whilst trying to align it! The slightest head movement totally changes the view through the RDF so how do you know which is the right position?! Someone advised that I try a Telrad but having looked into this a little it seems that it would be too big for my scope & the Rigel would be more fitting. Is the Rigel quikfinder idiot proof or am I likely to struggle to align that too? I am desperate to see Jupiter and need to get some sort of finder happening as my random scope pointing doesn't appear to be working! Thanks.

[Carbon Brush]

I use a Rigel and get on well with it. It won't make your scope fall over and is easily transferable should you upgrade scopes.

Some RDFs are better than others. Some have a dark glass that blocks anything dimmer than Jupiter. Others are too bright and swamp anything dimmer than Jupiter. But there are good ones around as well.

[long_arms]

I would say get it aligned as best you can.

With Jupiter as long as it is fairly accurate, you will be able to see it with a wide eyepiece like a 20-25mm . You can then get It centred and move up to higher magnification eyepieces!

I can't comment on whether a telrad would be too big for your scope, I can however say that it is great and not that heavy (although I havent felt the weight of other finders.) It also projects its image at infinity unlike others so head movement shouldn't in theory affect it whatsoever.

Hope that helps,

Dan

[nederman63]

Sorry to high jacket, is this finder smaller than a telrad

[F1Bird]

From what I can see the Rigel is taller than the telrad but has a smaller footprint, about 2 inches or so as opposed to 8 inches on the Telrad. I have about 4 or 5 inches between the front of the tube and the tube rings so the Telrad would be too long for me to use.

[Moonshane]

for your scope, the rigel would be better. don't forget that as you move your head, both the background stars and the red dot/circle etc will both move but as they both move, the relative positions should stay the same. might be worth persevering with yours for a bit as mentioned above but I agree that the rigel would be the better in rigel vs telrad for your scope

[John]

I use a Rigel Quikfinder on my 12" dobsonian. It's a good finder, nearly as good as a Telrad but lighter and with a much more compact footprint. I agree with you regarding eye positioning behind the Quikfinder being quite critical though - it takes some practice to get the angle and the distance behind the finder right each time you look through the finder (or past it to be more accurate !). The Telrad is a little less fussy in this respect but is not immune from these issues.

All I can suggest is i) turn the brightness of the reticules up a little to make them easier to find and ii) keep practicing !

[F1Bird]

Thanks for the advice. I shall persevere with the RDF for a while longer. Or at least I would if the skies were ever clear!

[ianfiat]

I had the red dot finder on my celestron 76eq- worse than useless, I could barely find my house with it. Buy a Telrad- If I can fit it to my 76 you can fit it to your 114!

[Pig]

I use an RDF and find it to be fine, its always bang on.

Did you set it up during the day on a distant object and fine tune it at night on a star?

Sent from my GT-P7510

[Astro_noob]

I bought a Rigel Quickfinder and returned it only a few days after purchase. Alignment was critical as 80% of the time I couldnt see the red circles the finder projects. I spent more time looking for the red circle than viewing the stars which to me defeats the pupose of the device. I quickly put the 6x24 finder back on my scope and was back at square one again. I too own a 114mm reflector and would think a telrad would be far too big for the scope. It wont make it fall over but may be a little cumbersome for the scopes body. A right angled finder would be a better option.

[AstroTux]

I bought a Rigel Quickfinder and returned it only a few days after purchase. Alignment was critical as 80% of the time I couldnt see the red circles the finder projects.

I use a QuickFinder on an AstroMaster 130 and find it the best thing I've tried yet. The RDF was naff and a green laser pointer is fine for backyard work but not for star parties.

By placing the finder just behind and slightly above the focusser it is very easy to just bend your head slightly to the right and forward to look through it and see the red circles. It's even easier than using the green laser pointer used to be, so that has now been removed completely.

If it is positioned nicely you should have no trouble with it whatsoever, and its size makes it ideal for smaller 'scopes.

[F1Bird]

Thanks, think I might try a Rigel. In response to your question Pig, I have tried to set it up in the day. I centre a distant object (a chimney) in the main scope and then look through the window of the RDF. I know then that the idea is to use the adjustment screws to align the red dot until it is directly over the object in the main scope (the chimney). However, as the RDF does not have an eyepiece and is just a little plastic window, it is your natural instinct to move your head around until the chimney is in the centre of the view through the window which kind of defeats the object. If it were a proper scope then you would have to put your eye close up to it and therefore get the correct position, or near enough. With the RDF on the Celestron there is no guidance as to where you should stand or aim your line of sight whilst looking through the RDF. Do you stand over it, behind it, low down parallel to the tube, behind the tube, an inch away, 6 inches away, to the left, to the right? Nearly broke into a chorus of Agadoo there but you get my point?! You can align the red dot with the target all you like but the minute you move slightly it shifts out of alignment again! I think I must be missing something as it really does seem to be the most badly designed piece of apparatus I have ever come across (with the possible exception of a Portuguese toaster with spring loaded flaps, no handles and an exterior surface temperature nearing that of the centre of the sun).

[Pig]

l just stand behind it and look through it keeping both eyes open, if you close one eye your focal point moves but I'm sure you know that.

Maybe you have a dodgey RDF or does it work for me because I'm cockeyed

Sent from my GT-P7510

[Steep]

Having tried my Telrad on a 10" dob I would not recommend you using one, nothing wrong with the Telrad but because it's very long you need to get down much lower to be able to see through it. The business end, the bit with the projection goes at the lower end and you need to give yourself some distance to be able to see it properly which takes you even further down the scope looking up along it. Telrads are much better suited to non Newtonian scopes like Maksutovs or refractors I think.

[ianfiat]

I use a QuickFinder on an AstroMaster 130 and find it the best thing I've tried yet. The RDF was naff and a green laser pointer is fine for backyard work but not for star parties.

By placing the finder just behind and slightly above the focusser it is very easy to just bend your head slightly to the right and forward to look through it and see the red circles. It's even easier than using the green laser pointer used to be, so that has now been removed completely.

If it is positioned nicely you should have no trouble with it whatsoever, and its size makes it ideal for smaller 'scopes.

l just stand behind it and look through it keeping both eyes open, if you close one eye your focal point moves but I'm sure you know that.

Maybe you have a dodgey RDF or does it work for me because I'm cockeyed

Sent from my GT-P7510

The red dot finder celestron give with there astromaster telescopes is little more than a piece of glass wit a dot on it- very handily though you can unscrew it and apply heel of foot! By moving position you can encompass most of the sky as you look through it! Buy a Telrad or a Rigel, you really won't regret it. (With the RDF on the Astromaster 76 it once took me 30 mins to find Jupiter! It takes seconds now with a Telrad)

[Pig]

I could walk to Jupiter on 30 Mins - You are doing something seriously wrong if it takes that long - An RDF is just not for you

Sent from my GT-P7510

[F1Bird]

The red dot finder celestron give with there astromaster telescopes is little more than a piece of glass wit a dot on it- very handily though you can unscrew it and apply heel of foot! By moving position you can encompass most of the sky as you look through it! Buy a Telrad or a Rigel, you really won't regret it. (With the RDF on the Astromaster 76 it once took me 30 mins to find Jupiter! It takes seconds now with a Telrad)

Ha ha. Glad someone can sympathise! Wish I could find Jupiter in 30 minutes. I was convinced that this was finally it when the moon came out. After all, how could I possibly not be able to find the moon? Well, guess what?! Ever get the feeling you've chosen the wrong hobby?

[F1Bird]

Just another quick question about the Rigel. Would you recommend going for the AA battery pack option? Its about £8 more than the standard version so I suppose it needs to make that up in battery savings. It states that one set of AAs will last about 2000 hours which seems like an awful long time! If the batteries last that long then maybe the standard version would be ok. Any opinions? Are the standard batteries expensive and hard to come by?

[NGC 1502]

Just another quick question about the Rigel. Would you recommend going for the AA battery pack option? Its about £8 more than the standard version so I suppose it needs to make that up in battery savings. It states that one set of AAs will last about 2000 hours which seems like an awful long time! If the batteries last that long then maybe the standard version would be ok. Any opinions? Are the standard batteries expensive and hard to come by?

The Rigel takes the CR2032 battery (also fits most RDFs) and lasts for ages, as long as you remember to turn it off at the end of your session. It's easy to find at many supermarkets, DIY and general stores, but prices vary a lot. I've seen packs of 4 at my local market for £1, but get a better make from a shop. I keep a spare in my eyepiece case. That battery also fits my car remote, so handy as a spare for that as well.

Regards, Ed.

[Moonshane]

personally I feel it's an essential option. if you are in the middle of nowhere the chances are you can get AA's if they run out but not the penny ones.

I am rubbish at turning off RDFs and the AAs last for months and months.

[Carbon Brush]

I have never had a problem with the coin cells in my Rigel. Except of course leaving it switched on for weeks! Whenever I buy coin cells (for lots of things) with a bit of care I can get packs of 4/510 for less than one from a local shop. They come well packaged against accidental discharge. So leaving the spares in the eyepiece/scope case, or whatever you use, is easy enough.