Fist scope :)

[ShaunyC]

Hi i recently purchsed my first scope the other week..

I set off looking for a set of benoculars/monocular starting on a pair of 7x50's and soon chaseing apature and magnification figures! lol and ended up getting a Celestron Powerseaker 127EQ..

The listing was ending rather soon so did a quick google search and reviews sounded ok.. so went for it! at a mere £80 posted..

But then joined here and the reviews where a little different! lol

I had it out a few days ago but with no moon and no experience i struggled to find anything but darkness....

So a few YT videos later i decided to have a look through it in the day trying to line the spotting scope up and generaly check it works!? 

It did! lol

I can see why there was so many compaints about the finder scope.. maybe with a stronger braket it might be abit better.. but prob look to upgrade if you have any suggestions??

Also the the thing was coverd in dust when i got it... especialy the 4mm eyepiece.. which i have the feeling might be too strong/sensative for the EQ1 wobbly legs!

I have a H20mm eyepice and a 2xbalow but guessing there not up to much cop either.. although did work at least.. Been looking at a set of possl's, well two sets actually.. cheap as chips but better than what i have..

I read through a guide on here and by the sounds of it the rule of thumb for a good selection of eyepieces would be 6, 10, 16 and 24mm for my F/8.. well F/7.9blablabla, lol

these two kits i'm looking at though... one's got 5, 10, 15, 25mm the others got 4, 6.5, 12.5, 20mm but a better build quality, there both by Ostara so not expecting anything too amazing... not the i would know, but for £30 quid will give me a set of four for the price of one..

With one of the sets i can also change an eyepice for a filter, having a quick gen up on them.. it seems a green or blue would be a good starting point?

Sorry if i've gone on abit... been doing what reseach i can on here as i knew nothing the other week, lol and as i've gotten deeper i've somehow got abit more confused! but at least i have abit better understanding now...

[Helite]

Don't be too harsh on your scope, I started with the same one and paid a lot more than 80 quid for it! First I got rid of the finder and replaced it for a red dot finder off ebay, then replaced the barlow with a slightly better one, I never put any other eyepieces in it if I remember correctly but did use a webcam and captured Saturn and was ecstatic. After a few months I splashed out and got my 200p, so despite the 127eq being a "department store scope" it fed my hunger for more stargazing.

I don't know the eyepieces you talk of, I always thought that sets were a bad idea even though I did consider one myself early on. I would advise getting a cheap finder for it, Alan at skies the limit does cheap accessories, that's where I got my red dot and barlows initially, and recently my BST's. I think he does some cheaper eyepieces though so it may be worth talking to him.

I don't think I would bother with a filter yet, better spending the money on something else in my opinion. 

Anyway i'm sure you will get plenty more good advice from wiser minds than mine, just have fun with the scope though!

[ShaunyC]

Oh.. i dont mean to sound harsh on my scope.. it's just the opinion i got off here... but alot on here more advanced that this scope so i 'm happy as hell with it as a starter scope, was hoping to take it to my local club to show it of but work got in the way! lol

I was diffinetly impressed with the chimy i looked at.. it was also good to get use to the controls, I'm just waiting for the chance to have a look up with it again

I'll lay off the idea of a filer, i do feel the amount of dust on the eyepiceis was bad news so maybe as you say just go along bit at a time.. (i have the habbit of jumping in) also i'll look into a better finder scope.. i did manage to get this one fairly lined up.. are all finders views upside down?

[NGC404]

You could do a lot worse than the scope you have as a starter scope.

With a decent low-mid power plossl, you will get some great views.

Bring it along to the next North Lincs Astro meeting, where you,ll get some hands on help and advise

[ShaunyC]

Yea i know.. do kind of wish i started on bino's tho, and then work my way up in size to appreciate the steps but i'm not grumbling what so ever.. cant wait to get some better eyepieces.. and take it sea fishing on the north wall

Thats sounds great i might pop along some time, just had a look at your website and your not too far away..

[Schorhr]

Great deal for the price! :-)

As the focal ratio is not critical, either get cheap Plössl (10-15£) or the 66 degree swa/uwa for 27£ that are basically modified wide-angle Plössl (as far as I know).

Not only is the wide angle view magnificent, but the eye relief much better then with short focal length plössl!

You won't need a kit/case of plössl with mediocre accessories, and three to four eyepieces cover most objects and observing nights anyway.

5" will show the first details on galaxies and nebulae when the sky is truly dark. Great and portable device.

As for the finder, get a telrad or Rigel quick finder, printed or bought maps (so much easier for most objects), and a 30/32mm Plössl for the overview, 30/33x magnification and the maximum field you can see through the 1:25) focuser tube.

A 20mm 66degree eyepiece (will show the same field as a 25mm Plössl with only 50-52degree).

A 6mm66deg for 166x (close enough to max. Magnification under mediocre sky conditions).

A 6mm plössl would be hard to use due to it's very short eye relief.

If you are on a budget you can get two nice eyepieces and a achromatic 2x barlow (14£) for starters, much better then the plastic lens ones and not much money wasted. Of course a eyepiece instead of using a barlow.'

[Schorhr]

Oh, http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/281145642714 and http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/171131145688?nav=SEARCH&sbk=1 are great BUDGET binoculars that help to find stuff and explore the night sky. Lidl offers them once in a while and then you get a chance to try them before you buy (check if they are aligned and focus works).

Of course you can spend as much as for a telescope on great binoculars, but they are okey-ish for the price, and much much better then the other cheap ones on eBay with red coatings and 99% plastic :-)

[brantuk]

For £80 you've got a reasonable intro to astronomy without splashing out too much cash so you've done very well imho. It might not be so good an idea to get an eyepiece kit with this scope - I doubt you'll get a whole lot more out of it and even with a more substantial scope eyepiece kits don't perform as well as individual well chosen eyepieces (unless you spend mega bucks on one).

I'd suggest getting one or two more eyepieces to compliment the ones you have. Go for intervals of 4 or 5mm and build a range between 8mm and 24mm initially. I suspect you'll soon want to upgrade the scope once you realise the limitations of your current one - maybe to a 150P or even a 200P. You'll find your eyepieces will transfer nicely to future scopes. Hth

[ShaunyC]

Sweet.. thanx for your advice guys!

Got my eye's on a rigal RDF, so hopefully that might come to some avail.. And after tomight thpught i may aswell spend a little more for some widefield view eyepieces.. I imagine they make all the difference! and like you say i can take them with me.. so one at a time it is..

Been out again tonight for 3rd time if you count the chimney view?? lol but finally found things... i.e the moon! suppose its abit hard to miss.. but was good getting use to the controls... I've got to admit i wasnt finding polaris and having it all lined up.. more of a drag and shoot! lol managed to get my first couple of pics tho threw my phone..

20mm

20mm + 2xbalow

Extreamly happy with the outcome.. i did play with the dodgy 4mm but think thats pretty much ready for the bin..

After gazing at the moon for abit playing with my eyepieces.. i went on to see what else i could find... I think Capella and Vaga where the brightest things i  could see..

In the search for the Great Andromeda nebula i viewed cassiopeia... I never found Andromeda! lol

I viewed a few other things but nothing of mega interest.. just look like stars but closer! lol I might try and stay awake till jupiter is on the scene and beatlejuice but gota be up for 5 so will prob miss it..

Think i need to suss a few more fun things to search for, for next time.. if you have any ideas??

[brantuk]

To find andromeda you need to know the "great square" in the constellation pegasus. Then from the top left corner star hop left and down at a shallow angle to a slightly fainter star - then left and up at a shallow angle to a brighter star - turn up towards cassiopeia (making a right angle) and hop to the next faint star - you'll find andromeda galaxy just above it and a smidgeon to the right (not far).

If you've not downloaded Stellarium yet then please do so - it's free and a terrific planetarium for the uninitiated. Configure it with your location and then do a search for Andromeda - you'll see how my star hop suggestions lead to it in the sky. Right now it's approx directly overhead. Hth

[ShaunyC]

Ahh.. I might of been going about it all wrong then.... I've been using stalerium for a while but my aproach was take the V from cassiopeie pointing toward Andromida and then try and line it up with middle of the the three stars in a line of Andromida then 3rd star up/ish! lol

I read threads on what to expect to see but i'm still at a loss what i wil be able to see/find with my current eyepieces.. if theres a thread on good things to look for please point me in the right direction as maybe the great Andrimda Nebua is beond me at this current time??

I'm still buzzin though with what i have found so far!

I hope to find Ison (C/2012 S1) soon one morning... i Have it loaded into Stalerium already so just a case of finding it for real!..

[brantuk]

"take the V from cassiopeie pointing toward Andromida and then try and line it up with middle of the the three stars in a line of Andromida then 3rd star up/ish"

Yup - that's another way to find it indeed. You should see a faint oval smudge - but it is really very distinct. You can see it in bins, definitely in a scope, and it is in fact the only naked eye galaxy available to our eyes because it's so bright. Once you've found it you'll be able to go straight to it every time.

[ShaunyC]

Jst got in from seezing the moment of a clear sky.. never even bothered to look for Andromida as it looked as if the light pollution from the moon would be too much? Did look at the moon though which was a lot brighter, but i did it more to try and hone my finder scope in..

After that i went to look for Saturn! which wasnt to bad... i think i could almost make out the lines with my 20mm and 2xbarlow.. Definetly see 4 moons on the right of it maybe 5? forgot now! lol Then moved onto Pleiades i think that goes by? stars everywhere..

Bit more of a wonder about looking at the belt of orion i decided to go have a suss some things on Stellarium I went back looing for the Great Nebular of Orion, and pleased to say i found it alomost straight away! Looks like a few star's with a haze..

Stumbled across the horses head nebular on stellarium.. so looked for that but was prob hopping abit too much there! lol errr betelgeuse and Alderbaran a couple of other things i looked at loads of other random stuff aswell.. Went back for another look at jupiter being higher in the sky was hoping fo a clearer view.. tried taking a pic on my phone but no use..

So pretty happy with tonight's obseving need to learn how to use the mount propperly as jst spinning it in the rough direction by whatever means didnt help when trying to foloow something.. at one point as if the mount wosnt wobble enough because i'd had the EQ undone so i could spin it round it was exyremly all over even without touching it..

Another thing that supprised me tonight was when i put my hand over the apature i expected to se a shadow of sorts but could still see the moon  plain as day, suprised me a bit.. When looking down at the mirror i could see it looked abit dirty, little hairs on it etc, can these be cleaned in anyway or even is that a good idea? or does it just smudge worse?

Got a Rigel quickfinder on the way so that might help?? did get quite use to my flimsy thing i have tonight tho.. and atleast it magnifies it which the regel dosent.. is that a good thing?? the red dot+circul that can be dimmed must be?

I still think the view can be alot better with plossl's so there next on the list, ASAP.. as obvious as that sounds i think these eyepieces i've got have seen better days!? lol

Heres to next time!

[ShaunyC]

BTW that first planet i looked for was ment say Jupiter! lol god i so wish checked all that before posting! ha

[Schorhr]

Great to hear that you had some success observing! :-)

The rdf/telrad may Not magnify, but it's easier to look through and with the right maps/prints finding things will be easy.

Yes, the Full moon makes it harder to observe deepsky objects. Even Andromeda and orion can be seen under mediocre skies, the contrast increases when the moon is not illuminating everything.

Cleaning a mirror can indeed make things much worse. Usually even a lot of dust is not relevant to the optical performance as it's small surface area may only covers less then a percent of aperture.

IF you decide on cleaning, search for the guides on here. It should never been done dry, as the mirror coating of telescope mirrors is on-top of the glass. You would cause tiny scratches and perhaps rub off the protective coating. Also don't use tap water, the stains after drying may make it even worse, too. Not to mention the hassle of removing the mirror to clean it, fingerprints... ;-)

Definitely look at a few star clusters, ring and dumbell nebula, and Alberio... Even though they stand a bit low.

Plössl will be nice, but the other eyepieces - 27£ 66degree afov - will blow you away ;-)

For higher magnification Plössl are not an option, unfortunately, due to the short eye relief. Bst/tmb are great also.