First light, GSO 8" F5 newt

[LouisJB]

I got this for Christmas. The sky was clear (ish) tonight, for the first time since I got it, so I grabbed an hour outside with it.

Jupiter was bigger and brighter than I've ever seen. The bands all very visible. No GRS at this time though, unfortunately. Used the 7mm then a 2x and 7mm so at up to 285x and was surprised how bright it still was. Not sure the seeing was up to it though, probably about 5mm 200x would have been ideal.

M42 was really much better than anything I've seen visually to-date. Trap was easy to distinguish, the nebulosity was really quite defined, lots and lots to see. I'll need to spend more time looking at this but I was really pleased with what I saw on first look.

Also had a quick look at the double cluster which was much brighter than I've seen before, many more stars visible.

I failed to locate M82/M81 quickly (was using the mount manually) so gave up on that for now.

M31 was bright, could see M32 clearly - not the best view I've seen but the sky wasn't particularly dark and some thin cloud was over in that area.

In terms of the tube - seems very well made. Focusing was a joy with the dual speed Crayford.

It's quite a lump compared to the tiny 130, it will take some getting used to. Noticeably more wobble than the 130 due to size/weight, but I didn't spend a lot of time getting perfect balance - this was a quick grab and go setup.

Another thing is the stars didn't seem quite as sharp as I've seen from the 130. I did colminate the day before, but maybe I didn't get it right. Also, I think the tube maybe hadn't cooled down fully - how long should it take with the bigger tube?

I didn't use the mirror fan, that should have helped. I notice it runs from 12V DC so I think I can use the new 6A 12V DC power supply I got to run the HEQ5 Pro to run the fan at the same time, I'll knock up some wiring for this when I get a moment.

So first impressions, a great (albeit big) visual instrument, very pleased.

As for the prospects of imaging with it, not sure - thinking it might be too much and I should get also the 150PDS when I've sold the 130P, but we'll see - I'll give it a go first. I expect it could be great for planetary video imaging although for DSOs, not sure...

It certainly feels like a proper telescope that will reveal a lot detail from those feint sky objects.

Sorry it's not a very scientific of comprehensive write up - I just thought I'd share my initial experiences with the new equipment.

[Moonshane]

for higher power viewing I would usually suggest about 5 mins per inch of aperture so 40 mins in your case. depending on the difference between storage and observing temperatures though - more difference = longer cooling (or warming of course as appropriate). I often start observing immediately though at low power even with my 16" dob.

inadequate cooling is likely to be the reason for fatter stars too although could be collimation as well.

you sound very happy with your new toy!

[Astro Imp]

Always great to read of someone who's happy with their new toy.

Good luck.

[cotterless45]

That's what I call a present ! Something useful and will be well used. I was looking at the 130 Pds as an imaging scope . Seems to be the very thing and the dual focuser is an attractive part of the ota , all for reasonable money,

Clear skies ! Nick.

[LouisJB]

Thanks! I've got the mirror cell fan wired up now, so that should help with cool-down. I need to make a better lead for the HEQ5 pro power, as it's dropping down to 10.8v under load, thicker cable needed I think.

As for star shape and colmination. I checked it again today, it was a bit off :s - so have redone it, should be better now I hope. I'll keep an eye on that, either I didn't do it right the first time or colmination isn't held as well as the little 130, maybe that goes hand in hand with bigger tubes?

Another thing to note is the colmination thumb screws are nice and big and make adjustment a real breeze! No tools either. I wouldn't be concerned to recolminate out in the field now if needed.

As for imaging, it remains to be seen. I suspect it might be a bit big for general use, although for planets and some targets it's extra reach could come in very handy. I'll see how it goes when I get the extension bar and see how wobbly it is when all balanced.

I might get the 130 or 150PDS just purely for an imaging rig and use the bigger 200 primarily for visual, but time will tell. Once way to find out for sure is to give it a go.

Looking forward to a fun year of observation. Lots of things still to learn and see. Saturn, the Crab nebula and an image of M33 are just a few of my wish-list todos...

[LouisJB]

Update on this. Been out a couple of times with it, including tonight. Although the Moon is now out (typical), got some nice views of Jupiter and also a nice wide view of M81 and M82 using a 25mm EP, it's showing these faint objects up much better than the 130P, visually.

Getting much better views now I've re-colminated it and the mirror cell fan certainly seems to help a lot at cool down and image stability.

Definitely a bit of a lump compared to the 130 and for imaging it might be a challenge, will see how that pans out. The extra focal length is definitely bringing things closer in view.

One issue I have is if I need to rotate the tube to gain eyepiece access it tends to be really hard to rotate in the rings without disturbing the alignment (clutches may slip) - are the rings always this tight? I guess it's because it's so much bigger, it used to be a breeze to rotate the 130 without disturbing the alignment. Now I have had to recalibrate after needed to rotate the tube around, which is a bit of a pain!

I did try a shot of the Moon through it tonight, single shot from DSLR.

Looking forward to having a full clear night to try some long exposure of some DSOs