Polar Scope punishment!

[DannyHarvey]

Bought a polar scope yesterday for my CG5 and proceeded to set it up. Astro Babys web site at http://www.astro-baby.com/HEQ5/HEQ5-1.htm

has some well written and clear notes on this issue - always wondered what those dials were for!

Finally, after a while the penny dropped on how the thing works -  it follows Polaris around the NCP but day by day but it fixes it to get to its highest point a little earlier every day to account for the rotation of the Earth around the Sun. Very neat. 

Mind you I don't hold out on the accuracy of the CG5's dials - they are a bit sloppy fitting and not easy to align accurately. Come on Celestron you can do better than this!

When it came to line the thing up with Polaris in the freezing cold after 5 mins I had to give in - it was too excruciating for my week old feeble body! How do people at North pole use these things when I'm feeling extreme neck pain at 51 degrees?

So its off now to try to modify my MS HD Lefecam Cinema webcam to save my ageing bones!

may try to Illuminate the damn thing too .. come one Celestron there is definitely a market for this sort of thing!

Dan

[DannyHarvey]

I meant to say *Lifecam*

[DrRobin]

I used an Xbox 360 camera on mine worked a treat.  Polaris was easy to see and the scale was nicely visible too.  To get the scale set in the right place I used the polar finding included in ASCOM, but there are other techniques which are easier than using the dials on the mount.

Robin

[DannyHarvey]

Yes - there are easier ways, I have come to realise this. I really wanted to know how the dials worked to had to "scratch the itch" so to speak. In the end I have come up with my own method by simply copying the PREVIOUS PEAK value (just before an nights observation) given in an app called polar finder onto the RA dial. No trying to estimate on the date dial (for example when trying to find the 13th December!)

One thing that does bother me - there is no way of knowing when the reticule is at the bottom without looking through the scope and guessing - this must have some impact on accuracy. I was hoping there would be a line marker I could use some where....

r.

Danny

[DannyHarvey]

The camera makes sense for polar finding:

No back/neck ache .

Easy to centre the polar scope.

Can take your time over calibration and setting on Polaris.

Enlarged view on screen so more accuracy. 

I don't know why Celestron don't market something!

[starnut]

Try this

http://youtu.be/5L6IvfievRE

[DannyHarvey]

thanks!

[DannyHarvey]

the Lifecam has an electronic focuser - I'm hoping I can use this to sort out the focus. We have a 3D printer at work I may use to make the new housing.

[66mikeg]

+1 for polarfinder free for pc also apps for iphone and android

[DannyHarvey]

Well the poor little web cam is in bits... but still works!

Home tonight to fathom how to make it work with the polar scope. Bodge it with Gaffer to begin with...