spudicus Posted July 23, 2005 Share Posted July 23, 2005 Hi All,I am totally new to Astronomy and after lots of research, reading reviews etc, I have just purchased a 5 inch refractor from http://www.skysthelimit.org.uk/I also recently bought the book Turn left at Orion, so come the first clear night I'll venture out and let you know how it goes!Laters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OXO Posted July 23, 2005 Share Posted July 23, 2005 Welcome to the Forum spudicus i hope you find this a friendly and helpfull forum .Good luck on getting out with your new scope, the scope you have looks really nice and should give you some wonderfull views of the Night Sky.Turn left at Orion is a great book and should serve you well out in th field with your scope.Looking forward to your future post's.RegardsJames Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazOC Posted July 23, 2005 Share Posted July 23, 2005 Hi All,I am totally new to Astronomy and after lots of research, reading reviews etc, I have just purchased a 5 inch refractor from http://www.skysthelimit.org.uk/I also recently bought the book Turn left at Orion, so come the first clear night I'll venture out and let you know how it goes!LatersHi,Same scope as I bought! I'm pretty impressed with it. Did you get the mount with it? I got the scope only.As russ has said, if I can be of any help please just ask.Gaz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ Posted July 23, 2005 Share Posted July 23, 2005 Gaz, have you had a chance to use the 127 much?I noticed there was a tube only going on Ebay last week, also the 8" Newt. I don't think they went for much. He also had the EQ5 only on Ebay. That finished yesterday, went for £74.Russ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spudicus Posted July 23, 2005 Author Share Posted July 23, 2005 Hi Gaz,I went for the whole thing and got the mount too. I'll let you know how it all works out. S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazOC Posted July 23, 2005 Share Posted July 23, 2005 russ,Yes, I've got the scope out about half a dozen times, I did notice a litttle CA on Arcturus but nothing much and certainly a lot less than my Helios, I may change the focusser, it's not actually bad it's just that my refector had got a Crayford and it's kind of spoiled me! Other than that I'm still very pleased with it. I've got the EQ6 extension bar on order at Sherwoods, the EP level is a bit low esp. with most of the good summer targets being pretty high in the sky.I saw the EQ5 (the one that needed repairing?), I was going to bid but set myself a limit of £50.I'd been folowing the 127mm for a few weeks before i bought, they seemed t be going for around £240-£280 with the mount.Spud,You may want to look out for the steel tripod for the EQ5, I've heard it really helps stability and only costs £50 (Sherwoods again!)Gaz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ Posted July 23, 2005 Share Posted July 23, 2005 Gaz, that was the EQ5. I bid to £45. Figured £60 (inc del) was the most i would pay for a duff EQ5.You'll have to let me know how you get on with that EQ6 extension, may consider that myself. That'll save me having to raise the tripod for the Mak.Also, have you seen the Crayford focuser Teleskope Service offer for use with that refractor. Here's a link:http://www.telescope-service.de/ATM/focusers.html#syntafocGoes for €148.Spudicus, That steel tripod Gaz recommends is an essential upgrade for EQ5 owners, money very well spent.Russ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazOC Posted July 23, 2005 Share Posted July 23, 2005 Russ, that focuser won't work with my scope, there are no screws it, it's all one piece and threads straight into the tube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ Posted July 23, 2005 Share Posted July 23, 2005 Thats a shame Russ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyMac Posted July 24, 2005 Share Posted July 24, 2005 Welcome to the asylum spud. Hope next Saturday comes round pretty quickly & is a clear one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted July 24, 2005 Share Posted July 24, 2005 Belated welcome from me!!Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ant Posted July 25, 2005 Share Posted July 25, 2005 Hi Spud,Welcome to the fourm. Hope you have fun with yoiur new scope. Don;t be afraid that ask any questions... We all started from a similiar position to you - and some of us (me) hasn't really moved on that far!!! Ant Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz Posted July 25, 2005 Share Posted July 25, 2005 Sorry spud, replied to a post of yours and didn't even say 'hi'!I'm also new at this hobby (hobby??? It has started to take over... 8) )Will feedback on the eyepieces, as promised, as soon as I get them.Dazza Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz Posted July 25, 2005 Share Posted July 25, 2005 Don't you wish that once, just once, your brain would engage before your mouth (or in this case, fingers!)Spud, you will have no idea what I am talking about, unless of course you read the Eyepieces thread, in which case you will see that it was not you that asked the piece question, but someone else. But of course, you will know it wasn't you that asked the question, because it wasn't you, otherwise you would know. Of course.Clear?Good.<sigh>I need a lie down.<sigh> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyMac Posted July 25, 2005 Share Posted July 25, 2005 Ermm...yea.........<smilie>scratch head</smilie>I'd go & have that lie down!.................. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spudicus Posted July 26, 2005 Author Share Posted July 26, 2005 And there was me thinking only the sky was confusing! A quick question, I have a street lamp about 50 yards from my temporary observatory (The back yard). Will I need a filter to help out?Cheers,Spud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OXO Posted July 26, 2005 Share Posted July 26, 2005 You Can get an LPR filter Spud these will help with light pollution personally i have no experiance of these but i am sure someone here has..http://www.dhinds.co.uk/pages/browse.php?id=15&nowstage=1&nowpage=5Light Pollution Reduction (LPR) Filters are designed to selectively reduce the transmission of certain wavelengths of light, specifically those produced by artificial light. This includes mercury, and both high and low pressure sodium vapor lights. In addition, they block unwanted natural light caused by neutral oxygen emission in our atmosphere (i.e. sky glow). As a result, Celestron LPR Filters darken the background sky, making deep-sky observation and photography of nebulae, star clusters and galaxies possible from urban areas. LPR Filters are not used for lunar, planetary or terrestrial photography. While blocking unwanted light, Celestron LPR Filters permit the transmission of more desirable wave-lengths. The wavelengths included are hydrogen alpha, hydrogen beta, doubly ionized oxygen and singly ionized nitrogen. This will improve your viewing of emission nebulae, both from urban and rural settings. Some examples of objects that will show improved contrast are: the Orion Nebula, the Rosette Nebula, the North American Nebula, the Veil Nebula and the Helix Nebula.James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyMac Posted July 26, 2005 Share Posted July 26, 2005 There are two basic types of filter - narrowband and broadband. Narrowband filters are designed for visual use and are manufactured to enhance your views of certain emission nebula. Forget them for clusters or galaxies. In areas of light pollution they work by blocking the light emitted from local sources of light pollution plus airglow, whilst letting the narrowband emission lines of emission & planetary nebulae through. They can be used to good effect for observing the brighter nebulae such as M8 (Lagoon), M17 (Swan), M57 (Ring), M27 (Dumbell), & M42 (Orion), as well as fainter game such as NGC6992-5 (Veil). They can also help improve your views from a dark sky site.I have an Orion Ultrablock which is a reasonably priced narrowband filter & which has helped with fainter game when observing from my light polluted site.If you are looking to improve your views of galaxies and clusters as well, then the broadband filter is the way to go. These filters (which can also be used for imaging) allow for a broader part of the spectrum to be emitted whilst blocking the typical emission lines of light pollution. They do not offer such a great contrast on nebulae as do their cousin, the narrowband filter, but can still be used to good effect on most types of deep sky objects in both urban and rural locations. Again, there are models from the likes of Orion and Lumicon to consider, as well as many other companies, including the telescope giants Meade & Celestron.Finding an independant report on how the various filters on the market perform can be a daunting task. However, here is a web link which I found a couple of years ago which I though to be particularly useful. Hope you find it helpful. http://pages.sbcglobal.net/raycash/filters.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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