Guiding ...

[knobby]

i'm so chuffed ... made a finder guider today, faffed about for about an hour working out that I needed ascom even though my cam (ASI 120mc) has an ST 4 port ... I actually had the AVX mount guiding ! graph all over the place in dec, but ra looking good .

Is it sad that I'm so excited 

[knobby]

And here it is :-)

Definite tweaking needed but its a start

[AstroAndy]

Always a good feeling when something works..Ascom you do need for the PC to communicate w/ your scope / camera..check out PHD guiding software (for free ), and EQ Align (that's what I use). Dec. is always more of a challenge than RA (RA motion is only one motion, E to W), declination may require corrections to the North & South, the more precise your PA (Polar Alignment), the better your guiding, Best to use  drift alignment (I use either PHD or EQ Align for it, although there are other great tools out there) to get a precise PA.

Clear skies

Andy

[knobby]

Cheers Andy, I'm using phd2 and the ascom suite, alls working now, suspect the polar alignment was way off :-)

[RikM]

Well done getting it guiding. Don't get lulled into a false sense of security though, it has a habit of turning round and biting you

[knobby]

So should I expect it to work again ? ;-)

[Zakalwe]

Definite tweaking needed but its a start

It's a great feeling when it all comes together!

I'd be changing the mounting bracket sharpish. Those brackets work by holding the finderscope against a rubber ring (at the front) and with a spring-loaded plunger (at the rear).  That's an invitation for flexure and the focal length that you are using will demand a lot of the guiding system.

[knobby]

Yup, that's one of the tweaks needed :-) ... The start of another long journey!

[Tinker1947]

I have yet to take a photo, but i mounted a ST-80 on my C11 with the ADM 125mm Guide Rings and dovetail bar, it not cheap'ish but the 3 adjusters on the each guide ring make it quite sturdy and using the PHD Bulls Eye when a star is centred its also in the middle of the DSLR Sensor so there's no going back and forth checking, makes EQMod alignment very easy......It does make the head swell abit when it works....

[Tinker1947]

Ok took the roof off and used the Modded 600D to take a few pictures while its sunny, here are the guide rings, dovetail bar they also have the 2 connectors and screws in the package....set the Lodestar up for pulse guiding so only the 1 (nice new ) cable required.....

[Thalestris24]

Hi Knobby

That looks nice though personally I'd be a bit unsure about using a finder to guide a scope with such a long focal length...

Still, good luck!

Louise