Jump to content

NLCbanner2024.jpg.2478be509670e60c2d6efd04834b8b47.jpg

Celestron Nexstar 8SE - Additions

RK40

Recommended Posts

RK40

RK40

Posted
Posted

Hello! I'm a newbie to the astronomy game but wanted to buy a piece of kit that should cover most of the bases from the outset. After hours and hours of research and looking at a few forums I have just taken the plunge and ordered a Celestron 8SE . 

What additional kit would you recommend as 'essential' with this scope please so I am not dissapointed when the skies eventually clear!?

Thank you :grin:

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CodnorPaul

CodnorPaul

Posted
Posted

Fabulous OTAs - mine is the 8SE just changed the mount.

As for essential extras, they all are aren't they... BUT I would recommend a Hyperion Zoom as the supplied EP will not give a range of mag and the SCT is an absolute planet killer when you get towards 200x mag.  Then at some point a 2" diagonal with a 2" eyepiece for the lower power stuff.  Filters are worthwhile but they can wait (and I would go for neodymium first).

The above are not essential but really do add a lot to the scope.  The immediate essentials are definitely dew control (band and dew shield), and power source - avoid the powertanks and look at the leisure batteries instead.

Most of all - enjoy it.  I have spent many an enjoyable hour with mine and still find the views fantastic compared to other scopes I have looked through

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CSM

CSM

Posted
Posted

A dew shield and power tank are absolutely necessary - probably a red led torch as well, though you can always put red cellophane or something similar over an ordinary one.  You have only one eyepiece with the scope so the Skywatcher 7 - 21mm zoom is at around £40, for a zoom, a very good and cheap one to enable you to get started with different magnifications.  Once you have used the scope and got used to it, then is the time to start thinking about other eyepieces and probably a decent Barlow.  But take it slowly otherwise you will end up confused and with items that you don't really need or use. 

Don't know what is meant by it being a planet killer - SCT's are very good for planets as can be seen by the images obtained using magnifications well beyond 200.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
RK40

RK40

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Many thanks for your responses just hoping for some clear skies now to get out and have a go!

Sorry....more questions!

I definately have a heated dew control system on the list - is there a reliable system anyone can recommend? 

What is a good entry level 1.25" Moon/Planet/Light Pollution filter please, can't even think about spending £80 on a Baader just yet!

What is meant by a leisure battery (can anyone supply a suitable web link please?) instead of a power tank??

Heard a lot about vibration due to the slightly lightweight mount, will standing the mount on a camping mat or piece of carpet help or what other recomendation do people have - the Celestron anti-vibration cups are SO expensive for what seems like 3 pieces of rubber!?

Thanks again!

:icon_salut:

Link to comment
Share on other sites
hobsey

hobsey

Posted
Posted

Heard a lot about vibration due to the slightly lightweight mount, will standing the mount on a camping mat or piece of carpet help or what other recomendation do people have - the Celestron anti-vibration cups are SO expensive for what seems like 3 pieces of rubber!?

That may work but a lot of the vibration comes from when you go to focus it.

You may want to have a look at making one of these to help eliminate having to touch the tube.

http://emediadesigns.com/focuser/

Link to comment
Share on other sites
stevend

stevend

Posted
Posted

What is meant by a leisure battery (can anyone supply a suitable web link please?) instead of a power tank??

Heard a lot about vibration due to the slightly lightweight mount, will standing the mount on a camping mat or piece of carpet help or what other recomendation do people have - the Celestron anti-vibration cups are SO expensive for what seems like 3 pieces of rubber!?

I would suggest doing a search on leisure batteries as it come up a lot. I use an auto jump start which I bought for c£25 from Amazon and is fine for me. You just need to make sure it provides enough power for everything connected to it. In my case just the scope as I have a homemade, non heated dew shield which, again, is fine for me but if you have a heated dewshield add that to your sums as well.

I have a different scope but I put a weight on the accessory tray and that really helps reduce vibration. A tip for focussing (which I got from another SGL member) was to put a clothes peg on the focusser knob - and it makes a huge difference, not just reducing scope shake but for finer adjustment. Worth trying if it fits...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
RK40

RK40

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Great tips - cheers!

NEWBIE QUESTION ALERT :undecided: !

What lead do you need to attach the battery to the scope?!

What capacity battery would people recommend if I am going to use a dew heater too?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
RK40

RK40

Posted
  • Author
Posted

I would suggest doing a search on leisure batteries as it come up a lot. I use an auto jump start which I bought for c£25 from Amazon and is fine for me. You just need to make sure it provides enough power for everything connected to it. In my case just the scope as I have a homemade, non heated dew shield which, again, is fine for me but if you have a heated dewshield add that to your sums as well.

I have a different scope but I put a weight on the accessory tray and that really helps reduce vibration. A tip for focussing (which I got from another SGL member) was to put a clothes peg on the focusser knob - and it makes a huge difference, not just reducing scope shake but for finer adjustment. Worth trying if it fits...

Top tips - thanks!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
RK40

RK40

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Great tips - cheers!

NEWBIE QUESTION ALERT :undecided: !

What lead do you need to attach the battery to the scope?!

What capacity battery would people recommend if I am going to use a dew heater too?

any assistance greatfully accepted on this subject!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
nicoscy

nicoscy

Posted
Posted

:grin: cheers Nicos - this option is much better suited to my technical prowess :wink:

Well, something slightly better looking then!

Barring an electronic focuser, the clothespin or the scopestuff ring are good solutions.

Also, anti-vibration pads, keeping the tripod legs fully retracted and adding say a kilogram or two of weight on the tripod tray help a lot.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CSM

CSM

Posted
Posted

I would say that apart from the Dew shield, and I am sure a non-heated one will work fine, and the power tank or leisure battery and, as I said before, I think you should first use the scope before you start spending a lot of money on it.  You will be limited by the single 25mm eyepiece, so a zoom would be a good place to start.  With a zoom you don't have to keep taking the eyepieces out and inserting a new one - when you are new to it all that can be most confusing in the dark and you end up dropping eyepieces, or mislaying them.  A moon filter can be useful near full Moon, but isn't an absolute necessity.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
monoxide

monoxide

Posted
Posted

I purchased celestrons own brand case of eyepieces not to expensive for what you get also includes filters and it gives me the chance to experiment without shelling out a fortine on a single lens. Plus the case is metal and will last for years as you replace eyepieces with more appropriate ones for your needs. I have on top of these since purchased a wide angle celestron luminos eyepiece and changed the red dot finder for a telrad red dot finder.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Sobel

Sobel

Posted
Posted

I purchased an 8SE a few years ago, I'm sure you'll be more than please with it. In terms of accessories, I also purchased a heated dew shield, a controller, some eyepieces and a Ring Automotice 20aH power pack (not ideal, but not had a single issue with it).

I personally use pretty much one eyepiece, an 18mm Celestron X-Cel and have to say I have been very impressed with it. Think it gives around 110X magnification.

I've not had problems with vibrations even with the legs pretty much fully extended, it obviously vibrates in windy conditions or when you focus, but it settles down fairly quickly.

I  use a Ring Automotive RPP110 12V 20ah power tank for my battery (has 2 X 12v outputs, for the scope and heater) and haven't had any problems with it. I can do heavy slewing for a few hours without drawing too much out of it. I was toying with making my own, but I am abysmal at making things and didn't want to end up either killing myself or destroying the telescope.

One thing I would HIGHLY HIGHLY advise before using the scope, is in the day time, setup the scope with the goal of aligning on a distant (as far as you can see) target, like a church or a mast. The red dot finder will not be aligned when you get it, in fact I would recommend un screwing the mounting plate and re attaching. I also used a couple of pieces of cut up elastic band to act as a shim to get mine aligned.

So you want to make sure that whatever the red dot points at, you are looking at in the centre of the eyepiece, it will take a little bit of work but it will pay off.

With an aligned RDF which I keep attached to my scope, I can be setup and aligned within 15 minutes usually.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
jonathan

jonathan

Posted
Posted

You don't need to go mad on capacity (Ah) unless you intend to go on a week-long astronomy camping trip in the middle of nowhere.  Around 60Ah should be plenty for one evening's viewing, probably two or three.  Halfords or Wilko Motosave will sell you one, just make sure it says 'Leisure battery' on it, they usually feature a picture of a caravan on the label.  While you are there, consider a good quality battery charger that is rated for charging the leisure battery you choose, a good quality charger / battery conditioner such as a Ring one should look after your investment for years to come; you can also pick up a battery clip connector like this which will allow you to connect your scope using an unmodified SkyTron cable, if you plug this into a dew controller (my favoured one right now is the HitecAstro four-channel model) you can power your scope from one of the Aux sockets of the dew controller, so you only need the one battery lead and socket, though you would need a different cable to go from the dew controller Aux output to the scope (I made my own), alternatively just get an auto socket doubler so that you can plug your scope and dew heater controller into the battery socket directly.  With all of these cables make sure that each one has an in-line fuse, the auto socket cables should all have one built into the big plug, this is to prevent short circuits which could result in melted wiring, blown electronics, and possibly even fire due to the high amps these batteries can output.

All of these things do cost money, the main parts probably around £60 each, so while they are not essential to start off with you can build up your collection as money allows.

I have the AstroZap dew heater tapes and dew shield on my 8SE.  You can make your own dew shield out of thin camping mat but I'm too lazy for that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.