Show Us Your Dob.....

[rl]

Picked it up last Wednesday. Snuck it into the garage without "er indoors" noticing...To be fair she passed no comment. Even when she did spot it...very impressed but ominous. Probably politics at play here; we're going to a couple of weddings in the near future; she might be saving up the brownie points for new outfits?

I quickly made up a new base on shepherd castors so it can be wheeled off down the drive for testing. I also cleaned the mirror which looked like the original coating (12 yrs old) which was really filthy. To my surprise it came up just fine under the tap ..it was all superficial dirt. Getting the mirror out was scary..it weighs nearly 20 kg.

The original owner was left-handed; I had to rotate the top 180 deg which is why the finder is so low compared to the focuser. It collimated really easily.

I've had one chance so far under very average seeing. First target Venus (as the twilight was still strong) ..looks as bright as the gibbous moon looks to the naked eye. Jupiter; seeing  still awful so no spectacular detail seen but the moons are starting to show proper disks to the point you could fool yourself detail would be visible if only the atmosphere would calm down. Saturn; the first impression is "count the moons", faint pinpricks of light all around. Dan Bruton's website helped to identify.... .

I left it a couple of hours to cool down and tried some basic deep sky stuff. M13 looked more resolved to the core than what I've ever seen in spite of the non-dark sky. Virgo cluster was a bit disappointing but I've no doubt will be spectacular in march-april next year.

Star test...looks good as far as conditions will allow. No astigmatism on the mirror and the mush looks the same either side of focus but I can't imagine ever getting a night where I could usefully analyse the Airy disc and rings...i might invest in a Ronchi eyepiece if there's any doubt but it should be ok; it came with a test certificate. Optically I think it will be just fine based on first impressions. Towards the end of the night the seeing got a bit better so I tried a couple of double stars with splits 2 arcsec and down; lots of clear black between the doubles. Not as nice as a 6" refractor but good enough for a bid dob.

It could do with a change in focuser and a proper finder but I've got to be careful with the balance. The Rigel quickfinder might be the way forward on this one. A 20mm nagler2 is too much weight but the 13 ethos is fine; it's hard to think of this ep as the planetry option but it is!

It's a BIG  S.O.B....the F/6 means I don't need a paracorr or flash eyepieces but the tradeoff is I'll probably end up selling my televue collection to buy a cherry picker...

I've got a secure shed on an allotment outside town where the seeing is much better and the sky darker. It really deserves the best site I can find.

At first pass it  all looks promising.

RL

[mdstuart]

I saw that on ABS but my wife was not keen!

[rl]

We have an agreement that what goes in the garage is my affair! She gets to control the rest of the house!

The operational issue that did strike me that first night was how susceptible it is to wind. The 12" is short and stocky and very well mounted; it just doesn't care about a breeze. The big one definitely does./

RL

[niallk]

Sounds really good! Roll on some clear dark nights

[Chris]

I saw that too on ABS, thought for a second, then remembered I live in a terraced house. I'm guessing a garage is a good idea with that size scope.

[rl]

My last house was a terraced house; I used a 14" F/6 dob there for years. The base stayed in the shed and the OTA in an outside toilet so it stayed dry and at temperature. I would wheel it out on a sack truck; the whole lot could be assembled in a couple of minutes but it was a heavy thing to lift on to the base.

RL

[temp]

Did u know that the big dipper is actually an Amish constellation.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Did u know that the big dipper is actually an Amish constellation.

I do not see what this has to do with this thread. Please also refrain from referring to religion.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

OK, back on topic, here is the kids' mini-Dob I built

It is a 4.5" f=500mm. The boys are quite a bit older now.

[scarp15]

Did u know that the big dipper is actually an Amish constellation.

The Big Dipper, I take it you've never been to Blackpool mate.

(Sorry best to get back on topic  )

[scarp15]

Just back on topic, here is a picture indicating scale comparison between my 8" and 14" dobsonian.

[alan potts]

Some people have an organ or the like in the corner of the room, Scrap 15 has a couple of fine Dobs, great conversation pieces, well done that man!

Alan

[pdols]

Late to the party but here's mine. Only about a month old - my first scope and I love it!

12" Explore Scientific Truss Dobsonian. Got it for its aperture : portability ratio and very pleased with it so far

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[faulksy]

Late to the party but here's mine. Only about a month old - my first scope and I love it!

12" Explore Scientific Truss Dobsonian. Got it for its aperture : portability ratio and very pleased with it so far

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thats lovely mate. put your location (roughly) in your signature, people can help you then if need be and advise you on locations. welcome to sgl as well

[pdols]

thats lovely mate. put your location (roughly) in your signature, people can help you then if need be and advise you on locations. welcome to sgl as well

Cheers mate. Will do as soon as I've made the necessary number of posts to allow changing my signature. I'm in the Greater Manchester area so been trying to make the most of the Peak District skies since getting my new toy, though clear skies have been very rare, and moonless clear skies even rarer, so still lots of exciting potential to look forward to.

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[Paul73]

Nice looking scope. Have they changed the top assembly so that the focuser is at a sensible angle rather than the awkward 90° positioning that they used to sport?

Paul

[estwing]

Cheers mate. Will do as soon as I've made the necessary number of posts to allow changing my signature. I'm in the Greater Manchester area so been trying to make the most of the Peak District skies since getting my new toy, though clear skies have been very rare, and moonless clear skies even rarer, so still lots of exciting potential to look forward to.

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..I have observed around Longnor where the sky is good

[pdols]

Nice looking scope. Have they changed the top assembly so that the focuser is at a sensible angle rather than the awkward 90° positioning that they used to sport?

Paul

No they haven't but the upper cage has pre-drilled holes so you can move the points where the trusses attach so you can change the angle from 90 to 45 deg. I tried both options and being 6ft much preferred the higher angle.

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[pdols]

..I have observed around Longnor where the sky is good

That's much nearer than the Hathersage / Grindleford area I tried last. I'll take your recommendation next chance I get. Thank you

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[mapstar]

That's much nearer than the Hathersage / Grindleford area I tried last. I'll take your recommendation next chance I get. Thank you

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We usually View near Dunford bridge

[estwing]

Trick is keeping Buxton at your back as you look south I have a farmers permission to use a field if you're interested we could meet up

[MattJenko]

Not in the same league as some of the beautiful creations in this thread, but I love my 250px. Here it is awaiting the darkness with the obligatory session planner and red liquid lubricant.

[pdols]

Really gonna have to take some of your observing location suggestions up - went to the Surprise View car park in the Peaks last night. About midnight a car turned up, parked at the opposite end of the car park then flashed its lights a few times then waited 30 seconds then drove off. I suspect I may have accidentally parked myself in a [removed word] site! Still, got some great views of M13 and also Saturn towards the end of the session as the seeing improved. First time out with my new ES 82 deg eyepieces to complement the scope. Time to try a few other sites as well now!

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[luminova11]

Apparently the Frac crew reckon its getting a bit quiet here so here's my 200p.

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[swamp thing]

Apparently the Frac crew reckon its getting a bit quiet here .

Yeah! but this thread is about quality not quantity.