Help with goto

[cloudsweeper]

One target, yes - the Moon is good.  I've also aligned with Jupiter - an easy one to locate of course.  I would imagine using the Moon might be a tad less precise than Jupiter simply because of its size, although if you aim dead centre it should be just as good!  The manual says solar is accurate! 

Doug.

[Bino Pete]

I start the night with all this enthusiasm and I feel deflated by the end, but I'll try again tonight!

i took a photo of Jupiter last night (only holding my iPhone up to the eyepiece). Don't laugh!

[cloudsweeper]

Hopefully we'll get out again tonight, Pete.  Did you read earlier about me seeing M32 last night?  I got that with GoTo, and a bit of fine tuning and checking through the finder and comparing with Stellarium.  All great fun, and learning all the time!  Great to be able to assist and exchange experiences with you and all the other fab folk on this forum!

Doug.

[cloudsweeper]

2 minutes ago, Bino Pete said:

I start the night with all this enthusiasm and I feel deflated by the end, but I'll try again tonight!

i took a photo of Jupiter last night (only holding my iPhone up to the eyepiece). Don't laugh!

That's great - you can see the equatorial belts and a couple of moons.  I always check with Stellarium to identify the moons.  Have a look - turn the time back to when you viewed it, and find where the other two main moons were!

Doug.

[MarkJ44]

Pete  definitely use high power for final alignment  and then use a low power EP to do the initial goto. Re the final approach I think the comment about which way the scope approaches is because it is different in the southern hemisphere  if that makes sense 

[saggiemaggie7]

hi buddy just a thaught if you are using a polar scope to polar align check your reticule is centered mine was off causing problems

 

[Bino Pete]

35 minutes ago, cloudsweeper said:

Hopefully we'll get out again tonight, Pete.  Did you read earlier about me seeing M32 last night?  I got that with GoTo, and a bit of fine tuning and checking through the finder and comparing with Stellarium.  All great fun, and learning all the time!  Great to be able to assist and exchange experiences with you and all the other fab folk on this forum!

Doug.

Well done!

[Bino Pete]

26 minutes ago, saggiemaggie7 said:

hi buddy just a thaught if you are using a polar scope to polar align check your reticule is centered mine was off causing problems

 

You will have to excuse me on this as I am a newbie but I don't understand!

[PeterCPC]

Don't worry about reference to Polar Scope - just carry on and it's important to finish aligning by using right and up buttons as it reduces backlash.

Peter

[Bino Pete]

45 minutes ago, PeterCPC said:

Don't worry about reference to Polar Scope - just carry on and it's important to finish aligning by using right and up buttons as it reduces backlash.

Peter

Thanks, Just to confirm - I finish aligning (with any method) using a higher power eyepiece (I've got 7mm or 9mm which do you think?)

While centering the star I make sure that the last two movements of the scope are the 'right' button on my controller then the 'up' button? Is this correct?

[PeterCPC]

Yes. Personally I use a 12mm illuminated reticule eyepiece. Forget the 7mm eyepiece. You can try the 9mm eyepiece but it is a very small FOV and I think you may struggle with that. I would use the 12mm. An illuminated reticule eyepiece will really improve your alignment. Seben sell one at about £32.

Peter

[Bino Pete]

19 minutes ago, PeterCPC said:

Yes. Personally I use a 12mm illuminated reticule eyepiece. Forget the 7mm eyepiece. You can try the 9mm eyepiece but it is a very small FOV and I think you may struggle with that. I would use the 12mm. An illuminated reticule eyepiece will really improve your alignment. Seben sell one at about £32.

Peter

I've got a Celestron X-cel LX 12mm eyepiece. So you would use this over the 9mm? I will have a look at the illuminated ones - might have to be a Father's Day prezzy after everything I've spent upto now though!

[PeterCPC]

Use what you find easiest.

Peter

[Bino Pete]

4 hours ago, PeterCPC said:

Yes. Personally I use a 12mm illuminated reticule eyepiece. Forget the 7mm eyepiece. You can try the 9mm eyepiece but it is a very small FOV and I think you may struggle with that. I would use the 12mm. An illuminated reticule eyepiece will really improve your alignment. Seben sell one at about £32.

Peter

Just ordered the Seben eyepiece!

[Bino Pete]

After a few weeks of relatively successful use with the 'goto' function. I came to use it last night and on the 'Auto 2 star' allignment after centering the 1st star Polaris the scope slewed only 3/4 the way to the next star, this happened 4 or 5 times until I got fed up and finished off slewing manually to the 2nd star (the scope then worked ok). Everything has stayed the same ie. coordinates. The only thing I didn't try was with regard  to the 'time'. Since using the scope last week the clocks have gone forward 1 hour and when I inputted the time I chose universal time, should I have chosen daylight savings option?  

Thanks.

[CSM]

I have found that no matter how well you may think you have centered using a high power eyepiece it will be a matter of luck if that is the case.

 I always start off with a 32mm eyepiece, center as best I can, then add a 2xBarlow, center it again, then replace the 32mm with a 12mm reticule eyepiece.  If I can't see the object and often that will be the case, I replace it with the 32mm and recenter again, then use the 12mm reticule and make sure that it is exactly on the cross hairs.

[Bino Pete]

8 minutes ago, CSM said:

I have found that no matter how well you may think you have centered using a high power eyepiece it will be a matter of luck if that is the case.

 I always start off with a 32mm eyepiece, center as best I can, then add a 2xBarlow, center it again, then replace the 32mm with a 12mm reticule eyepiece.  If I can't see the object and often that will be the case, I replace it with the 32mm and recenter again, then use the 12mm reticule and make sure that it is exactly on the cross hairs.

Since buying an illuminated reticule eyepiece I've not had the the problem of allignment. This latest problem is something different, I centered Polaris great but when the scope slewed to the next star (2 star allignment) it stopped slewing well short of the star. I was wondering whether when the clocks went forward last week whether now I should choose 'daylight savings' option in the menu?

[cloudsweeper]

Yes, Pete. Daylight saving now. It comes up automatically, so just hit Enter.

Doug.

[Bino Pete]

9 minutes ago, cloudsweeper said:

Yes, Pete. Daylight saving now. It comes up automatically, so just hit Enter.

Doug.

It didn't come up on mine!! It was just when I started again and inputted all coordinates etc I noticed the 'daylight saving' option.

Peter

PS. Any interest in your scope?

[Singlin]

It could be cone error.

 

 

[Cjg]

Pete, I had a Celestron, and didn't have the hassles that you have had, can you remind me how you're powering your scope please?

The reason I ask is that the mounts are "power critical" and if you use ni-cads, you'll get exactly this error I've found from experience.

Best,

Chris

[Bino Pete]

18 minutes ago, Cjg said:

Pete, I had a Celestron, and didn't have the hassles that you have had, can you remind me how you're powering your scope please?

The reason I ask is that the mounts are "power critical" and if you use ni-cads, you'll get exactly this error I've found from experience.

Best,

Chris

Hi Chris, I've heard that before so I'm powering my scope with a mains lead.

[cloudsweeper]

@Bino Pete - if DLS doesn't show automatically, you'll have to use the Scroll keys to get to it, then Enter.

(No, no real interest yet - someone must want an as-good-as-new, quality item though!)

Doug.

[Bino Pete]

4 hours ago, cloudsweeper said:

@Bino Pete - if DLS doesn't show automatically, you'll have to use the Scroll keys to get to it, then Enter.

(No, no real interest yet - someone must want an as-good-as-new, quality item though!)

Doug.

I'll try dls next time I'm out. Looking at the time you posted are you working nights, an insomniac or were you out with the scope? Lol

[cloudsweeper]

All of that!

Doug.