The working of an OAG (video tutorial?)

[souls33k3r]

Hi All,

To begin with, I haven't bought anything yet. For background info, i am looking to buy Atik 383L CCD with Starlight Xpress USB 7 Pos FW with builtin OAG.

I have been all over youtube but haven't found anything related to my query.I wanted to know (most prefereably see in a video of some sort) the process that one goes through on finding a guide star good enough to track when using an OAG. What if there isn't any? What does one do? You know the complete pain staking process that makes the product a nightmare when it doesn't work. Just so I can see what one would do to find and fix it. I hope I'm making sense here and of course how to work out spacing.

Articles/blogs would be good too but a video preferably.

Thank you in advance

[steppenwolf]

I can't help with a video but just to help put your mind at rest, using a 500mm focal length telescope, an OAG and the same sensor (different make) as you, I have NEVER been unable to find a suitable guide star using 3 second exposures!

[souls33k3r]

Wish I could be in your place right now. I have a 2m FL that i'll be working with (1.4m when using FR)

[ollypenrice]

I used a Lodestar at 2.5 metres FL/F6.8/350mm aperture and always found a guide star. On occasion there was a choice of only one, but one's all you need! I do have a very dark sky and could use 4 second exposures.

Olly

[steppenwolf]

Quote

I have a 2m FL that i'll be working with (1.4m when using FR)

Certainly that will cut down your guide star choices but I don't think this is going to be a real issue and, to be honest, at that focal length, you really should be using an OAG rather than a guide telescope so I would recommend going with the OAG option. Again, at that sort of focal length, a small readjustment of the telescope' pointing is highly likely to bring in a suitable guide star without spoiling your framing too much.

[tony210]

Hi - I work at 1.7m RCT focal length ,off axis and at 3 seconds almost always find a guide star - Tony

[Astrofriend]

Hi,

I have a 682mm apo refractor with oag and almost always find a guide star. If not I use CdC or Skychart. I have it setup so it display both my main camera and the field of my guide camera. Then it's easy to see where brigth enough guide stars are and move telescope to center star in guide camera. Maybe in your case you have to replace the star databases with one that goes below magnitude 10. 

CdC is connected over ascom to my eq6 mount.

If you find it interesting I can place a screen dump here how it looks.

Lars