Turning Japanese

[A McEwan]

Well, it's a start... but I'm sure there's something missing...?? 

 

[John]

Looks familliar

Mine is around 50mm longer but the same colour scheme ......

Beautifully made things though, when you get to hold one.

Just need the "filling" for it now !

[F15Rules]

"Turning Japanese"??

Yes, I really think so!!

Anthony-San, you really shouldn't tease like that

Actually, these Taks are becoming a bit common, maybe I'll pass after all - nothing to do with the cost though!!

Dave

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Nature does sometimes abhor a vacuum. The centre hole certainly has a sucking quality.

 

Looking forward to seeing the rest of the scope

[Putaendo Patrick]

Isn't it a bit sophisticated just to clamp a bottle of wine next to your observing chair?

[A McEwan]

2 hours ago, Putaendo Patrick said:

Isn't it a bit sophisticated just to clamp a bottle of wine next to your observing chair?

Now I LIKE that idea!

 

[ollypenrice]

Aaaaahhh, hospital green.

So called because he who buys things in the colour easily winds up in hospital...

Olly

[A McEwan]

Thankfully, the rest of it materialised later in the day.....

[gnomus]

1 minute ago, ollypenrice said:

Aaaaahhh, hospital green.

So called because he who buys things in the colour easily winds up in hospital...

Olly

Is that a medical or psychiatric hospital, Olly?

[ollypenrice]

2 minutes ago, gnomus said:

Is that a medical or psychiatric hospital, Olly?

Depends on whether you are admitted because you have been sectioned by your bank manager or because your wife found the invoice...

Olly (Hey, I've had both...)

[nightfisher]

Nice, cant see me ever owning one but would love to take a squint into the eyepiece at a dark site one night

[JamesF]

12 hours ago, F15Rules said:

"Turning Japanese"??

Yes, I really think so!!

Aha!  One-hit wonders The Vapors.  Marvellous stuff.

To take the thread completely off-piste, the lead guitarist was a chap called Bazalgette (pronounced basil-jet) who was the great-something-grandson of the Victorian engineer Joseph Bazalgette who was responsible for the building of the London sewers.  In turn he has another great-something-grandson (so a cousin of the Vapor's lead guitarist) who produced such televisual delights as "Big Brother", resulting in the accusation that he was responsible for returning to British homes exactly that which his ancestor had laboured so hard to remove

James

[John]

4 hours ago, A McEwan said:

Thankfully, the rest of it materialised later in the day.....

Very, very nice Ant

It looks brilliant on the Vixen GP mount too.

I'll look forward to your reports on the views through it. Somehow I doubt I'm going to read anything but positive reactions

 

[A McEwan]

I have The Vapors best of album. It's quite good but Turning Japanese was definitely the standout track.

[Stu]

Looks lush Ant ????

Bet you can't wait to have a look!!!

[A McEwan]

Well, as it's clouded over after a Sunny day, depriving me of the chance of first light, I'd like to ask a technical question please.

The picture shows the drawtube partially extended. The focuser motion is very smooth, if a little "tighter" than I'm used to. I don't want to fiddle with it yet though as I haven't experienced it under load under the sky. But... the greasy marks on the sides of the drawtube are slightly annoying. Are these normal? Should I be concerned and clean it off? Will removing it make it perform less smoothly?

Also, the 2" adapter uses two setscrews to hold a diagonal or extension tube in place. Is there a compression ring or self-centering type also available?

Thanks!

 

[John]

The focuser on my FC100DL had those lubricant marks on the drawtube. I wiped them off and they have not come back. The focuser on my scope seemed initially a little tighter than I'm used to but it seems to have eased slightly and I like it now.

The Tak visual backs and extension tubes seem to use set screws rather than compression fittings in the 2" aperture but a compression ring (twist type) for 1.25". I don't know why but Ian King (who I bought my scope from) said that was normal for Taks.

To get my eyepieces to focus with my current 2" mirror diagonal I found the long Tak extension tube much to long so I use a Moonlite 37mm extension tube instead which does have a compression fitting where the diagonal barrel goes in.

Some folks put the Baader twist lock type fittings onto their Taks.

 

 

[A McEwan]

Thanks John, that's useful to know. ☺

[mikeDnight]

On 03/06/2016 at 20:08, A McEwan said:

Thankfully, the rest of it materialised later in the day.....

It's a beautiful scope Ant. ? Don't worry about the grease, just clean it off and all will be fine. I hope you get some clear skies soon so you can play.

Mike

[RT65CB-SWL]

 Very nice! 

[A McEwan]

Well it's clear today, so I set it up to view the Sun. I started off using a full aperture Baader filter (to keep the objective clean!!!) and Solar Continuum filter on the diagonal. Worked brilliantly - except there's nothing to see in white light solar today! The irony...   Although, the granulation was quite easy to see. 

So I took the opportunity to test all my eyepieces and diagonals and see if verything came to focus.

In 1.25" mode everything is fine, using a Baader T2 prism diagonal. But using my 2" diagonals (TS 99% Dielectric and a similar looking one) there was either not enough in-travel using the supplied extension tube, or not enough out-travel using no extension tube! I dismantled a 2" 2x Barlow and used the tube on that for an extension, and that worked with my 2" selection (23mm Axiom LX, Nagler 17 T4, ES 9mm 100-degree.

So then I tried the Baader Herschal wedge. Some eyepieces would focus, some wouldn't! I should have written it all down actually, as now I'm unsure of what spacer I was using with which eyepiece! LOL I remember my Ortho's not having enough in-travel and the 2" eyepieces not having enough out-travel, so I'll need to make a list/chart and keep it in my eyepiece case!

In fact, for night-time visual, I'll probably just stick to 1.25" as that is nice and simple. 

Maybe Jupirt tonight? Maybe...?

[A McEwan]

YES! 

Had the Tak on GP set up and cooling while I watched the News, then popped out and lined up on Jupiter for First (night) Light...

Just amazing! The clarity. The focus "snap"! The way I could keep on increasing magnification and it just got bigger and bigger! The colours and detail within the belts, and how cleanly the moons were resolved as discs! Spent most of the time at 205x before being chased inside, happy and itching, by nocturnal midgies!

Brilliant first light. Must make an effort to see Mars soon too.

 

[Stu]

4 minutes ago, A McEwan said:

YES! 

Had the Tak on GP set up and cooling while I watched the News, then popped out and lined up on Jupiter for First (night) Light...

Just amazing! The clarity. The focus "snap"! The way I could keep on increasing magnification and it just got bigger and bigger! The colours and detail within the belts, and how cleanly the moons were resolved as discs! Spent most of the time at 205x before being chased inside, happy and itching, by nocturnal midgies!

Brilliant first light. Must make an effort to see Mars soon too.

 

Fantastic Ant, really pleased you like it!! ?????

[John]

Great result Ant

I've had my Tak FC100DL side by side with my SW ED120 this evening on Jupiter, some close doubles and Mars. Both lovely scopes and very, very close in performance terms I reckon, at least tonight.