Setting Circles for Skywatcher Skyliner 200p

[sockgoblin]

I have added a setting circle to the top board of my Skyliner 200. I had the graphic printed on vinyl and laminated.

I removed the vertical supports , fixed the circle using the centre tube as a guide and then reassembled the mount. (The circle has to be anticlockwise if fixed to the top board)

Underneath the bottom board Ive added a ring of ferrous tape , which allows magnets to be attached to the board. The pointer is a magnet with a coloured papercilip hot glued to it.

Final picture is the scope complete with Panda shower caps

.

[Dave Lloyd]

That looks ace. Quick - patent it because I reckon Skywatcher would see that as a selling point.

[Stu]

Very useful mod, looks great too.

[sockgoblin]

I have been using the setting circles for a while now and have found them to be excellent for locating DSOs in light polluted skys.

To use them I find a bright star and note the altitude/azimuth setting from stellarium. I point the scope at the star and I place the pointer at the corresponding position on the setting circle and note the reading on the wixey. (to check the wixey)

Then I use stellarium to tell me the current alt /az for my target and spin the scope until the new az reading is under the pointer. I then tilt the scope until the alt reading is correct in the wixey. 7 out of 10 times the target is withing the eyepiece of my 30mm EP.

Note that the wixey does not have to be zeroed each outing , it remembers the last zero setting, also the scope doesnt have to be exactly level as the wixey reads from its internal memory of a zero and not against the current level of the scope .

The levelness ? of the scope will have some effect and I have noticed that swinging the scope by large degrees of turn ( say 180 degrees) gives a more inaccurate reading , so I just make sure that I reset the pointer with a new bright star in each quadrant of sky

[happy-kat]

Yes I found that too about being level, it helps as mine was so unlevel even my widest view wouldn't reveal the target as the drift was too great.