Should it be this complicated?

[carastro]

No instant gratification observatories either.  You either need to buy a ready made one, which needs to have foundations (concrete or decking), wait for it to arrive and then either erect it yourself or pay for some-one else to do it.  Or build one yourself.   Plus the observatory is likely to cost 5 x what the scope cost you.  If your only going to be doing visual (and not thinking about imaging - with your desire for instant gratification I think this might cause a nervous breakdown - lol), then I would suggest you build yourself a small roll off shed.  i.e. a shed on wheels that rolls off the telescope, this alleviates the need for an opening top.  Something like this or on a concrete base with grooved runners (could not find a photo of one). 

Or what about one of those large plastic outdoor storage sheds:

then leave the ready assembled scope inside and simply lift it out - simples. 

 

[iPeace]

One of my favorite topics, with excellent contributions from all.

I guess it all comes down to mindset. One of many ways to approach the challenge is to picture your dwelling as a space ship. You are going on EVA. Everything you are going to need had better be there with you in the airlock. You only get to open it once to go out and once more to come back in.

This leads to determining just how much you need to get it done. Less may be better, but too little is not enough. You will spend ("waste") a few spacewalks experimenting, just part of the price of admission.

Once out, if you can't find what you wanted to find, despite having brought out your Pocket Sky Atlas and smartphone with Stellarium, Sky Safari, or both, then find some other way to make this spacewalk worthwhile. Instead of looking for something specific, just look to see what's there. Switch to Galileo Mode, in which there's no one to tell you what's out there - it's all up to you.

[Mr niall]

1 hour ago, iPeace said:

One of my favorite topics, with excellent contributions from all.

I guess it all comes down to mindset. One of many ways to approach the challenge is to picture your dwelling as a space ship. You are going on EVA. Everything you are going to need had better be there with you in the airlock. You only get to open it once to go out and once more to come back in.

This leads to determining just how much you need to get it done. Less may be better, but too little is not enough. You will spend ("waste") a few spacewalks experimenting, just part of the price of admission.

Once out, if you can't find what you wanted to find, despite having brought out your Pocket Sky Atlas and smartphone with Stellarium, Sky Safari, or both, then find some other way to make this spacewalk worthwhile. Instead of looking for something specific, just look to see what's there. Switch to Galileo Mode, in which there's no one to tell you what's out there - it's all up to you.

I think you've hit the nail on the head there - one thing that has certainly overwhelmed me has been the amount of... I don't know, I guess "styles" you'd call it, and the amount of options and setups and desires and motivations. There seems to be a lot of options out there, I think if this thread has taught me one thing it's that there doesn't seem to be a right or wrong way to do things, there's just variations in approach and equipment! I'm really pleased that I don't seem to be doing anything wrong, and definitely looking forward to getting back out there!

[Mr niall]

5 hours ago, ollypenrice said:

Meant in fun. Sorry if this wasn't clear.

Olly

Sorry, maybe being a bit sensitive. I just wanted reassurance that I wasn't being daft, now I know that the setting up process is the same for everyone I feel much less frustrated by the steps involved!

[Astro Imp]

I do it my way and that's the right way, for me 

[ollypenrice]

12 minutes ago, Mr niall said:

Sorry, maybe being a bit sensitive. I just wanted reassurance that I wasn't being daft, now I know that the setting up process is the same for everyone I feel much less frustrated by the steps involved!

There often is a lot of setting up, that's for sure. It's far worse if you're aiming to do any imaging, though some heroes do take their imaging gear out into the field for every session. 

When I was starting out I read a review of some bit of kit or other and the reviewer said, 'It's easy and intuitive to use even when allowing for that 50% drop in intelligence when working in the dark.' It came as a great relief to discover that I wasn't alone in having this impression! 

Olly

[JOC]

2 hours ago, Mr niall said:

I had also wondered whether GOTO on my little scope was a tad overkill!

I suspect that it's a bit of overkill on my 8" scope too.  Mind you, you might find that you can use the scope without running the goto.  I haven't had many occasions to use my scope yet, but I think I've observed as many times without it running as with.  Some nights the stars are just not up conveniently to calibrate it and I can swing my telescope without the goto running.

[michaelmorris]

Hi Niall

Putting all the small stuff together in an easy to carry/move box certainly helps.  If you make the box/case useful in the field this makes the whole experience so much less hassle.  

In days of yore my only scope was a little ETX90.  This was stored in a foam-lined wooden box with carry handles on it and and plastic runners on the base to make it robust and easy to handle.  Inside, all the eyepieces were in bolt bottles in size order down one side of the box.  I installed at battery powered swan-necked red light into the lid and my star atlas lived in a pouch in the underside of the lid.  The lid then doubled up as a stand for the star atlas or a small table top.  

Nowadays the huge variety of plastic tool chests available mean you could do the job with a lot less weight and some even come with wheels.  You could also build in lithium 'Tracer'-type battery pack as well with input and output plugs in the side of the box to cut down the clutter even more..

 

[Richard Hather]

Your not alone in feeling like it's a lot of hard work but it gets easier with practice and routine by your 10th-20th session it will be second nature.

I usually get my tripod ota with extra bits and fold down table an chair out in 3 trips.

Then I'm usually setup and aligned in about 20 mins by that time my scope has had sufficient time to cool and the sky it mine for the taking.

I use a C6 Goto by the way so once in setup seeing anything I like is usually straightforward no frustrations there.

Packing away can be a chore though just yesterday I had finished work at 18:00 then put kids bed by 20:00 then watched some TV with the wife.

It gone to 21:30 and I decided to have a session I was out until 01:15 and I tell you it was horrible getting everything packed away but worth it.

I hope this helps your not alone in feeling this way but it's well worth it ?

Clear skies ✨?????

Richard

[Geoff Lister]

This is a typical setup at my holiday home in the south of France.

The most important feature, for a good evening's astronomy, is that the wine is at ambient temperature, or slightly higher for a winter session.

[cloudsweeper]

13 hours ago, Geoff Lister said:

This is a typical setup at my holiday home in the south of France.

The most important feature, for a good evening's astronomy, is that the wine is at ambient temperature, or slightly higher for a winter session.

Nice, Geoff - the epitome of pleasure!

Doug.

[LukeSkywatcher]

On 07/05/2017 at 07:24, JOC said:

Well it shouldn't be a problem to set it up every time , many folks do so.  Just as I do, but the only other alternative is to leave it setup.  My setup takes me about 10 minutes.  I can't see that there is any  halfway house.  Mind you I do think a couple of sturdy plastic boxes or a shopping tolley would help to get it all outside quickly.  Within a week of ownership I had obtained boxes!

You do know its illegal to remove shopping trolleys from the supermarket premises,dont you?.

A few yrs ago i bought one of those plastic garden benches which has storage below the seat for gardening stuff. I thought it would be great to store my 8" SCT in. It is water tight etc, so not too much to worry about. I just couldnt bring myself to store a 2K scope outside (not even in my concrete shed).

The bench faces east, so its a nice place to sit in the mornings and have a coffee while the sun is beating down (not that that happens much here in Ireland).

This is the seat/bench i have. The garden is not mine.

 

[JOC]

36 minutes ago, LukeSkywatcher said:

shopping trolleys from the supermarket premises,dont you?.

Shopping trolley - one of those things on wheels that you often see old age pensioners with like a 'Sholley' , but made of fabric so you don't lose things, that's what I meant - not what the Americans call a 'shopping cart' - which, as you say, are the property of the supermarkets.   My parents have one - I am never happy pulling it when they ask me to fetch it from the car, so won't pull it, but I will confess to secretly being glad they have it when I've bought 4 litres of milk and a couple of bottles of fruit squash and am miles from the car! ;-) 

[LukeSkywatcher]

56 minutes ago, JOC said:

Shopping trolley - one of those things on wheels that you often see old age pensioners with like a 'Sholley' , but made of fabric so you don't lose things, that's what I meant - not what the Americans call a 'shopping cart' - which, as you say, are the property of the supermarkets.   My parents have one - I am never happy pulling it when they ask me to fetch it from the car, so won't pull it, but I will confess to secretly being glad they have it when I've bought 4 litres of milk and a couple of bottles of fruit squash and am miles from the car! ;-) 

I feel your pain. When i go "shopping" in my wheelchair, all i have is a small back pack. All i can carry in my back pack is about 2 Lt milk,a loaf of bread and a couple of other items. The back pack is heavy at this stage (causes drag on the wheelchair) and my house is a couple miles away from the shop.

I just did shopping online with Tesco (other stores are available) on Sunday for the very first time. It took me a while (ok............2 hrs), but i got everything i need for about 2 weeks and i didnt even have to leave the house. It was delivered on Monday and the delivery guy even helped me pack it all away.

Simples.

So, in a way, it is related to transporting and setting up your astro gear. You just have to figure out the best and easiest way that works for you. I may never need to go to a supermaret again. Why bother, when the supermarket can come to you?.

Interestingly.............

when you shop online from a supermarket, the "best before" and "use by" dates are better than when you physically shop in the store.

[Tigaroo]

On 6 May 2017 at 09:08, Mr niall said:

That's interesting - I was wondering about a dob - I really like the way they come as an all in one package.

I now consider my 8" Dob surprisingly as my 'grab and go' over my 102mm cassegrain that was bought for the purpose , although the Dob is chunky it's by far the easier to set up! Mine doesn't have goto , but with stellarium, a telrad and learning the night sky , it's instant observing. I take it to my local club in the car , takes less than  a minute to lift it out and put the ota on the base, it cools whilst we have a chat indoors then it's straight to viewing when conditions allow....it's proving a real hit at the club for its fab views and ease of use! We were observing Jupiter through fairly persistent cloud last week, the group were amazed that I found it instantly. 

[JOC]

24 minutes ago, Tigaroo said:

takes less than  a minute to lift it out and put the ota on the base,

Confirmed, and even with the Goto it can still cope with you plonking it onto targets manually - as you say Jupiter is a really easy 'hit' at the moment :-D

[Tigaroo]

Does help somewhat having an amazing husband capable of building this to store my equipment right next to the patio ! Spoilt rotten! 

[JOC]

2 minutes ago, Tigaroo said:

Does help somewhat having an amazing husband capable of building this to store my equipment right next to the patio ! Spoilt rotten! 

I'll say. lovely job - reminiscent of a smart signal box.  Err.............if you ever want to send him on holiday..................I promise to look after him!

[Tigaroo]

21 minutes ago, JOC said:

I'll say. lovely job - reminiscent of a smart signal box.  Err.............if you ever want to send him on holiday..................I promise to look after him!

Yes, it is a signal box! I've actually entered it into George Clarke's shed of the year! Ummmm....I think I'll keep him, few more jobs lined up for him yet! 

[iapa]

On 05/05/2017 at 23:50, davehawkins said:

It does get easier with practice. I keep my 200p and mount outside locked in a plastic garden box and I try to set up before it gets dark if I can. I bypass the goto alignment if I'm not going to need it and just use it as a powered tracking mount to save time. This doesn't need accurate polar alignment.

Which garden box are you using?

I am assuming that you have the OTA and mount left set up?

My tripod, mount and rings are under a cover just now - bring the OTA if it is going tube windy though

On 06/05/2017 at 19:44, ollypenrice said:

You want to see galaxies whose light set out in this direction around the time the dinosaurs went extinct. And you can! You want this to be dead easy? Come on, be reasonable...

lly

I'd settle for reasonably difficult instead of dead hard

 

[davehawkins]

The box in question is a green and beige Keter X/L garden storage box 1300 L. I put the OTA on the bottom in its original box and with the lid closed its strong enough to put the mount on top. The mount is left on the tripod with the legs retracted and folded in as far as the eyepiece holder allows but with the weights and goto handset etc removed.

I appologise if I gave the impression it was set up ready to go, what makes it quick is because it's only a few feet away from where it is used and the rest of the gear, ie eyepiece case and accessories box can be taken out in one go.

These boxes are quite large so I suppose some of the smaller scopes could be stored set up.

[JOC]

We got a Keter garden storage box - the one that takes two wheely bins.  I was going to put my scope in it where it would have stood on its stand and hoped it would be OK in the garden.  However, mum said I could put the scope in the porch for safety so we put the wheely bins and recycling boxes in the Keter, but it would have taken the telescope as intended.

[TareqPhoto]

Lucky to have that kind of garden box, i need at least 2 or 3 because i have so so many things and stuff stored in my house when need another spaces for storage, and just recently i bought my astronomy gear to add more stuff inside the house, and the worse is that i moved the tripod and the mount upstairs into my bedroom to study it well and to setup it for first time even, now it is like a TON of weight, i can't carry it all to downstairs and it will be a pain in ....   to disassemble it and then assemble it again downstairs, and then to find a space somewhere to store it, the house inside is already all in mess, so this garden box idea is really nice so it can free some spaces in my house then i can think of better place to store my stuff mostly the big ones.

I have a big yard, but we have a strong very strong sun, and i am sure during the summer later within 2-3 months we will have that sand storms time to time, i don't know which is worse, the rain you all get or the sand storm that we get? so if i leave my mount under that Aluminium shed used for car parking and cover it with something strong what will be the possibilities of heat and sand storm to go inside and damage my mount?

My only solution which is not that good is to keep my mount assembled next or near to the house entrance door or gate, so when i am ready for astronomy and weather is allowing then i take it out for about 20-50 minutes to equalize the temp, and once i am done i just take it back inside next to the door/gate for next season, there are so many stuff already there and it is not that space to keep many things at all there, i am trying to find another space and sooner or later i need t do maintenance there so i must move the stuff away, what do you recommend as protection covers for the mount and tripod? i am trying to find good hard cases which is the only best solution even if i have to disassemble it, i will accept it as long i can keep my mount and tripod safe in the case and then i can put my hard cases even outside fully under the weather conditions[which i won't do anyway but to show how weather proof is the case].

[Paz]

There's lots of good advice but you will gradually figure out short cuts and efficiencies!

It's worth putting set up time in context... if you go to the gym set up time is getting there and back, having a shower, washing your kit..and so on for any hobby. Say 15 mins set up isn't a lot of time... most develop arrangements for at least one rig to set up faster than that.

[Spengler]

I bought my first scope Celestron 130SLT about 6months ago and within a week, i had bought a huge plastic box from B&Q, and got some foam online. I have now created a custom fit for the scope and mount to be stored. As for the lens, T-Ring, filters, power cables...etc, this is all in another box. The only things separate is the laptop and the flask.

 

Takes me about 2 minutes to drag outside, 3 mins to set up, have a cuppa, look at the sky, anywhere between 2 mins and 30 to align (loads of swearing if the latter), another cuppa and then i'm away.

 

I then went any tried astrophotography. WOW, a whole new world of fun.....and stress....and swearing.

 

But then you get to see the complete wonders of the galaxy here. I still remember my son's face when he looked down the scope at the moon, and then up at the moon, then down the scope again, he was baffled but also mesmerised.