Hints, Tips and Trickery

[Cinderhella]

5 minutes ago, LukeSkywatcher said:

See............Alt-Az.............tried and tested. Back in the day all scopes were on Alt-Az.

Up/Down/Left/Right

Cant go wrong.

So those two would be a good combination for the Sirius stuffs while the Heritage 130P for the grab n' go would be an idea?

[JOC]

So is an Alt-az the sort of mount my baby Vixen 80S (per that link I posted) is on then?

[LukeSkywatcher]

12 minutes ago, Cinderhella said:

So those two would be a good combination for the Sirius stuffs while the Heritage 130P for the grab n' go would be an idea?

Both are "Sirius", but as a Grab n' Go....(being a wheelchair user), i dont think the Heritage 130P can be beat. You are outside and up and running in a couple of mins.

If you dont want to bring many eyepieces out with you then the Baader Hyperion 8-24mm zoom is the way to go. Its a one stop shop for EP's. I love mine.

[happy-kat]

oooh idea, an ST80 A (add the inexpensive dove bar) on the the new AZ5 tripod mount head here that has slow motion controls to give easy adjustment while viewing, assuming hand strength can also use adjustment sticks, the tripod head fits on a photo tripod that you could perhaps try out the idea with your friend's tripod of sitting in chair and how would you position a tripod around you before making any decisions.

I personally would not let aperture fever set in I think that could lead to no use. 

The best telescope is quite simply the one you can be bothered to use so do use.

[happy-kat]

When using the Heritage 130p from a seated position your upper body does need to crunch forward and that bend this can get a lot more if the telescope is angled at an object that is not very high in the sky, this is not always very comfortable. Your mileage for bend ability whilst seated may vary.

That is a seated position with the telescope base on the floor in front of the chair being sat on.

[LukeSkywatcher]

2 minutes ago, happy-kat said:

When using the Heritage 130p from a seated position your upper body does need to crunch forward and that bend this can get a lot more if the telescope is angled at an object that is not very high in the sky, this is not always very comfortable. Your mileage for bend ability whilst seated may vary.

Good point. If (as a wheelchair user) your balance may not be great, it can be an issue. There could be a risk of falling out of the chair. Most chairs these days come with a seat belt though.

I dont need one, but for health and safety, whenever i get a new wheelchair, i have to sign a disclaimer that i know the risks and dont want one. The thing about safety belts on wheelchairs is that if you do fall out, you are tied to the damn thing and it lands on top of you causing more pain and damage.

[Cinderhella]

Adjustable tables with a slight tilting facility could well counter the need to bend too much, as bending is the one thing that I can't have the pleasure of experiencing. Osteoarthritis from the 10T all the way down to my sacrum, so bending is a bigger no than Venus hosting the Winter olympics!

[happy-kat]

The you may be better off with a refractor or sct/mak where the eyepiece is at the bottom so then you adjust the telescope height to place your eye at the same height. This is much harder to do with a reflector like the heritage 130p I think.

A try before you buy is probably going to be the best thing for you so that you can practice what positions work for you.

[LukeSkywatcher]

37 minutes ago, Cinderhella said:

Adjustable tables with a slight tilting facility could well counter the need to bend too much, as bending is the one thing that I can't have the pleasure of experiencing. Osteoarthritis from the 10T all the way down to my sacrum, so bending is a bigger no than Venus hosting the Winter olympics!

T10 spinal injury is quite low down (Abdomen level).....down to the Sacrum/Coxyx. My Spina Bifida is much lower towards the Sacrum/Coxyx (just above). Im an L3-4. I have no problem with bending over. I can see your dilema. I have no problems using the Heritage 130P when its placed on the level ground. In your case when bending is an issue, you can can obviously raise it up off the ground a few inches. I would suggest a few cement breeze blocks.

That should do the trick. 

[Cinderhella]

Ahh, but there's an issue in that my amputation is so high up, I'm missing the entire right half of my pelvis and the left side muscles have overcompensated for the lack of right side ones by both pushing and pulling my spine into a nice little C curve that has more or less become very rigid. What would normally be a low spine injury to others is a tad higher up on me. It's all very fascinating when seen in x-ray!

[LukeSkywatcher]

3 minutes ago, Cinderhella said:

Ahh, but there's an issue in that my amputation is so high up, I'm missing the entire right half of my pelvis and the left side muscles have overcompensated for the lack of right side ones by both pushing and pulling my spine into a nice little C curve that has more or less become very rigid. What would normally be a low spine injury to others is a tad higher up on me. It's all very fascinating when seen in x-ray!

Well you could have mentioned this before. 

[scarp15]

Hi Cinderhella, Sunderland Astronomical Society, they are very welcoming, proactive and supportive. You mentioned trips to Derwent and Kielder, for astro photography with your friend, so clearly getting out to dark skies is something you are already experiencing and lets face it, that's where its at, as far out of Tyneside as possible. Much about stargazing doesn't necessarily require a scope, just dark skies and dark adapted eyes. Appreciating the milkyway, gaining knowledge of the constellations through the use of a planisphere. Fundamentally if you are OK, which sounds like you are, to layer up and embrace our cold north east climate a lot can be gained from those planned trips out. Northumberland is a valued landscape and with dark sky protection, being able to get out there and in due course taking into account some of the good advice provided for a suitable and ergonomic optical system, will be rewarding.  

http://www.sunderlandastro.com/

[LukeSkywatcher]

My mother was born in Sunderland. 

[Cinderhella]

Sunderland's a bit too far, but I have sought up the local astronomy club on Facebook and I'm hoping to find good people there.

I've made myself a shiny wish list on FLO which includes a collimational, a few scopes, a few mounts and the Heritage 130P that will get me looking out there to a decent extent, so things are moving forward!

Just nosing about eyepieces while I watch a couple of vids on collimation and other little things like that. Plossl, Kellner and whatnot so I have a good idea on what to avoid and what's worth a second glance. Also put the word out to see if anyone has an adjustable table they don't want!

[LukeSkywatcher]

5 minutes ago, Cinderhella said:

Sunderland's a bit too far, but I have sought up the local astronomy club on Facebook and I'm hoping to find good people there.

I've made myself a shiny wish list on FLO which includes a collimational, a few scopes, a few mounts and the Heritage 130P that will get me looking out there to a decent extent, so things are moving forward!

Just nosing about eyepieces while I watch a couple of vids on collimation and other little things like that. Plossl, Kellner and whatnot so I have a good idea on what to avoid and what's worth a second glance. Also put the word out to see if anyone has an adjustable table they don't want!

Skyatcher Heritage 130P and either 8,15 and 32mm , or else Heritage 130P and hyperion 8-24mm zoom

 

[Cinderhella]

Those are all in my wish list along with a moon filter and while I think I'll be investing in a separate solar scope, I'll be mooching about for a solar filter until I get to grips with both sides of the celesial gene pool! 

And FLO can peek at my profile to get my birthday...

You know. Just in case something arrives at their place of stockery with my initial engraved in big, swirly lettering.

[SilverAstro]

C > Vikings  , , from Ireland, over to Cumbria and Carlisle
LS> redhead and Irish , , Viking blood in my veins

I was born and raised in Carlisle (when it was in Cumberland)  and I have blue eyes. Do I qualify ?

Dunno if this is an option, but :

When I was young (and the dinosaurs roamed wild) we had to build our own 'scopes, mounts etc.

So my second scope was a 6" f/8 mirror in a tube (Newt), no mount initially, so I would sit on a chair with the top of the scope across my knees and its bottom on the ground, easy to scan right-left and up-down on low and medium power.
The   only  problem was that I lacked a motorised chair, so periodically I'd have to get up - reposition, sit back down and try to find where I had been !

The second problem was - that I never discovered a comet, George (Alcock)  always got there first !!

So, you got the right chair, all we have to do is make the scope long enough to raise it to your eye-level without need of bending ? A longish plank ??

 

[JOC]

It probably hits a far higher price point, but is it worth considering something with automation and a video link?

[happy-kat]

You can not use the heritage 130p for solar viewing.

Even with a table I think the heritage might be difficult to use with the eye peice where it is.

[JOC]

Well sometimes it's just a matter of having a thought that something might exist.  I've just done a Google image search for 'Wheelchair Mounted Tripod'  This shows a large number of natty mounts for cameras on wheelchairs.  Now I know that my old baby Vixen 80S mounts directly onto my own camera tripod, so surely there are telescopes around which still do the same?  I would have thought even a well spec'ed bird spotter scope, perhaps ones that takes interchangeable eye pieces would mount directly onto a camera mount (like those in the pictures) would make a nice thing to view the stars through.  The mounts might even take binoculars and they look like they limit bending over quite a lot.

I've followed the link on one of the pictures and arrived here - it looks like these arm can be used for other things as well., but the pictures with a camera on it are down in the gallery views.

http://www.broadenedhorizons.com/robo-arm-mount

[Cinderhella]

I've had the chance to try out a Newt/Dob and the viewer was a wee bit awkward to reach without craning my neck just a tad too much and with needing to have my powerchair reclined to simply sit...

Well, there were some choice complaints from my upper torso and I have pretty bruise to mark the occasion!

Happy days LOL

[happy-kat]

Best to try before buying so that's good to have had opportunity to know that the position of a reflector eyepiece is not for you.

Dob is reference to the style of mount, Dobsonian. You can mount a refractor on these as well as a mak/sct. However the mount in that use would then need to be on a table in order for the eyepiece to be high enough.

Though thinking about it there is still a need to flex the neck forward to look down into the eyepiece even if it is right near your head.

[Cinderhella]

I've just scrolled through three years worth of photos to try and find one that gives a decent view of how I sit, but the only one I can find is the one with Ken Kirzinger taken in 2015 at Film and Comic Con. Still not the greatest view of it by any means, but at least it gives an idea of what it is I've got to work around.

 

[JOC]

I think the picture is useful.  It shows that you are seated in a somewhat 'relaxed' position.  Clearly not making it easy to bend over and look into something.  You do seem well positioned for metor watching though!  With that picture in mind those tripods tbat attach to a wheelchair still seem useful.  I was also quite amazed to get hits from Google when I queried 'wearable binoculars.

[scarp15]

Good to learn that you are getting some opportunities to try out options. Attending regional stargazing events, such as perhaps registering with www.gostargazing.co.uk will provide further insight into various set-ups. I mentioned Sunderland Astro earlier, they arrange their dark sky meets at Derwent Reservoir, would be welcome for a non member, if you felt that you'd like to enquire to drop in. Concerning your posture, perhaps a tripod mounted refractor might well work, finding out what best works and is most comfortable is a process. Continuing on this venture and gaining opportunities to get out, meet with others and trial some different equipment, will get you there.