phd2 and drift align help

[scitmon]

Right now I am trying learn the drift align tool in PHD2 for the first time and struggling badly.  Hoping I can get some help!  I'm currently trying to align the Azimuth but the red line is just falling off the graph very quickly.  I've done a rough polar align with the scope but I'm wondering if I've not done the step of slewing to the meridian and celestrial equator correctly because I'm not exactly sure where that is?

[alacant]

23 minutes ago, scitmon said:

slewing to the meridian and celestrial equator correctly because I'm not exactly sure where that is

Hi. It's always in the same place, at the moment it looks like this. Choose a star just to the west of it and drift for a few moments. Hit adjust and move the azimuth adjusters. Repeat until the red line moves the other way -trial and error. Once you have found which adjuster moves the line which way, fill in the adjuster cheat sheet for next time. ATM, you're too far away from the pole so you'll need quite drastic movements to get closer.

HTH.

[scitmon]

so the meridian is the line from north to south, and the celestrial equator is what? 

[alacant]

 

25 minutes ago, scitmon said:

the celestrial equator is what?

[spillage]

Make sure you allow it to run for at least 5 minutes to start with. It will fluctuate for a while.

[scitmon]

I think I'm very slowly getting the hang on it, but can anyone tell me why my blue line is allover the place?

 

[alacant]

14 minutes ago, scitmon said:

why my blue line is allover the place?

The mount isn't tracking or is a -very- long way off the pole (?). Are the stars stationary in the PHD2 window?

[michael8554]

If you're pointing south you're on the Meridian, the Celestrial Equator is Dec zero

For the Az adjustment, that side window will show your "Current" offset from the Meridian, and from Dec O, and "Slew To" is where you should point the scope for this adjustment.

I think PHD sets that for you, so hit slew and the mount will move to the correct adjustment position.

If not enter 0 and 0.

You might want to make a further small slew to slightly east so that the mount moves through due south while you are drifting.

For the Alt adjustment you need a star roughly due east or west and above the horizon or trees or on Dec 0.

Your image shows that PA is 12.10 arc-mins which is a good start, you should aim for 5 arc-mins, or better if your mount allows such tiny adjustments.

In both cases you're trying to get the red Dec line horizontal, so don't worry about the blue line unless it doesn't come back to the normal position after a minute or so.

Michael

 

[scitmon]

Thank you all for the help.  This was very much a learning exercise.  I did find small adjustments on the az axis tricky with the azeq6 but i'm sure i'll get the hang of it.  How long does this process take for someone who knows what they are doing?

[michael8554]

32 minutes ago, scitmon said:

How long does this process take for someone who knows what they are doing?

Are you observing or imaging?

For observing the polar scope should be enough?

I have a permanent pier mounted imaging setup, but remember geological epochs passing when I was setting up PA for the first time.

I imagine that with practice this can become second nature, but many have shelled out for Polemaster, or just use the similar Static Polar Alignment (SPA) on PHD2 dev versions.

Michael

 

[alacant]

9 hours ago, michael8554 said:

make a further small slew to slightly east so that the mount moves through due south while you are drifting

And so perform a meridian flip? If you're gonna do that, make sure the mount limits are unset.

Perhaps best to keep it simple and begin west, or far enough east that the flip doesn't happen.

HTH

[michael8554]

Good point, I'm fork mounted so forget there's a flip out there for EQ users.

Michael 

[spillage]

Not sure if any has mentioned, but ignore the blue line just use the red line. I would move your azi about 1/4 of a turn one way and see how it effects the red line. If it moves in the right direction use the notepad in the drift box so you know which way to move the mount to get the desired effect. (east up west down or vice versa). Do the same for the alt.

Once you get the line close it is just very small movements. On my eq6 with a wedge I sometimes just undo the opposite knob and tighten it back up to move the line. I can normally get it around .10".

When you are really close allow it run for as long as possible say 10 mins just to make sure it has settled down.

Have you get this setup permanent or do you set up every night? If you set up every night try and mark you tripod legs so you can put it in nearly the same spot every time.

I can normally get this done in about 10-20 minutes on average.