Equipment hardly used

[Tenby2]

Hi all. 

It's been too a long time since I've actually used my scope. 

I have a Sky Watcher HEQ5 Pro mount and a celestron 925 OTA and various eyepieces.

I've never been comfortable setting up the mount although it works perfectly when I do manage to set it up properly.

That's the trouble, me! I've got so much stuff to aid my set up, cds, videos etc but still I struggle.

I live in a fairly light polluted area in Essex so only finding the polestar is sometimes a struggle.

In the end I don't bother and use my big binos to observe.

How I miss my Celestron 8SE!

My first 'real' telescope. It was easy to set up and I was out observing as often as I could.

I was thinking about changing my mount, part exchanging, swapping etc. for another SE type mount capable of carrying the load of my 925 OTA.

If not then maybe buy the 8SE again!

Any suggestions, help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Mark

[lenscap]

Hi and welcome to SGL.

This thread seems quite relevant.

 

 

[RT65CB-SWL]

Hi @Tenby2 and welcome to SGL. 

I have just read the linked post above. The Vixen GP/DX is copied but never beaten! - unless it's a Losmandy or other heavy duty mount.

Vixen GP/DX's do come up secondhand time to time and I would seriously consider one. I never could get on with EQ mounts before, until I owned one. Mine does not have any setting circles for RA & DEC., but one of my better astro-decision purchases that I made.

Just to give you an idea of its size, here is a photo with my 're-modded' Meade ETX105 attached...

...and "Yes!" that is a 2inch star diagonal on the back end.

Edited September 11, 2018 by Philip R

[astronomer2002]

I'm afraid mounts are usually the Achilles heel of any telescope.

I had a C9.25 for a couple of years and found it was only really stable enough on a Losmandy G11. That combination worked well, far better that the SW HEQ5 I first tried it out on. However that setup isn't easily portable for one person.

If I had one now I would look at an Ioptron eq45 mount. They are pretty easy to set up and stable. However they are weighty and cost nearly twice as much as the skywatcher offerings. In my opinion they are better built than SW, quieter and easier to use.  If you need to buy on price the the SW EQ6 is your best bet for weight carrying, but I always found ease-of-use determines whether you use a scope or not.

A second hand Losmandy G11 or Ioptron EQ45 will hold it's purchase price pretty well though like cars there is a big hit for the original purchaser.

If you don't use the equipment you have then it is the wrong setup for you. I would start by trying to find a mount you are happy with.  This can be very expensive and time consuming as I have found out, so best to try and find someone local to you who already has the mount you would like to try. I recently lent someone who had previously owned SW mounts my Ioptron EQ30 for several weeks and it persuaded him to buy his own. He said it was so easy to use and quiet compared to the SW ones..

Ian B

[Cosmic Geoff]

What is your budget? If it's substantial, you could get an alt-az or AZ-EQ GoTo in place of the HEQ-5.  Maybe add a Starsense to make the setup even easier. The Celestron alt-az GoTo mounts are not commonly available on their own, but there are some lesser known makes.

Or you could sell up and get the C8 SE again, and pocket some money if you buy a used one.

[Louis D]

Pick up a used 8" or 10" Dob for a quick grab and go option.  Sure, you'll have to manually track, but it's manageable.

[Stu]

This was a fun setup, C925 and Tak FC100DC side by side on an Ercole mount, very portable and quick to setup. The frac gives widefield and finder capability, the C925 the aperture and high power/resolution.

Keeping it simple is a good plan. Alternatives may be something like the iOptron AZ Pro Goto

[Tenby2]

Thanks for the replies the above set up and ideas are good, budget wafty atm will build up a scope kitty and assess my options. 

[Demonperformer]

Hi, Mark, & welcome to SGL. 

I think an SE mount would struggle with a 925.

I wonder if you have anywhere you could house a permanent setup? There are some ingenious suggestions in the observatories board for small secure housings. Permanently polar aligned and ready to go in a few minutes might restore your enthusiasm.

[Tenby2]

thanks DP. I have thought of doing what you've suggested before but not practical at my current address. Will move within the next 3 years so will wait until then

[Fozzie]

On ‎11‎/‎09‎/‎2018 at 15:26, Tenby2 said:

How I miss my Celestron 8SE!

My first 'real' telescope. It was easy to set up and I was out observing as often as I could.

I was thinking about changing my mount, part exchanging, swapping etc. for another SE type mount capable of carrying the load of my 925 OTA.

If not then maybe buy the 8SE again!

Any suggestions, help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Mark

Hi Mark,

I while back our sponsors @FLO were offering the NexStar Evolution mounts only, which as a bundle come with a 925 OTA.  link below.. (not sure if it was a celestron thing or it just happened as usually they are bundled with scope)

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/nexstar-evolution-telescopes/celestron-nexstar-evolution-925-telescope.html

It seems exactly what you are looking for, just a slightly larger version of the SE mount...  Might be worth a few emails to see if anyone would split a bundle for you..  It's like an 8SE only bigger!

Ta

Fozzie

[Tenby2]

Thanks again for your replies. I hsve decided to sell my HEQ5... and 925 ota and buy an 8se like the one I use to own abd thoroughly enjoyed using as often as the weather let me. Might take a couple of months to organise, due to busy work schedule, but I think that's my best option. Hopefully money I get for sale will cover cost of 8se.

Regards

              Mark

[Doc]

The best set up is the one you use so maybe sell your kit and invest in another 8SE. After all from a light polluted Essex there is not a lot of difference between 8" and 9.25".

If you were out all the time with your old 8SE and now struggle with an EQ mount which by the way many people do, I know what I would do.

[Tenby2]

Thanks Doc. That's exactly what I'm doing now, can't advertise the sale here, not enough posts yet, using eBay via my wife's account, I don't  usually sell on eBay, only buy.

Only posted yesterday. But looking forward to getting an 8SE again.

[knobby]

Why not use UK Astro buy and sell ... No fees from Mr eBay and you might find a CPC 800 or similar on there .

[Tenby2]

I will use the astro buy and sell. But decided to give ebay watchers first dibs. 

Not gone too well, plenty of watchers 😕 time for a change. 

I suppose could be a bad time to sell as summer in the UK 

Edited June 17, 2019 by Tenby2

[Cornelius Varley]

On 14/04/2019 at 10:06, Tenby2 said:

Thanks Doc. That's exactly what I'm doing now, can't advertise the sale here, not enough posts yet, using eBay via my wife's account, I don't  usually sell on eBay, only buy.

Only posted yesterday. But looking forward to getting an 8SE again.

The rules on selling have been changed but not updated.  You can now sell in the classifieds.

[newbie alert]

I'd have a 9.25 over a 8 inch any day..

The 9.25 is the sweet spot for uk skies they say..

[old_eyes]

On 21/03/2019 at 07:34, Tenby2 said:

Thanks again for your replies. I hsve decided to sell my HEQ5... and 925 ota and buy an 8se like the one I use to own abd thoroughly enjoyed using as often as the weather let me. Might take a couple of months to organise, due to busy work schedule, but I think that's my best option. Hopefully money I get for sale will cover cost of 8se.

Regards

              Mark

They say with cameras, the best one is the one you always have with you. I think the same with astro-rigs. The one you will use is the one that is quick, easy, familiar and comfortable for you. Mine is a 10" Dob. Heave it out onto the drive and go. Yes I know there is cool-down time and collimation, but I find that you can be doing some useful looking whilst waiting for a final tweak.

[Cosmic Geoff]

Why not contact some 2nd hand astro equipment dealers and see what they can do for you? One might take the unwanted kit off your hands and supply a (used) C8 SE within days.  You could take a hit on value but the saving in hassle might be worth it.

[Tenby2]

Sold the mount just waiting to sell the 925 OTA. 

I bought a 8SE in the meantime and managed to some observing last week. I forgot just how cold you get. Also how prone to vibrations the 8SE mount is. 

Any suggestions to help stop this? I will buy suppression pads for the tripod, there are so many out there, with prices varying from £15-£80 I wonder if there's really a great deal of difference justifying the prices! 

And how much they will help stop the vibrations. 

Any advice always appreciated. 

Edited January 4, 2020 by Tenby2
Spelling

[wornish]

8 minutes ago, Tenby2 said:

Sold the mount just waiting to sell the 925 OTA. 

I bought a 8SE in the meantime and managed to some observing last week. I forgot just how cold you get. Also how prone to vibrations the 8SE mount is. 

Any suggestions to help stop this? I will buy suppression pads for the tripod, there are so many out there, with prices varying from £15-£80 I wonder if there's really a great deal of difference justifying the prices! 

And how much they will help stop the vibrations. 

Any advice always appreciated. 

Have you got a buyer for the 925 OTA?

 

[Tenby2]

Not yet

[Louis D]

4 hours ago, Tenby2 said:

Any suggestions to help stop this? I will buy suppression pads for the tripod, there are so many out there, with prices varying from £15-£80 I wonder if there's really a great deal of difference justifying the prices! 

Look for pure Sorbothane pads and just put them under each tripod foot.  I bought some new old stock Sorbothane insoles from the 90s off ebay and cut them into pads for multiple tripods.  It cuts dampening time from 3 to 5 seconds to 1/2 second.

[Dr_Ju_ju]

Look for the Sorbothane pads as used in the audio industry e.g. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/4-x-Sorbothane-40mm-Diameter-Isolation-Feet-Spheres-4-x-Self-Adhesive-Pads/293118014273?hash=item443f31f341:g:q3sAAOSwDO9c~5Yo 

They are not cheap, but are the best for dampening vibrations. In a previous existence, I used to design & build equipment used in a broadcasting environment, i.e. BB, where the product(s) were used in many differing types of equipment, from tone arms, speakers and even control desks...