Finally I’ve got there

[Stu1smartcookie]

So , after four scopes and two mounts I’ve finally settled on my favourite set up . 

My new ,and , last scope ( that’s what I tell the wife) is a skywatcher 180 Mak , mounted on my EQ5 .. I have already had excellent lunar views and tonight it’s the turn of a rapidly dimming Mars. So , I’ve decided to say goodbye to a lot of the deep sky stuff to concentrate on our solar system ( the Mak has a very narrow field of view and doesn’t do deep sky stuff all that well  ) and it’s like I’ve hit the hot spot . Of course we all have different requirements from this fascinating hobby and most of us own more than one scope . But , it’s so satisfying when you finally settle on your favourite . 

[Mr niall]

Great choice, I’m thinking of going down a similar route and concentrate on solar system and doubles too. Light pollution seems to be getting worse round here, I actually struggled to find andromeda in my 15x70s last night.

[Sunshine]

Hey wait now, i have a SW 150 Mak, yes it is superb for planetary, lunar, and doubles, but i also enjoyed some great views of the brighter deep sky objects like clusters (Hercules and Double in Perseus) along with some satisfying views of nebula like M57, M27.  If you can, get away to a dark location. You may just find, it is more versatile than you thought, planets like to disappear for a couple years at a time, give the Mak a while to stretch its legs under dark skies and different wide FOV eyepieces, you may just be surprised! welcome to the Mak Pak.

Your Mak being a 180 should fare even better than mine.

[Stu]

Yes, I agree. A great scope, and one that will eat Globs and PNs for breakfast! So, don’t just limit yourself to solar system stuff, if you get the chance, try some of those other targets too.

[Stu1smartcookie]

Great to read that the Mak is so versatile, guys . A good view of Mars tonight although only at low power .. I did read that I might be able to attach a different focuser , I don’t think the original is that precise, and it will work alongside the original . Anyone else had this issue ? 

[Mr niall]

7 minutes ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

Great to read that the Mak is so versatile, guys . A good view of Mars tonight although only at low power .. I did read that I might be able to attach a different focuser , I don’t think the original is that precise, and it will work alongside the original . Anyone else had this issue ? 

There’s lots of focussing solutions for Maks out there but the best one I’ve seen (and use) is to just put a clothes peg on the focussing knob - instant 1:10 focussing! (Well sort of!)

[Sunshine]

I was thinking about doing the same, but only because I read that others did, I would have added a bunch more weight, and, lightened my wallet for nothing. It’s one thing if your model suffers from mirror shift severe enough to cause you inconvenience, since an SCT type would eliminate that, if not, I found that I can precisely focus my Mak with the stock focusser. I would try it out without spending more, turning that knob ever so slightly does the job as good as any fancy pants focuser. 

[Stu]

57 minutes ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

Great to read that the Mak is so versatile, guys . A good view of Mars tonight although only at low power .. I did read that I might be able to attach a different focuser , I don’t think the original is that precise, and it will work alongside the original . Anyone else had this issue ? 

It's often the case that scope which focus by moving the primary mirror suffer with certain issues, either just imprecision as you mention, or mirror shift of varying severity.

You can add a second focuser on the visual back which will avoid having to move the primary, and also gives you 1/10th microfocusing for more precision.

I would live with it for a while before deciding whether you need it or not.

[Stu1smartcookie]

Good call from you guys . Especially about the extra weight , and , let’s face it , there’s a reason skywatcher put this kind of focuser on the rear of the scope .. namely , cos it works . I will certainly give it time before making another purchase . After all , there’s only so much a wallet can take !