Is a collimator necessary?

[coolhandluke]

Hi Guys

Just about to get my first telescope and have decided to go for a 8" Skywatcher 200p as it seems such a bargain for what you get. Is it vital to buy a collimator when first starting out? Any advice would be gratefully received.

Luke

[kniclander]

hmmm - if you had a 6" I would say defo no, If you had a 10", defo yes. IMHO the best thing to get is a Cheshire which costs about £25 so it's not too much. I don't think you can collimate the primary without one. I wouldn't bother with a laser - assuming you are looking at a skywatcher, they just don't work properly (in my experience) where the eyepiece holder has 2 thumbscrews (rather than compression rings) - plus if you get a laser you'll get all anxious about whether the laser is collimated and you'll end up at "collimators anonymous".

HTH

Dan

[kniclander]

ps can you eat 50 eggs?

[coolhandluke]

49 eggs only .

[coolhandluke]

Thanks for your help. I was thinking about a Laser collimator as I was told it makes things much easier but now I am not so sure. Why do you think the Laser will be a problem with the 200P eyepiece? Also how often will I need to do it? Another question that I am wondering is; will I see any colour in deep space objects with this scope? The only two objects I have seen with a scope before is the moon and Jupiter.

[jonbarr87]

No... well I mean in stars you can but other than that you can only see very light greens and blues on top of grey....

[acey]

I got an 8-inch dob eight years ago and for the first six or so managed perfectly well without any kind of collimation aid except a film canister with a hole in it. Then I decided to get fancy and bought a laser collimator which I quickly found to be more trouble than it was worth. So next I got a Cheshire and now I wonder how I ever survived without it.

Enjoy your scope and only start to worry about collimation when you find the views unacceptable - then try the film cannister method. An 8-inch doesn't need recollimating much - I take it on a bumpy car ride every time I use it and it lasts for months on end.

As to colour - you'll see it on planets (and in stars) but nothing else. But with an 8-inch you can see hundreds and hundreds of galaxies, clusters, nebulae etc, not to mention the discs of Jupiter's moons.

Andrew

[kniclander]

Acey's advice is spot on.

The problem I found with the laser was that the eyepiece holder is a bit bigger than the laser barrel and with 2 thumbscrews "pushing" it one way it is impossible to ensure that the laser is going straight down the focus tube. In that case the laser doesnt hit the middle of the primary even if the secondary is lined up. Using a laser to collimate the primary is a definite no no. If you want to know more about collimation theory, check out Cloudy Nights and look for the sticky thread in the reflector section - but beware.............................that way lies madness :shock:

Keep shakin the tree (sorry, love that film )

[Doc]

Hi.

I would say get your yourself a collimation cap ( abt £7) so you can centre your secondry so your mirror clips are visible and a Cheshire like Dan mentioned to adjust your primary.

8" aperture scopes don't need doing that often but a reflector will not hold collimation as well as a refractor.

as for colour....

No you will not be dazzled with colour like you see in magazines but you will see colour in planets, some nebulas like the "Bluebell Nebula" in Andromeda or a hint of green in the M57.

You mmight even see the M42 with a green hue.

Hope this helps.

[kniclander]

ps there are apparently more sophisticated laser colllimators and I'm not dissing them cos I never used one but they're a lot pricier. I think Blatter or Glatter make one?

[Astro_Baby]

I agree too for what its worth. Laser collimation was more trouble than it was worth. The Cheshire is simple and works fine.

I have a SW200 and although I had aggro when it was new - collimation was off by a mile - since its been collimated it holds up extremely well and seldom needs collimation. Mind you its also seldom used.

[beamer3.6m]

Explorer 200p holds collimation very well.

I used a laser on mine and I thought it works a treat. My images have not picked up any problems and it was very quick and easy to do.

[ChrisEdu]

I have a SW200 and although I had aggro when it was new - collimation was off by a mile - since its been collimated it holds up extremely well and seldom needs collimation. Mind you its also seldom used.

Why would that be?!

How's it going with the Nexstar?

[John]

I've got a 200P and I use the plastic cheshire-type collimation eyepiece that came with the scope which seems to do the job OK. At F/6 collimation is not quite such an issue as it is with F/5 and shorter scopes - I find mine holds it's collimation well.

I have also tried laser collimators with other scopes that I've owned and found them more hinderance than help.

John

[coolhandluke]

Thanks guys! I have found this thread a real help. I think I will give the collimator a miss and just learn the ropes first. Thanks for the info on the colours as well, I guessed that I wouldn't see much. Just one last question, when I have learnt my way around the skys and the basiscs of astronomy, will I be able to adapt the scope for astrophotography by putting the tube on a good mount?

[Doc]

Yes the 200 can be mounted with the help of tube rings.

Some people have it on a Eq5 but really a Eq6 would be much sturdier IMO