Second Scope Advice

[Stardaze]

2 hours ago, johninderby said:

Try asking Telescope house as they ship directly from Germany. Might be faster. 

The Telrad sticks on quite well but have found the Rigel tends to fall off. quite often using the provided foam tape. However a bit of silicone sealer will hold it securely. 

They've quoted around a week so I've placed the order with them. Ordered the finders from FLO. Thanks for your help John. 👍

 

[johninderby]

Good news. 👍🏻

BTW did you order a collimation cap or a Cheshire eyepiece so you can colimate the scope?

[Stardaze]

7 minutes ago, johninderby said:

Good news. 👍🏻

BTW did you order a collimation cap or a Cheshire eyepiece so you can colimate the scope?

The Cheshire. My 130 has been pretty solid but it is time I had one. Went for FLO's own alu version. 

[Stardaze]

On 15/04/2020 at 15:29, johninderby said:

I tend not to use a barlow but do like this one which is actually a telextender rather than a plain barlow.

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/barlow-eyepieces/explore-scientific-2x-3x-5x-barlow-focal-extender-125.html

But this one is cheap but is actually surprisngly good and will do for now. Would wait to see if you actuaaly use the barlow enough before buying something more expensive.

https://www.harrisontelescopes.co.uk/acatalog/skywatcher-2x-de-luxe-achromatic-barlow-lens.html

The 26mm eyepiece that comes with the scope us actually not bad and is quite usable. Much better than the eyepieces that usualy come with a scope.

The longer focal length BSTs aren’t as good as the shorter focal length ones. I would probably go for a 30mm to 35mm 2” as a widefield eyepiece.I like these but as you can see the price goes up so wouldn’t be in a hurty to buy one.

https://www.harrisontelescopes.co.uk/acatalog/skywatcher-aero-ed-eyepieces.html

 

 

In your opinion John, how much difference in general IQ is there between the 16mm nirvana and a BST? Obviously the FOV is the big benefit but wondered if there's a discernible difference with the overall IQ? I have the 8 & 18 BST's and so am tempted to try the wider FOV but they overlap. Whichever upgrade route I consider the BST's would need to be replaced I guess. Not anything for the now, but am intrigued by 82 deg. 

[johninderby]

The BST is quite good but find the Nirvana a bit better so you are losing nothing in performance but gaining the wide FOV. 

These are the eyepieces I use with my Messier dob.

 

[Stardaze]

32 minutes ago, johninderby said:

The BST is quite good but find the Nirvana a bit better so you are losing nothing in performance but gaining the wide FOV. 

These are the eyepieces I use with my Messier dob.

 

You sound like you've tried fair few over the years John. I think those FL's look about ideal, I can't see a need for the bits in between. What's the 30mm? Partly thinking that I've probably jumped in a bit too quickly with the BST's will use now and move over to the 7 & 16 soon. Might put that SW 28 at the top of the list first, though the nirvana's aren't bank breaking lenses. 

Do you store your dob with a shower cap over the end, or not that fussy? 

Edited April 28, 2020 by Stardaze

[johninderby]

It’s the Aero 30mm. Bit better than the Panaview but a bit more expensive. 

https://www.harrisontelescopes.co.uk/acatalog/skywatcher-aero-30mm-ed-eyepiece-2.html#SID=1676

The SW 28mm Nirvana is a very nice eyepiece but is a big heavy lump.

28mm Nirvana - 1,000g

30mm Aero - 330g

As I store my dob in a clean dry conservatory don’t bother with covering the bottom. 

Edited April 28, 2020 by johninderby

[Stardaze]

21 minutes ago, johninderby said:

It’s the Aero 30mm. Bit better than the Panaview but a bit more expensive. 

https://www.harrisontelescopes.co.uk/acatalog/skywatcher-aero-30mm-ed-eyepiece-2.html#SID=1676

The SW 28mm Nirvana is a very nice eyepiece but is a big heavy lump.

28mm Nirvana - 1,000g

30mm Aero - 330g

As I store my dob in a clean dry conservatory don’t bother with covering the bottom. 

Yes I noted the weight, looked a nice piece of glass. How does that affect the balance on the scope? Is it easier to have lighter optics? Much difference in IQ? 

Sending the Rigel back and plumbing for the Telrad. Disappointed with the marks on the perspex tbh. 

[johninderby]

With a heavy eyepiece you might have to rebalance the scope when you use it. Easy enought to move the tube down a bit in the rings to compensate or just use a magnetc weight. The SW 28 Nirvana has been around for a while but still,a good eyepiece.

There’s one in the sales section.

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/348188-skywatcher-nirvana-28mm-82-degrees-uwa/

 

Edited April 28, 2020 by johninderby

[Stardaze]

21 minutes ago, johninderby said:

With a heavy eyepiece you might have to rebalance the scope when you use it. Easy enought to move the tube down a bit in the rings to compensate or just use a magnetc weight. The SW 28 Nirvana has been around for a while but still,a good eyepiece.

There’s one in the sales section.

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/348188-skywatcher-nirvana-28mm-82-degrees-uwa/

 

Ah, that's bad timing for me really, I've just bought the 9x50 and a few other bits this week. 

I probably need to use the kit first to work out what I use most. If it's the 25, then I'll probably invest in the best  30 that I can. I do like the look of the SE but that's a proper lump, thinking the SW 28 was a compromise. Tough to know whether the SE is much better at £260, maybe a bit better corrected at the edges I'm guessing. I like the look of the SE range as they pretty much cover everything and nice to not have to change focus when switching from one FL to another. Again, if the mid-range becomes my most used (it seems to be at the minute) then I'll probably go the SE as they're not too badly priced. It's early days, I have to remind to use what's coming first. Do you not see a need for spending 3x the price on the exotic stuff yourself? 

 

Edited April 28, 2020 by Stardaze

[Stardaze]

I’m so tempted to order the nirvana’s and put the BST’s up 😱

[John]

26 minutes ago, Stardaze said:

I’m so tempted to order the nirvana’s and put the BST’s up 😱

Not everybody finds them to their taste:

 

[johninderby]

Funny how some get on with an eyepiece and others don’t. Your opinion may differ depending on your eyesight,.

[Stardaze]

1 hour ago, John said:

Not everybody finds them to their taste:

 

I think we’ve all done that with kit over the years, expensive mistakes but part of the ‘learning curve’ 😂 I’m going to sit on the GAS for now and use what I’ve got (sensible for once!) There always has to be something ‘to aspire to.’ Besides, if what I’ve ordered so far doesn’t measure up, it’s all John’s fault! (Still think it’s the sensible option to some others I considered...)

 

 

[johninderby]

[Stardaze]

6 minutes ago, johninderby said:

I’ll take full responsibility 😁 Funny thing is, I had considered going the Nexstar 8SE route, which I think you had too? So this is half the cost-ish. Well, that’s the story to the wife, less some VAT 😉

[johninderby]

I liked the 8SE but wished it had a sturdier mount. The Nexstar Evoulution 8 is nice but quite a bit more. 

The Bresser is a nice scope and probably better on DSOs than the 8SE but still good on lunar / planets and it has the advanfage of being quick and easy easy to set up. There will still be room for a dob in your scope collection. BTW most on here have a couple of scopes as I’m sure you’ve noticed. 😁

 

[Stardaze]

13 minutes ago, johninderby said:

I liked the 8SE but wished it had a sturdier mount. The Nexstar Evoulution 8 is nice but quite a bit more. 

The Bresser is a nice scope and probably better on DSOs than the 8SE but still good on lunar / planets and it has the advanfage of being quick and easy easy to set up. There will still be room for a dob in your scope collection. BTW most on here have a couple of scopes as I’m sure you’ve noticed. 😁

 

I have a preference for DSO I think so the bigger aperture makes sense (it’s why I have a camera bag full of top end primes 😁) In the end, I also like the idea of going manual. A go-to might help the learning process in some ways initially, but I like the idea of plodding around manually and finding my own way. 
 

The problem with any hobby if they take hold, is that they can affect your wallet badly. But if you get a lot of enjoyment out of it... it’s only money..😁

[Stardaze]

13 hours ago, johninderby said:

I liked the 8SE but wished it had a sturdier mount. The Nexstar Evoulution 8 is nice but quite a bit more. 

The Bresser is a nice scope and probably better on DSOs than the 8SE but still good on lunar / planets and it has the advanfage of being quick and easy easy to set up. There will still be room for a dob in your scope collection. BTW most on here have a couple of scopes as I’m sure you’ve noticed. 😁

 

Ah well, I've added the 16mm nirvana to my order, so I'll compare them and keep the one I prefer.

[Stardaze]

On 28/04/2020 at 21:25, johninderby said:

I liked the 8SE but wished it had a sturdier mount. The Nexstar Evoulution 8 is nice but quite a bit more. 

The Bresser is a nice scope and probably better on DSOs than the 8SE but still good on lunar / planets and it has the advanfage of being quick and easy easy to set up. There will still be room for a dob in your scope collection. BTW most on here have a couple of scopes as I’m sure you’ve noticed. 😁

 

Have you suffered much coma John with any of the eyepieces? 

 

[johninderby]

Not been a problem so far but at f/5 you would probably only notice a bit right at the edge of the fov of the widest eyepieces. So it’s more of a case you could find some if you looked for it but not enough to do anything about.

[Ags]

On 14/04/2020 at 20:12, Stardaze said:

I’m going to need a good standard EP, in the 25 area and good Barlow too. 

It's a bit of a lump (for a 1.25" eyepiece) but the Explore Scientific 24 mm 68° is superb.

[johninderby]

6 minutes ago, Ags said:

It's a bit of a lump (for a 1.25" eyepiece) but the Explore Scientific 24 mm 68° is superb.

Cheap compared to a 24mm Panoptic though. The Aero 30 mm 2” is OK and only 1g heavier than the ES.

Edited April 29, 2020 by johninderby

[Stardaze]

28 minutes ago, Ags said:

It's a bit of a lump (for a 1.25" eyepiece) but the Explore Scientific 24 mm 68° is superb.

 

23 minutes ago, johninderby said:

Cheap compared to a 24mm Panoptic though. The Aero 30 mm 2” is OK and only 1g heavier than the ES.

I'm going to use the scope for a bit and see what I fancy, probably in readiness for the winter nights. The aero is the sensible option, but it may depend on how flush I'm feeling at the time too 😆 I do like the look of the ES 28 68 deg which is £100 cheaper than the 82 deg version and half the weight. That could be the one (2 inch too)

Edited April 29, 2020 by Stardaze

[johninderby]

Yes take yourtime and buy other eyepieces when you find a need for them.

The 24mm Panoptic is a fantasric eyepiece with one little problem ££££££ 🙀

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/tele-vue-eyepieces/tele-vue-panoptic-68-eyepieces.html