Help me join the light side...

[Highburymark]

The other thing you can experiment with is stopping down your 102mm to squeeze best performance out of the Quark at different speeds/focal ratios, and to adapt to seeing.

[Victor Boesen]

27 minutes ago, Highburymark said:

The other thing you can experiment with is stopping down your 102mm

That's definitely something I've considered! I will see if I get the opportunity to use the 3D printers on my school before I graduate this summer;)

[GKA]

On 05/05/2021 at 17:04, FLO said:

During the pandemic it is hard to say. The EU importer/distributor is not accepting pre-orders because they don't yet know when it will be released. Bresser in Germany list it at €899, which at todays exchange-rate is approx £775. We will know more and be able to confirm when it is released. 

HTH, 

Steve 

Hi Steve , got a mail fro Faye Roman at Lunt yesterday were she said that there were already some on the way to Bresser  in Germany,so i was hoping te same would apply for FLO .

I also asked you guys at FLO , but you didn't know when yet.

I'm very interested in the Lunt 40mm , especially for the prize  , and the possible upgrades you can do.

I would prefer to  deal with FLO , because of the good experiences i have with you guys and girls.

So FLO get it in , pronto 😄😄👍

[Victor Boesen]

My Quark arrived this morning and I had an opportunity to take it for a spin despite some thin high clouds. Heat up time is not a huge problem and I could kill the waiting time by looking through it despite not ready yet.

After some time I was able to pick out numerous flares on the limb and features around the current sun spots (compared to white light these really look a lot more interesting). I noticed that flares were brighter when the Quark was tuned far left/anti clockwise while details in the chromosphere were easier to see when it was left at 12 o'clock. I did not get the opportunity to try the far right tuning setting due to clouds.

I think I will get a long focal length Plössl eyepiece for full disk observing since my 14mm 82 degree eyepiece is a little too much magnification for full disk observing.

My first impressions of this unit seem to be quite good! I look forward spending some more time with it in better conditions.

[Hughsie]

13 minutes ago, Victor Boesen said:

My Quark arrived this morning and I had an opportunity to take it for a spin despite some thin high clouds. Heat up time is not a huge problem and I could kill the waiting time by looking through it despite not ready yet.

Great to see you join the light side of things. 
Just an observation on the setup, is that a battery pack you have the Quark plugged in to? If it is, why not switch to a solar powered one after all, the Sun must be out when your Quark is 🌞 and your reduced carbon footprint will offset my polluting diesel 4x4 😂

[Victor Boesen]

1 minute ago, Hughsie said:

Great to see you join the light side of things. 
Just an observation on the setup, is that a battery pack you have the Quark plugged in to? If it is, why not switch to a solar powered one after all, the Sun must be out when your Quark is 🌞 and your reduced carbon footprint will offset my polluting diesel 4x4 😂

Yup, currently powering the Quark with an external battery pack I had laying around. I have, however, considered a solar powered one but didn't include your diesel 4x4 in that consideration, perhaps I should've😅

[Stu]

Looking good Victor. Did you get any interest from passers by?

[Victor Boesen]

2 minutes ago, Stu said:

Looking good Victor. Did you get any interest from passers by?

Thanks Stu! I had a chat with some of the people who live in the same apartment as me but nothing unusual. They're used to meet me outside with my telescopes/antennas at this point😅 I feel like the Quark is definitely coming with me for public outreaches after Covid. Would be great for some transits/ecplises or just regular peeks at the sun.

[Stu]

Good stuff. Glad you are pleased with it. With a 32mm Plossl you should get nice full disk views with it.

[Victor Boesen]

1 minute ago, Stu said:

Good stuff. Glad you are pleased with it. With a 32mm Plossl you should get nice full disk views with it.

Browsing through some Plössls as we speak! As much as I want the Tele Vue Plössls I'm probably going to get something cheaper around the same focal length. After all I'll only be using it for H-alpha observing where I can't use my 2" 24mm 82 degree eyepiece.

[Stu]

1 minute ago, Victor Boesen said:

Browsing through some Plössls as we speak! As much as I want the Tele Vue Plössls I'm probably going to get something cheaper around the same focal length. After all I'll only be using it for H-alpha observing where I can't use my 2" 24mm 82 degree eyepiece.

I use Celestron Omni Plossls in my Binoviewer with the PST Mod and they seem to work well. I’ve not done a side by side vs Televue but it’s quite a price difference! You would likely need the eye guard extenders with the TVs too, as the eye relief is long, and gets pushed out further by the barlow effect of the Quark. I made some DIY foam eyeguard extensions for my Plossls which help with eye positioning and reducing glare. An observing hood also really helps with contrast, although can make you feel a little silly 😜 

[Victor Boesen]

10 minutes ago, Stu said:

I use Celestron Omni Plossls in my Binoviewer with the PST Mod and they seem to work well. I’ve not done a side by side vs Televue but it’s quite a price difference! You would likely need the eye guard extenders with the TVs too, as the eye relief is long, and gets pushed out further by the barlow effect of the Quark. I made some DIY foam eyeguard extensions for my Plossls which help with eye positioning and reducing glare. An observing hood also really helps with contrast, although can make you feel a little silly 😜 

I'm considering some TS-optics Plössls as of now but not in a rush to buy so will have a look around various places to figure out my possibilities. Ahh yes, the observing hood😅 I used my jacket earlier today so couldn't see the people staring at me luckily.

EDIT: I just found some Celestron Omnis locally but they're a little overpriced compared to UK/EU vendors.

Edited May 12, 2021 by Victor Boesen

[Stu]

All pride is gone... 🤣🤣🤣

[Victor Boesen]

I think I received a good unit! The 0.5X reducer does cause vignetting like Stu suggested, although it can actually still be quite comfortable to use since it shrinks down the FOV of my 82 degree eyepieces and result in a lower magnification. A 40mm Plössl is on the way:)

 

[Voyager 3]

On 12/05/2021 at 17:08, Stu said:

All pride is gone... 🤣🤣🤣

You should be keeping the second pic as your DP stu ! 😃

[Stu]

27 minutes ago, Voyager 3 said:

You should be keeping the second pic as your DP stu ! 😃

Hmmm, I like to think I was deliberately pulling a funny face but....... 🤪

[Highburymark]

On 17/05/2021 at 11:23, Victor Boesen said:

I think I received a good unit! The 0.5X reducer does cause vignetting like Stu suggested, although it can actually still be quite comfortable to use since it shrinks down the FOV of my 82 degree eyepieces and result in a lower magnification. A 40mm Plössl is on the way:)

 

Think TS Plossls are manufactured by GSO - they’re very good. 40mm will be superb through your Quark.

[Victor Boesen]

20 hours ago, Highburymark said:

Think TS Plossls are manufactured by GSO - they’re very good. 40mm will be superb through your Quark.

The 40mm is great with both of my scope. It's a little counter intuitive to think a "cheap" plössl is better than my 82degree explore scientific, but I suspect it's because the large exit pupil, lower magnification and overall higher contrast.

It also has an adjustable eye guard so no matter the eye relief I can always adjust it to the perfect distance. Could see myself getting the 32mm as well at some point in the future or just a regular 25mm TS optics super plössl.