C8 with Celestron focal reducer. Thinking of a Crayford Focuser.

[John Beer]

Hi all

Long time lurker first time post

I have an 8se on a heq5 pro with a celestron .63 focal reducer. I love the scope but not a fan of the focuser. As I have a skywatcher mount the celestron motor focuser isnt an option as I don't always want to bring a laptop/astroberry unit out with me to control it.

So I am thinking of getting a crayford like this one https://www.firstlightoptics.com/skywatcher-focusers/dual-speed-2-crayford-focuser-for-sct-telescopes.html. I just wanted to check that I wouldnt run into any issues. I only have 1.25" eyepieces so that also may be important. I am a visual observer mostly. Is it compatible with my setup with the focal reducer? I am not aware of any problems but always best to check .

 

Thank you all

[beka]

18 hours ago, John Beer said:

Hi all

Long time lurker first time post

I have an 8se on a heq5 pro with a celestron .63 focal reducer. I love the scope but not a fan of the focuser. As I have a skywatcher mount the celestron motor focuser isnt an option as I don't always want to bring a laptop/astroberry unit out with me to control it.

So I am thinking of getting a crayford like this one https://www.firstlightoptics.com/skywatcher-focusers/dual-speed-2-crayford-focuser-for-sct-telescopes.html. I just wanted to check that I wouldnt run into any issues. I only have 1.25" eyepieces so that also may be important. I am a visual observer mostly. Is it compatible with my setup with the focal reducer? I am not aware of any problems but always best to check .

 

Thank you all

Hi John Beer,

I have used a similar focuser from GSO on my 11" CPC. This one should work with the 8SE but to use the 0.63 reducer you will need a 2" to SCT converter like this. You may have to check if the 8SE has enough backfocus to use it with your diagonal though.

Best

Edited April 4, 2022 by beka
typo

[beka]

For the information on this site it looks like the back focus should be okay but you will have a slightly longer focal length and correspondingly higher focal ratio (about f11 without the reducer).

Best

[John Beer]

Thank you guys, appreicate the help. I ended up ordering one. Guy I spoke to said should be fine for visual use. If not I will look at the converter noted above. Again thank your for your help.