How do you store your telescopes?

[Nakedgun]

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The 10" and 12.5" dobs are kept in the garage, wrapped to keep dust/insects out, but readily deployable. 

 

The refractors stay indoors, in the "scope room" closet (doors removed for clarity). I like padded bags, seen here are 60, 76, 90 & 100mm OTAs, hanging like beef, quickly released for use.

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Next, are the 9.25" and 8" SCTs, awaiting their turn to go outside to play.

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The 6" MAK sits atop cases containing eyepieces, star atlases, astro books and other "necessaries" and on the right another padded Manfrotto bag housing a 120mm OTA can be just seen.

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Finally, the astro-binos on the shelf.

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[Bogmonster]

16 hours ago, Xilman said:

Most of my kit is in here. The faint square patch in the circular wall is a vent which prevents wildlife getting into an extractor fan which runs 24/7 - primarily to keep everything inside at ambient temperature and reduce dome seeing.

An old and unused Meade is stored in a well-ventilated but unheated workshop, essentially a fancy name for a garage which cars can't get into.

Back in Cambridge, a 250cm Dobsonian is in an also unheated conservatory to be hauled out onto the lawn for use.

Damn that's impressive! I've never seen anyone with their own observatory before. Very cool!

Thanks for the replies everyone! Ye got some serious kit.

[AntPDC]

On 02/03/2023 at 12:37, Anthonyexmouth said:

They ain't the best bearings anyway. There ok and they do the job but swapping out to good skf or similar makes them run silky smooth. Mine has been under BBQ covers for 5-6 yrs 365 days a year, even through storms and only issue I have is the powder coating on the counter weights. I'm a mile from the coast too. 

I thought the bearings in the AZ-EQ6 were an improvement over those used in the HEQ5. Can't recall where I read about that, but belt-drives (AZ-EQ6) are better than gears, right? At any rate, back on topic, the £80-200 (depending on size) "Telegizmos 365" covers have been around for years and have garnered very positive reviews from users (and at that price they should). However, as Ray Foreman mentioned above, they are lined with an aluminised material which can give rise to condensation. TouTuber Cuiv the Lazy Geek (in humid Tokyo) has used one for years under which he keeps everything: mount, scope, camera, Mini-PC etc 24/7. His solution to the condensation issue which led to some rust spots has been to hang a bag of cheap desiccant (silica gel I think) which changes from blue (dry) to pink (needs recharging in a microwave). It works a treat for him, and now for me! Bone dry whatever the weather.

Here's a link to Cuiv's video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gk9I6yfZ0KU&t=572s

HTH,

Ant

 

[Anthonyexmouth]

54 minutes ago, AntPDC said:

I thought the bearings in the AZ-EQ6 were an improvement over those used in the HEQ5. Can't recall where I read about that, but belt-drives (AZ-EQ6) are better than gears, right? At any rate, back on topic, the £80-200 (depending on size) "Telegizmos 365" covers have been around for years and have garnered very positive reviews from users (and at that price they should). However, as Ray Foreman mentioned above, they are lined with an aluminised material which can give rise to condensation. TouTuber Cuiv the Lazy Geek (in humid Tokyo) has used one for years under which he keeps everything: mount, scope, camera, Mini-PC etc 24/7. His solution to the condensation issue which led to some rust spots has been to hang a bag of cheap desiccant (silica gel I think) which changes from blue (dry) to pink (needs recharging in a microwave). It works a treat for him, and now for me! Bone dry whatever the weather.

Here's a link to Cuiv's video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gk9I6yfZ0KU&t=572s

HTH,

Ant

 

I had a chat to Cuiv about this and in 5-6 yrs I've never experienced condensation under my cheap oxford 600D fabric covers and mine stay out whatever the weather and survive coastal storms. I layer 3 cheap £15 covers, usually just one layer in the summer months. The TG covers seem so overpriced. The only issue I did have was rusty usb plugs due to being a mile from the sea, but swapping to good cables sorted that

[DaveS]

I have my secondary rig under a TG cover, but I also have an electric pet bed under it on low (Unless a real drop in temperature is forecast) which keeps condensation away.

[Dark Raven]

Everything is stored in Lowepro Pro Trekker BP 550 AW II backpack and is ready to go at a moment's notice.

ZWO AM5 with TC40 CF tripod, WO RedCat 51, AA+, EAF, ASI585MC, ASI120MM, IDAS NBZ, L-Pro, 12V 18Ah LiFePO4 raw battery, spare Li-Ion 12V 12Ah raw battery, dew heaters, multimeter, spare set of cables, miscellaneous small tools...

 

The core of the setup 

A small portable but capable wide-field setup that brings a lot of joy.

[Bogmonster]

It seems so weird to me to be storing your gear outside. It makes sense though.

So how do you guys keep all your accessories like lenses and such? I've just been putting my stuff back in the boxes they came in. I've seen a few fancy cases that hold lenses and stuff that look pretty good to keep everything to hand when you're out observing.

[spartan7510]

On 02/03/2023 at 07:59, Bogmonster said:

Hey guys!

Question for everyone here. How do you store your telescopes when not using them? Do you leave it assembled and ready all the time or do you disassemble it and keep it in a case/bag?

I have a Celestron Evo 9.25 and I have been keeping it back in its box while not in use (I love looking at it fully assembled but I'm a little hesitant to keep it that way in case it gets knocked over or something). The box is fine for now but is a little bulky to keep around. The foam padding is great though for keeping it steady. I'm looking at the bag for the OTA from Celestron or even the hard case with wheels. But I'm open to any suggestions.

What do you guys do?

Cheers!

I have the same setup, been considering this: https://www.rothervalleyoptics.co.uk/telegizmos-sct-mak-covers-with-fork-mount-fork-mount-with-wedge.html

[RobW]

With the weather of late ruling out much imaging I decided do some DIY organising instead:

https://www.cloudynights.com/gallery/album/25908-storage/

My office feels spacious again now the scopes aren't all up on mounts taking up half the floor space. The RC8 is still mounted. Cupboard space wasn't quite enough, and it's tail heavy which I wasn't totally sure a wooden shelf mounted clamp would take.