What did the postman bring? V2

[JeremyS]

1 hour ago, Nigella Bryant said:

Lot's from the postie, well, via birthday pressies, lol. Not all things astro but quite a few. Usb heated gloves, 2x barlow lens, dew ring for the C11, dew controller and the meow book by Patrick Moore. The 10inch tablet will come in handy too, lol. 

Many happy returns of the day Nigella!

[F15Rules]

I was intrigued by this rather large and well built-looking Japan made Orion 2" Big Barlow which finally arrived today after 9 days in the care of DHL..🤦‍♂️

I have 2 excellent, large 2" format UWA Celestron Axiom LX eyepieces in 23mm and 31mm focal lengths, both 84 degree fields.

So I intend to try both in combination with this Big Barlow to see how they work..

Used in normal configuration, ie scope focuser, 2" diagonal, barlow, eyepiece the barlow should deliver c67x in the 23mm, and c90x in the 31mm (1040mm scope focal length).

However, such a "stack" could be somewhat unwieldy, so here's a question: if I insert the Big barlow horizonally straight into the scope focuser via a solid 3 point retaining screw 2" aperture, then the 2" diagonal into the barlow, then the eyepiece into the diagonal, what would be the estimated resulting magnification in each of the 2 eyepieces? (in putting the barlow in front of the diagonal, I'm effectively lengthening the total focal length and thus the magnification, right?).

Anyway, my 3 main eyepieces fit nicely into the barlow shown below (the Pentax zoom 8-24mm can be used in a 2" holder, so could also perhaps be changed into a 4-12mm high power zoom using ths Big Barlow😉.

Dave

Edited December 5, 2023 by F15Rules
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[Nigella Bryant]

1 hour ago, JeremyS said:

Many happy returns of the day Nigella!

Thanks Jeremy 

[RimuRidgeRakiura]

6mm plossl EP, 2x Barlow and 1.25" moon filter. Now I just need clear skies, I've been under cloud for the last week! Extra hard to be gracious about that when you've got new toys to play with 😬

[Franklin]

18 hours ago, F15Rules said:

(in putting the barlow in front of the diagonal, I'm effectively lengthening the total focal length and thus the magnification, right?)

That is correct but by how much I don't know, you may also need to use an extension tube to get focus.

[F15Rules]

Thanks Tim..

I did wonder about that, but I do have a good quality and robust 2" extension tube of I think 70-80mm length if I should need it.

I'll report back after first light.

Dave

[josefk]

A bit of an 'inbetweener'  focal length wise for me - i don't really need 10mm - in one scope it even more or less duplicates a FOV i already have but this will deliver that FOV at a moderatly lower magnification/bigger exit pupil (1.9mm vs. 1.5mm for the next EP down) so so i'm quite excited to try this out looking for a brighter galaxy or two the next clear dark night. At 1.9mm exit pupil it may need a Dioptrx (and if not straightaway then at some point probably not so far away) so reading on CN about being able to mount a Dioptrx under the eye guard and picking this up for much less than a Delos swung this for me even if it will be an odd man out in my EP case.

Small edit - Doh! - a Dioptrx fits the threaded top of the EP ok but NOT under the eye guard. It looks useable nevertheless but using the TV rubber eye guard. Oh well.

Edited December 6, 2023 by josefk

[StevieDvd]

A new arrival being fattened up (charged) for a later cloudless night!

No prizes for guessing what it is.

 

[Mr H in Yorkshire]

3 hours ago, StevieDvd said:

No prizes for guessing what it is.

Dehumidifier?

[StevieDvd]

15 hours ago, Mr H in Yorkshire said:

Dehumidifier?

No it's a cloud magnet of course!

[Mr H in Yorkshire]

18 minutes ago, StevieDvd said:

No it's a cloud magnet of course!

I was thinking clouds = moisture, these modern gizmos can work wonders, 1/2 hour an the whole sky sucked dry and clear for the night and all on one charge.

[Dave scutt]

Happy 😊

[Stu1smartcookie]

22 minutes ago, Dave scutt said:

Happy 😊

Nice one Dave  

[Dave scutt]

4 minutes ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

Nice one Dave  

Thanks stu.

Can't wait to try it out but of course it's raining.

[Stu1smartcookie]

Just now, Dave scutt said:

Thanks stu.

Can't wait to try it out but of course it's raining.

Where i'm b ased the skies will be clear at ..... 6am , and Leo is high in the south at that time so i may get a chance to capture the leo triplet . 

I bought a batinov mask for the SS and a lens cover , but by far the best extra was buying a small power bank from Amazon for £10 so the seestars is always charged. 

Stu

 

[Hawksmoor]

Preloved fast 50mm lens from Mrs H for Christmas. Looking forward to trying it out on a ‘clear night’ some time in the next few months 🤣

[Mr H in Yorkshire]

4 hours ago, Dave scutt said:

it's raining.

The gear looks fun, now you know why you need the optional accessory dehumidifier.

[Mr Spock]

My xmas pressies have arrived. Since I don't have anyone to buy for me, and I don't have to buy for anyone, I treat myself!

 

[cajen2]

5 minutes ago, Mr Spock said:

My xmas pressies have arrived. Since I don't have anyone to buy for me, and I don't have to buy for anyone, I treat myself!

 

I see you've gone full Clicklock!

[johnturley]

54 minutes ago, Mr Spock said:

My xmas pressies have arrived. Since I don't have anyone to buy for me, and I don't have to buy for anyone, I treat myself!

 

Is that the Baader 36mm T Thread Prism Diagonal, I was thinking of getting one for my recently acquired 100 DZ, its supposed to be as good, if not better than the Tak Prism Diagonal.

John 

Edited December 8, 2023 by johnturley

[Mr Spock]

12 minutes ago, johnturley said:

Is that the Baader 36mm T Thread Prism Diagonal, I was thinking of getting one for my recently acquired 100 DZ, its supposed to be as good =, if not better than the Tak Prism Diagonal.

Indeed it is - the T2 Zeiss. I will be selling my other diagonals, including the Tak, shortly   I can confirm after looking through it the 30mm UFF does not vignette! However, the 42mm LVW does - not bothered though.

[johnturley]

20 minutes ago, Mr Spock said:

Indeed it is - the T2 Zeiss. I will be selling my other diagonals, including the Tak, shortly   I can confirm after looking through it the 30mm UFF does not vignette! However, the 42mm LVW does - not bothered though.

That's good, I'll definitely order one (they are currently out of stock at FLO), it won't matter to me either if it does vignette with the 42mm LVW, as I use the latter mainly with my Esprit 150 (with it I can fit the Pleiades in one field of view), and to which I have fitted the Baader 2in BBHS Diagonal.

John 

[bosun21]

Two couriers made deliveries today. The SW 250 Flexitube dobsonian, AstroZap light shroud, dew shield and a 2” concenter. I don’t know whether to upgrade the focuser or just fit an electric focuser motor and give that a go. If I use a 2.5x powermate will that raise the focal point? If not I’ll just buy a TV 3x barlow for planetary imaging.

 

[F15Rules]

On 06/12/2023 at 08:04, F15Rules said:

Thanks Tim..

I did wonder about that, but I do have a good quality and robust 2" extension tube of I think 70-80mm length if I should need it.

I'll report back after first light.

Dave

Well, I did get a short "testing session" on Thursday night..the sky was milky and it was very cold. Jupiter was the only object visible for most of the c 90 minutes I was out, but this was a session to try out my recently acquired Orion Japan Big 2x Barlow with my "gentle giant" Celestron Axiom LX UWA pair (23mm and 31mm both 84 deg fov).

As I suspected, the best positioning was when putting the Orion barlow into the eyepiece holder of my Astrotech 2" dielectric diagonal, and the eyepiece into the Barlow.

The "stack" is quite high, but not unwieldy, and appears to deliver at or about 2x the unamplified magnification.

It was actuaĺly great to look at Jupiter through the barlowed 31mm Axiom, acting as a c 15mm eyepiece with an 84 degree field. I saw enough to relish a proper session with this setup in transparent and steady skies!👍.

Dave

Edited December 9, 2023 by F15Rules
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[Mr Spock]

8 minutes ago, F15Rules said:

It was actuaĺly great to look at Jupiter through the barlowed 31mm Axiom, acting as a c 15mm eyepiece with an 84 degree field. I saw enough to relish a proper session with this setup in transparent and steady skies!

Just got a x4 Powermate to do the same with the 30mm UFF in the 12" - x203! See how it goes