You have some spare money and a 10" Dob, what do you buy ?

[GasGiant]

As above ? and some questions 🙂 

Own already 

9MM Plossi  that came with scope, so a cheapy !  ( not sure of its FOV but its not much ) 

2" 30mm Super View Stellalyra 

2x barlow for the plossi

5, 8, & 12mm BST and a BST barlow are coming for my Birthday 

 

What should I be buying next?

Filters ? for Jupiter  ( moon I like to look at au naturel and burn out my retina ) 

Filters to combat Chromatic aberration ?  Sometimes I see a thin blue line around the moon but Im not sure its there all the time i've looked previously? Why ?

The 30mm stellalyra is 2",  would I benefit from a 2" barlow with this EP?

What else should I be looking at buying for my 10" Dob, folks ? 

Thank you

Carl 

[Zermelo]

Do you already have a red dot finder, RACI and adjustable seat?

The dob won't be causing CA, so won't need correction. Anything you see might be coming from an eyepiece?

[GasGiant]

I dont need a seat as I have my scope on a raised platform so very little stopping.

 

I dont have a RDF, It has the standard finder on it which I find difficult to use, or home in on things. Even the massive moon ! LoL  I see those shoe box finders with the target reticle have favourable reviews ? 

 

I noticed the CA sometimes and not others Im sure, is that 'a thing' or has it always been there and Ive just noticed, lol?  I thought it must be the EP but are there  any filters to help that?  I like to take images of the moon using my phone. 

Edited January 24 by GasGiant

[GasGiant]

Decent deal ? 

Around 32 quid for a set of 4 SVBONY ?

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005245518571.html?spm=a2g0o.cart.0.0.f73b38daDG64GU&mp=1

[PeterStudz]

It’s all very personal with no right answer. Eg the only filters I’ve found useful are the Astronomik UHC and a variable polarising. IMHO the cheaper UHC filters are a bit pants and the variable polarising I’ve only used on Mars. But for me it’s been very useful on Mars. 

But for me I found a chair so useful. I don’t need to “stoop”, but in my job I stand/walk all day and the thought of having to stand for another 4 hours at my Dob (which I’ve done) doesn’t make me feel very relaxed! 

Edited January 24 by PeterStudz

[mikeDnight]

You should buy a binoviewer and a couple of pairs of good plossl or orthoscopic eyepieces in the 25mm and 18mm range. Attach the binoviewer to a 2× barlow to get approx 4x amplification, and you'll probably never want to look at the Moon or planets again with anything else. For me, the change to binoviewers has been the greatest game-changer to my observing that I've ever experienced.

Edited January 24 by mikeDnight

[GasGiant]

1 minute ago, mikeDnight said:

You should buy a binoviewer and a couple of pairs of good plossl or orthoscopic eyepieces in the 25mm and 18mm range. Attach the binoviewer to a 2× barlow to get approx 4x amplification, and you'll probably never want to look at the Moon or planets again with anything else. For me, the change to B inoviewers has been the greatest game-changer to my observing that I've ever experienced.

I have heard of good things with Bino viewers. I even emailed FLO who gave me some great advice... hhmm, ponders. 

[Kon]

If you are observing from darkish skies, then a good quality OIII such as Astronomik or Tele Vue. A good quality UHC has already been suggested above.

[Xilman]

One possibility is an equatorial platform.

Not only does an eq platform make visual observing markedly easier, it makes imaging possible.

https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/advice/build-a-dobsonian-equatorial-platform shows you how to make one. Finding how to buy one is left as an exercise in the use of search engine as I do not wish to promote any particular supplier. 

Some people, Martin Lewis in particular, take absolutely superb images with a Dobsonian. He often shows surface detail on the Galilean satellites of Jupiter, for instance. His web site is https://skyinspector.co.uk/ and a representative set of images can be found at https://skyinspector.co.uk/jupiter/#bwg5/1257

 

 

[Mandy D]

1 hour ago, GasGiant said:

Filters to combat Chromatic aberration ?  Sometimes I see a thin blue line around the moon but Im not sure its there all the time i've looked previously? Why ?

This is likely atmospheric aberration when the Moon is low in the sky, normally blue and orange, but cannot remember which way up. When you view the Moon higher up with a reflector, you will not see it. The cause is pretty much the same as any other chromatic aberration, except this is caused by the atmosphere, not the glass.

[PeterStudz]

20 minutes ago, Xilman said:

One possibility is an equatorial platform.

 

An EQ platform has already been mentioned with the OP in another thread so I left that one out. I have a DIY EQ platform (they are so easy to make) and I now couldn’t do without it. 

[GasGiant]

5 minutes ago, PeterStudz said:

An EQ platform has already been mentioned with the OP in another thread so I left that one out. I have a DIY EQ platform (they are so easy to make) and I now couldn’t do without it. 

Yes, thank you. Thats in hand as I have bought some bits and bobs 🙂 

[GasGiant]

30 minutes ago, Xilman said:

Some people, Martin Lewis in particular, take absolutely superb images with a Dobsonian. He often shows surface detail on the Galilean satellites of Jupiter, for instance. His web site is https://skyinspector.co.uk/ and a representative set of images can be found at https://skyinspector.co.uk/jupiter/#bwg5/1257

Oh wow, Nice !!

[Xilman]

21 minutes ago, Mandy D said:

This is likely atmospheric aberration when the Moon is low in the sky, normally blue and orange, but cannot remember which way up. When you view the Moon higher up with a reflector, you will not see it. The cause is pretty much the same as any other chromatic aberration, except this is caused by the atmosphere, not the glass.

Not all eyepieces and Barlows are as achromatic as perhaps they ought to be ...

[Xilman]

16 minutes ago, PeterStudz said:

An EQ platform has already been mentioned with the OP in another thread so I left that one out. I have a DIY EQ platform (they are so easy to make) and I now couldn’t do without it. 

I was not aware of that thread.

[Zermelo]

Assuming that you don't fit goto kit or transplant a Starsense, perhaps consider an inclinometer and setting circles.

[Spile]

Personally I would not be without a zoom eyepiece.

[Jim L]

In addition to Zermelo’s excellent suggestions of an adjustable seat and a red dot finder, I’d add a StellaLyra 30mm UFF eyepiece.

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/stellalyra-eyepieces/stellalyra-30mm-ultra-flat-field-2-eyepiece.html

The adjustable seat makes viewing so much easier and comfortable, the red dot finder complements the RACI finder and makes target objects far easier to locate, and the StellaLyra 30mm eyepiece provides marvelous wide field views. All three items are devices you can use and enjoy every time you observe through your Dob.

[PeterStudz]

And if you haven’t got some already - a decent pair of binoculars, something like 10x50 which are easy to hand hold.

Really useful for learning the sky, scouting out targets, planning a star hop... And I find that certain things, eg the Pleiades and Beehive Cluster, look their best in good binoculars. Better than any telescope. 

[Mr Spock]

Do you have any collimation tools? A good quality laser and Cheshire make a good combination.

[Louis D]

I assume your 10" Dob is an f/5 or thereabouts.  If so, it could definitely use a coma corrector to help clean up the edges in wider field eyepieces if you go that route (such as the 30mm UFF mentioned above).  I use the GSO Coma Corrector with a 25mm spacer ring between the eyepiece holder and the optics section to get the spacing close to optimal for most of my eyepieces.  Other folks recommend 20mm.  It does require about 11mm of in-focus, so you'll need to check how much you have left with your most inwardly focusing eyepiece.

I remove it for high power observing because it introduces some spherical aberration that isn't visible at lower powers.

If you have deep pockets, get the Tele Vue Paracorr Type 2.