Starfield Herschel Wedge.

[bosun21]

I bought this to finally try a bit of solar observing and white light imaging for myself. I have recently taken up planetary imaging these past couple of years which I thoroughly enjoyed so I decided to throw in a bit of solar (why not?) For today it was solely visual observing. Having never actually viewed the solar disc apart from a bit of projection as a young teenager. I was using a Skywatcher ED80 on a Vixen Porta mount. The sky wasn't entirely clear, however there was more than enough gaps to provide a decent session. Had the sky been totally clear i would have been using my ED120 and AZ-EQ6. I found the sun  easily enough without a finder of any kind by simply using the ceramic disc on the rear of the wedge. Starting out with a 12mm BST Starguider for 50x I was immediately impressed by the string of sunspots across the entire disc. The Starfield Wedge has an inbuilt polarising filter which I used next by rotating the eyepiece holder until I settled upon my desired brightness. I thought i was already impressed but when I next added my 7.5nm Solar Continuum Filter i was really impressed. The details visible were great when I upped the magnification, first to 75x with an 8mm BST then 120x with a 5mm. At the higher of these magnifications the granulation became really apparent. I can only think that using a camera will make these stand out even more. Having to go out for a bit of shopping I ended my first foray into the world of solar. I was really pleased with the Starfield Wedge and totally happy that I decided to try solar. I can also understand the appeal of Ha observing and imaging though, but for now I have discovered another avenue for enjoyment with my equipment. Sorry for rambling on.

 

Edited August 9 by bosun21

[Carbon Brush]

Not a ramble at all!
Your post echoes much of what I felt with my first Herschel wedge viewing.
Just wait until you start to throw in a bit of polarising😁.
In terms of visual (or camera) results for minimum effort/setup it is very rewarding.
Cheaper than Ha and less setup.

[paulastro]

4 hours ago, bosun21 said:

I bought this to finally try a bit of solar observing and white light imaging for myself. I have recently taken up planetary imaging these past couple of years which I thoroughly enjoyed so I decided to throw in a bit of solar (why not?) For today it was solely visual observing. Having never actually viewed the solar disc apart from a bit of projection as a young teenager. I was using a Skywatcher ED80 on a Vixen Porta mount. The sky wasn't entirely clear, however there was more than enough gaps to provide a decent session. Had the sky been totally clear i would have been using my ED120 and AZ-EQ6. I found the sun  easily enough without a finder of any kind by simply using the ceramic disc on the rear of the wedge. Starting out with a 12mm BST Starguider for 50x I was immediately impressed by the string of sunspots across the entire disc. The Starfield Wedge has an inbuilt polarising filter which I used next by rotating the eyepiece holder until I settled upon my desired brightness. I thought i was already impressed but when I next added my 7.5nm Solar Continuum Filter i was really impressed. The details visible were great when I upped the magnification, first to 75x with an 8mm BST then 120x with a 5mm. At the higher of these magnifications the granulation became really apparent. I can only think that using a camera will make these stand out even more. Having to go out for a bit of shopping I ended my first foray into the world of solar. I was really pleased with the Starfield Wedge and totally happy that I decided to try solar. I can also understand the appeal of Ha observing and imaging though, but for now I have discovered another avenue for enjoyment with my equipment. Sorry for rambling on.

 

A nice write up.

You should be aware that a 1.25 inch wedge is not recommended for apertures over four inches.  Above that aperture a 2 inch version is recommended. FLO point this out in the listing for the 1.25.

Edited August 9 by paulastro

[bosun21]

33 minutes ago, paulastro said:

A nice write up.

You should be aware that a 1.25 inch wedge is not recommended for apertures over four inches.  Above that aperture a 2 inch version is recommended. FLO point this out in the listing for the 1.25.

Yes I was aware of this however on a previous post regarding buying a wedge I discovered several well grounded members who stated that they were using their 1.25" Wedges with scopes up to 125mm without any problems whatsoever. I decided to try this for myself and find out.

[Paz]

Great report, welcome to the white light club!

[paulastro]

1 hour ago, bosun21 said:

Yes I was aware of this however on a previous post regarding buying a wedge I discovered several well grounded members who stated that they were using their 1.25" Wedges with scopes up to 125mm without any problems whatsoever. I decided to try this for myself and find out.

As well meaning as these 'grounded members' may be, it seems irresponsible to me to encourage others to disregard safety warnings about using items manufactured for solar observing. 

The issue is about heat build up in the system, so the longer you use it the more likely it is there may be negative consequences - to the user or their equipment.

 

 

 

[bosun21]

1 minute ago, paulastro said:

As well meaning as these 'grounded members' may be, it seems irresponsible to me to encourage others to disregard safety warnings about using items manufactured for solar observing. 

The issue is about heat build up in the system, so the longer you use it the more likely it is there may be negative consequences - to the user or their equipment.

 

 

 

Yes I understand your point and I will try it in my ED120, but if it does start to get overly warm then I will stop using it and upgrade to the 2" model. I am the only user of the equipment. I'll try it and update the thread with my findings.

[globular]

14 minutes ago, bosun21 said:

I'll try it and update the thread with my findings

Please add to your findings that you are in the UK where the sun is rarely very strong. Otherwise those reading it in hotter parts of the world might be tempted to try it too. I suspect the 4 inch rule is quite important in sunnier climes.

Lovely report by the way - very inspiring 

[paulastro]

3 minutes ago, globular said:

Please add to your findings that you are in the UK where the sun is rarely very strong. Otherwise those reading it in hotter parts of the world might be tempted to try it too. I suspect the 4 inch rule is quite important in sunnier climes.

Lovely report by the way - very inspiring 

Important point, I never thought about that when I responded.

[bosun21]

4 minutes ago, globular said:

Please add to your findings that you are in the UK where the sun is rarely very strong. Otherwise those reading it in hotter parts of the world might be tempted to try it too. I suspect the 4 inch rule is quite important in sunnier climes.

Lovely report by the way - very inspiring 

Thanks. That's a very good point regarding location. Despite buying the 1.25" already I think I will just get the 2" and be done with it. Thanks all.