First scope – few questions

[Petrol]

I have just bought this Skywatcher Explorer 200P Newt on an EQ-5 mount.

It's also got this alignment scope fitted. I need to look at how to set it all up to be honest

It came with this eyepiece which I was told is better than the original part. What magnification will this give and is this a quality eyepiece?

I have read that the “best” magnification is about 200X, limited due to air pollution, is this right and what eyepiece(s) would you recommend to achieve this magnification? I don’t want to buy “cheap” but don’t have the wonga to go silly on the likes of Nagler. I was thinking more in terms of around £50 a piece. Is this enough?

Also, is it worth buying a barlow and what’s considered a decent brand?

Can’t wait to have a look through it. Forecast is ….. rain and more rain

Thanks for looking,

Pete

[Mikea]

Nice buy!!

Focal length of that beauty is 1000mm, so mag with that eyepiece is 1000/25 which is 40 times. I don't know what that EP is, but I'm sure someone else will. TAL Barlows have a good reputation on here - but I don't have one.

oh and welcome too!

[Ian123]

Welcome petrol, i am a new observer like yourself and have a similar scope( Skywatcher 150) you will receive plenty of very usefull information upon this site but my advice would be the first clear night go out and learn your instrument and have some good sight's, late in the evening you will see Orion, which is fantastic also now you can get wonerfull view's of the moon and also Jupiter and it's moon's. Happy viewing.

[Moonshane]

I think the eyepiece is a Circle T Volcano Top Orthoscopic and is certainly better than the standard EP with a scope. it will serve you well and barlow well too. Tal Barlows are very good apparently.

your choice of scope is a good one and it will serve you very well indeed also!

really 'best' magnification is misleading. your useful range for this scope is about 33x - 300x approx. Seeing (i.e. atmospheric turbulence not clouds which is transparency) will affect this and reduce it or increase it (more likely the former). Assuming your scope is cooled and collimated, I'd agree that 200x is usually the maximum you'll get apart from on the moon where it may be a bit higher.

BUT the 'best' magnification is actually defined (to my mind) as 'that which gives you the best framing and/or sharpest possible view of the object concerned'. Eg, Jupiter recently has been best at around 120-145x in my scopes, the seeing just meant the image got mushy above that. Another example is double stars; as you'll never see detail on them, the fact they get mushy does not matter. Increased magnification can sometimes allow a close double to be split even though the stars are not sharply defined.

hope this helps.

[Geno]

I got the same scope about 3 weeks ago and am really enjoying it. I am thinking of getting one of the Planetary 2 EP's from here. At £36 it's not going to break the bank.

You will definately need a collimator, laser or cheshire. Recently collimated mine for the first time and the views of Jupiter have improved quite a bit, there are plenty of guides on the forum for collimating and pretty much everything else.

I have plenty more on my shopping list for the scope including polar scope, telrad/rigel, wide angle EP's and so much more; so be prepared !!!!

[oldfruit]

Hi and welcome, nice scope, you will be amazed what you can see with a scope that size. Clear skies:)

[Rusty Strings]

A 5mm eyepiece will get you that mag of 200x.

I would suggest setting up the scope during daylight hours so that you can get used to the eq5. The way the tube and the eyepiece moves, and fumbling for the axis locks as you slew the scope to different parts of the sky can be frustrating to the novice when you set up for the first time at night (trust me I know).

[Geno]

A 5mm eyepiece will get you that mag of 200x.

I would suggest setting up the scope during daylight hours so that you can get used to the eq5. The way the tube and the eyepiece moves, and fumbling for the axis locks as you slew the scope to different parts of the sky can be frustrating to the novice when you set up for the first time at night (trust me I know).

Yes I second that, I still have difficulty locating the axis locks sometimes. Also rotating the tube in its rings to get the focuser to a more comfortable position I find a must. I put a bit of masking tape on the tube when balanced so when the tube is rotated I can get it back to the balanced position.

[Petrol]

Thanks for the warm welcome and responses to my questions. I familiarised myself with the scope in daylight - Those axis adjustment knobs are really awkward and marking the tube with tape at the balance point is a great tip.

I had a good look around last night, and was pretty impressed. I now understand what you mean by “best magnification” The eyepiece is perfect for viewing the double cluster. It filled it perfectly, any more mag and I wouldn’t have seen it properly. I could see a band across Jupiter and some of its moons. I saw a couple of “smudges” in Andromeda, I assume the Galaxy and a nebula.

I have found a used William Optics 7mm 82 Deg UWAN 1.25 that I might buy, this should give me more mag for viewing appropriate objects. I am also thinking of buying a Skywatcher ED Deluxe 2x two-inch Barlow Lens as this can be used with an adapter to fit my Nikon DSLR. I will also get a Collimator. Navigation isn’t too easy either for a newbie, I was wandering around aimlessly despite having Stellarium! I guess I will end up with a GOTO.

I have a lot to learn and a lot to buy! Again, thanks for your help.

[brantuk]

"Skywatcher ED Deluxe 2x two-inch Barlow Lens"

There's one in the for sale section now if your quick

[bish]

Don't worry about not finding your way around to start. It will come with experience. You'll be able to easily locate dozens of DSOs before you know it. I started with the 150p and then the 200p. Great scopes. As you have found out magnification is all about trial and error. Saturn always seems to hold it well, my best views have been at x400-500. Jupiter I never really go over x200 as it just hasn't been sharp. M31 I like to look at with just my 15x70 bins from a dark site. Have fun.

[Petrol]

"Skywatcher ED Deluxe 2x two-inch Barlow Lens"

There's one in the for sale section now if your quick

I can't see the for sale section Could you PM me who is selling it?

Cheers

Pete

[brantuk]

Sorry Pete - too late it's sold (just after I posted). I also realise you don't have 50 posts yet - when you do the "for sale" section will appear - I'll keep my eyes peeled for you

[Petrol]

Sorry Pete - too late it's sold (just after I posted). I also realise you don't have 50 posts yet - when you do the "for sale" section will appear - I'll keep my eyes peeled for you

OK thanks - I will get to 50 posts as I intend to stick around Might take me some time though - I have been a member of a car forum for about 7 years and only have 5000 posts One of my "how to" threads has 384,000 views though I really don't like posting for the sake of it.

I can fully understand why the mods have implemented the rules though, it's a pity a few have spoiled it for so many - when you first join you want to buy. I guess that's the way it goes. At least I have a scope now and can have a good around the sky. In the meantime I can think about what to buy next

[brantuk]

Well you're up to 28 now so not long to go

[Petrol]

Well you're up to 28 now so not long to go

I have complimented a few people on their awesome photos - Quite rightly too, it must take hours and hours of work even when you have all the kit. I am mega impressed

[Petrol]

I am struggling a bit to see stuff. It's only at 40X with the supplied eyepiece. The quality is really good though.

I borrowed a 9mm Mead eyepiece that came with a EXT-70 scope, when I put that in the view was somewhat "soft" I put this down to the poor optics of the eyepiece. I hope I was right as I have bought a William Optics 7mm 82 Deg UWAN. That should move me up in the order of 142X with hopefully good optics.

Hope I have done the right thing

[Moonshane]

I think you have. this is a good general magnification and it's a good EP and you have a good scope. make sure it's cool and collimated before each use to get the best from any kit.

[pvaz]

At high mags a lot of things can make the view soft. Optics is one of them, haze does that too, the moonlight hides detail and softens most objects, bad collimation, a barlow of poor quality (even when used with a good EP). A hot scope and the atmospheric condition cause shimmers and some softness as well.

My advice is to do the 2 things you can:

1) collimate the scope

2) let it cool down before observing or, if you don't want to wait, use the lowest mag you got for 30 min while it cools.

Then get to know your gear, use it at few times in different conditions to see what it's capable of. Even my Ethos 10mm can give me some soft view of Jupiter under bad seeing conditions. Then the next day it can be very sharp. It's also common to have a decent view with mags under 120x and then you reach 200x and the detail vanishes.

Sorry for the long post, but when I was starting out I often judged some EPs after 1 session and it takes a few, under different conditions, to get a real knowledge of its capabilities.

[bombassa]

The eyepiece looks like a kazai ortho. It's nice but orthos have a bit smaller field of view than the average plössl. I have a 5 mm version and like it very much. As new the are sold at aprox. 70 euro from Teleskop Service.

It's a very nice 'first' setup.

[Petrol]

Once again, thanks for your help

Think I am getting there now. Williams Optics 7mm Uwan eyepiece arrived and the views of Jupiter were great. The skies have not been that clear recently but it was great to have to have a look at it with better magnification. I have also bought an “eyepiece barlow” and that confirmed that more mag was not a good idea – Yeah it was bigger but distorted.

I have also bought a T adapter so my Nikon D70s fits onto the scope. I know it’s not the best camera for astro astronomy but I am on a tight budget. In order to take longer exposures than 30s (that’s the max auto exposure the D70 will allow) I have bought this and it works well.

Remote Shutter release Cable Nikon D70s D80 RS-N2 on eBay (end time 09-Nov-10 07:07:18 GMT)

Next job is to take some trial shots and see how it goes