1 step forward 1 step back

[martin_h]

Finaly got the focusing issues sorted tonight, instead of using the electronics I used a bahtinov mask and got it nailed in seconds - 1 step forward.

Started the image run and left it to it - nipped down to the obs after 1/2 hour and the guiding is shot! Nothing had been touched since the last session but could I get it to guide? not a hope!

Re-balanced everything, checked for snags, all the usual stuff but no way could I get round stars. Tryed it in the East and West, same result,

I have been faffing about with it from 1am till 4.45am and it still wont play ball.

I am totaly cheesed off with it (and frozen), I'm sure the neighbours heard the obs roof shut tonight cos it went with a thud!

1 step back!

[steppenwolf]

We've all had nights like that Martin - I've finished a successful session one night and gone back to the same object the next night and the system hasn't played ball.

Check the tightness of all the components, re-check your polar alignment, slightly unbalance the system so that the rising side (East) is slightly heavier that the falling side (West).

Better luck next session!

[Dave]

Yep! We've all been there.

At least you've managed to make one step forward.

Just think how you'd feel if you had two steps backwards instead.

Keep at it. You'll crack it.

[beamish]

I find it quite strange how Gremlins manage to interfere with what ought to be a reasonably straight forward session.

Friday morning, whilst I was out trying for the planets, got everything hooked up, hit connect to mount on Starry Nights and .... nothing ! tried and tried again ........nothing ! Thankfully I bought a V2 H/set for the HEQ5 so stuck that on and carried on !

Went back later in the day having done a few things and sure enough.. EQMOD connected up o probs !

[adamsp123]

At least you had a step forward as well, I have had serveral nights without anything working on the guiding - corroded ST4 cable! Guiding suddenly going ballistic after it working just peachy, oh the joy..... but when it comes together.....

[martin_h]

UPDATE I have just been out and tryed it again and guess what? - yep its back doing its thing. I havn't touched a thing from last night but I have nice round stars - I know thats put the kiss of death on it.

Don't you just love this game sometimes?

[adamsp123]

Good news!

I had a night once when the guiding graph was almost dead flat for about 2 hours, I went to see how things were doing and seconds after sitting down in front of the computer the guide graph went crazy, then I couildn't fix it so gave up. Next time it was as bad then after that it worked again....bizzare or what.

[Luke]

I had problems a while back, I was getting trails when it had been fine earlier in the evening. I noticed that when calibrating in PHD it was only doing east and west, not north and south and backlash as well. There was some option I had to change in the prefs (can't remember which one, it was frantic in the cold!) to get it going properly again. I wonder if I had hit some keyboard shortcut. Some option seems to have got unset anyway.

No idea if this is what happened to you. I thought for a mo something major had gone wrong.

[Glider]

Got the T-shirt. Something has changed. It's not clear yet, but when it is it won't happen again, another point ticked on the curve of learning.

[dmahon]

My guiding was rubbish last night because the front of the guidescope was covered in frost.

[Shibby]

There's always backwards steps, but you have to hold out for those times when you take 1 step back and 2 steps forward.

For me, that was last night. My secondary mirror iced up soon after I had finished setting up, aligning and focusing, leaving me thinking the whole effort was pointless. But miraculously, after a hair drier attack and having to refocus the camera, it stayed clear for the rest of the night!

I feel your pain though; the above experience is a rare one. I currently can't imagine adding guiding hardware into the already-too-complex equation!

[martin_h]

It might have been the cold, I had to re-do my allignment points last night so was slewing all over the sky which may have loosend things up a bit. I was doing 15 minuet subs but I wasnt getting 15 mins of trailing but the stars were oval and consistant in brightness. Who knows? Its sorted now so fingers crossed.