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slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

So astro-goons, what are the thoughts of the Meade LX-90 series? 12" ACF in particular?

I can score one locally that has literally been out of the box once and the owner is trying to dump. I can probably get it for over $1K off retail (plus also taxes of course).

I do have an 8" (or is it 10"?) Chinese dob but I virtually never use it. The length of tube makes it a PITA to transport. The mount pretty much rules out astrophotography too which really appeals to me, so I must admit I'm thinking of it.

The computerized mount seems decent too from what I've read. Thoughts?

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slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Thanks!

Since you have one, is the stock mount good enough for astrophotography or do you need to buy a "wedge" mount that I've also seen for them?

Am I shooting myself in the foot considering a 12" mirror? I'm wondering how much of a chore it will be taking it out.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Thanks. Still on the fence, it's a borderline impulse purchase but as 12" for <$2K Canadian is pretty tempting. :ohdear:

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I haven't yet decided on on the scope, but by complete coincidence someone else just put an LX200 12" in mint shape for $200 less asking price than the LX90.

I assume that's the no brainer way to go?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Coxswain Balls posted:

oh god what have we done



I blame slidebite for making me look at Kijiji. Got it from a dude who's moving to a really light polluted place in the states. I don't think it was a killer deal ($1.9k Canadian with an eyepiece and filter kit, a DSLR adapter and one of those webcam dealies for planetary photography), but the cheapest I've ever seen in our city, and I doubt something like this will come again any time soon.

:cool:

Yes, I am in enabler.

Bravo, I still haven't committed to anything at this point myself. Both are still on Kijiji here too.

What is yours exactly?

e: Nevermind, just read ^^

slidebite fucked around with this message at 21:47 on Nov 21, 2014

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

So I dug out my old 10" dob for the first time in years. I've kept it wrapped in plastic in its shipping box, but i noticed when I took the covers off and looked it over, there appears to be some water marks on the secondary mirror. Must be from observing in cool nights years ago. Luckily, the primary seems fine.

How should I clean the secondary? Obviously I'll want to tilt it full forward so nothing goes down to the tube to the primary, but I am more than a little leery of doing it. :ohdear:

I tried to take a photo of the spots but it didn't turn out, so here is a crappy photo of the scope instead.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Venusian Weasel posted:

You should be fine cleaning it with a little bit of distilled water and a microfiber cloth.

OK, can do but would something like Zeiss eyeglass cleaner (that stuff in a small spray bottle) be permissible instead of distilled water?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

So I was able to get it clean with distilled water and the microfiber cloth thank you very much. I did however notice a single small spot on the primary mirror but I have no way to easily get at it. Any recommendations on how to get down there?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

For what its worth I did do a very cautious cleaning of my primary with a microfibre cloth and it seems to be fine. Didn't notice any scratches or anything after the fact. I also collminated it. Have yet to take it out since to see how much of a difference it made. Did notice one thing that I wasn't positive about, there were 6 knobs on the bottom of the primary, 3 were larger than the others with "springs" around their threads. I assume those are the ones a person should use for adjusting?

In other news, a guy locally is selling a brand new, still in box Meade LS 8 ACF for about 1/3 price of retail.. not sure if it "fell off the back of a truck" or what. What's the thoughts on those scopes?

While it's not as big as the 10", the portability of it appeals to me a bit and from what I've read the mount is actually usable for some astrophotography. Thoughts?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Thanks for the reply.

I sent the seller an email and waiting to hear back from him.

e: Got a reply, obvious scam. Oh well.

slidebite fucked around with this message at 01:22 on Dec 7, 2014

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

GutBomb posted:

I'm curious, what's the scam?

Sure

scammer posted:

deal, but unfortunately i will be 3 months in Quebec,i have the item here with me and would like to close the transaction through a convenience store(nowprepay).
The delivery will be next day and you will have the opportunity to try the item at the store or home.
The transaction will be cash on delivery, let me know if you're interested to use this service.
--
Jonas Alexandra

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

AstroZamboni posted:

Yup. Freeze dried bullshit.

I made an offer on a 12" LX90 that has been for sale for over a month. The price they are asking is actually pretty decent, but if I can get it for a bit cheaper all the better. Even if they turn down my offer, might be worthwhile. It's supposedly only used once and $1K off retail (and no taxes of course) so it's a good deal.

It comes with an Autostar controller, but I watched a youtube review of the scope and some guy is saying the Audiostar (newer version?) is supposedly much better. C/D? Is it as simple as plugging a new controller in?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Whelp, I just made a deal for a taken out of the box and used only once LX-90 in 12" for $1800 CDN. All original eyepieces, accessories and packaging. They ordered it directly from Meade a few years back and never used it. Owner is a retired teacher so they don't lie...right?

I think that's an OK deal? :ohdear:

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I used to live in Northern Alberta, about 55N and I could see aurora with regularity.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Venusian Weasel posted:

Yeah, but Denmark and Alberta are at different geomagnetic latitudes, although the increased rate of wander in the magnetic pole in the last couple of decades mean this is changing. Generally speaking, an aurora strong enough to be seen in continental Europe is strong enough to penetrate well into the US. A Kp 7 event might be visible from only 45-50N in Europe, but in the States you'd probably notice a glow on the northern horizon as far south as Alabama and Arizona.
Oh yeah? Why don't you just shut up science guy. :colbert:

completely forgot about the differences

Edit: Question about eyepieces: For a telescope that can use a 2" piece, what are you missing out by only using a 1.25?

slidebite fucked around with this message at 17:42 on Dec 14, 2014

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Geez, selling a 10" dobsonian on Craigs/Kijijii is proving harder than I would have thought. Had 2 people that seemed somewhat serious and one that tried to lowball almost half what i was asking and I'm only asking $425 including eyepieces and barlow, still with its shipping box and seems like a better price than the other dobs listed for sale.

Is there not much demand for them used?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I would consider it, but shipping this big boy from Western Canada would cost a fortune.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

That's pretty cool. How often do people give the well known bright stars good long images? I wonder if there are more out there.

Coxswain Balls posted:

I can ask around here in Winnipeg to see if anyone is interested and is heading your way. I know there's a student in my SO's astronomy class who really wants to get a dobsonian of her own to start off with, and that's a pretty wicked price.
I actually live in the Lethbridge area. I did get another reply from someone in Calgary so if it does get bought I'll post here to let you know.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I found this on the map to assist finding it.


Its relation to Orion should make it easy enough to track down.

I've got some big 20x80 Barska binoculars that I don't have high hopes for [spoiler]which I bought a drunken evening and they looked like a good deal[spoiler], but I'll break them out when the clouds go away.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Yeah I've got one of those Galileo first scopes that I picked up on a whim and it's actually pretty decent. If you really want a scope chip in a few extra bucks and get one of those.

Or binoculars.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Been solid cloud here for a week with no end in sight :(

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

smarion2 posted:

So I finally took the plunge and got a nice pair of binoculars! I did some google searching of what I should look for and really excited to see some cool space stuff!

Anybody have some must see things I can view with some 15x70?

You should be able to pick out some, if not all, of the Galilean moons pretty well.

You might be able to see the phase of Venus too.

The Pleiades should pop out nicely.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

So apart from the ability to use a camera away from the scope, what's the pros/cons of adapting a dslr camera to a scope for astrophotography as opposed to an eyepiece camera like a Celestron Nightscape?
http://www.celestron.com/browse-shop/astronomy/astroimaging-cameras/series/nightscape-ccd-camera

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Well, I made a deal with a lady for a 12" Meade back in the winter but she never got back to me so that fell through.

I've been keeping my eyes open for something that isn't a mass-market department store scope and just saw this come up.

Seems to have a few upgrades and a hard case so that's sort of nice and would be a little easier to transport compared to my old 10" Dob (which I eventually sold) and that 12" Meade that never came to pass.

Thoughts on it? Seller is asking $900 OBO so if it can probably be bought for around $800 I bet. Been listed for a few days already.

quote:

8” Celestron SCT with StarBright Coatings, excellent condition
Heavy duty fork mount with upgraded motor drives for GOTO computer.
NexStar Plus Go-To Computer Controller for automatic alignment and over 40,000 object database, FLASH upgradeable (with optional cable)
“The Sky Version 5” PC Software for planning and remote telescope control (with optional cable or BluTooth adapter).
Fully adjustable Red Dot finder.
Telrad base for optional finder.
Custom knurled knobs for easy and accurate mirror alignment..
Fully Multi-coated 1.25” diagonal.
Fully Multi-coated 1.25” 25mm Plossal eyepiece.
Custom fitted solar filter.
Telescope Hard Case.
12V 6Ahr rechargeable battery, brand new (approximately 8 hour’s continuous usage).
120V AC adapter.

Only registered members can see post attachments!

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

It's gone anyhow, but thanks for the feedback.

Back to keeping my eyes open.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

This thread sort of seems dead now, so not sure if it's the best place to ask, but is a Meade ACF system (IE: LX200-ACF) the same as an "R" series?

I bit of googling shows an R as a "Ritchey-Chretien" although there is some discussion as to how it's not a true RC design... so I'm wondering if it got renamed to the ACF.

e: Wiki says that's the case

slidebite fucked around with this message at 14:25 on May 21, 2015

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Thanks for the detailed explanation. A guy has an 8" LX200R which is why I asked. Too bad about your prognosis with Meade.

Other than Celestron and Meade, are there any other manufacturers to look at for computerized goto scopes 8"+ preferably with adaptable mounts for CCD?

What are the thoughts of the Celestron Nexstar 8SE? Would a guy be SOL trying to do photography with that mount?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I noticed the crescent moon along with Venus/Jupiter the last couple nights too.

Don't underestimate some decent binoculars though. There is definitely something to be said about just quickly grabbing something and not having to go through the whole big production of getting the scope ready.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I assume you mean collimate the mirrors on a dob?

It's pretty straight forward with a laser and those can be bought pretty cheaply online (and lots of instructions to be found on youtube, but if you know people at your local society I suspect any number of them would be happy to assist.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I used a crappy 4" scope many years ago and IIRC I was pretty limited with what I could resolve. You want low mag but a big light bucket for nebula and galaxies.

I am certainly not the most qualified to speak here, but personally I'd probably not be happy with anything less than 6", preferably 8+ especially if you are just looking through an eyepiece.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Is there a good source that shows the relative size of objects in the sky? IE: How big Andromeda galaxy or Orion nebula actually is in the sky? Something that a layperson can wrap there head around, so say compared to the moon?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

GutBomb posted:

Well, I bought it. It was an old couple moving out of their house and into a retirement community. They just needed the stuff gone. It came with a few books, some really nice Orion optiluxe eyepieces, the eyepiece it came with, some filters, and a laser collimator. $50. Unbelievable.

Holy poo poo. good for you.

What's the thoughts on a Celestron 8SE?


quote:


Specs
Schmidt-Cassegrain
203 mm (7.99 in) aperture
2032 mm (80 in) focal length
f/10.1
StarPointer Finderscope
Dovetail compatibility - Quick Release Tube Clamp
Single Fork Arm Altazimuth Mount
Aluminum optical tube
One eyepiece
Star Diagonal Internal Flip mirror for straight through or 90° viewing angle
Camera Shutter Cable
Steel tripod with built-in wedge
NexRemote CD Rom V1.6.14 & The Sky
Power supply 8-AA batteries (not included)
Magnification range from 29x to 480x
Limiting stellar magnitude of 14
Resolution of 0.68 arc seconds
Resolving power of .57 arc seconds
Angular filed of view .63°
Linear field of view @1000 YDS 33 ft (10.06 m)
StarBright XLT optical coatings
Secondary Mirror Obstruction - 2.5 in (63.5 mm)
Secondary Mirror Obstruction by Area 10 %
Secondary Mirror Obstruction by Diameter 31.3 %
Optical Tube Length - 17 in (431.8 mm)
Telescope weight - 24 lb (10.89 kg)
Tripod and Mount Weight - 9lb (4.08 kg)
Motor Drive integrated with D.C. Electronics
Computer Hand Control - Double line, 16 character Liquid Crystal Display with 19 fiber optic backlit LED buttons
Nine slew speeds: 4°/sec, 2°/sec, 1°/sec, 64x, 16x, 8x, 4x, 1x, .5x
Tracking modes - Alt-Az, EQ North & EQ South
Several alignment procedures - SkyAlign, Auto 2-Star Align, 1-Star Align, 2-Star Align, SolarSystem Align
38,181 accessible objects database
24bit, 0.08 arcsec calculations for software precision
RS-232 communication port on hand control, Aux. port, Camera Control port
Sidereal, Solar and Lunar tracking rates

Still have box
Paid $1900 for everything selling for $1000 obo
:canada: so we pay more for everything.

I'm thinking of throwing out an offer of $750 and seeing if they bite.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I have never used a goto scope and you are really giving me the itch even more.

What is a good forum with an active community for astronomy? This thread is obviously not the most active.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

AstroZamboni posted:

Cloudynights.com

Thanks man. Still trying to make a deal. Truth be told the price they are asking isn't bad but I'm hoping we can meet in the middle.


Coxswain Balls posted:

Speaking of books, the Illustrated Guide to Astronomical Wonders by O'Reilly publishing has always been in my gear bag since I got it almost ten years ago. The book is sorted by constellation, and every object has rankings for how easy it is to find, what kind of sky conditions you can get away with to find it, and how impressive each object looks. All of the pictures are taken with a plain 8" dob with no fancy astrophotography tricks, so the pictures guiding you are pretty close to what you'll find in the eyepiece. I give it to the kids in the astronomy club each year to make their observing lists for their outings, and it's completely dog-eared and covered with post-it notes and highlighting at this point.
Any idea how it compares to "Left at Orion"?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

So, before I make a deal I can't get out of, how does this sound for $850?

Seller assures me all is fine, complete and like new with box. Includes full aperture solar filter, Canon adapters (not much use) and a 5x barlow. Ad is basically a copy & paste of the Celestron webpage except the extras.

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-hobbies-craft/st-albert/celestron-8se-telescope/1084225591?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

Only registered members can see post attachments!

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

I would like to get into ap in the future but realize that mount is less than ideal. I still have several eyepieces and filters from my dob so I should be OK there. I think it's a pretty good deal based on what I have seen for sale the past several months.
E: could a person do short images with it as is or would that be a lost cause? Thinking planets.

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

OK. Thanks guys. Made the deal for $850. I did some checking last night and it does seem to be a pretty good deal, especially if you compare the :canada: $$.

It's about 6 hours away from me but ironically my folks live, literally, 6 blocks away from the seller so they are going to probably get murdered make the transaction and hold it for me until I go back up.

I guess I am in the market for some doo-dads now like a dew shield (dew-dad?) and a camera.

What kind of camera is recommended should I be looking for? Would a fairly basic 3 year old laptop be good enough?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Thanks for the link about the dew controls. I can wrap my head around electronics, but not sure if I'm handy enough to build one though. I can certainly do home repairs and rebuild an engine, but something about building them is a little scary to me if it isn't plug and play.

Is there any reasonable ready-made solutions? For field power, I have a small lead-acid car jump pack that I was thinking of just plugging a lighter adapter into. Reasonable? Or should I go the lithium route?

slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Thanks for the in depth post.

I assume a plain shield isn't adequate?
http://www.celestron.com/browse-shop/astronomy/accessories/lens-shades/lens-shade-for-c6-and-c8-tubes

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slidebite
Nov 6, 2005

Good egg
:colbert:

Is a dew heater mostly only needed if a person is going to be out for several hours or can you get away with just a general "shield" like above if it's a fairly short time?

Or, it depends?

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