Well, I got out last night under a bit of Moon and managed to get first light with the new 10". 
I can state that the optics are absolutely stunning! Star tests are perfect. The contrast and detail is excellent.
With limited planetary objects we decided to use the Moon for a bit of testing of power and resolution. Again it was stunning up to 508x which is my highest power EP, 3mm Radian. Everyone commented that the detail and contrast on the Moon was breath taking, with details of peaks and small inner craters standing out in sharp relief.
DSO images were very good with some loss due to bright Moon light of course. We all wished it had been darker! 8)
The DSC with the 8192 tic encoders was right on the money. placing the object in the exact center of the FOV in a 10.2mm Pentax XL. I feel this is excellent myself and am quite pleased.
There was a bit of wind last night that complicated things a bit. There was some vibration in the scope, especially at higher powers of 300x and above. But this is pretty typical I think. I am looking into the vibration, but not sure there is a cure.
I am enclosing a picture of the scope in the middle of collimation. My friend Randy is at the Cat's Eye while I turn the screws. The Cat's Eye and Infinity Autocollimator are great to use.
This scope is being replaced by the way, with a new design from Astro Sky. James has decided that the design needed to change to better accommodate the light mirror and long focal length. So I will use this one until the new one arrives. Then I will change out the optics to the new frame. James has been very cooperative in this venture. We had some problems that were worked out so the scope functions quite well, but it was decided that the scope would work better for a f/5 to f/5.6 focal length than as a f/6. That is OK, as long as the manufacturer stands behind the product and makes everything right, that is all you can ask.
I can state that the optics are absolutely stunning! Star tests are perfect. The contrast and detail is excellent.
With limited planetary objects we decided to use the Moon for a bit of testing of power and resolution. Again it was stunning up to 508x which is my highest power EP, 3mm Radian. Everyone commented that the detail and contrast on the Moon was breath taking, with details of peaks and small inner craters standing out in sharp relief.
DSO images were very good with some loss due to bright Moon light of course. We all wished it had been darker! 8)
The DSC with the 8192 tic encoders was right on the money. placing the object in the exact center of the FOV in a 10.2mm Pentax XL. I feel this is excellent myself and am quite pleased.
There was a bit of wind last night that complicated things a bit. There was some vibration in the scope, especially at higher powers of 300x and above. But this is pretty typical I think. I am looking into the vibration, but not sure there is a cure.
I am enclosing a picture of the scope in the middle of collimation. My friend Randy is at the Cat's Eye while I turn the screws. The Cat's Eye and Infinity Autocollimator are great to use.
This scope is being replaced by the way, with a new design from Astro Sky. James has decided that the design needed to change to better accommodate the light mirror and long focal length. So I will use this one until the new one arrives. Then I will change out the optics to the new frame. James has been very cooperative in this venture. We had some problems that were worked out so the scope functions quite well, but it was decided that the scope would work better for a f/5 to f/5.6 focal length than as a f/6. That is OK, as long as the manufacturer stands behind the product and makes everything right, that is all you can ask.
Attached Image:
[SIZE="Large"][/SIZE][COLOR="Blue"][/COLOR] Floyd Blue
Amateur Imager
