ST4 operation.

I just received an ST4 and was trying to use it last night but got no where with it. I did the dark frame and then I did the find and focus part. I never got a value reading, and also nothing in the Y axis and once in a while I would get a blip of a number say up to 14 in the X axis. I tried focusing and centering the star(blindly) but that didn't work either. I am in serch of some helpful hints with getting this thing to work. Do I need a flip mirror?

Thanks

Joe

Joe,

Hang in there. The ST-4 is a nice piece of equipment.

To start with, practice in your backyard, not at a dark sky spot.

ANd start with a fixed object--like a distant streetlamp.

Do you need a flip mirror? No, I have gone a long time without one. However, I have ordered one because I think it will be more convenient.

Now, down to suggestions:

Goto
http://www.sbig.com/sbwhtmls/app_notes.htm

and look up their manuals for the ST-4.

Start your practice just pointing a light into the ST-4 to make sure you get a reading off the chip. If you don't, you do have some kind of special problem.

Then use the shortest focal length telescope you have to get the rest of the kinks to work out.

Dinners being served--gotta go. May come back later.

Alex

Hi Joe,

Further to Alex's comments, a flip mirror is not essential but is a great help for centering a star. What I used to do before getting one was to use my highest magnification eyepiece to centre a star, and then VERY carefully swap to the ST-4. This usually worked to give me the star somewhere on the chip.

When you were using the system in "find and focus" mode, were you getting ANY numbers in the display, including 0? The occassional blip would most probably have been a cosmic ray, however it should have resulted in a number appearing in all 3, not just the X position.

One final question, can you describe how you did your dark frame?

Cheers,

Maurice