Posts Made By: Dave Adams

I am putting together an 8" f/8 scope that will be mainly used for planet/lunar viewing. I was all set to order the Protostar 3 vane spider and then heard about the Protostar curved spider and paralysis by analysis has set in. Has anyone compared these two spiders? It seems to be a trade off between the greater stability of the 3-vane versus spreading the diffraction around (to undectable levels?) for a more asthetically pleasing view. Thanks.

Dave Adams

I am putting together an 8" f/8 scope that will be mainly used for planet/lunar viewing. I was all set to order the Protostar 3 vane spider and then heard about the Protostar curved spider and paralysis by analysis has set in. Has anyone compared these two spiders? It seems to be a trade off between the greater stability of the 3-vane versus spreading the diffraction around (to undectable levels?) for a more asthetically pleasing view. Thanks.

Dave Adams

I have been experimenting with different scopes over the last year to determine if I can settle on one as my "main" scope. I live in suburban Detroit where the seeing is mediocore most of the time. I enjoy all types of observing and would put planet and lunar viewing at the top of the list.

I have come up with the following list of goals:

1. Excellent planetary performance.
2. Observe in sitting position.
3. Scope lightweight, and easy to setup.
4. Tracking for high power viewing.
5. Binoviewer friendly.

I was thinking of a TEC140 for the last month, but now think that the best choice might be a Starbucket 10" f/5 with servocat junior installed. The 10" f/5 seems like a nice compromise that would do well for planets and deep sky and is about the biggest scope that I can sit down and observe. I have never owned a truss style scope and wonder about leaving it setup so that I can carry it in and out without taking it apart. A lightweight 10" f/5 also seems like it would be light enough to carry outside (2 trips) without it being a struggle.

The scope I own that comes closest to filling the above goals is a C9.25 on an lxd55 mount with upgraded legs. It fills most of the above but rarely performs well on the planets where I live. I have read posts that say the large central obstruction of a C9.25, makes SCT's more prone to poor seeing.

I thought about the servocat vs equatorial platform and am thinking that the servocat will not add any height so this will help with keeping in a seated position. Also thinking the servocat will hold the scope in position while changes eyepieces with my binoviewer and this seems like another plus.

I am a little concerned about the Starbuckets ability to block stray light in my location given it's minimalistic design but I think this problem can be solved and the scope looks really light on the Starbuckets website which to me is a big plus. Any opinions on the above will be greatly appreciated! Thanks.

Dave Adams

Is there a good moon atlas available? Thanks.

Dave Adams

I am hoping to get feedback on a good laser collimator. I have seen reports that the type with the 45 degree angled top allow for collimating a Newtonian primary from the rear
of the scope by one person. This would be great for my 12.5 f/5 Newt. All my scopes have 2" focusers. The other scopes I would want to use it with would be an 8" f/8 Newt, C9.25, D&G 5" f/10, Meade AR-6, Synt 120 f/8 and a Brandon 94. Should I get a 2" collimator? I was wondering which would be the best to get? Thanks.

Does anyone know if the advertised weight of the NexStar 8i of 24 lbs includes the weight of the tripod? At 24 lbs it seems very light and a nice scope to leave setup and carry outside. Thanks

I am looking to upgrade my mount from the lxd55 that I currently have. The scopes that I have are a C9.25, D&G 5" f/10, and a Brandon 94mm. The gm-8 with it's slip clutches and tracking ability sounds really nice. The unistar is less expnesive and and would be easier to transport since no counterweights required but would lack tracking. So far I haven't had any interest in photography. The lxd55 has worked ok since I upgraded the legs to the Universal Astronomics heavy duty surveyor tripod. Both mounts have nice reviews and they are a little like comparing apples to oranges but any thoughts will be appreciated.

Has anyone tried the Williams Optics 45 degree amici prism?
I have a pronto that needs a diagonal and I mainly use if for daytime viewing at low power 16-35x. Thanks.

Dave Adams

I am wondering if anyone could give feedback on the unistar, giro or stellarvue stableglide m6. I am leaning toward the unistar due to not having to use counterweights,
thus making the whole setup more of grab and go for use with a Bradon 94, D&G 5" f/10 and C9.25. Thanks.

Dave Adams

I am looking to get a new mount to carry a C8, C9.25 and D&G 5" f/10. I have read so many good things about the gm-8 mounts and really like the idea of the slip clutches. I heard from someone that they had problems at high power with their gm-8 due to the stepper motors causing vibration. I think each pulse caused the vibration. I seem to remember reading a while back that someone else could actually see the pulses at high power. I want to buy a mount that I don't have to fiddle with to get to work properly and wonder how much of an issue is this?

Dave Adams