Posts Made By: David Pope

Hi Floyd,

I was doing some research on boundary layer fans and came across your setup (Picture attached). I was wondering what kind of foam is being used and where did you get it?

Thanks for your help,
David

Hi Guys,

Just to let you know I've e-mailed Peterson Engineering Corp (makers of the Eye Opener) for more information. Hopefully they will responsed soon. If I get anything useful I'll post it here.

I don't think that the Meade or Celestron 8/9x50 are all that good. They're sharp in the middle but really get soft at the edge. I'm thinking of buying a better finder myself, but haven't settled on one yet. If anyone has a suggestion I would be appreciate it.

Well, I haven't seen any hard numbers yet. But if you look at the others you'll get a good idea. The 8"(Fork and tube assembley) weighs 45 lbs and the 10 weighs 62 lbs and the 12" weighs 75 lbs. If you average that out to about 15 lbs increase I would say that the 14" is going to weigh in the neighborhood of 90 lbs. Give or take a pound or so. So, you better starting eating you wheaties :-)

David Pope

Hi Tom,

I'm going! I've been to it the last 3 years and it's a great event. It's a good site and the weather usually holds up at that time of the year. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

David Pope

You can't go wrong with the Stellarvue AT1010. This is an awesome scope!! I had a Celestron G-8 and a Celestron C-102. I wanted some thing that was wide field, compact and easy to get out side quick, not to mention I'm on a buget. After reading lots of reviews and one review by Ed Ting on the AT1010 I decided to take a chance. And I wasn't disappointed. This scope out performed my C-102. There wasn't any comparsion between the two. The AT1010 had better color correction (mind you that this is an f/6 compared to an f/10 focal length) contrast was better, easier to find the sweet spot in focusing. Not to mention that this is an f/6 and mechancial this scope is built like a tank. Vic really out done himself with the little scope. It's hand made and tested several times before shipment. And all of this for about $470. I used this scope so much that I ended up selling my C-102 and I haven't missed it. Vic also offers other apertures but this little 80mm refractor really performs great. It's not like other achormat, trust me.

Clear Skies,
David Pope

I have both Tele Vue plossls and Celestron Ultimas. And my conclusion is that it's really hard to see much of a difference. My personal farovite is the Celestron Ultima 30mm. If you're like me when it comes to pinching pennies. The Ultimas are cheaper and don't give anything away in quaility.

Here is were you need to go: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LX200gps/
There is a lot of good information about the GPS systems. And I think that there is a poll or survey about the quailty of the scope and peoples opinions about their scope: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LX200GPS/polls

Clear Skies,
David Pope

Here is were you need to go: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LX200gps/
There is a lot of good information about the GPS systems. And I think that there is a poll or survey about the quailty of the scope and peoples opinions about their scope: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LX200GPS/polls

Clear Skies,
David Pope

Reading this question takes me back several years ago when I was trying to decide on my first scope. In fact it’s a tough question to answer in a couple sentences. You really need to ask yourself some questions first. One, are you just interested in planets or deep sky? What is your budget? How easy is to get to your observing site? Meaning, are going to have to drive somewhere else to get away from light pollution?
I found through personal experience that bigger is not always better. Since you are new to astronomy I would recommend that you get a small refractor or even binoculars and learn the sky. See if you’re going to stick with this hobby. Lots of people fell out of astronomy because the scope they purchased was just too big. And took up a lot of time to set up not to mention heavy. The best telescope you could purchase is one that you are going to use! As for me, I have a SCT (12” LX200 GPS), a 80mm refractor and 12 x 60 binoculars and I loved them all. In fact I’m looking at getting an 18” Newtonian and 102mm refractor. You’ll find out if you stay in long enough, that the equipment is as much of the hobby as stargazing is.
The SCT, refractor and the reflector all have their place, their strong points and some short comings. You'll find that quiet a few people have several scopes for theses different reasons. But avoid aperture fever to start with! A 4" refractor is a good starter scope. And I'm not talking about anyting at Wal-Mart. Celestron has a model called the C102. I owned one and found it to be a very nice scope. And the price is in the comfortable range for most. Or you can pick up a nice 4" scope here on astromart. I've seen some good deals. Hope this helps :-)

Clear Skies,
David Pope