Posts Made By: Todd Gray

Hello,

I would like info on the best 5mm EP with the least amount of elements and at least a 50' FOV. I have a 12.5" f/4.9 scope and would like a nice planetary EP that would not shy away from the DSO's. I have a 7mm UO ortho, but crave a bit more FOV and ER. If I can get 5 more degrees in the FOV with a plossl and the same number of elements, why not? I have been tempted by the 4.8mm Nag sale going on, but I am afraid the contrast for planets would not be there. I have owned the 4mm radians and was not impressed. Perhaps a high quality plossl is what I need. Any suggestions? :S

Thanks,
Todd

Hey guys,

I just purchased some 20x80 binos for a really good price. They of course needed collimation. This style has a set screw on each prism objective so that the owner can simply use a screw driver for easy access collimation. I tried this at dusk and got the two images lined up(I used a electrical line). I went to use them tonight and I had no double images but the left side was out of focus. Now I assume there is a sweet spot one must hit between both sides being in focus and collimated. My question is how is this easiest achieved? Should I align first then focus or focus then align? Do I have to just tough it out with painstaking trial and error? 8O
Please help and all suggestions welcomed.

Todd

I realize optical cleaning has been done to death, but I could not find a thread that mentioned exactly what I am looking for. I have built my first 12.5" f/4.89 open truss dob. It is an ultralight system and does not have a mirror box so the mirror is extremely vulnerable to the elements/dust. Before I could build a mirror cover and a light shroud the mirror collected a bit of dust from the collimation process/ star testing / a couple of public star watches. I would like the easiest safest mirror rinse. Ideally something that did not have to be wiped down yet still would not leave a residue. I have a can of compressed air but would like something a bit more cleansing, plus I have heard horror stories about the canned air. I imagine with a open truss design I might run into this problem more often than most. I also realize most recommend not to clean optics unless absolutely necessary, but I sure do miss that freshly coated new mirror shine!
Is there such an animal out there or something I can create??
Thanks,

Todd

My dream scope 12.5" f/4.89 ultralight DOB is finally finished!!! Here are some pics and a big list of thank you's to all who contributed. I have enjoyed the most pleasing views my eyes have encountered thanks in large part to the superb optics by Cary at Woden Optical (super guy and great communication and very talented mirror maker! Received mirror in about 3 months time!). Thank you Antares for the good deal on the secondary and also L&L Optics for coatings. I would also like to thank protostar for the secondary holder and spider. A thanks to John Peters who did most of the welds for me at his fantastic machine shop. Thanks also goes to Astromart and Cloudynights for providing not only a place where almost every piece of equipment I have has been purchased, but also for the forums so that I might inquire, bounce off ideas, and learn from other like minded and more experienced people as well as providing a venue for meeting vendors. A super thanks to Herb York for not only providing this environment but for also keeping it safe and productive, without him this project would still be stuck in the mud.
Thanks to all the regular forum writers too, you know who you are there are too many to name, who always answer my most asinine questions with not so much as even the slightest sneer.
I am currently working on a EQ platform to drive the mighty Rufus!!!
Second post will include specs of scope.

Todd

Hello,

I am on the hunt for a eyepiece in the 24mm-28mm range. I have mostly naglers the, closest one to the desired focal length being the 20mm T5. I am debating the 26mm nagler because $500 is a lot of money and I only have $300. My scope is a 12.5" f/4.89 truss dob.
Is there another eyepiece out there that comes close to the fov and quality of the nagler?
Should I bite the bullet and save up a few more months for the 26mm nagler?
I have read mixed reviews about the 24mm Tak ultra wide, are there other premium eyepieces I should consider?
Any and all opinions are welcome.

Thanks in advance,
Todd

Hey guys,

I am interested in purchasing a new camera that will let me image astronomy stuff as well as take nice daytime photos of the family and landscapes. I briefly owned the sac 7b ccd but did not have the right setup and could not justify the money for such a one trick pony. I have stumbled upon the canon eos series and like the capabilities of the 5d for its' wide field and mega-pixels, but I really am not sure what attributes to look for in a slr for astro imaging. Aside from mega pixels what else should I look for? The 5d is a bit out of my price range unless I find a great deal on a used one. My wife has a digital camera with a 1024x986 pixel array and it seems adequate enough, but it is "her" camera and I am not to go prancing off into the night with it. What else should I look for in a camera? Is there one out there that is geared more for astro imaging than others? Any and all brands/suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Todd

Just recently purchased a olympus e-300 and awaiting the arrival. Does anyone know the thread size of the camera body?
I have some extra 2" threaded eyepiece tubes that I would like to use as an adapter for my telescope. I can not figure out the step ring size on the camera end(48mm being the 2" barrel threads).

Thanks,

Todd

Does anyone know where I can find information on how to modify a 2" crayford focuser into a 2 speed focuser?

Thanks,
Todd

Hello everyone,
I would like some assistance please. Due to the holidays and a computer crash I am forced to rethink the efficiency of my eyepiece case. I currently have a 20mm T5 nagler, 16mm T5 nagler, 12mm T4 nagler, 9mm T1 nagler, and 7mm UO ortho in the case after just selling my 3-6mm TV zoom and 36mm SOB. I have a home built ultralight dob 12.5" f/4.89. I am thinking about selling the 12mm and 16mm and purchasing the 26mm T5 nagler, 14mm meade UWA, and a 2" TV big barlow. The 20mm is by far my most used eyepiece and somewhere down the road I might spring for the 5mm burgess planetary. I like the DSO's but rarely am able to get to any real dark sky sites. Does this change make any sense? I just do not want to do anything I will later regret. All input and additional options are welcome.

Thanks,
Todd

Not sure if this is the right forum, but has anyone ever made their own flip mirror or slide mirror diagonal for astrophotography work? Could not find anything on the internet on how to make it yourself, so thought I would try here. I would like to make a 2" version from an old diagonal I don't use anymore. The concept of the slide mirror seems easy enough and I really don't want to spend over $200 on meade's version. Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Todd