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Posts Made By: Eddie Kirkland

October 2, 2003 08:24 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Which Truss Dob?

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
Louis,
I'd go for the extra aperture, although the difference between a 14" and 12.5" is not that great visually, but every little bit helps. I have a 16" Swayze and I'm very happy with it. Its a Midnightelescope made by Tom McGowan in Kingman, AZ. I looked through a guy's 16" Starmaster w/
CZ mirror last weekend and the difference visually was not noticable with my eyes. Good luck in your search.

Eddie

December 19, 2003 04:46 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Telepod tripod question

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
Its according to what scope you put on it. I had a Skywatcher 102 f/5 mounted on a Telepod and it was fine. Then I bought a Televue 102 and had to go to a beefier tripod. I now have my TV102 mounted on a Telepod head / Bogen 3246 combo. It works nicely up to about 150-200X. Yes the Telepod tripod will mount to a Unistar physically, but will likely not be stable enough. Talking with the guy at Universal Astronomics, he advised that mounting my TV102 on a Unistar/Bogen 3246 would be marginal; he suggested a heavier tripod. And the Bogen 3246 is much beefier than the Telepod tripod.

Eddie

December 19, 2003 04:59 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

my lightweight winter rig

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
Larry, is that the Unistar light or heavy version? I've been looking at getting one for my TV102 to replace the Telepod head/Bogen 3246 combo I now have. An observing buddy just bought a Unistar for his Stellarvue 102 and the motions are much smoother than my Telepod. Can anyone comment on whether I should get the Unistar light or heavy and whether my Bogen 3246 tripod will be heavy enough for the Unistar and TV102? Now if the Universal Astronomics folks would make these with slo-mo cables/knobs that would be sweet!!

Thanks,
Eddie

January 9, 2004 09:46 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

red dot finders on TV clamshell

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
I use Stellarvue's red dot finder on my TV102 w/clamshell and base.

Eddie

April 13, 2004 05:02 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Do Pentax XLs need a Paracorr in a fast newt?

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
I have used Pentax XL's (5.2, 7, 10.5) in my 16 f/4.5 dob for a couple of years and I don't notice any coma. I'd wait till your scope is finished and check it out for yourself. I also have a 27 Panoptic and 40 Pentax XL and while there is some coma with those two if you're looking for it, it doesn't bother me; and the Pan is my favorite and most used EP.

Eddie

July 8, 2004 09:06 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

As I get closer to my 8" scope, I'm starting to re

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
I started off with an 8" dob and it kept me satisfied for 2 years; I replaced it with a 16" truss dob. For me more aperture is better. Unless the 10" will not fit in your vehicle, go with the the 10". A 12 year old boy in our club has a 10" Hardin dob, and he has no trouble moving it around; and he's a little skinny kid.

Eddie

July 30, 2004 04:04 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Columbus Georgia Area Yahoo Group

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
I'd like to welcome you to visit or join the Auburn (AL) Astronomical Society. We are about an hour's drive from Columbus. See info at www.auburnastro.org

Eddie Kirkland
Auburn, AL

August 13, 2004 06:52 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Orion's Shipping Charges

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
It must be pretty common for companies to charge an arm and leg for shipping. I just received a small part for my lawn mower valued at $11; the shipping was $6 from Ohio to Alabama!! Weight was about a pound.

September 21, 2004 03:30 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

larger dobs and finders

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
I have a 16" truss dob and have tried both an 8X50 Antares RACI finder (great finder) and an ST80 at different times of course mounted on the mirror box. While both worked ok, I found myself not using them much because my 50 Y-O knees didn't like bending that much, and I could never quite get the scope balanced throughout its range of movement with the ST80. So I'm thinking of going to DSC's. However, I have been thinking of mounting the 8X50 near the eyepiece. For you that have your finders mounted on the upper cage, how much weight did you have to place on the mirror box (and where) to balance? Maybe DSC's and an 8X50 finder?

Thanks,
Eddie

January 2, 2005 06:30 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Televue 16mm T5 question

Posted By Eddie Kirkland
While not exactly in the range you mentioned, you might try a 14mm Pentax XW or used XL. They both have 20mm ER and are very comfortable to use.

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