Posts Made By: Kevin Rehberg

I've noticed in the last two S&T magazines that Apogee, inc. is selling a short tube 90mm scope and mount that looks decent, with a price that looks great (the too good to be true type).

Anyone try this? I believe it's sold under the name Widestar?

Report from Carpentersville, IL:

Got out at about 4:14 Central time. Skies were nice and clear, although the deck was pure ice. Saw about 10 in the first few minutes, so I went upstairs to grab the wife. We counted:

246 in 70 minutes

The peak seemed to come around 4:40 AM. The best outburst was 6 meteors in a 1.5 second timeframe. A minute or two later, 6 more meteors streaked across the sky in a matter of 2.5 seconds.

Didn't see any fireballs. Limiting magnitude, not exactly sure, but I could just barely make out the beehive cluster naked eye.

Hope everyone else had as much fun as me!!!

Hey everyone,

First off, let me begin by saying that I love my classic LX200! There seems to be a lot of misinformation floating around this message board about Meade quality control, bolts rusting after a few months of use (I've used mine consistently since '99 with NO RUST), heck - I think I just read someone's post that Meade is making their scopes in Mexico, c'mon people - we're better than that.

Enough of that, on to the question at hand. I use my scope on my back deck, which is attached to the second story of the house. I know I'd be using it more (especially for Mars right now @ 3AM) if I had a way to get it to the back deck in one piece. So here's the question:

Anyone use standard JMI Wheelie bars on their scope on a deck? If so, how is the vibration vs. without the bars (I use anti-vibration pads)? Any and all experiences are welcome.

Thanks!

Hello all,

I am happy to report that I am helping a bride-to-be purchase a scope for her fiance. Her budget was $300, so I immediately steered her towards the Harding Deep Space Hunter 8" scope. It looks like it should be a great beginner scope, and appears to be very well reviewed.

As the two eyepieces provided result in a high end of 133x mag., I'd like to recommend a decent barlow to go along with the package. I haven't looked at balows for at least 3 years, since I've been happy with my Meade barlow. I'm not recommending that one to her due to it's $80 cost. Can any of you recommend a less expensive barlow that still performs on a level equal to the 8" dob she is about to purchase? Remember the cost is a major concern here, due to her being over budget already.

Thanks for the great advice!!

I know it was a rerun, but the "Light Pollution" episode of The Simpsons was on again last night. This is, without question, the funniest and most poignient episode to date.

My favorite line:

Grandpa Simpson "I remember the last Deadly (named after the discoverer of the shower) meteor shower. We all thought the sky was on fire! Naaaaaaaaaaaturally we blamed it on the Irish..........we hung more than a few."

Most poignient (sp?) moment:

As the episode ends, Don Maclean's song Vincent (Starry, starry night)plays in the background as a lightless (due to a power outage)night sky displays a meteor shower that has all of Springfield silently captivated. The scene ends with the end of the song "They did not listen they did not know how.......perhaps they never will."

A fantastic way to drive home the reality of light pollution.

Hello Everyone,

Just wanted to extend a hello to everyone. I still remember the first time I came upon Astromart back in 1997.

I registered right off the bat here but since I've never been a big fan of forums with 1,000 subfolders I kinda faded away. It's great to see that the site looks to be doing better than ever.

Now that I'm getting back into the hobby (messier marathon time right around the corner!!) and dusting off the LX200, just thought I'd pop in and reintroduce myself. Hopefully I'll be able to contribute to the content here whenever possible.

Any other Northern Illinois observers?? Back a few years ago, this place had a nice representation of the amateurs in my neck of the woods.

Kevin

edited to add: how do ya get the pictures under your name when you post? It's a nice touch, especially with the senses of humor some here obviously have.