Posts Made By: Gary DuBose

Has anyone had any experience with the U.O. 2" Konigs? Particularly, does the 40mm give as good (or poor) images across the field of view as the 32mm? Anyone recommend one over the other? They would be used in long-focal length refractor. Thanks.

Has anyone actually used one of the 80mm 2" eyepieces being sold from Surplus Shed? What kind of eye relief do they have? It seems that you might have to stand in the neighbor's yard to get a view. Could be a neat "ultra low power" eyepiece with an f15 refractor, however, if usable.

Gary

Has anyone used any of the eyepieces being sold by Surplus Shed? Particularly, the 2" 50mm or 54mm? 32mm Erfle? The prices on these are excellent, is the quality ok?

Gary

This is really showing my ignorance of modern equipment, but I keep seeing references to the high quality of Zamuto mirrors. I think that these are in Starmaster scopes, but what other brands contain these? Do any other companies sell mirrors of comparable quality, or are Zambuto's the best? Do they make these in 8"?

Gary

Do any of you have any thoughts on how modern refractors, such as D&G's or other quality achromats, compare to Alvin Clark refractors from late 19th and early 20th centuries? Has anyone had experience with small Clarks?

Gary

Went out last night for the first time with my new 2" 40mm Konig from University Optics. I got the 60 degree version, not the 70. Although the weather was crappy, I was really impressed with the eyepiece in my f10 4" refractor (C102). This may sound silly to all you guys using Naglers and such, but this was the widest field that I've ever seen. I chose the Beta Lyra area for the first view, as it was near the zenith. I decided to slide the scope down to gamma, and realized that they would both fit in the field of view! (M57 seen in between.)

Although I'm a committed double star fan (using orthos,) this has got me wanted to go to a dark sky site for some DSO's. I'm not experienced enough to really compare, but I couldn't see any real problems with this scope at f10. Images were pretty sharp to the edge.

Anyone have experiences with this ep in other scopes?

Gary

Has anyone attempted any astrophotography with a digital SLR, or other "non-dedicated CCD" digitical camera? I'm in the market for a digital camera, and would love to get something that would handle simple astrophoto tasks, such as constellation shots (guided and unguided) and lunar photos. I've done these with film cameras, and was wondering if digital cameras (the type a step above the "point-and-shoot" variety) will work for these. I'm not interested in getting a regular CCD astrophotography device, as I need the digital camera for other uses.

Thanks for anything you guys can provide.

Gary

Hi. I am planning to purchase a Canon 10D in the next few weeks to be used for general photography, but I would also like to do some basic astrophotography. What will I need to connect this camera to a refractor? I currently have a C102, but have ordered a 5" D&G, which will come with an AP focuser?

Does Anacortes sell what I need?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can give me with this combination.

Gary

Hi. I've been thinking of buying a filter to help with deep sky objects in my relatively light-polluted skies. I live near the edge of a town of 8000 or so, about two miles from the local Super Walmart/Home Depot/fast food strip, and 1 mile from the local high school with its athletic field lights.

My question is, if I'm only buying one filter now, would I be better off with a Deep Sky Filter or O-III filter? Many of you probably own both. What are the advantages/disadvantages of one over the other? (Visual use only with 5" f15 refractor.)

Thanks,

Gary

It has generally been my opinion that you will get better images by using a higher power (shorter focal length) eyepiece, rather than using a Barlow. Reason: fewer air-to-glass surfaces to cause distortions, limit light transmission, etc. Flip side: expense of new eyepiece, short eye relief. For these reasons, a lot of people disagree with me, but I prefer to use a short focal length E.P. rather than a Barlow.

If you know anyone who has one or the other, try them in your scope and see which you prefer.