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Posts Made By: Paul Hart

December 16, 2007 01:05 AM Forum: AstroMart FAQ

Question about shipping to Canada payment

Posted By Paul Hart

I have a buyer in Canada interested in an eyepiece that I am selling.
My question is about payment. I don't take Pay Pal only M.O. or check. I'm not sure of what the proceedure would be as far as currency exchange and how I would cash said M.O. or check.

April 3, 2004 04:27 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Beginner EP question

Posted By Paul Hart

As someone else recommended, there is a book out there called Starware by Phil Harrington that I consider the best all around book for answering questions like yours. A big + is that it's fairly inexpensive.

The focal lengths you purchase will be determined by the type of scope you have. Generally the best bang for the buck are Plossls. The Panoptics, Naglers, etc are very nice but not necessary for someone who is probably starting out on a budget.

Paul Hart

September 6, 2004 03:49 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

One - all purpose filter!

Posted By Paul Hart

Hi Howard,
I would go with the UHC, it outperforms the O-III on most objects. The O-III is too narrow IMO for most uses. 8)

Paul

April 28, 2005 04:59 PM Forum: Eyepieces

please critique my eyepiece collection

Posted By Paul Hart

Hi Jack,

I'd ditch the 40mm plossl and get a 32. My dob is similar to yours and the 40 had too much eye relief and exit pupil with only a 43 degree f.o.v. Otherwise I like your selection.

IMHO you could spring for a 22mm Panoptic or Vixen LVW. 1.2 degrees @ 54x on the XT10.
wink
wink

June 20, 2005 04:43 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Starblast vs. ST 80, 100, 120?

Posted By Paul Hart

Bill Meyers said:

I have never owned any of these but am considering gettng a grab and go scope and am leaning tgoward the Starblast but would like to consider the others also. Can anyone compare them optically, mechaniclly and especially ergonomically? Convenience is really important to me.
Thanks,
Bill Meyers

Hi Bill,

I've owned both the Starblast and the ST-80. I vote for the Starblast. No false color (ST-80 was bad), more appeture, and ST-80 dewed up more. The only down side to the Starblast is the mount. Unless you are a hunchback. you have to get it higher to view through comfortably. I added table legs. Otherwise, it's a nice grab n go.

July 16, 2005 07:48 PM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

Which Telescope

Posted By Paul Hart

Hi Brett,

I'll go along with Ed's suggestion. The Orion XTi series dobs sound like they would fill your needs. Both the 8 and 10 inch models are easy for an adult to transport. If you want tracking, you can always get an equatorial platform at a later date. 8)

July 17, 2005 12:37 AM Forum: Equipment Talk

Hair dryers

Posted By Paul Hart

I use the 12 volt hair dryer and a 17 AH battery pack which I purchased from an auto parts department. It has an air compressor, light, jumper cables and a 12 volt outlet. It's very popular at star parties grin

Paul

August 9, 2005 05:16 PM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

First Filter Selection

Posted By Paul Hart

None of the above. I would get the Orion Ultrablock first. I own , or have owned an Orion Skyglow, Orion Ultrablock and 1000 Oaks O-III filters. The Skyglow worked best on my 4.5 inch Star Blast. The Ultrablock worked best on my 8 and 10 inch dobs. As for the O-III, I sold mine as I didn't have enough apeture to use it. However I plan on purchasing an O-III in the future when I get my 14". Overall the Ultrablock will give the best results on the most objects. Get hold of the August? issue of Astronomy magazine, there is a very good article on various filters.

BTW filters all dim the view slightly while enhancing visibity of nebulas. They will not help at all on galaxies, as they dim stars.

February 25, 2006 10:43 PM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

taking the plunge

Posted By Paul Hart

I strongly recommend the Shorty Plus Barlow over the Shorty. For filters, a variable polorizer and maybe an 80A Blue.

March 8, 2006 02:46 PM Forum: After Dark

Messier Marathon season

Posted By Paul Hart

Hi Linton,

I've completed 2 marathons (87 and 99 objects),and am thinking about doing one this year. IMO the most important things are:

Plenty of sleep the night before
Dress warmly

As far as reference material, I used both volumes of the Messier Telrad finder books. And Penningtons "Year Round Messier Guide"

Pennington helped me through Virgo, and I mainly used the Telrad books for the rest.

Good luck,
Paul