Posts Made By: Joe Conway

I looked around here for this answer but couldn't find it. What is the prefered size to use to post pictures in the forums? Is "insert image" used for adding a link to another site? If there's a how to located here on Astromart, just send me there please. Thanks

Hope pier only topics can go here and not in the mount forum, so excuse me for this if it's in the wrong place.

Permanent pier is for my G11 mount. I found a 12 foot long piece of 3/8” thick walled, 7” O.D. galvanized pipe. Got it at a steel salvage yard for $77. Love steel salvage yards since you only pay by the pound at the current steel salvage price.

12volt power connections are done through (4) pin mini RV camper plugs I purchased at an RV store. Even though they look the same, these plugs are smaller in diameter than the usual camper plugs you find in auto parts stores. I’ll add more if I ever get into imaging. Power comes through the bottom through another RV plug of the same.

Even though you can’t budge this thing, if I need more stability for imaging I’ll sink some cement lug points a couple of feet out for quick connect cables and turnbuckles. Doubt it’s necessary.

I wanted to keep the diameter down since I only do visual. I’ll put a small U-shaped fence around it to block some of the neighbor’s lights. Simple, cheap and easily dug up and salvaged. I didn’t want a shed since I prefer to lock my stuff up in my more secure steel door storage area.

No, it’s not in the ground 12 feet. I sold half the pipe to my co-viewer for his identical pier so our costs were $39 each plus the Losmandy adapter on the top.

I guess when you really think about these piers, they’re really not that big of a deal to build. Everyone should have one in their yard.

I put the solar light on the top and some reflective tape so people wouldn’t drive into it.

Many times, over and over again, posters ask the same question about what system can I put together for a top price of $1,500 to do astrophotography.

I think for the most part most seasoned Astromarters being politically correct smooth over the answer with maybe you should re-think this and wait till you have more funds. In the back of some minds the thought might be you need about another $10K to add to that for starters. I know how much money I have in my equipment and I still haven’t decided on a camera, whether CMOS or CCD.

Ok, with this said wouldn’t it be a service to this site if we collectively put together a list of systems we could put up on the site as a guide to the posters question? I’m hoping that some will show how they’ve done astrophotography on a dime instead of a dollar.

This sounds huge and I’m willing to glean through any and all posts to this thread to try and put together such a list. Pray that I haven’t opened Pandora’s box.

So just to start let’s keep it simple and don’t put more in than just the following. I’ll try to find the current prices and total the costs. If you wish to add prices (new or used), that would be helpful. I’m leaving out computers and software since most have a computer and can use freeware, shareware or the software from the camera used.

1: Scope
2: Mount
3: Camera
4: Guidescope
5: accessories (focusers, adapters, flip mirror, guide camera etc.)
6: anything I should add (keep it short and don’t expound)


Please cut and paste 1-6 and don’t rephrase my writing, it would be messy. Yes I'm crazy, Joe Conway

You all know I'm crazy, "no not you Joe?"

The guys came into band practice last night and started to sing this stupid song I've never heard before. Now mind you they did it all straight faced and such, but what I can't understand after 17 years in the same band why this song would bust me up into histerics since I never heard it before. Maybe you had to been there and maybe a little beer helps, but what's up with this diddy?

http://jayfo.vox.com/library/post/the-snickers-song.html

Mounts have a rated load. My question is what is the axial load seen by the worm gear?

If for instance a mount is rated for 50 lbs, would the axial load against the worm be this rated 50 lbs or half that due to balanced loads or some fraction of this?

I just read your pdf on grease. Starting to think an amp meter mounted permanently is good idea.

Thanks for being there for us. Joe

I’ve been looking at camera options for about two years now. I want to learn the basics and realize a webcam is a good place to start.

So reading as much as I could I see that Toucams are used by many folks. I’ve read up on the mods for them with respect to long exposure and changing the CCD chip to the Sony ICX098BL black and white chip.

I then looked at the DMK offering that some are using and see the camera also uses the ICX098BL chip. Comments from Alan Friedman would be especially appreciated on this post.

First, I want a cheap camera using this chip. I want to play with the guts and intend on breaking a few of them with cooling. I’m not adverse to buying the Toucam and changing the chip, but the chips themselves appear hard to find off the shelf.

So with this said, anyone have any experience with this item>

http://www.unibrain.com/Products/VisionImg/Fire_i_BC.htm

Only 30fps, but would something like this work? I like the fact it’s OEM out of the box and not too expensive. Thanks, Joe

PS, I especially like this part,

http://www.unibrain.com/Products/VisionImg/Fire_i_BC_remoteCCD.htm

You won't find me in the Politics section much if ever. All I know is what the current court ruling is on the Second Amendment and most likely the case that will move this issue up to the Supreme Court.

I suggest all posters read this ruling in it's entirety since to date I believe it's the most in-depth argument on the Second Amendment.

Please, don't comment until you've read this all the way through. At least by reading the ruling you'll be more informed on the subject.

http://pacer.cadc.uscourts.gov/docs/common/opinions/200703/04-7041a.pdf

This ep measures as a 2" ep. It's about 3 to 3 1/4 inches tall. No markings on it. Anyone ever see something like this. Appears to be fully multi-coated with some very small bubbles in some of the glass. Good clarity, but haven't had it on a scope yet. Your opinions please!! Joe

My friend loves his ETX-125, at least till the other day. He's had trouble with the tripod from day one. The legs wouldn't clamp too well and the aluminum would simply deform when clamped.

After setting up the scope last weekend, he goes into the house to get his wife to come outside and see Saturn. Upon returning, the mount and scope are laying on the ground. Short story, all is smashed. The plastic ETX housing for the goto/motor section is in 3-4 pieces and even worse, the corrector on the front of the scope has a chip on the edge about 2 inches in diameter.

With just the MAK ota in mind, has anyone had a repair of a front corrector done by Meade for an ETX? Is this doable? Are the optics matched somewhat and expensive to fix?

Thanks, he'd write this but his hands are still shaking.

We use a Gaertner refractor to set up our optic benches. The scope doesn’t have markings for f/l. Since I don’t have access as of this writing with the aperture size, approx. 3-4 inches and a scope length of about 3ft, I’m assuming it’s a long f/l achro.

The scope weighs 6.95 billion tons and no one likes to lift it. It’s really old and exhibits a double image due to some moisture build up internally (went through a flood). We quit using it and have a smaller Gaertner as a stand in.

Ok, we want to replace this scope. I’m assuming anything will work, but we need precision focusing, cross hairs and a focus lock.

We take the scope outside, focus on a far away mountain peak, try to focus in a tree and then bring the scope inside set to this infinity. We have to do this during the day.

Ok, anyone have a suggestion on a suitable scientific scope under $2500. Gaertner doesn’t make scopes anymore. Thanks, Joe