AstroStace Kit update - A big newtonian scope...what?!
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- Опубликовано: 7 фев 2025
- So here's my latest kit update! I've now got a big newtonian scope, i call her Big Bucket ! ha!
Just a chat really, i'm trying to enjoy the process of videos this time round :)
And if you want to help me pay for my wedding /buy me a beer...please consider this link :)
www.buymeacoff...
Just picked up one of these beauts at PAS. You've already helped me massively by confriming installation of the focus cube is supposed to be the "wrong" side.
Following for more!
The photographs you make are beautiful !
Glad your back, Stacey.
are all your pictures out of your back garden. They are great. I live over in Maypole Birmingham so know your pain when it comes to light issues
HiStace, Nice images and nice scope. You help setup my scope a few years ago, sky watcher 250mm 1200mm on my eq6 pro mount. Nice see your still looking up at the skys and getting great images.
Yay Stace back. Love your content. As a complete beginner I've learned lots, and can't wait to see more, especially as I've a Newt. 150pds.
Beautiful images Stacey, such a beast of a scope and f3.75 so fast too. The camera collimator looks a nifty piece of kit, will look forward to the video on that 😊
Yep I think that will be my next video, the ocal has helped me a lot!
You cannot beat a big newt and that Starizona CC is just awesome. Another item I have considered. Best just add it to the long long list of things I'd like to but lol.
Gosh it is pricey though! Widescreen trying to sell it for loads more than FLO though, that’s what I don’t get
Great to have you back, and beautiful images!!!!
Great to see you back. Nice scope and excellent images.
Many thanks!😊
I used to love imaging with my Newtonian but refractors are a bit more plug & play I guess & less of a pain to lol, maybe I'll dust the cobwebs from it sometime.
Clear skies & welcome back
Refractors are definitely easier! But I’m glad of the Newtonian experience now!
Clear skies :)
Glad you're back ! We're all still out here . LOL . Looking forward to an Ocal Vid . Can't make my mind up on that one yet . Cheers ./SRK
Yeah I’ve seen a few mixed reviews. It’s really helped me a lot!
Congrats, great to see you back imaging.
Thank you
Good to see you again - you've been missed! Your amazing images show you still 'smash it'! and overcome local logistics - which is your genius. And with a flippin' reflector. Thanks and good vibes. Chris
Thank you ! Yes the local light pollution doesn’t make it easy, but I’m still going :) clear skies!
Great to see you back - good luck with the Newt 😊
Thank you 😊
Welcome back. Enjoyed the video.
Thank you! And thanks for watching! I know there’s lots of astro RUclipsrs out there so I appreciate the time people take to watch mine :)
welcome back
Lovely to see you back on here :)
Thank you! 😊
@@AstroStace most welcome 😊
Great video Stacey, keep them coming.
Thank you Steve
@@AstroStace hope you are better now
Thanks for sharing, really love the images. Tough bit of kit to be moving around with an injury, I hope that gets better for you soon.
Thank you :) I’m nearly a year into injury now and was told 12-24 months recovery…so the only way is up!
Woohoo! AstroStace is back!
Yep! I’m back! Taking it easy with videos and trying to just enjoy it more 😊
That is awesome imaging ! Superlative ++
Many thanks!
Thanks for sharing those items Stacey. Loved that collimator. Happy belated birthday to Lunar 🔭🧁🐶
Thank you :) it’s really helped me a lot! Luna said thank you o
Thanks for the vid and heads up on the camera collimator Stace, may have to look on FLO and treat myself to one of those as also experiencing neck issues.
Ah hopefully it helps you! It’s been very useful for me!
I have the same camera 26c and Starizona focal reducer on a f5 250mm newtonian and the same Ocal unit... Astap reports mine as F3.6 but clearly, your mileage will vary. Using the new field flattener has made collimation critical, I literally need to collimate for every session. In addition, any tilt on your chip or back focus issues will be very apparent. ASTAP has some excellent tools (free!) that most users are unaware of that will highlight any tilt and back focus issues that are easily resolved and help get that initial collimation dead accurate. I suggest spending lots of time upfront getting the unit perfectly aligned and you will be delighted.
The other elephant in the room with these big Newtonians is the little shiny bits that seem to be inside the tube, a little matt black paint on clips, nuts etc does make a difference. But the big payoff is simply flocking the tube, while it does give a noticeable improvement to contrast it also makes a serious difference in being able to image in the presence of light pollution and the moon.
The Newtonian was my first big scope and frankly remains my favourite scope, and I can't see any reason that will change. The 26c is a magic camera and I hope that you are going to be as happy as I have been. If you would like any help please feel to message me directly. Clear Skies!
This is a really great comment :) yes have encountered the issues with my stock focuser. Unfortunately with limited clear skies in the uk it’s hard to get out to fine tune things till their exact! But I’m giving it my best shot :) I’ve got ASTAP so that should help
The plan is definitely to flock the tube, I think that might be a job for summer though, I’ll definitely get some paint on the shiny things too! I also think I need to make a mask for the back end, I noticed some light leakage around the mirror in the video .
This unit is fast becoming my favourite set up, even though like you I have to collimate before every session.
Thanks for taking the time to comment 😊
@@AstroStaceI live in Cornwall and we have fewer clear nights over winter and spring than anywhere else in the UK. I share your pain! But apart from buying a Hyperstar / RASA rig there really is no way to acquire data as fast as with your style of Newtonian and it gives us a fighting chance to get enough data.
Extra things for your wish list ... the Steeltrak focuser, Bobs Knobs, a heater on your secondary, and a little MeleQuieter3 pc mounted on the tube with Nina. I tried and removed a dew shield from the rig as even the slightest breeze would destroy the guiding. The leverage from a dew shield on the end of a long tube (lever) is significant.
Many may suggest you need an OAG, personally, I have found no need as the guide scope EQ6 R arrangement is routinely giving 0.4 guiding under good seeing.
Best wishes and clear skies.
@@frednurk4772 I’m not so sure about that 😅 I live in a micro climate in the shadow of the lickey hills in Birmingham, we get very poor weather!
Thank you for the wish list, I was wondering how to upgrade my focuser! Already got a mini pc, but I mount mine on the side of my mount with velcro, which works wonderfully. Like you I’m regularly achieving 0.4 and under so maybe I’ll just stick with my guiding set up as is!
Bobs knobs are next I think :) these scope’s definitely aren’t “plug and play” like a refractor is !
@@AstroStace challenge you on weather...we have the English channel 6 miles to the south, Irish sea 5 miles to the north and 20 miles of thin peninsular to the west and of course the Atlantic ocean...100 percent nightly cloud cover since 23 Feb
Great video Stacy
Thank you!!
Good to see you back Stacey. I think the light pollution in Birmingham (being a neighbour of yours in Solihull) is actually going down in terms of Bortle scale, but worse in terms of spectrum. Solihull certainly, and I guess Birmingham replaced its sodium vapour lamp street lighting with LED lights. These are better directed throwing the light down onto pavement rather than out to the sides and up, and the streets seem much darker. The fronts of houses are now dark when they used to be light up by the streetlamps. However we have moved from largely filterable Na narrowband, to broad band white. Swings and roundabouts but IMHO if it saves energy and costs its a good thing even if its a pain for astrophotography. Switching off the motorway lights will help too, but I think that's only on the non junction stretches. Clear skies......but not in the forecast for us atm.
You may be right , but here in Longbridge it seems worse. Maybe it is the LED lighting issue , but as you say they do seem better directed. Thanks for watching the video and taking the time to comment, I appreciate it 🙂
I’m in Yardley, too close to the airport...light pollution is awful.
@@bluenose8442 I am the other side, airport to the east, JLR and Solihull to the south, Solihull to the west and Birmingham to the north. Best is probably NE to SE. SW to NW is worst. Broadband isn't much fun, however if Cuiv can do it from Tokyo then I can't complain!
Great images
Thanks 😊
I bought the Ocal pro from FLO . I have only used it on my SCT's so far. As far as I can tell, it seems to work pretty well, although on my 12" SCT I discovered the moonlight focuser that had been installed by it's previous owner had a weird thing that I could take the Ocal off, not touch anything, put it back in the same place, and it would show the centre was off. No issues with my 8" edge. Still got my Dobs to do.
That is strange!
@@AstroStace I've just a new visual back for it. I've taken the moonlight focuser off. It was 'top of the line' focuser apparently and put on to prevent mirror flop. I think it'll end up in the recycling bin.
@@AstroStace ps, good to see you making some more content 👍
@@neiltonks ouch! They aren’t cheap either !
@@AstroStace I think it had been mistreated, maybe even dropped on it.
Did you find that the 55mm back spacing for the Nexus worked or did you need more or less to correct the coma properly? I noticed that the diffraction spikes have split and doubled in some of your images, which could be caused by bent, or not perpendicular spider veins. Also, a 'mirror mask' (to cover the mirror clips) will clean up your stars quite a bit too (along with making sure that the focus tube isn't protruding into the light path).
Yes got a few issues with my stars, that I’m slowly working out. 55mm more or less but I think I could improve. I’m going to flock the tube during summer so I’m hoping to iron out a lot of the issues then :)
This Newtonian seem to be a beast..!
It really is !
That's some beast! What mount are you using? Great images too.
Thank you ! It is! I use an eq6-r pro
Great video ,what more can i say
Thank you 😊
Have you tried replacing the collimation screws on your secondary with bob’s knobs?makes process easier if you don’t have to find an Allen key everytime
Yes that’s a mod I definitely want to do, I also want to flock the inside of the tube too!
@@AstroStace Yes! Im a bit scare to flock mine but I guess I’ll have to bite the bullet and go for it. Btw an aperture mask to cover the mirror clips on the primary will make the stars nice and round. I couldn’t tell if you have one already installed.
@@michaelmuyambo7309 not yet, but that’s something I’m going to do as well when I do the flocking :)
nice to see some images with that scope, i have been wondering if you had managed to take some images yet, i have the 200 pds and have been thinking about the starizona coma corrector, were those images before or after the reducer ? beautiful images either way
A bit of a mix! Some with some without , but still definitely thinking of keeping it in now. I’m a bit of a pain for not getting my spacing totally right so I just crop the corners if I’m not happy!
Nice scope and awesome images at the end. How would you say the quality of the data compares to the refractors?
I hate to say it but I actually feel they’re better from the newt! I’m not sure if that’s because I’ve developed in my imaging and processing skills though.
@@AstroStace Good to hear. I wonder if the newts speed is helping some. Might have to pick one up. :)
Whooooah killer scope
She’s a big one 😅
I have a Altair Astro 127mm APO on a HEQ5 for observations. But have jut got a Altair 102mm starwave and 26C camera so want to start Astro with that. New to that side of the hobby so looking for pointer
You’re gonna love it! I’m not actually that far from the maypole!!! I’m in longbridge :) light pollution is a bit of an issue but you’ve got yourself a great set up there. Happy to advise on filters etc, all my images are from my back garden :)
can you do a video on how to connect your scope to your computer and how to use software
@@sylvestersnet I will do my best to!
@@AstroStace Your pictures are great.. I have just done a hypa mod on my mount. changed all the bearings and done a Rowan Belt mod on the gears to help with tracking.. Now just need that final push and good skies. Have been watching astrobloke but he doesnt show you how to connect the kit and software. Like eqmod and ascom platform or NENA
@@sylvestersnet thank you , I’ll keep it in mind for a video :)
I'm considering a newt for my next 'scope, but I'm still waiting for my mount to come back from darkframe. Given how long thya have had it, I'm expecting perfect tracking that should handle an 8 or 10" newt vry well indeed. Finger crossed.
Oh gosh, fingers crossed it comes back ok!
@@AstroStace I thought it'd be with them for about six weeks or so, it's been rather longer! It did need a good tune-up though, the gears had got a bit crunchy.
@@DavidMills_Physicist ouch! I’m sure I’ve seen others send theirs off and they’re back in that time frame!
@@AstroStace Yeah - I'm getting a bit concerned now. I think I'll phone again this week.
But you told Rory you cannot see vampires in a Newtonian. 🧛♀️
And it’s still true, I’m definitely vulnerable to space vampires now