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DugDog
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 12/19/07
Posts: 1936
Loc: Temecula, Ca. USA
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My first light started not well. The dew was heavy, and accumulated fast on corrector plate. Brought everything back inside, and allowed the dew to evaporate.
I posted my first dew problem on the forums, and RandyR suggested using a cardboard box as a temporary dew shield. I crafted a Cardboard dew shield, and setup again for round two for the night.
The cardboard worked well, and many thanks to RandyR for making the suggestion. Dew was no problem for the rest of the night.
SkyAlign Report:
This lined up well, and made a perfect match easily. In my area, East is best viewing area, as the West is covered by large trees.
When I used the goto feature, it worked well when an object was in view of the Telescope. If I used a GOTO on object that had an obstructed view (in my case, the large trees in the west) the scope would keep looking for an object, and fall out of alignment.
As soon as the GOTO failed on one object, the SkyAlign would have to be redone. I kept most of my viewing on Mars, and Orion's M42 Nebula.
M42 came in great. This was the first time I was able to see surrounding gas clouds in great detail. I was amazed how the details seemed to jump out to me like never before. M42 was the highlight of the evening.
Mars was too bright, it seemed to be washed out like a full moon.
I am using the stock setup, except for the cardboard dew shield.  I think EPs and a barlow will be necessary accessories. The stock 40MM EP gets you going...but I want more!
Over all a very good experience. Tracking, and goto seemed to be the biggest disappointment. I am sure more experience will help me overcome these problems.
DD
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http://myastroimages.com
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Bob Griffiths
Getting Grouchy
Reged: 10/10/05
Posts: 10103
Loc: Frederick Maryland
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Quote:
SkyAlign Report:
This lined up well, and made a perfect match easily. In my area, East is best viewing area, as the West is covered by large trees.
When I used the goto feature, it worked well when an object was in view of the Telescope. If I used a GOTO on object that had an obstructed view (in my case, the large trees in the west) the scope would keep looking for an object, and fall out of alignment.
As soon as the GOTO failed on one object, the SkyAlign would have to be redone.
Over all a very good experience. Tracking, and goto seemed to be the biggest disappointment. I am sure more experience will help me overcome these problems.
DD
Well Dougie Dog
Ya got me on the Lost gotos .. And your comment that the scope keeps looking ..then falls out of alignment REALLY has me scratching my head...
There is NO reason for that to happen... If your object is located behind the barn the scope will still know where to look and when it gets to the correct place it will STOP
The scope does not have have x-ray vision so you will not be able to see thru the darn barn...
I Think you may be having POWER Problems...
These scope just do not loose alignment without a power loss
Alignments however do sometimes deteriorate over time....
Bob G.
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CPC1100
Nexstar 8i + GPS & Rays Brackets
Denk S1 power switch
Orion 100 mm Refractor
Meade LXD 55 ...AR-5 127 mm Refractor
Gerbring heated clothing in the winter
Exploradome Observatory S.I.E. (Smiling Irish Eyes)
39*21'03" N
77*28'12" W
The sky over my head....
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rookie
Good Night Nurse
Reged: 01/14/06
Posts: 2743
Loc: St. Petersburg, FL
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Hi DD, You have the "I can't believe it's mine" look on that picture you posted. I know how you feel! Congratulations!
You can try to run an electrical cord to your telescope and use a hairdryer to blow off the dew. Here in Florida, it's essential. I even have a hair dryer that plugs into my battery pack adapter. Be patient, don't get the hot air from the dryer too close to the glass. It might be helpful even after you get a dew shield.
The telescope does not have a brain that interprets its visual objective. It would not be confused by somthing that blocks your line of sight. It knows the placement of celestial objects above the horizon based on the time of day, your alignment, and the digital coordinates in its data base. If you know the names of some of the brighter stars you can try the 2 star (or auto 2 star) alignment and see if it is easier to use.
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SV
Scopes: CPC8, TV85+Voyager
Binos: 40-70mm, GT80mm~45deg
"The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting." Milan Kundera
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Astroboy86
sage
Reged: 01/28/07
Posts: 444
Loc: Southeastern Virginia
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As Bob suggests, the "keeps looking" and "loses alignment" symptoms are classic indicators of power problems with this scope. Before I started using a separate field battery for our dew controller, we would usually end each viewing session with the scope either slewing up toward zenith and continuing on until the OTA is upside-down, or it would would just keep slewing in Az until I shut it down to keep the power cords from winding tight.
Some users have reported bad connections with the DC jack on the mount, with similar behavior resulting. Spreading the split center pin slightly for a tighter plug fit should correct this. Good luck and welcome to CN!
-Harry
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Our ever-growing equipment collection:
Celestron CPC 925 GPS XLT (The Precious)
EarthWin PFS-D binoviewer w/dielectric coatings
Meade ETX-125AT (Shadow Lass)
Meade DS-2130ATS-LNT (Mr. Magoo)
Meade 114NT/500 (Foggy Bottom)
StellarVue M4-style EQ mount
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b1gred
Enginerd
Reged: 04/01/04
Posts: 16902
Loc: Castle Rock, CO 6677' MSL
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They've said it all.
Make sure you have a good power connection - gently.
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"Dark Skies & Great Viewing"
RandyR / W0RDR
GPS 9.25 XLT/Sky Align /FeatherTouch
TV85 w/FeatherTouch
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rlalum
sage
Reged: 07/17/07
Posts: 446
Loc: Northern California
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if you can check the mA value, i believ the cpc needs 1500 mA.
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DugDog
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 12/19/07
Posts: 1936
Loc: Temecula, Ca. USA
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Quote:
if you can check the mA value, i believ the cpc needs 1500 mA.
I can't believe you guys nailed it! I made my own power source from an AC Power Adapter I had around the house. It's a 12VDC rated at 800mA. I guess the next step is finding a car battery to hook-up and test.
To say "I appreciate your help" is an understatement. Everyone here at CN is so helpful. Don't know what I would do without your help!
Thank you! And Happy New Year to Everyone!
DD
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http://myastroimages.com
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rlalum
sage
Reged: 07/17/07
Posts: 446
Loc: Northern California
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let us know what the results were. Good luck and happy new year to you
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