DrpePPer
sage
Reged: 08/03/05
Posts: 452
Loc: Usa Michigan
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DO bring snacks  . You want to eat with out leaving the site
Do clean up the site if its puplic & private.
Do bring a radio if your car dont have a stero
Do bring extra battaries
Do bring a gps unit if you get lost
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I Own the 114EQ - D Meade Polaris Telescope with 3 eyepieces 1x25mm-ep 1x2xBarlow-ep 1x9mm-pm
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Scott Regener
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 03/31/06
Posts: 1210
Loc: SE Minnesota
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Do buy a telescope you can easily transport unless you have a dedicated observatory.
Do subscribe to a magazine like "Night Sky" that focuses on observing.
Do read the book reviews on Amazon.com before buying anything.
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Rusty
Postmaster
Reged: 08/06/03
Posts: 19246
Loc: Brooker, FL
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Welcome to Cloudy Nights!
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N11GPS Fastar//TOA-130S//MK66 Std//AT6RC//Vintage C5//Megrez II 80mm APO//SolarMax 40
NJP Temma II//Sirius EQ-G
Too Many Astro-Cameras//Mallincam Color Hyper Plus
Two not-spoiled Golden Retrievers - Casey and Nelson
Lot 19 Deerlick Astronomy Village (Canis Major)
Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering. - Arthur C. Clarke
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Raven911
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 03/12/05
Posts: 1899
Loc: by Cloudcroft, NM
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Don't sneeze near your corrector plate!
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http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v287/Raven911/Astrophotos/
http://www.eye-of-the-raven.blogspot.com/
My list of second-hand and home-made stuff:
Celestron SC6
Celestron C9.25
100mm F6/76mm F4.5/80mm F5/SV NHII 80mm F6 Achros
SBIG ST7/Canon 300D/DSI Pro Mono/Starshoot DSCI
8 inch F7 Newt on Edmund EQ
8 inch F4.5 Project Astrograph
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Moggi1964
Vendor - Astro Laugh
Reged: 11/07/05
Posts: 3636
Loc: Madison. NJ. USA
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and from a post I saw on Astromart.....
"don't let your do pee on your refractor"
Morris
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Morris
www.astrolaugh.com
Astrosystems Telekit 10" with F/6 JC Wilkinson mirror
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Raven911
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 03/12/05
Posts: 1899
Loc: by Cloudcroft, NM
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Quote:
and from a post I saw on Astromart.....
"don't let your do pee on your refractor"
Morris
I am guessing you mean "dog". That would be nasty and hard to clean if he happened to hit the right spot.
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http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v287/Raven911/Astrophotos/
http://www.eye-of-the-raven.blogspot.com/
My list of second-hand and home-made stuff:
Celestron SC6
Celestron C9.25
100mm F6/76mm F4.5/80mm F5/SV NHII 80mm F6 Achros
SBIG ST7/Canon 300D/DSI Pro Mono/Starshoot DSCI
8 inch F7 Newt on Edmund EQ
8 inch F4.5 Project Astrograph
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MRoedel
professor emeritus
Reged: 11/10/06
Posts: 647
Loc: Michigan
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Quote:
Dont log onto this site 5 minutes before bedtime,whilst casually calling upstairs to your better half,"its O.K. pet,I'll be upstairs in a minute".Then, two hours later tiptoeing upstairs and into bed in "Stealth" mode.Ive made that mistake a few times.This site is so "Moreish"!
When you go to bed, flick the light on (keeps you from crushing her foot) and say, "Honey, are you still awake?"
She'll pretend she's asleep.
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Mike Roedel
It is not so much our friends' help that helps us as the confident knowledge that they will help us. -Epicurus, philosopher (c. 341-270 BCE)
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jouster
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 11/27/05
Posts: 926
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Don't despise the Moon just cause it's washing your favorite fuzzies out! Get some paper and have a go at sketching it.
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Neil
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Tele
sage
Reged: 11/01/05
Posts: 294
Loc: Eastern Oklahoma
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What a great tread! Here's my bit.
Don't forget to check "Heavens Above" or "Sky and Telescope" and miss a one time event like a comet!!
Do find an observing buddy.
Do learn to star hop.
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The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds the most discoveries, is not "Eureka!", but "That's funny..."
-- Isaac Asimov
14" f4.56 Homemade dob w/ Raycraft Optics
8" f5 Homemade dob w/ Orion Optics
4" f10 Homemade off axis dob w/ DGM optics
10 x 60 Apogee Binos w/ neb filters
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WStewart
professor emeritus
Reged: 11/02/05
Posts: 611
Loc: Dallas, TX
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Good tips here. If it hasn't already been mentioned, I'd like to suggest that you DO check out your observing area thoroughly before dark because you DON'T want to be dancing the fire ant boogie after dark.
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Wesley
Z10
SPC8
15X70 binoculars
my pics
my Flickr pics
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SanDiegoPaul
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 07/22/05
Posts: 2721
Loc: San Diego
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Bring table and chairs along with refreshments. Get a routine of packing ... I put all cables, diagonals, small hardware and cameras in a suitcase. Eyepieces are in another carrier already. By the time the suitcase is packed, I know I'm halfway done.
Also, after you load the car, come in & get a cup of coffee or better yet, recline on the sofa for a minute with your eyes shut. Take short nap if you need it! But the point is, that when your eyes are shut and you're thinking about what you have loaded already, you'll remember also what you forgot.
I do this and then leave an hour or so later after the car's packed up and I thought it was ready to go the first time.
Each and EVERY single time, I am to be found bringing more stuff out to the car after I napped or just relaxed with my eyes shut for a minute. There's always something I think of that I know I didn't pack.
Last? Make yourself a LIST and check things off as you go. Keep it in your PC if you have to, and print a seperate copy each time you go out. You can highlight or check off each item and when you're done with the list, just toss it 'til next time and if it's in your computer you can just print it up again.
I used a list for about a year, each time I went to my club's dark sky site. After that it all became routine.
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Dr. Clay Supercharged Meade 10" Lx200-R
StellarVue SV70 Guide Scope Piggybacked
Mitty Evolution Wedge
Stellarvue Raptor 90 Triplet on CGEM
SBIG ST2000 XM & SBIG ST402ME
Canon 500D (Mod by Brent Oliver)
www.DeepSkyPixels.Com
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kfred
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/11/03
Posts: 2164
Loc: Dayton, Ohio
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Do check CN every day...
Fred
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Trixie
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csa/montana
Den Mama
Reged: 05/14/05
Posts: 76331
Loc: montana
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Quote:
Do check CN every day...
Fred
Thought that was mandatory! 
Carol 
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Carol
AstroTech 16" Dob (Thanks ASTRONOMICS!)
Vixen 80MF
Masayumas 7.5,15,25W,35
Pentax XW5,10; XL7
TV22Pan
ES30
Paradigm 8,12,18
DreamCatcher Dobservatory
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Rollo
sage
Reged: 08/16/06
Posts: 293
Loc: Clearwater, Fl.
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Make a list of whatever you are taking with you and check each item off as you load your car. It is no fun driving hours to go somewhere and forget something important.
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Rollo
20in. F4.3 Starstructure Dob
9x63 Celestron Ultima Binos
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astromattical
Paperback Writer
Reged: 06/24/07
Posts: 1245
Loc: Virginia Beach, VA
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This may or may not work for everyone -
Even if you are not in the mood to get out there and observe - you're too tired or just feeling down - GET OFF YOUR BUTT AND DO SOME OBSERVING!
Just a few weeks ago I was not in the mood AT ALL to go out, and for about an hour I kept thinking to myself "you'll regret it tomorrow if you don't go." So I packed up my telescope, went out to the park, saw about 10-15 other cars there with people getting their telescopes setup. Got out of my car, set up, started talking to other club members, and I had a GREAT and FUN night! Started off with the entire day being in a bad mood, and I was happy as can be within 5 minutes of showing up at the park.
So to sum it all up: *DO* get out there and observe every chance you get!
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-Matt
U.S. Navy, Respiratory Therapist
Orion XT4.5
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StacyJo
professor emeritus
Reged: 07/08/04
Posts: 726
Loc: Oakland, CA
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If you are using private property, take the time to handwrite (yes, handwrite) a Thank You note. You'll be remembered well and more than likely to get invited back.
Clear skies, Stacy
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Stacy
"Why yes, there is a difference between photon deprivation and PMS"
AKA Konstellation Kitty
M42Gal
Stellarvue Nighthawk II
Orion Starblast 6" Newtonian - newest addition to the family!!!
7x50 Orion Scenix Binoculars
Old 3" Jason Comet Chaser
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David Castillo
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/09/06
Posts: 1398
Loc: Carmel Valley, Ca
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If you can't tell a skunk from a cat in the dark, be sure to shine a light on it before you take measures to scare it off.
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Dave
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desertstars
Reged: 11/05/03
Posts: 41911
Loc: Tucson, AZ
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But also very true!
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Thomas Watson
Author of Mr. Olcott's Skies. Available in paperback and ebook from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
@desertstarsbks
Under Desert StarsEither Way, It's Reading
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hm insulators
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/22/07
Posts: 3542
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Quote:
Don't forget about the kit for the small stuff these can ruin a night of observing.
Like the battery for the Rigel
Screws for the Telrad
Fuses for those adapters
Tool kit of some sort for those small screws, bolts etc.
This list could go on and on. Most folks who have been observing for awhile have these handy; you never know.
Some time back at a star party I was using my electronics with one of those adapters and sure enough it popped open and that spring was lost in the dark.  So here I am walking around looking for one of those pens you know the one with the spring inside.
Oh no, it sounds like the model builder's "carpet monster" (which eats tiny parts, never to be seen again) has a cousin that eats small telescope parts.
It's the "ground monster!" 
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Remember, if the women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.
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chas51
super member
Reged: 06/03/06
Posts: 180
Loc: Charlotte, North Carolina
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Last time I went somewhere, I forgot my chart table and had to put my charts down in the wet grass. Luckily they are all laminated. Also, check to ground when you leave. I almost left behind a filter box that had fallen out of my eyepiece case.
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Chas
Zhumell 10" Dob
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