jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
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I find myself awash with EQ mounts; I have 4 of them presently. I have just one, lonely alt-az mount; a Takahashi Lapides-modified Teegul which I use with my FS-78 as a grab and go set-up.
I've considered adding DSCs to the Teegul, but what I am really after is a quick, painless, easy way to use my TV-102 on a non-driven, but DSC-equipped alt-az mount, and figured I would start at the source - TeleVue.
Specifically, I am wondering whether the Gibraltar with Skytour is painless, smooth, trouble-free and accurate out of the box. Frankly I don't find the Teegul's slo-mo controls to be particularly smooth, even after tension adjustment. I am hoping that the Gibraltar would offer a smoother experience and that Sky Tour would work flawlessly 99.99999% of the time.
What do you think? Is a Gibraltar with Sky Tour going to make me happy?
Thanks!
- Jim
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"I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."
- Sir Issac Newton
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TomN
sage
Reged: 01/14/09
Posts: 264
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Quote:
Specifically, I am wondering whether the Gibraltar with Skytour is painless, smooth, trouble-free and accurate out of the box. Frankly I don't find the Teegul's slo-mo controls to be particularly smooth, even after tension adjustment. I am hoping that the Gibraltar would offer a smoother experience and that Sky Tour would work flawlessly 99.99999% of the time.
What do you think? Is a Gibraltar with Sky Tour going to make me happy?
Mine makes me very happy with my TV101. Smooth and extremely accurate DSCs with the Sky Tour. Simple setup and use. Perfect.
Tom
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Amateur Astronomer since 1962.
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jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
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Thank you Tom.
I am leaning towards giving one a shot.
I really want a digitally assisted set up that I can deploy on a moment's notice.
Regards,
Jim
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"I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."
- Sir Issac Newton
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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Quote:
I really want a digitally assisted set up that I can deploy on a moment's notice.
Mine works as advertised, too. I would estimate the entire weight of a gibralter tripod & head, TV-102, sky-tour with mounting plate, avg. 2" EP, and reflex finder at 34 to 35 lbs. out the door.
I find the Gibralter head to have very smooth movements in both axes unless it's very cold. But you live in California and everyone knows it never gets very cold in California. Problem solved. (smirk)
A re-lube with white lithium grease might also help in this instance.
You already know you'll have to re-balance when changing EPs of significantly different weights. The 102 is a slower nose-heavy doublet relative to other TV offerings; some alt-az users of this scope have found fault with the Gibralter head for three reasons. Care is needed to tighten the alt brake knobs before the EP change or the OTA crashes fast. A few TV-102 users claim the balance point changes with wide changes in altitude movement. Can't comment on the latter point from experience as my 127's petzval design is inherently easier to balance than a doublet. Third, settle times at higher mags (read planetary) can put off some observers but this can be mitigated by attention to keeping nuts and bolts appropriately tight.
My setup settles in just under a second when manually focusing (and I'm likely undermounted). TV's focusmate killed off all remaining focusing jigglies at planetary mags but, honestly, I don't think the TV-102's increased depth of field at ƒ8.6 will justfy this expense (my 127's ƒ5.2 made the purchase worthwhile strictly for focusing apart from the settling time improvement).
If I had more disposable dough, I might consider a half-hitch head or Tom Peter's DM-4 for your set-up to eliminate these potential problems if you felt the need (but then why would you be considering the Sky-Tour in the first place, right?) You're an experienced observer and I doubt you'll find these issues insurmountable in what will basically be a grunt-and-go setup.
This thread has some good posts about the TV-102/Gibralter you might find useful.
Ahem . . . back to the Sky-Tour, please. 
Right!
It has been reliable and (mostly) trouble-free for me. The only problem experienced was a fractured azimuth encoder housing due to my failure to read the instructions when removing it to re-lube the bearings during a general maintenance tear down. Cost me $60 bucks to replace, but I haven't gotten around to installing the new one because the broken one is still working! Five years and no other breakage or functioning issues.
The only nit I have is the text size of the display. I don't use my glasses to observe but need them to read the display at night. Not a big deal. I've heard that low temps cause problems but cannot confirm.
Use instructions are good enough, batteries last a long time, accuracy is fine and repeatable, usage is pretty straightforward, plenty of catalogued targets, etc.
I'm out the door in 41 lbs. with a NP-127 all "TeleVue'd up" as depicted below. Simplicity itself. Enough so that I've resisted buying a suitable EQ mount lo these many years because in the end, I don't think I'll get out with it as much as I do now. That's key for me.
It makes me happy.
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Jim
"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Psalms 8:3-4
TV Refractors
Fuji Binoculars
Edited by MacRoberts (10/30/09 09:05 PM)
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jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
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Thanks Mac. I'm actually one of the offenders...er...contributors on the TV-102 thread you linked. Agreed about the TV-102's depth of focus and not needing a dual-speed focuser, but I opted for the Feathertouch Microfocuser upgrade to help tame a little black draw tube twisting I was experiencing with the stock R&P unit.
I'm also a huge fan of the Tom Lorenzen's classic 1000+ book, which I sadly lost in a move about twelve years ago. Looking for a replacement of the out-or-print classic I stumbled on Tom's website and his database of 2000+ objects. I dutifully printed the entire database and installed it with laminated pages into a set of binders.
I had no idea that the Sky Tour was using Tom's 2000+ database until this morning. That's a plus in my book. Definitely a nice set of targets for the aperture range of scopes likely to see the topside of a Gibraltar.
Thanks again for your comments,
Jim
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"I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."
- Sir Issac Newton
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TomN
sage
Reged: 01/14/09
Posts: 264
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Sorry, I was a bit brief with my reply. It really is a very workable setup, stable, easy to use, almost grab n'go, but not quite. No problems with any electronics and I use the heavy brass Televue 2" to 1.25" adapter (ugly but functional) to counterbalance the scope when using heavy eyepieces. Yes, you do have to pay attention but it really isn't all that hard to do. I typically haul it out in three steps, 1) mount and eyepieces in trays, 2) telescope, and 3) observing chair, charts, notebook, etc. Calibration prior to observing is very quick and easy, takes less than 2 minutes. It really has changed my astronomical life to have DSCs. What a wonderful tool! I build an observing plan at my desk and just go out and observe the objects of interest in pre-planned order. No messing around trying to identify things. The older I get the more I like this terrific time saving feature. Not to mention the TV101 in itself...oh, don't get me started... 
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Amateur Astronomer since 1962.
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Erik Bakker
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/10/06
Posts: 534
Loc: Haren, The Netherlands, Europe
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Hi Jim,
That is a beautiful set up with the NP127, Gibraltar and all. Absolutely beautiful.
Wow,
Erik
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Visual astronomer, main instruments:
Fully mounted Questar 7 P-BB
Celestron C 102F f/8.8 fluorite
Vixen FL 70S f/8 fluorite
Celestron C 55F f/8 fluorite
Sets of Zeiss, TeleVue and Brandon eyepieces
Zeiss 7x50 Marine B/GA
Zeiss TM german equatorial
Gitzo 224 with Manfrotto 501 fluid head
Unitron alt-az mount
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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Thanks, Erik! Notice how my setup likes to sit near the door, anxious to run outside when it opens.
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Jim
"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Psalms 8:3-4
TV Refractors
Fuji Binoculars
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Erik Bakker
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/10/06
Posts: 534
Loc: Haren, The Netherlands, Europe
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Quote:
Thanks, Erik! Notice how my setup likes to sit near the door, anxious to run outside when it opens.
For me, that is the essence of stargazing. 
Clear skies,
Erik
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Visual astronomer, main instruments:
Fully mounted Questar 7 P-BB
Celestron C 102F f/8.8 fluorite
Vixen FL 70S f/8 fluorite
Celestron C 55F f/8 fluorite
Sets of Zeiss, TeleVue and Brandon eyepieces
Zeiss 7x50 Marine B/GA
Zeiss TM german equatorial
Gitzo 224 with Manfrotto 501 fluid head
Unitron alt-az mount
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jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
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Every time I get ready to click "Checkout" I think about the iOptron Mini Tower. At $799 with 25# capacity, GOTO and tracking, it stalls me in pulling the trigger on the Gibraltar with Sky Tour setup. Then I read the iOptron manual, and am ready to "checkout" on the Gibraltar all over again. The iOptron sounds like it's just as hard to setup as any GOTO equatorial..."It MUST be level...blah, blah, blah..."
Regards,
Jim
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"I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."
- Sir Issac Newton
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TomN
sage
Reged: 01/14/09
Posts: 264
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Suggest you re-read this thread. I too looked at other options....
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Amateur Astronomer since 1962.
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7331Peg
professor emeritus
Reged: 09/01/08
Posts: 733
Loc: North coast of Oregon
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Jim, if your nerves can't take the sound of the TV102 going bang in the night as it flops forward onto the Gibraltar head, you might want to consider another option. My experience was that the TV102 is just too long and too heavy for that mount head. While the TV85 works like a dream on it, you'll find keeping everything in balance and smooth is a lot of work with the 102. And no matter how careful you are, at some point the scope is going to flop forward - or worse, but rare - backwards.
John
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Lt 26
member
Reged: 02/19/09
Posts: 23
Loc: Northwest Illinois
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I can't comment on the SKY TOUR but after about 8 months with the Gibraltar I am very happy. I am new to this hobby and not ready for a GOTO. I like to keep things simple. I don't understand why some have issues with this mount. I have made a few minor modifications that will stop the dreaded smack down forward or backwards. First of all I did not booger up the looks of the mount and spent only about 5 dollars. At the hardware store I found a black rubber plug about the size of a hockey puck except with tapered sides.I hollowed out bottom a little and placed this over top of the existing smaller hard plastic cap in the center of the mount. It looks like it came with the mount and no worry of a forward smack. Now for the just as bad if not worse rear impact. At the same hardware store I found small black knob attached to a threaded rod that fit into the threaded hole on the right side fork. After threading this into the hole,trimming to length, I placed a small Teflon cap over the end. This also looks factory as the knob appears to be made the same company that makes all the other knobs on the Gibraltar. With the knob backed out every thing swings free and with 1/2 turn I can capture the scope between this and the rubber puck. Yes I have to bring the scope to level to do this, but as the scope can only move up or down a few inches there is no chance of it getting away from you. I also like this set up as I don't have to adjust the tension knobs. I have the Ash Gibraltar 5 and just love the way it holds my TV102.
Dereck
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TV 102 / Ash Gib 5 / Focusmate / Starbeam
TV 20, 55 Pl, 4 Rad, T6 3.5, 5, 11
T5 26, E 6, 8, 17, Pan 35
SV 70 / M1
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nyc_nurse
sage
Reged: 07/29/09
Posts: 254
Loc: nyc
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Hi Jim. I've never come close to having my TV-102 do any forward or backwards flips. There really isn't much to locking down the tension knobs when changing EPs. Sure it's not a DM-4 or DM-6 but again you're not paying those prices. For what it cost, especially on the used market, I don't think you can go wrong with it. My only suggestion would be to get a cyclops style bubble to make sure the tripod is level if you're setting up on uneven ground. SkyTour takes all of 10 seconds to setup and it's accuracy is good enough that most objects fall within a 13mm Nagler. The accuracy does go down a bit throughout the night but it's easy to keep it tightly on track with a realignment on any object that you center into view that's in the database. Good luck in choosing!
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Sam P.
www.agirlandaguy.blogspot.com
Pentax 7X50
TV-102 APO w/ (Starbeam - on backorder  )
Ash Gibraltar w/ SkyTour DSC
NZ3-6, N9T6, N13T6
TV 20 Plossl
Pan 24, 35
Pentax XW10, XW14
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BobH
super member
Reged: 01/03/08
Posts: 143
Loc: PA
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Quote:
The iOptron sounds like it's just as hard to setup as any GOTO equatorial..."It MUST be level...blah, blah, blah..."
I have a Mini-Tower and am pretty dissatisfied with it for a number of reasons, but under certain circumstances, alignment is not one of them. Yes, if you are starting from scratch, aligning the MT is a pain...way too few alignment star choices, stars must be far apart, etc.
But, I haven't fully aligned in several sessions. I set up on my deck. After observing, I park the scope. Then I carefully pick it up and carry it back in the house. Next session, I carry it back out, set it in approximately the same spot, level it (incredibly easy with the leveling screws), eyeball south, and turn it on.
Lately my favorite target is Jupiter. I select slew to Jupiter and it usually in the eyepiece, or at least in the finder with just that crude setup. I do an adjustment to center Jup and hit the sync mode. At least 5 times faster than the Meade alignment procedure and I'd guess easier than most EQ's.
Having said that, get the Gibralter  
Good luck,
Bob
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"Wise men learn more from fools than fools from the wise." - Cato the Elder
Meade 8" LX200 GPS
ETX 125 PE
Tasco 50mm x 600mm
StellarVue 115ST on MiniTower
Orion Astroview 100
Celestron 8x42 Outland LX
'03 Harley FXDL (oops, wrong forum)
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Texas
member
Reged: 01/14/08
Posts: 25
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I've got a Gibraltar with the Sky Tour and while IMO it is no where near as elegant looking as a Teegul, it performs as advertised and has an easy learning curve. Only downside is that balancing can be a pain after an ep swap and the SkyTour might disappoint you if your expecting a bazillion targets, but what it does have is really very nice.
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Typical stargazer. Too much money spent on too much stuff. This "hobby" has gotten out of hand.
Mewlon 250
AP Traveler
TV 85
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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Hey, Dereck, if you check back on this thread . . .
Quote:
I have the Ash Gibraltar 5 and just love the way it holds my TV102.
. . . how'd you decide to use the Gib 5 with the 102? I'm not nitpicking at all, just curious because I'm guessing it might be a bit better for this OTA than the standard Gibralter head.
Have you also used a standard head, and if so can you compare the two for use with the TV-102?
Thanks!
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Jim
"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Psalms 8:3-4
TV Refractors
Fuji Binoculars
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7331Peg
professor emeritus
Reged: 09/01/08
Posts: 733
Loc: North coast of Oregon
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If you can keep your eyepiece weights very close, you can definitely minimize the balance and flopping issues with the TV102 and the Gibraltar head. As long as I stuck with 1 1/4" eyepieces, I didn't have much problem. But as soon as you add two inch eyepieces to the equation, things get interesting ... and frustrating.
Gravity is gravity and the only cure for it in this case would be to make the altitude bearings larger in order to provide more surface area for gripping purposes.
On the other hand, I always found the smooth azimuth motion on the Gibraltar to be a real pleasure.
With regard to Sky Tour, I never had it on my mount, so I can't comment on it.
John
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Lt 26
member
Reged: 02/19/09
Posts: 23
Loc: Northwest Illinois
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Jim.I got a very late start in this hobby,age 50. I very much wanted to over 20 years ago,if I only had a nickle for every setup I put together in my head and dreamed about owning. OH well,probably saved a ton money. So when I could afford and had the time to enjoy it I did a lot of research,much of it here. There were several things I picked up on, one buy quality, and second it never hurts to have a bigger mount. These are my first everything, tripod, mount, scope, eyepieces, and accessories. When looking for tripod and mount I narrowed it down to the Gibraltar because of build and ease of use. The Ash Gibraltar 5 because the Ash is one pound heavier than the Walnut which I think looks better, and the 5 mount has larger tension knobs. The 5 mount was made for the TV 127 and since they are close in weight and length I thought the TV 102 would also work well on this set up. I must admit I also like to have mine setup by the door,it screams take me outside.
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TV 102 / Ash Gib 5 / Focusmate / Starbeam
TV 20, 55 Pl, 4 Rad, T6 3.5, 5, 11
T5 26, E 6, 8, 17, Pan 35
SV 70 / M1
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Erik Bakker
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/10/06
Posts: 534
Loc: Haren, The Netherlands, Europe
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Quote:
Jim.I got a very late start in this hobby,age 50. I very much wanted to over 20 years ago,if I only had a nickle for every setup I put together in my head and dreamed about owning. OH well,probably saved a ton money. So when I could afford and had the time to enjoy it I did a lot of research,much of it here. There were several things I picked up on, one buy quality, and second it never hurts to have a bigger mount. These are my first everything, tripod, mount, scope, eyepieces, and accessories. When looking for tripod and mount I narrowed it down to the Gibraltar because of build and ease of use. The Ash Gibraltar 5 because the Ash is one pound heavier than the Walnut which I think looks better, and the 5 mount has larger tension knobs. The 5 mount was made for the TV 127 and since they are close in weight and length I thought the TV 102 would also work well on this set up. I must admit I also like to have mine setup by the door,it screams take me outside.
Pictures please! Love to see your TV102 Gibraltar 5 set up.
CS,
Erik
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Visual astronomer, main instruments:
Fully mounted Questar 7 P-BB
Celestron C 102F f/8.8 fluorite
Vixen FL 70S f/8 fluorite
Celestron C 55F f/8 fluorite
Sets of Zeiss, TeleVue and Brandon eyepieces
Zeiss 7x50 Marine B/GA
Zeiss TM german equatorial
Gitzo 224 with Manfrotto 501 fluid head
Unitron alt-az mount
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jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
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Okay, I'm intrigued.
Tell me more about running the TV-102 on the Gibraltar 5 mount.
Note that I would also like to run my Takahashi FS-78 on the mount. Televue offers a tube clamp that allows the FS-78 or Sky90 to be used on a Gibraltar. I am assuming (hoping) therefore that the adapted FS-78 would attach to a Gibraltar 5 in the same manner a TV-102 attaches to that mount.
Are there any special "parts" or adapters required to run the TV-102 on a Gibraltar 5 cradle?
Thanks!
- Jim
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"I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."
- Sir Issac Newton
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jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
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Sam:
You and your wife have a great blog. When the two of you do finally land here in California, I'd love to have you visit the Farm (no, not *that* Farm, tsk, tsk, Stanford people...the O.F.L.I. farm owned by CNer cuzimthedad, located in Sonoma, CA) for one of our star parties. There are now a whole bunch of CNers in pretty regular attendance, decent Mag 5 skies, good horizons and a great selection of gear. There's a definite over-representation of refractors too, as is proper.
I'm probably looking at a Gibraltar with Sky Tour for the time being. I may one day upgrade to a DM-6 to cover all of my current OTAs, if I enjoy the push-to alt-az mode, but for now I really want a moderately prices setup for my 3" and 4" apochromats that can be deployed in minutes and travels compactly.
Regards,
Jim
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"I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."
- Sir Issac Newton
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Lt 26
member
Reged: 02/19/09
Posts: 23
Loc: Northwest Illinois
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Jim. No special parts required, just replaced the two allen head post on the bottom of the clam shell with the two longer ones supplied with the Gibraltar 5. Beside the other two minor alterations to stop forward/rearward smack down. I made one change to the scope. The bat wing now is threaded into the left side of the clam shell, it looks real nice there and I never use it. Instead on the right I have a tall knurled metal knob. It is like the one you see on many of the SV scopes. As a matter of fact they sent it to me free, very nice people. So with the three changes I made at home I am still under 5 dollars. Those that are considering this tripod/mount but are put off by some bad press should know how well this setup works. From thinking about it to looking through it is under 5 minutes, tear down is just about as quick. Really makes it worth it when you have less than an hour to view. The other advantage to the way I have mine setup is that when I lower it for an eyepiece change and capture it, I also re-balance it. As I don't change the tension on the brass knobs and the scope can move up and down about 2" in the captured position. This way I make e.p. changes and re-balancing before I release the scope. I never worry about anything going bump in the night. This scope came with a 2" diagonal, I have six 2" eyepieces, I find them every bit as easy to use as my 1.25" eyepieces.
Dereck
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TV 102 / Ash Gib 5 / Focusmate / Starbeam
TV 20, 55 Pl, 4 Rad, T6 3.5, 5, 11
T5 26, E 6, 8, 17, Pan 35
SV 70 / M1
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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Dereck,
Thanks for responding! Using the Gib5 with the TV-102 certainly makes a lot of sense. You chose well.
I was 49 when I got my setup. The occasion was OPT's first annual vendor's day, then in late summer, and Al Nagler was there along with Ron Bee. I got wonderfully double-teamed! Al spent nearly 45 minutes with me, just me, and it was a ton of fun getting his perspective in this most personal way. Many here have had similar experiences.
For the observing I do, and where I do most of it, the Gib5 mount does the job well. It's not perfect for planetary observation or EP changes. I've had to fiddle here and there to improve a thing or two. I guess I wanted it to work for me for a number of reasons and was willing to learn it's idiosyncrasies and proper usage. The result is a setup that works well enough that I like to use it.
No doubt, someday I'll get an EQ mount for the purpose of streamlining my effort at outreach events. I find it interesting, though, that many who come to my scope as first timers appreciate being able to move it around a bit or fine-focus (all with assistance) - it seems to make their experience a bit more enjoyable because there was some "hands on" time.
I've been lucky so far . . .
Another vote for photos of your Gib5 rig when you get the chance!
--------------------
Jim
"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Psalms 8:3-4
TV Refractors
Fuji Binoculars
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Lt 26
member
Reged: 02/19/09
Posts: 23
Loc: Northwest Illinois
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Jim. I would very much like to send photos, as I am very proud of her. It looks so nice with a 2" e.p. in and a lot of tube forward, pointed up. But I am a very simple guy and have not yet got that figured out. We did just get a new Nikon DSLR, any pointers would be greatly appreciated. Can send photos on e-mail but haven't been able to post any.
Dereck
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TV 102 / Ash Gib 5 / Focusmate / Starbeam
TV 20, 55 Pl, 4 Rad, T6 3.5, 5, 11
T5 26, E 6, 8, 17, Pan 35
SV 70 / M1
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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Quote:
We did just get a new Nikon DSLR, any pointers would be greatly appreciated. Can send photos on e-mail but haven't been able to post any.
PM sent.
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Jim
"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Psalms 8:3-4
TV Refractors
Fuji Binoculars
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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Quote:
Pictures please! Love to see your TV102 Gibraltar 5 set up.
. . . and here they come, 1st of 7 taken by Dereck and posted at his request.
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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#2 0f 7.
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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#3 of 7.
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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#4 of 7.
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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#5 of 7.
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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#6 of 7.
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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#7 of 7 taken by Dereck of his TV-102 on a Gib5.
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Jim
"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Psalms 8:3-4
TV Refractors
Fuji Binoculars
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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Whoops, here's 3 more that just came in. Makes this 8 of 10.
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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#9 of 10.
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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. . . and #10 of 10 taken by Dereck.
--------------------
Jim
"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Psalms 8:3-4
TV Refractors
Fuji Binoculars
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7331Peg
professor emeritus
Reged: 09/01/08
Posts: 733
Loc: North coast of Oregon
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Quote:
... I must admit I also like to have mine setup by the door,it screams take me outside.
Before I forget it, nice pictures, Dereck. The 102 looks at home on that larger head.
I had mine set up near the door, too, and it was always screaming to go outside:
Scope: Let's go out.
Me: It's raining.
Scope: So what. This is Oregon. Get an umbrella.
Me: It's raining. Can't see anything when it's raining.
Scope: Sure I can. I'm a TV 102.
It still hasn't forgiven me for selling off the Gibraltar head.
John
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MacRoberts
sage
Reged: 08/25/05
Posts: 421
Loc: Redlands, CA
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--------------------
Jim
"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Psalms 8:3-4
TV Refractors
Fuji Binoculars
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Erik Bakker
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/10/06
Posts: 534
Loc: Haren, The Netherlands, Europe
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Quote:
Quote:
Pictures please! Love to see your TV102 Gibraltar 5 set up.
. . . and here they come, 1st of 7 taken by Dereck and posted at his request.
Hi Jim,
Thanks for the wonderful pictures of your stuff. Great spaceship and portholes to tour the universe with!
Clear skies,
Erik
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Visual astronomer, main instruments:
Fully mounted Questar 7 P-BB
Celestron C 102F f/8.8 fluorite
Vixen FL 70S f/8 fluorite
Celestron C 55F f/8 fluorite
Sets of Zeiss, TeleVue and Brandon eyepieces
Zeiss 7x50 Marine B/GA
Zeiss TM german equatorial
Gitzo 224 with Manfrotto 501 fluid head
Unitron alt-az mount
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nyc_nurse
sage
Reged: 07/29/09
Posts: 254
Loc: nyc
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Haha. Thanks Jim. Ya, the blog's fun. I'll definitely take you up on going to the Farm(II) when we're out there. Sounds great! We're already scouting out areas that we want to move to.
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Sam P.
www.agirlandaguy.blogspot.com
Pentax 7X50
TV-102 APO w/ (Starbeam - on backorder )
Ash Gibraltar w/ SkyTour DSC
NZ3-6, N9T6, N13T6
TV 20 Plossl
Pan 24, 35
Pentax XW10, XW14
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TomN
sage
Reged: 01/14/09
Posts: 264
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Hmmmm....now you guys have got ME thinking again....I love my Gibraltar/Sky Tour/TV101 combination. Just recently received the AP130EDF which weighs about what an NP127 does. I wonder if I could adapt a Gib 5 to work with my AP scope?? Anybody done these mods? I'm not quite sure what would be required to adapt the AP on a flat bar to the two hole mount on the Gib. Maybe just a drill n'tap operation to insert a couple of those mounting studs??
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Amateur Astronomer since 1962.
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jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
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Thanks everyone for your feedback, both pro and con. After much consideration, including toying with the DM-4, DM-6 and iOptron MiniTower ideas, I elected to go ahead with a Gibraltar + Sky Tour. I ordered the walnut Gibraltar with Sky Tour for $1435, no sales tax and free shipping. I also ordered a Starbeam finder (currently I have no finder on my TV-102) and the Televue bronze "equalizing" 1.25" to 2" adapter to aid in balancing since I do use both 1.25" and 2" eyepieces in abundance.
Regards,
Jim
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"I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."
- Sir Issac Newton
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