stevew
Now I've done it
Reged: 03/03/06
Loc: British Columbia Canada
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Sarkikos]
#5662636 - 02/04/13 10:34 PM
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For me, star hopping with just a Telrad would be too much of a bother.
Instead, I sight on the nearest visible star with the Telrad, then use Sky Safari and the optical finder to star hop to the object.
Mike
Sorry no Sky Safari for me.
I sit at a desk all day staring at a computer, reviewing inventory levels, sales figures, and e-mailing.
When I do get away from my desk, I'm texting and e-mailing customers and head office on my Blackberry.
When I get out under the stars I don't want to be anywhere near a computer or hand held digital device.
Just give me a good telescope and a star to steer her by. [Along with a Telrad of course] 
To each his own.
Steve
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Sarkikos
Postmaster
Reged: 12/18/07
Loc: Suburban Maryland, USA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: stevew]
#5662968 - 02/05/13 07:06 AM
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Of course I used printed star atlases and finder charts before I got SkySafari on the Android. I don't have goto or DSCs, I never have had them, so I need some sort of guide to take with me. I probably know the locations of at least a hundred objects from memory, but that gets old quick for me. I like to focus on finding stuff I've never seen before.
So far, SkySafari is the best solution for me. SS on Android takes up less space, is lighter and easier to hold right at the telescope than printed atlases, and contains many more "maps." Also, I can filter objects, change the image scale, display objects from a list, adjust limiting magnitude, etc. I'll never go back to printed atlases as my main reference at the dark site.
One negative is that Sky Safari displays dark nebulae as squares and rectangles. Not very good if you want to get an idea of their natural shape for identification. So I do still bring along a good printed atlas in case I want to go after DN.
Mike
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csrlice12
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/22/12
Loc: Denver, CO
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Sarkikos]
#5663047 - 02/05/13 08:26 AM
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No, now we have a chance to answer one of Astronomy's greatest questions: Do batteries ever go dead in a Telrad!!! Don't get rid of it, set it on a table, turn it on, and check it every few years....hopefully you'll be around long enough to let us know, if not.....Telrad, The Next Generation......
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Sarkikos
Postmaster
Reged: 12/18/07
Loc: Suburban Maryland, USA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: csrlice12]
#5663074 - 02/05/13 08:45 AM
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Batteries do last long on a Telrad. I think I've changed the batteries in mine once in the last five years.
My Asus Transformer Android lasts for a long time on one charging. I'm usually at the dark site for five or six hours. I've yet to see the Android battery go below the halfway mark after all that time.
Some complain that the batteries in illuminated reticle eyepieces run out before a night's over. But the ones in my Orion illuminated eyepiece just go and and on. I have the eyepiece on all night, just like the Telrad and Android. I think I've changed the batteries in the eyepiece twice in five years.
The eight D-cells in the power supply for my primary fan also last long. And I have that fan on all night. I might change one D-cell over the course of a year.
I have a separate 12-v battery for the Dew Buster. That goes strong all night, too. I recharge it as a matter of course when I get back from the dark site.
But just in case, I always carry fresh replacement batteries for all the gizmos.
Mike
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Jon Isaacs
Postmaster
Reged: 06/16/04
Loc: San Diego and Boulevard, CA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Sarkikos]
#5663206 - 02/05/13 09:57 AM
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Big, low power views are best for the big stuff. For the small and dim things, it's best to go straight to higher power. Dark adapted eyes have diminished visual acuity. Magnification helps to see structure, and even to detect some of the faint fuzzies.
Mike
Mike:
No matter how small it might be, there is time to both cherish the big, low power view of an object (and the region around it)and swap eyepieces and enjoy the detail that higher magnifications allow. It's not an either/or thing.
It's true that some objects may not be perceived at the lowest magnifications but most are.
Jon
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Sarkikos
Postmaster
Reged: 12/18/07
Loc: Suburban Maryland, USA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Jon Isaacs]
#5663274 - 02/05/13 10:23 AM
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I always cherish the big, low power view of an object within its environs as I'm star hopping to it with the 15x70 finder. I don't need to swap eyepieces in the main telescope. I try to choose intitally whichever eyepiece is best for the object. Often for moderate to small sized objects, the best eyepiece is my Baader Zoom, since it allows me to dial in the optimum image scale and perceived contrast.
But I can always switch to a wide-field, low-power eyepiece if I want. It is an option, but not a necessity since I have no need for a finder eyepiece.
Mike
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csrlice12
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/22/12
Loc: Denver, CO
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Sarkikos]
#5663291 - 02/05/13 10:29 AM
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Jon and Mike: This is what's nice about this hobby, Options!
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Sarkikos
Postmaster
Reged: 12/18/07
Loc: Suburban Maryland, USA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: csrlice12]
#5663319 - 02/05/13 10:41 AM
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Yes, as always, YMMV!
Mike
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Jon Isaacs
Postmaster
Reged: 06/16/04
Loc: San Diego and Boulevard, CA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Sarkikos]
#5663387 - 02/05/13 11:16 AM
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I always cherish the big, low power view of an object within its environs as I'm star hopping to it with the 15x70 finder. I don't need to swap eyepieces in the main telescope.
There is quite a difference between a low power refractor/magnifying finder view and the low power view in the main scope. Both are wonderful but they are very different. And, there is time to enjoy both. It's never work to put the 31mm Nagler in the Paracorr, "avoiding plunking in a "finder eyepiece"" is not something I ever consider, quite the contrary.. Plunking in a finder eyepiece is something I do at every possible chance.
Jon
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Sarkikos
Postmaster
Reged: 12/18/07
Loc: Suburban Maryland, USA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Jon Isaacs]
#5663394 - 02/05/13 11:20 AM
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I try to let the objects dictate the optics.
Mike
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Jon Isaacs
Postmaster
Reged: 06/16/04
Loc: San Diego and Boulevard, CA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Sarkikos]
#5663456 - 02/05/13 11:52 AM
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I try to let the objects dictate the optics.
Mike
The object is the night sky... I am big on just looking around to see what I can see. I spend plenty of time zoomed in at higher magnifications, looking at particular objects but that's only part of the story. Not so many goals, just the experience of the moment is, appreciating the Eskimo Nebula at both high and low magnifications..
Jon
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bilgebay
Post Laureate
Reged: 11/06/08
Loc: Türkiye - Istanbul and Marmari...
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Jon Isaacs]
#5663536 - 02/05/13 12:46 PM
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Page 10 is around the corner
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Sarkikos
Postmaster
Reged: 12/18/07
Loc: Suburban Maryland, USA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Jon Isaacs]
#5663590 - 02/05/13 01:27 PM
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I try to let the objects dictate the optics.
Mike
The object is the night sky... I am big on just looking around to see what I can see. I spend plenty of time zoomed in at higher magnifications, looking at particular objects but that's only part of the story. Not so many goals, just the experience of the moment is, appreciating the Eskimo Nebula at both high and low magnifications..
Jon
If the object is the night sky, I could save a lot of time and effort by leaving all my equipment at home and just looking up with naked eyes.
I'm very much goal oriented when I take the trouble to travel 100 miles round trip to my dark site. If newbies or my family are there, I might take them on a rambling tour of showpiece objects from memory. Or if I'm home, I might do the same. But when I'm on task at the dark site, I'm loaded for bear and focused on the hunt. 
Mike
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csrlice12
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/22/12
Loc: Denver, CO
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Sarkikos]
#5663607 - 02/05/13 01:43 PM
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"But when I'm on task at the dark site, I'm loaded for bear and focused on the hunt."
Yup, nothing gets left behind on dark site trips.....
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Sarkikos
Postmaster
Reged: 12/18/07
Loc: Suburban Maryland, USA
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: csrlice12]
#5663688 - 02/05/13 02:34 PM
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I even take along the Telrad!
Mike
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Mr. Bill
Postmaster
Reged: 02/09/05
Loc: Northeastern Cal
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: csrlice12]
#5663703 - 02/05/13 02:46 PM Attachment (3 downloads)
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A couple of old warhorses...
I removed the on/off lever to prevent accidental turnon (happened a lot when storing/transporting.)
Dewing problem solved with heavy duty flocking paper.
Keep track of which goes where with "X"
Just noticed...you can see one of them mounted on my Fujinon 25x150 binocular in my avatar.
Edited by Mr. Bill (02/05/13 02:52 PM)
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csrlice12
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/22/12
Loc: Denver, CO
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Sarkikos]
#5663705 - 02/05/13 02:47 PM
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OK, I was wrong; you can leave the spare telrad batteries at home.......
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Greyhaven
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 05/11/04
Loc: Greater downtown Maine
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Mr. Bill]
#5663766 - 02/05/13 03:22 PM
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Oh, So that's how they make telrads Every thing's so much clearer now.
Be Well
Grey
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Doug Culbertson
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/06/05
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Greyhaven]
#5663803 - 02/05/13 03:42 PM
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Oh, So that's how they make telrads Every thing's so much clearer now.
Be Well
Grey
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Starman1
Vendor (EyepiecesEtc.com)
Reged: 06/24/03
Loc: Los Angeles
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Re: Should I Get Rid of the Telrad?
[Re: Mr. Bill]
#5663805 - 02/05/13 03:44 PM
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A couple of old warhorses...
I removed the on/off lever to prevent accidental turnon (happened a lot when storing/transporting.)
Dewing problem solved with heavy duty flocking paper.
Keep track of which goes where with "X"
Just noticed...you can see one of them mounted on my Fujinon 25x150 binocular in my avatar.
Bill,
Prevents dew, but also prevents the use of the Telrad as a right-angle finder.
However, at least your dewshield won't fall off. I used one from.....that always fell off when it got cold.
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