825 replies to this topic

[Cliff Hipsher]

This is not a question for right now, but later........do you guys think it would be worth it to upgrade from a 115 to a 130? 

I have a 130. 15mm isn't all that much and I would wager that visually one might not perceive any difference.  To gather any meaningful data, a side by side test with cameras will be necessary.

[midwestastronomer]

The question remains un-answered, to what end? We have no idea what you are attempting to achieve by upgrading to a 130 mm refractor.

I'm doing imaging and visual with it.

Would the pictures be better? How much more detail could I see with an eyepiece?

[midwestastronomer]

I have a 130. 15mm isn't all that much and I would wager that visually one might not perceive any difference. To gather any meaningful data, a side by side test with cameras will be necessary.

See that's what I thought in the first place. Is 15mm really worth $500? That's why I went with the 115 to begin with.

[Cliff Hipsher]

See that's what I thought in the first place. Is 15mm really worth $500? That's why I went with the 115 to begin with.

I went with the 130 because the 150's are too big for this old man to lug around.  If I had an observatory it would have been a no brainer.  As it is with every thing attached, the OTA assembly weighs 26+ pounds.  The 150 isn't much heavier, but its longer and would a bit unwieldy to carry in and out of my smallish house.

[YAOG]

I'm doing imaging and visual with it.

Would the pictures be better? How much more detail could I see with an eyepiece?

Experience has shown me that bigger is virtually always better in almost all ways when talking about imaging or  visual observation and this is especially true for refractors. The only ways smaller telescopes are better is in conveience, cheaper, easier to store, transport and you can get away with a smaller cheaper mount. 

 

100mm is really the minimum for visual observation, you need a certain amount of light to see objects in a meaningful way. Bigger is better but if you go much bigger than 130mm f/7-ish the scope gets longer and heavier than even most people under 50 want to deal with. It is not that they are heavy they are awkwardly and inconveniently shaped and easy to break. Plus at this point even for visual you will need at a minimum a 30-40 pound payload mount to get steady views or to image with and a higher payload is suggested due to the long polar moment of a 5" class refractor. People don't buy a good 130mm apo and then turn around and try to image on a small mount, it is a waste of money to do so.

 

All things being equal the 130mm optic will objectively outperform the 115mm scope. But that means you have to a mount that is capable of guiding at sub arc second 100% of the time you are capturing data. The rule is generally about 1/2 to 1/3 of your seeing limitations so if you live under steady skies and the seeing is 1"-2" arc seconds if you know how data sampling theory works you know you need a pretty good mount and guiding system to let the telescope show you what it can do. 

 

So sure if you have the mount and skills to manage the data capture at this level IMO a 130mm.is better. As a newer imager I imagine mastering your current tools will be enough of a challenge that you don't need the larger scope. Unless of course you have more.money than sense in which case go for it. 

Edited by YAOG, 10 June 2022 - 01:09 PM.

[rkaufmann87]

I'm doing imaging and visual with it.

Would the pictures be better? How much more detail could I see with an eyepiece?

Based on your answer I'd stay with the 115 and save the money to buy yourself a higher quality mount than your AVX. You already have an AZ-8, I'd complement that with a GM811G and sell off the AVX. 

[midwestastronomer]

Based on your answer I'd stay with the 115 and save the money to buy yourself a higher quality mount than your AVX. You already have an AZ-8, I'd complement that with a GM811G and sell off the AVX. 

I'm already plotting an EQ-6R Pro. 

 

If I'm going Losmandy, I'm going all the way to a G11G. 

Edited by midwestastronomer, 10 June 2022 - 02:24 PM.

[YAOG]

I'm already plotting an EQ-6R Pro. 

 

If I'm going Losmandy, I'm going all the way to a G11G. 

Yup. A G11G will be a much better imaging mount than an GM8G or GM811G but You can buy one now if you go used. 

[rkaufmann87]

I'm already plotting an EQ-6R Pro. 

 

If I'm going Losmandy, I'm going all the way to a G11G. 

Skip the EQ-6R Pro and buy your lifetime mount, the G11G. Save money over the long term. 

[YAOG]

Skip the EQ-6R Pro and buy your lifetime mount, the G11G. Save money over the long term. 

Yup. Why learn what we already learned the hard way. Not that the EQ6-R is bad, not at all. But the companies that sell them have a long history of poor service parts availability and much shorter corporate support and model lifespans. 

 

I am not going to buy another brand of EQ mount anytime soon. I might buy another Losmandy mount as my needs change but owning a GM8G and G11G really has me wondering why anyone would bother to buy anything else. Current production or 30 year old fully updated Losmandy mounts are capable of imaging at the same levels as any of the high-end mounts for a fraction of the price.

 

It is not until you get into the very high payload capacity mounts over 60 pounds that it pays to buy an AP or other ultra premium mount. This was once not true but time passed and Losmandy has made improvements.  And here we are in 2022 with mounts that can image with mounts costing two or really three times as much once you get the additional parts needed to use the other mounts. 

 

And the cost advantage gets even better if you buy from the secondary market. 

[tog]

Midwestastronomer, if you want a new scope I say go for it! I would not care if it is only 1mm larger than what I already have. Get the scope!

[T~Stew]

I'm doing imaging and visual with it.

Would the pictures be better? How much more detail could I see with an eyepiece?

I'm not sure if its much of an upgrade. Sure marginally, but if you already have the 115 and happy with it I'd be looking for a bigger jump. If you can sell the 115 without a big loss, then maybe worth it. I'm still not totally happy with the 130EDT for galaxies, even at 1x its still not enough except for the larger ones, though I have had a blast with it so far. But yes as above you'll beed a beefier mount for much more than that 115. I am very happy with my EQ6r though, unlike above I recommend it for the more economical minded, much like the Astro-techs. It has no problems with the 130EDT and ASIair guides it below .5" usually. At least at last years price, got mine for 1500 and change new before the price hike. nowadays I'm not sure, I'd definitely consider a bit more if you're already spending over 2 grand. But that is discussion for a different thread.

[T~Stew]

Well some bad news. My whole rig was out Monday night when a derecho happened to come through and produce a couple tornadoes that were just a few miles from here. I should have taken the rig down but did not realize the severity of what was about to happen. It's been out and weathered some big storms no problem under a telegizmos 365. Anyway the cover got ripped off and the whole rig drenched. Now its a couple days later I still have moisture trapped between the lenses in my 130EDT. Any advice? Just wait longer?  Can the lens cell be taken apart for cleaning or at least better air drying? Will it be impossible to collimate with specialized tools if I do that? 

 

Unfortunately I couldn't immediately address the issue, I only realized what happened when I went out about 4:30am to go to work and realized how littered with limbs my yard was and decided to check on the scope quick. To my horror everything was exposed getting rained on, the mount had been twisted to horizontal despite clutches fully engaged, maybe because the TG365 bungee cord had caught the counterweight rod. If only them dang covers had a loop or eyelet to actually secure it, instead of just wrapping a strap around it. Well I quickly dismounted everything and brought inside. Though inside got into the mid 80's F later that day as well as almost 90% humidity, I didn't have air conditioning. Might have been better to just leave outside idk lol. I got home from work at about 8pm and it was a sauna. Dug out the two window ac units I had stored in the garage (hadn't used them in like 3+ years) and got them both on to cool the main level of the house and dry things out a bit. After 2 days my living room is still showing 70% humidity but not sure how accurate it is. And still fog between the lens elements. Any advice?

Edited by T~Stew, 16 June 2022 - 11:56 AM.

[Jim in PA]

Oh crud, sorry to hear this T-stew!  If it were me, the first thing I'd do is call Astronomics.  I wouldn't touch it until talking to them.

 

Hope your scope and mount come through OK when all is said and done.  Best of luck, Jim

[T~Stew]

I just realized I overlooked something simple in my haste the other day... though I did pop the cap off my camera adapter to allow the scope to air out I totally forgot I had a field flattener on! Just unscrewed the field flattener so the tube is now open at least to air dry

[Mard]

Hello All,

 

I've recently acquired 115 EDT with 1x filed flattener (and conical attachment) and wondered if I could get some advice on the following.

 

1) I would like to attach ZWO's EAF, are there any instructions on how to attach the auto focuser.

 

2) The 1 x Filed flattener comes with a conical attachment and I'd like to use it with ZWO filter wheel and Camera.

 

How does one calculate back focus using the 1 x Filed flattener and conical attachment?

 

Any advice is welcome.

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Mard.

[Edski]

Anyone use the asi533 mc pro with the astro tech at130 scope?

[YAOG]

Anyone use the asi533 mc pro with the astro tech at130 scope?

 

Not me but what are you trying to figure out?  

[steffenyount]

Hi,

 

I have the newer Astro-Tech AT115EDT telescope with the grey focuser (Jan 2021), and I would like to attach a FTF3035B-A 3" Feather Touch focuser to it.

 

Can anyone here help me identify the official thread spec that I'd need to make this connection? (and maybe the correct FT adapter if one exists?)

 

For reference, I measured the following using my digital calipers:

 

Male, focuser side thread outer diameter ~112.92mm

 

Female, tube side thread inner diameter ~111.98mm

 

I also compared the ridge spacing of the focuser side threads to a male M68x1 threaded part that I had on hand. It looked like all the ridges of the two parts aligned perfectly. I assume this implies that these threads most likely have an x1 pitch. Is that how thread pitch works?

Edited by steffenyount, 01 August 2022 - 05:39 PM.

[YAOG]

Hi,

 

I have the newer Astro-Tech AT115EDT telescope with the grey focuser (Jan 2021), and I would like to attach a FTF3035B-A 3" Feather Touch focuser to it.

 

Can anyone here help me identify the official thread spec that I'd need to make this connection? (and maybe the correct FT adapter if one exists?)

 

For reference, I measured the following using my digital calipers:

 

Male, focuser side thread outer diameter ~112.92mm

 

Female, tube side thread inner diameter ~111.98mm

 

I also compared the ridge spacing of the focuser side threads to a male M68x1 threaded part that I had on hand. It looked like all the ridges of the two parts aligned perfectly. I assume this implies that these threads most likely have an x1 pitch. Is that how thread pitch works?

Why not ask Astro-Tech? They are happy to give you the specs, just ask.

[steffenyount]

Why not ask Astro-Tech? They are happy to give you the specs, just ask.

I have. 

 

I've asked three times now, first time I got recommended the wrong FT adapter: 

A30-1903-16—Adapter for United Optics 115MM Telescope

https://www.starligh...15mm-telescope/
(Female on the focuser side M116X1 thread.)

 

I wrote back in response on June 25, to let Mike know that his recommendation didn't work, and asked for the thread spec.

 

Then I asked again 5 days ago (Wed July 27).

I've gotten no response back on either message from June 25 or July 27.

So that's why I'm attempting to crowd source the answer here. Anyone know the answer?
 

Edited by steffenyount, 01 August 2022 - 08:08 PM.

[tita]

Anyone use the asi533 mc pro with the astro tech at130 scope?

Hmm I have both and I think I did try to image with it in the winter. I have to look through my images. I mostly use the asi533mc with my AT72EDII and have the AT130 for visual.

[charlieb123]

Add me to the list.
AT115EDT for imaging.

Tired of spending time futzing around with my C8.

And I don't want to invest time imaging with my AT80ED with it's false color.

[charlieb123]

Just arrived this am.
Supposed to be a clear night. 

Tiny bit surprised I didn’t get the CN family member deal. Maybe I don’t contribute enough. 
 

 

[Heywood]

Just arrived this am.
Supposed to be a clear night.

Tiny bit surprised I didn’t get the CN family member deal. Maybe I don’t contribute enough.

937E8AA3-ED48-4F9C-8A83-0345212FB934.jpeg

Beautiful lens!!