On that last one, you will see a small camera mounted on top of the mirror box. This guy had a program that tracked using this camera for plate solving. I didn't talk to him for long, because he was busy and not particularly chatty. Nor did he offer views. I think he said it was a 25.5" to beat out his friend with a 25".
WillR:
Thank you for the clarification you made; I thought your comments had to be some sort of a misunderstanding, I was quite taken aback when I read them, and that is why I reached out to you via DM prior to responding openly. I never once told anyone that they could not look through my scope. Quite the contrary. I tried to take time and talk with everyone who stopped by, and had about a dozen or so look through my scope on the one night that I was there. Heck, I was on vacation and having a nice day at CSSP. Anyway, thanks for the clarification. I did not want people here thinking I was some sort of standoffish jerk based on your original post.
Paul:
Thanks for the very kind words about my scope and the nice pictures. It was nice meeting up with you in person after chatting here on CN. Was neat seeing your scope at John Pratte's while I was picking up mine. Looking forward to looking through your scope sometime. Possibly at a future visit to CSSP...
John V:
I tried stopping over twice to follow up our phone call on the eFinder. But I missed you. Next time. Let me know if you need any more info on that.
Plate Solving:
Yes, I use the eFinder and I LOVE IT! I HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND THE EFINDER! It places the object inside the FOV of a 6 Ethos in my 25f/4... can't ask for more than that! Keith V. designed a VERY nice system. There was a group of us that built 8 eFinders together, and 6 are currently fielded on scopes. One of our members, Steve, led the charge with this and worked very closely with Keith. Steve is authorized by Keith to build and sell eFinders. (Please DM me if you would like to be put in touch with Steve and have him build an eFinder and/or a custom carbon fiber stalk for you).
My Scope:
I appreciate all of the kind words. I am very appreciative of all of the artisans that lent their talents to making my telescope. John Pratte (structure), Carl Zambuto and Chuck (primary), Terry Ostahowski (secondary), Randy (secondary holder), Gary Myers (Servocat), Keith Venables (eFinder).... Yeah, I am extremely happy with my new scope, big big smiles here. As for the 25.1, that was an inside joke when I was ordering my mirror with Carl Z with my buddy on that call. Joking aside, it is a TON of fun when you are observing with two CZ 25's with eFinders. We will make sure to share our adventures with these epic scopes in a fun way in the future.
Thanks,
Jack