55 replies to this topic

[zizzapnia]

Zizzapnia I will definitely check out the mods. I’m hoping to figure out a way to add a small 30mm guide scope on the OTA. I’m mostly going to use this for visual, but I’m curious to try this on my AM5 mount and try some deep sky imaging.

There are several ways to add a finder or guidescope. Besides my link, check out the OneSky megathread on CN.

[AngrySchnauzer]

From someone who just got their first telescope in years, 500 bucks is going to be really difficult for a go-to scope that’s decent value unless you find something used. I just got a Skywatcher 200P with the go-to mount for $750, which seems a pretty insane deal on facebook marketplace considering that it’s about 1600 new. If you can stretch to about $700, I saw some used 6SEs in that range when I was looking.

 

Would you ever consider push-to? There are some dobs like the Orion Intelliscopes that you could probably hunt down for that amount, or a Dobsonian with the Astro hopper app is something that a lot of people seem to like. Good luck! Hope you enjoy your new rig, whatever it may be.

[DOBguyinGA]

Good evening everyone,

 

There is a 1/4-20 tapped screw hole on the Vixen rail. Take a look at this picture:

 

This way the 9x50 RACI finder scope is near the point of balance and just inches from the EP. This idea came from the OneSky superthread. You can also see it on zizzapnia‘s external site.

 

You can do some simple cellphone EAA with a cellphone holder to attach the cell to the eyepiece. I suggest the Celestron NexYZ. I also suggest AstroShader for the capture software. It is free, and it is supported in the CN Vendors and Group Announcements thread at https://www.cloudyni...testers-wanted/. You do need IOS to run it. There have been some very credible photos posted there. The results are not as nice as traditional astrophotography but this approach also does not cost big bucks.

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Edited by DOBguyinGA, 13 June 2025 - 05:30 PM.

[Uhhjoe82]

From someone who just got their first telescope in years, 500 bucks is going to be really difficult for a go-to scope that’s decent value unless you find something used. I just got a Skywatcher 200P with the go-to mount for $750, which seems a pretty insane deal on facebook marketplace considering that it’s about 1600 new. If you can stretch to about $700, I saw some used 6SEs in that range when I was looking.

Would you ever consider push-to? There are some dobs like the Orion Intelliscopes that you could probably hunt down for that amount, or a Dobsonian with the Astro hopper app is something that a lot of people seem to like. Good luck! Hope you enjoy your new rig, whatever it may be.

[Uhhjoe82]

I actually just received the Sky-Watcher Virtuoso 150P. It’s $500 on amazon. It’s a pretty good scope for the price. I also have some really nice eyepieces I’m using instead of the ones that came with it. The only thing I don’t really like so far is the focuser and using my phone to control the mount.

[maniack]

I actually just received the Sky-Watcher Virtuoso 150P. It’s $500 on amazon. It’s a pretty good scope for the price. I also have some really nice eyepieces I’m using instead of the ones that came with it. The only thing I don’t really like so far is the focuser and using my phone to control the mount.

I don't like using my phone to control my AZ-GTi (same base system). You should be able to get an Orion or Sky-Watcher Synscan controller for use with the mount. The Synscan controller is not as easy to use as the Celestron Nexstar controllers (strange since Synta owns both Celestron and Sky-Watcher), but it's a lot better than phone control.