a new toy in the market - a Ha eyepiece

[h0ughy]

how cool is this (http://www.daystarfilters.com/Quark.shtml)

i for one would love to have a play to see how effective this would be

[frolinmod]

You lucky guys who go to NEAF every year, please do check into this and report back, thank you! If not, maybe someone over on SolarChat will do it for us.

[Stardrifter_WA]

That is cool. :) Don't see much new astro gear that piques my interest these days.

Thanks for the post Houghy, although I would have eventual seen this in the Astro Tech Today magazine, it is great to know of this development now, given that I am considering the purchase of a Ha scope.

Looking forward to seeing some reviews now, as I have been looking at getting a Lunt 80mm Ha PT scope, which I am going to look at in the US this May, at Woodhills Telescopes in LA, on my way to Denver, where I will also be visiting JMI Telescopes in Lakewood (Denver). :D I have had trouble justifying the expense of the Lunt 80mm Ha PT (around $5k landed), but this development is interesting, as I can use my existing WO FLT110, and, this is certainly a lot cheaper.

NEAF is just at the wrong time of year for me. They should hold it closer to July/August, then I could go to NEAF and Stellafane. :D I certianly wouldn't go to the US just for NEAF, but Stellafane is another story, as I had so much fun there last year. So, if it was closer to Stellafane, I would definitely make the effort to include NEAF.

Cheers Pete

[MortonH]

Says you can only see the full disk in scopes up to around 450mm FL. Presumably above that the combination of magnification and field of view will be too narrow?

[Stardrifter_WA]

Very good point Morton.

Although, I do have a quad apo astrograph that is only 422mm f/l, which is is mounted with my FLT110. I really got hooked on the Lunt Ha scopes, after seeing a few at Stellafane. Up to that point, I had only seen the PST, which I didn't particularly like.

Cheers Pete

[Merlin66]

It still looks like an ERF up front may still be required...
Performance (and FOV) still to be confirmed....
Stay tuned after the 12th, at least one SolarChat member has said he will be buying one to review and try....

[h0ughy]

excellent - a brave sol:lol:

[Peter Ward]

The big difference between Daystar and, well, everyone else, is Daystar need the wavefront to be (nearly) parallel, and this can only be achieved at high F-ratios

Hence before you know it, you are looking at some pretty narrow fields...i.e. way less that a full solar disk.

I've played with almost all H-alpha filters/scopes on the market, IMHO front mounted etalons do the best job in terms of even field illumination. (wavefronts from Sol are about as parallel as they can get at the objective end).

With a front mounted etalon you can use any focal length & f-ratio you want.

The rub is they cost more.

[Merlin66]

Peter,
Based on seven year's experience in Ha observing, I agree 200%.
However, bang per buck always favours the smaller etalons.....hence the popularity.
(There's another kid trying to get "on the block" - the ARIES Ha "module". This seems to be based on a Lunt external 50mm etalon, mounted between a collimator/ imaging lens system (a la the PST module) but obviously MUCH larger. Still in testing I believe, but shows great promise....)

[Peter Ward]

Interesting...do you have a link?

In terms of bang for buck, I've always been very impressed with 80mm the pressure tuned Lunt's.

I also had a look through a double stack 100mm 'scope Andy Lunt was showing off at a trade show last year, the excellent image was unfortunately marred by internal reflections.

[Merlin66]

Re the ARIES....
Only what is being discussed by Valery on the Solar Chat Site.
http://solarchat.natca.net/

[Merlin66]

Hmmm
Seems like these are selling well...
They now have a price tag of $995 and sold out until June 2014...
http://www.daystarfilters.com/Quark.shtml

[axle01]

Placing an order for the Chromosphere version in the morning but will have to wait a month or 2 for delivery.

Al

[Stardrifter_WA]

Damn! I was hopin' to have a look at one later this month when I land in LA. Should have known they wouldn't be available. :sadeyes:

[Poita]

You will need to add an ERF to the cost according to the flyer on the website.
http://www.daystarfilters.com/downloads/QuarkFlyer.pdf
Pretty cool idea though.

[h0ughy]

i thought that was for a certain diameter scope over 80mm?

[Merlin66]

80 -100mm recommended to use at least a UV-IR blocker (something like the BelOptic UV-IR/KG3) a "proper" ERF above 100mm aperture.
(The Baader 35nm Ha CCD filter would work very well ;-) )

[Astro_Bot]

So my Baader UV-IR cut 2" filter (a.k.a. a luminance filter) would work at 80mm? That seems to be what they suggest.

The Ha "eyepiece" looks interesting - I'd be keen to see it side-by-side with, say, a Lunt LS60.

[knightware]

I had a look through the Quark chromosphere model at NEAF in April. The view was impressive for the cost. Lots of surface detail and a couple prominences. I did not have a chance to look through the prominence model.

I had an extensive chat with the Director of Sales whom I have known for many years, and I decided to order the chromosphere model. I expect delivery in early June. I plan to put it on an 80mm f/9.4 refractor for starters. Daystar tells me that I will not NOT need a front ERF, nor a IR/UV cut filter for my intended use. If I look at the sun for long periods of time, the cut filter is indicated. If I use the Quark on a 100mm f/5, I'll need the ERF. I will likely use the Quark on both refractors, so the ERF will be a later addition.

This package suites my need and saves lots of $ when compared to a dedicated solar refractor (which I've been considering for several years). I'm really looking forward to having an H alpha rig at last.

[Astro_Bot]

^^ Thanks for that clarification.