I've had my 8" collapsible Skywatcher dobsonian for almost 2 years now and have observed many amazing deep space objects. I had a go at taking a photo of Saturn and the moon the other night and it went quite well considering its a dob and I had no camera adaptor mount at the time.
Anyways long story short I got a lot of satisfaction in being able to take a photo instead of observing and recording and am keen to explore astrophotography further.
Now I see it is quite easy to convert a non-collapsible scope to an Equatorial Mounted version...my question is am I able to convert the collapsible version over. Looking at it, it would appear as if the current centre of gravity would not sit well on the EQ mount.
I don't know much about mounting your 8 inch Dob onto an EQ mount but I would say it can be done.
Personally I would look at getting a second hand HEQ5 and ED80 class scope for astrophotography and keep the Dob purely visual as you would need an EQ6 to mount the 8 inch properly and you could get the above for about the same price that will be better in the long run.
Both the HEQ5 and ED80 show up here all the time in the classifieds at good prices.
Any chance of posting your shots for us to have a look at .
Hi Kane
Welcome from me.
The advice Brian gives is good.
Astro photography is easy to start by holding a camera up to the ep and getting something but it will be no time where you will demand better..
Your first consideration is a good mount..eq5 will carry a good 80 mm which works well..have a look at the images on the net from folk using an 80mm.
I believe an eq5 will carry a 8 inch newtonian if that appeals.
An 8 inch ota will cost approx $500 and to that you probably will need to add a coma corrector so add another $350 ?. so for $2000 you should gain entry.
I have gone for an 8 inch on a eq6 f5 which hopefully should deliver some reasonable captures but I also have in mind either adding a 80 mm or 100 mm refractor to my kit.
If starting out like you I think the 80 mm on an eq5 will prove most satisfying.
Yup just going to third the advice for an heq5 and ed 80 to start. Learn the skills and techniques on that setup as it will be easier and forgiving, then as you perfect that move up to bigger!
I think I will go for the ED80 on a HEQ5. Will be a lot easier to lug it out to the backyard compared to the 8" dob. I was very surprised at the quality of images on the net, impressive!
Can I confirm that the collapsible style tube can be mounted on a EQ5 or 6 mount?
I have also attached my photo's from the other night. I used PIPP, Registax and Lightroom to refine the video of Saturn to produce that image...first time so go easy on me.
Hi Kane, Welcome to IIS.
I don't think a collapsible can be mounted to an EQ5\6. Normally a solid tube scope is required so the scope can be approx. mid mounted to achieve balance.
Some special truss type scopes are designed especially for that role, (google Serrurier Truss) but most collapsibles are designed to be packed away for transport and don't have a suitable mount point on the struts.
Hi Kane,
Phil here from Darwin - you know who I am.
Welcome. !! This is a great forum.
Your photos are excellent considering the method you used to take them.
I reckon that with a bit of engineering, you could mount the collapsible dob on an eq mount. I am thinking to connect a long board or plate between the upper and lower sections, so that the board is the full length of the scope. A dovetail plate mounts to the board.
I call it a board, a better description might be “braced section”. Prime construction considerations would be rigidity and lightness.
It would have to mount to the scope in such a way so it did not induce any change in collimation. I’ll do a sketch later and post.
Cheers Phil
Physically you actually could mount an 8" SW collapsible on an HEQ5
if you are good at D.I.Y. , they are balanced further down the tube
than solid tube models are, hence the position of the swivel points.
The scope would need to be supported immediately below the collar at the top of the solid tube.
The real problem is weight. With the weight of the necessary D.I.Y.fittings
and a dovetail plate, and imaging equipment, the mount would struggle.
An 8" solid tube would be o.k.[I used that setup for years] because it
only needs tube rings and a dovetail, and ends up lighter.
The board or plate would not work. Firstly it would have to be heavy, and
with an HEQ5 weight would be your enemy. Secondly it would have to be incredibly solid[rigid] to avoid flexing which would stuff up the
collimation.
!00% agree with Kaneb, ED80 or ED100 would be good starting point.
raymo
I think I will go for the ED80 on a HEQ5. Will be a lot easier to lug it out to the backyard compared to the 8" dob. I was very surprised at the quality of images on the net, impressive!
Can I confirm that the collapsible style tube can be mounted on a EQ5 or 6 mount?
I have also attached my photo's from the other night. I used PIPP, Registax and Lightroom to refine the video of Saturn to produce that image...first time so go easy on me.
Hi Kane
Welcome from me.
The advice Brian gives is good.
Astro photography is easy to start by holding a camera up to the ep and getting something but it will be no time where you will demand better..
Your first consideration is a good mount..eq5 will carry a good 80 mm which works well..have a look at the images on the net from folk using an 80mm.
I believe an eq5 will carry a 8 inch newtonian if that appeals.
An 8 inch ota will cost approx $500 and to that you probably will need to add a coma corrector so add another $350 ?. so for $2000 you should gain entry.
I have gone for an 8 inch on a eq6 f5 which hopefully should deliver some reasonable captures but I also have in mind either adding a 80 mm or 100 mm refractor to my kit.
If starting out like you I think the 80 mm on an eq5 will prove most satisfying.