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Old 04-01-2012, 01:56 PM
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naskies (Dave)
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Atik 383L+ and Astrodon filters - thoughts?

After shooting last month's lunar eclipse, chasing Lovejoy, and shooting wide fields and star gazing under extremely dark (~ 22 mag/sq arc-sec) skies, I think I've decided to go the other extreme and keep all my gear and upgrade to a proper astro CCD instead

Here's what I've been considering for my William Optics FLT-132 f/7 scope:

* Atik 383L+ Mono camera
* Atik Electronic Filter Wheel 2 with 9 position, 1.25" carousel
* Astrodon Tru-Balance Gen 2 E-Series 1.25" LRGB filter set
* Astrodon 5 nm H-alpha 1.25" filter (the 3 nm cuts out NII)
* Astrodon 3 nm OIII 1.25" filter
* Astrodon 3 nm SII 1.25" filter
* Geoptik Canon EOS lens -> T2 adapter

Any thoughts or suggestions about this combination? I figured I could do narrowband imaging in my light polluted back yard, and travel occasionally for LRGB. If there are no potential problems with this kit, then I'll start saving $$$ and selling organs

I had considered the SBIG ST-8300, but it requires more back focus (can't be used with the filter wheel on Canon EOS lenses) and substantially more expensive 36 mm filters.


Cheers,

Dave
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Old 04-01-2012, 02:49 PM
gbeal
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Dave,
ah, logic prevails, keep the FLT. I did consider a swap for my truss newt, but the shipping would have killed the idea.
The 8300 chip is a good one, and lots about to. I feel you might need bigger than 1.25" filters though, might being the operative word. Check to see if others have succeeded with them. I tried them with my SXVR-H16 and while they DID work, the 2" were better. 36mm is a good "in-between" though.
In keeping the costs down a bit, maybe consider a filter slide, I use the TS one, it is only 15mm thick.
The AstorDon's are not cheap, not at all, but they are well liked.
Good luck.
Gary
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Old 04-01-2012, 06:31 PM
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naskies (Dave)
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I was almost free of the imaging itch, but then got suckered back in...

Thanks for the tip. I've been trying to research the 1.25-inch vs 36 mm filter issue online, and so far it seems like I might be okay with my f/7 scope. Atik claims that anything slower than f/5 will be fine because their filter wheel is very close to the 383L+ sensor, and the RGB flats I've seen posted online with f/7.5 scopes don't have any vignetting issues. I'm not sure whether 3 nm filters would be okay though - I've come across speculation that it could be problematic.

Last edited by naskies; 04-01-2012 at 06:59 PM.
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Old 05-01-2012, 04:12 PM
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naskies (Dave)
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Oops, I got my maths wrong... turns out the 383L+ requires 17 mm back focus, 22 mm for the filter wheel, and 19 mm for the Geoptik = total of 58 mm.... i.e. 14 mm too long for Canon EOS mounts.

After a bit more reading, I see that SBIG makes a special 36 mm filter wheel for the ST-8300 that has enough back focus for Canon EOS and Nikon lenses (FW8-8300 with their proprietary adapter). Astrodon also happens to make the full LRGB/Ha/OIII/SII filter set in 36 mm sizes too.

Hmmm tough choice - 36 mm filters with the ability to use my Canon L lens collection, or 1.25" filters and save a lot of money?

Either way, I think I'll go with the SBIG ST-8300M instead to at least have the option of using my Canon lenses.
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