IOptron Skytracker.

[ReaPerMan]

I have received my IOptron Skytracker and have been using it for the last few days to take some of my Comet Panstarrs pictures. I thought I would share my experience and thoughts about the product.

Unboxing.

The unit came packed in adequate packaging and on opening up I was pleased to see that it came with a carry case. This is just fabric and contains no padding so apart from containg the unit does not provide much in the way of protection from damage.

As i removed the unit I immediately noticed that it had scratches to one of the outside edges. When I removed the Polar scope I was even more surprised that there were marks on the scope tube and worse still the clear plastic window that provides illumination to the polar scope. These marks would seem to be from the scope having been mounted upside down in the unit and having the screw tightened down into the window.

My first thoughts was that it was a used unit, closer examination showed that there was no indications that the packaging from the factory had been damaged or altered in any way. This would seem to be a fail on IOptron's part in Quality Control. I contacted Teleskop express and they confirmed that they have had similar problems with IOptron's QC, they also gave me a 10% discount for the unit having been marked.

SETUP

Setup is a breeze, It's so easy to do. A point to note here. The unit mounts on a tripod with a 3/8" screw (Manfrotto etc) if you have a standard 1/4" screw tripod you will need a 1/4" F to 3/8" M adaptor. These are available from good camera shops or Ebay.

USE

Align with the built in compass, a tip here is start at elevation 0 level with a 2 way bubble level and then dial in your latititude. I found that if using short exposures <30 sec this was nearly good enough. Of course this product has a built in Polar scope which is terrific. so easy to use and there is an Iphone app which give you the perfect positioning for sigma Octans (southern hemisphere) or Polaris (northern hemisphere). I found it quick and easy to do and it allows for far longer exposures with little drift.

I would rate this as a great little unit. Works as advertised with only the cavet about the QC, Fit and Finish.

Edit,

The Crux picture is a stack of Canon 650D 18-135mm at 85mm 8 X 30secs F5.6 ISO 3200

All the best

Paul :thumbsup:

[Larryp]

Certainly looks like a neat bit of gear, Paul. I look forward to seeing some images.

[brian nordstrom]

:thumbsup: Thanks for your thought's as well Paul , being typical Ioptron the set up's are dead easy , as you mentioned .
I use my Ioptron mount regularly and find their software ( and hard ware) very well made and easy to use , not to mention their after sales service :). Give them a call about the scratches , I bet they will replace it in a heart beat at no cost to you .
Brian.

[ReaPerMan]

You have seen the Panstarrs pics but I'm itching to get out and into the country. I'm planning a trip to Kalbarri and the Murchison Gorge area in about a weeks time. Hopefully will get some good shots then (weather permitting!).




Thanks Brian,

Not sure about the backup as I bought this in from Europe as they were not in stock locally at the time. Everything works fine, it's just a bit of a cosmetic problem.

[brian nordstrom]

:D Hey Paul I have a can of spray paint called " Apliance White " Bunnings .
its a Vixen match ,, SHHHH!:thumbsup:.
The joys of buying your self, also see Chrysler Corp's. "Polar White" as well , glad it arrived OK .
Brian.

[ReaPerMan]

Thanks for the suggestion Brian... I may try a little bit of T-Cut and see if they can be polished out a bit. :thumbsup::thumbsup:

[Poita]

How does the app work to get you polar aligned? I'm intrigued.

[ReaPerMan]

You simply run the app it uses your Geolocation and the time to determine where your alignment star should appear in the polar scope (see pics). Polaris goes on the inner ring, Sigma Octans on the outer.

No human interaction needed.

Very simple :)

[Phil Hart]

Thanks for this Paul. :thumbsup: Southern cross looks sharp.. would be interesting to see how long you can push the sub-exposure length.

I'd also be very interested to know how long the batteries last..

cheers
Phil

[ReaPerMan]

Thanks Phil,

Some of the example pictures that I have seen have pushed the exposures to 2-3 minutes. I'm timing the use that i'm getting from fresh batteries. There is also an external 12v input with a standard center positive 2.5 plug.

All the best

Paul

[brian nordstrom]

:eyepop:cool , and it's free? like Stellarium ? awsome .
Brian .

[Phil Hart]

That's very handy! I can plug my Lithium batteries straight into that.. good to know.

Phil

[ReaPerMan]

I've just been outside running some tests and I've had it up to 90 secs with minimal elongation. A little bit of fiddling and the trails should drop off nicely. Might wait until a bit later and try to get some widefield on Rho Ophiuchi. 90 secs is longer than I need due to some of the light pollution around my home.

[Poita]

I'm wondering how long the exposures can go as well, for dark skies I'd like to be able to get 2mins or more.

[ReaPerMan]

With Dark skies and an accurate alignment with the polar scope I think 2 Mins is easily Achieved. I have a little bit of trouble seeing sigma with my sky brightness so I'm allowing for my track to be off slightly because of that.

[Rohan]

Quick note for any android users. Get the app called PolarFinder. It has an iOptron setting that will match the skytrackers polarscope.

Love my unit so far. Have nailed the alignment process so now have to get out to some dark skies.

[Rohan]

For anyone interested there is a 4page review of the iOptron Skytracker is the May 2013 Sky and Telescope magazine. It gets quite a good wrap.

[Screwdriverone]

Im intrigued if this all comes with what is in the pics?

That is, the ball head is included?

Also, if you don't mind me asking, what was the landed price for the unit in Aus? Is there any suppliers in Oz that sell these now?

Mike Salway has sold us all on the Polarie from IISAC, so this could be a better alternative (or similar) to that one as everything for the Polarie seems to be an optional extra.

Sorry for all the questions,

Cheers

Chris

[Rohan]

Comes with the polar alignment scope, not the ballhead though. iOptron ballhead does get a good wrap in the review though.

Mine was $400AU landed from the US. However I got it on special for $350USD + $50 postage. Prices from US shops seem to be $400 across the board now.

Doesn't offer the variety of speed settings the Polarie does (only does 1x and .5x) but that wasn't an issue for me.

I might be able to shot the odd person a copy the review if PM'd :).

[Screwdriverone]

PM Sent :D

Cheers

Chris

[ReaPerMan]

This is the link to the review.

http://www.ioptron.com/pdf_articles/ST_SkyTracker_review.pdf


My Milky Way 'EMU' photo
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=105857
was used at the IOptron Skytracker stand at NEAF 2013. Great little product looking forward to getting somewhere dark to take some better pics.

all the best

Paul

[Rohan]

So two gripes I've come to with the Skytracker are

a) the battery compartment is such a tight fit that i have damaged a battery trying to get it out and also snapped off the little plastic tabs on the cover trying to get it closed. So now I have to tape the cover shut with some electrical tape

b) the edges on the polar finder are quite harsh and I came home with a bit of skin irritation under my eye on sat night while trying to align it from constantly rubbing against it. Will be trying to find a rubber grommet that might fit over it before next use.

Apart from that the unit tracked very well over my 3hours of viewing on sat night.

[Phil Hart]

I have my iOptron Sky Tracker now too.

What I previously thought to be advantages certainly are - the solid and flex-free altitude adjustment and polar scope (with illumination) that you don't have to remove to install camera . The lack of reticle pattern for southern sky is annoying but not serious.

The battery compartment is very annoying and could easily have been better. Fiddly to change batteries and the wires look a little vulnerable as well as the compartment lid.

Phil

[ReaPerMan]

I Haven't had any injuries from mine yet, but I have to agree that you must be very careful with the battery compartment.

There is another interesting development in the wind for the Skytracker in that there is a counterweight arm accessory in development it appears in this video of the product at NEAF 2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=facRv4GIveU

I have spoken to Coleman Coats the marketing manager of IOptron and he says that it should be released later this year. No other details as yet!

all the best

Paul :thumbsup:

[rogerco]

All very interesting, has anyone found a local supplier or has everyone imported it direct?

[ReaPerMan]

It would seem that Telescopes and Astronomy http://www.telescopes-astronomy.com.au are the only one listing this product. :shrug:

[TheoP]

I ordered a SkyTracker with polar scope from Telescopes and Astronomy in Adelaide for $440 (pick up). Stock should arive at the Australian distributors in mid May, according to iOptron in Boston.

[ourkind]

I just noticed Bintel are advertising it. The usual though 'Coming soon' :shrug:


Thanks for the review Paul, looking forward to seeing some more images.

[ReaPerMan]

Some changes to the Skytracker a couple new features.they've increased the payload to 7.7 lbs. and added an adjustable AZ base (for easier polar positioning). The base is available on it's own so you can upgrade your existing unit. Suposed to be available mid June.

[Rohan]

Saw an ad in a US mag for the new improved model. Few US stores doing them for $399 if you can get one to ship to Aus. Although with the lower AUD might not be worth it anymore.

[acropolite]

Bintel has the new model at $469 (in stock despite what the website says) hardly worth getting it from OS.

[luigi]

I´ve been using one for a while I could do 4 minute exposures at 135mm good but not as good as the Polarie which got me to 10 minutes exposures using the same lens. This is because of polar-alignment precision not because of tracking accuracy.

The battery door in mine is already broken and taped. The lack of azimuth control was solved buying a Feisol panning base, it matches the Skytracker exactly and then I don´t need a 2nd tripod head or moving the tripod for PA.

The polarscope is bad, plain, and the lack of the octans trapezium is at least hard to understand I don´t use an Iphone so I have to align using a chart or planetarium software on my android tablet.

The led of the polarscope is too strong to see the reticle but too dim to see if the unit is working or not.

Battery runtime is fantastic, many nights with the same 4 batteries, this is good because changing batteries in this unit is a nightmare.

The controls are very bad to be used in very cold weather.

And that´s all I have to say for now

[Rohan]

The following app for Andriod has an option under the menu to change the view it gives to match the skytracker polarscope.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.techhead.polarfinder

[TheoP]

I received my SkyTracker on Monday but it has been cloudy and raining all week so I had time to make a few plans....

The SkyTracker was made to mount on a normal photographic tripod but I wanted a bit more stability so I made a plate that mounts on my old Meade tripod with the SkyTracker on top. This is very solid and I wont have to worry about vibrations or accidentally bumping the tripod out of alignment.

The polar alignment scope is not the best one in the world and I decided to get close to target with a laser pointer. I made an aluminium bracket out of two pieces of square aluminium and made sure that the two pieces are perpendicular to each other. It is now a simple matter of clamping the bracket on the SkyTracker body and pressing the laser switch while using binoculars. I am sure I would even be able to use the polar alignment scope if I clamp the bracket a bit lower.

Now I wait for a clear night....

[Rohan]

Very neat. I too have thought about ways to replace the polarscope with something more user friendly. Haven't much further then thoughts though :P

[traveller]

Has anyone else had experience with both the Polarie and the ioptron?Are your experiences similar to Luigis?
Bo

[acropolite]

I have mine ready for testing at astrofest, I should have my Feisol panning base in time as well.

[Phil Hart]

I have both and you can see some of my earlier comments above.

My rough test of tracking performance with 200mm lens on both got similar results. You're limited more by stability with weight and balance of a long lens than you are by tracking accuracy of the gears. I would comfortably use either of these with 50mm lens for ~2 mins and then stack to get whatever total exposure I wanted with *perfect* stars. Longer/bigger than that I would put on a bigger mount (but they can be pushed harder than that if you're careful or not seeking perfection).

With wide lens and short sub-exposures, you don't even need polar scope.. rough alignment is fine. Not having Octans in SkyTracker polar scope seems silly but can get used to roughly where to position Sigma (even without iPhone which I don't have) just based on trapezium orientation. Seeking perfection through the polar scope is a bit silly anyway because flex shifts things considerably, particularly with the Polarie where you have to take all the weight off the mount to use the polar scope. By the time you put all the weight back on, the axis of the mount has shifted considerably, plus whatever extra flex you have in your attachment to tripod.

It's hard to argue with the price of the SkyTracker and the fact that it has a flex-free altitude adjustable base that goes straight onto tripod is a big bonus. With azimuth adjustable element in new bases that's even better, plus you get polar scope included in the price. $300 for Polarie polar scope is hard to bear.

Thumb screws on the SkyTracker camera attachment plate are much bigger/easier to grip than on the Polarie. On the iOptron you never need to remove it anyway but on the Polarie you need to remove it every time you do or even check polar alignment which with cold hands is a real pain.

Battery compartment on the SkyTracker is poor.. Polarie much more refined design in details like that. But you can plug 12V into SkyTracker easily which is standard for my gear. Polarie you have to plug power in via USB.

My 2 cents..

Phil

[alocky]

Certainly agree with Phillip's comments regarding the silliness of unloading the Polarie to use the polar scope. However, putting the whole thing on a manfrotto geared tripod head with the backlash tightened out eliminated the slop problem, and I've had fairly good and stable polar alignment using the scope with a heavy dslr, 180mm lens, and 2 minute subs.
http://www.astrobin.com/47941/
for example.
Also - having to shine a red light into the polar scope to see the reticle on the vixen is irritating, especially when you're kneeling on hard rocks, adjusting the angle of the polar scope, the two axes on the tripod head, and holding a torch at the same time...
cheers,
Andrew.

[Phil Hart]

That's an impressive result Andrew which shows what it is capable of.

Even without flex in the tripod mount, there is flex in the RA shaft itself which you can see just by wiggling the polar scope or camera around which makes trying to pursue perfect polar alignment with either of these somewhat 'pointless'. But at 180mm you're clearly polar aligned accurately enough for those subs so the flex is not as significant as I might have feared.

For somebody buying such a setup new, the cost of a Manfrotto geared tripod head on top of the polar scope makes the Polarie look a heck of a lot more expensive than the Sky Tracker which needs neither of those extra expenses. The Polarie is a sweet unit but some of these Version 1 issues and the cost of these extras are significant factors for anyone considering which one to buy.

Phil

[JB80]

There is a Lacerta Off axis guider for the Polarie polar scope available in Europe at least using an eq5? polar scope. There is a thread about it somewhere in this section.
I'm kind of loathed to get another ps after already having the Vixen version.
There are also whispers that Vixen are looking into a solution too, hopefully it will incorporate the existing polar scope.

[TheoP]

I managed a few images recently in the Flinders Ranges. I still have a few lessons to learn but I will get there eventually...

Images taken with Canon 600D with iOptron SkyTracker:


M31 taken with a Canon EFS 18-135 at 135mm at f/5.6 and ISO-3200. M42. 4 x 180s lights and 3 darks.
M42 taken with a Canon EFS 18-135 at 135mm at f/5.6 and ISO-3200. M42. 3 x 180s lights and 3 darks.
Sagitarius taken with a "nifty fifty" (Canon EF 50mm) at f/2.0 and ISO-400. 13 x 60s and 4 darks.

I must confess, I like the SkyTracker, its very easy to use and fast to polar align. I use a laser / bracket to align and get it done accurately in a few minutes. I have not yet used the polar finder, its not great. Also, the battery compartment is a very tight fit and in future I will probably use an external battery pack.

[ReaPerMan]

Good Job Theo,

any chance of a picture of your laser/bracket setup?

all the best

Paul :thumbsup:

[TheoP]

Thanks Paul,

Please look at my post of 26 July in this thread. I have included a few photos of the polar alignment setup.

[allan gould]

Nice images Theo. I've Just got my Skytracker a few weeks ago and will be using it with my Olympus OMD which is about 1/3 the weight of a typical,DSLR and so should be a better bet with the tracking. Hope to get some clear skies soon.
Allan

[TheoP]

Thanks Allan,

What lens are you going to use ?

You wont be dissappointed. The SkyTracker is quick and easy to use. I took a single exposure of 10 minutes of the Milky Way last night with a Tokina lens at 15mm and the tracking was great.

Large file available at: http://www.astrobin.com/54564/

[allan gould]

Looks really good Theo.
I have a full frame fish eye lens as well as 90 and 150 mm (35mm equivalent) lenses to use but I really want to do some artistic imaging with the setup. Also have a Nikon lens which is 140-300mm equivalent with the M4/3 olympus and so i will not be restricted by focal length issues.
Allan

[ourkind]

Theo that's a stunning image of the MW!

[TheoP]

Thanks Carlos, I added a link to a high resolution version of the photo...

[Danny_86]

Hey guys, I was wondering what's a good site to get the iOptron Skytracker with the ball head, polar scope & even tripod?

[TheoP]

Hi Danny,

You could try the following online shops. All of them will be able to send the items to you by post.

http://www.opticscentral.com.au/

http://www.bintel.com.au/Mounts---Tripods/iOptron-SkyTracker/153/catmenu.aspx

http://www.telescopes-astronomy.com.au/skytracker_ioptron_camera_mount_pho tography.htm

I am sure there are others as well. Maybe contact someone in the Astronomical Society of Western Australia, they will be able to direct you to a local store. http://aswa.info (http://aswa.info)

[dpastern]

Sorry to revive an old thread:

I like the looks of the iOptron skytracker - from what I can see though, Bintel and opticscentral no longer stock it in Australia. Prices are up too, with the low AUD.

Can anyone describe the alignment process between the iPhone app and the unit itself for this dummy please?

Dave