Don't laugh at me, im new :)

[EzyStyles]

Hey fellow astronomers! I just bought myself a secondhand Newt Optex OP600 reflective. It's a 8" with 1000mm focal length. Pay $330 for it comes with 4 eye pieces.

Some dumb questions i want to ask are:

1)What are each of the eye pieces for?

a: Plossl 9mm
b: Plossl 4mm
c: Plossl 25mm
d: 2x Achro Barlow

2) What accessories do you normally get when you purchase a brand new telescope?

3) I want to see deep space objects, will this do?

4) There is a small dent on the barrel, will it affect image quality?

5) What do you use to clean the lenses/mirrors with?

6) If anyone has a manual to this, can i get a copy? :)

Many thanks and much appreciated.

[janoskiss]

Check this out:
http://skyandtelescope.com/howto/

Especially the articles here:
http://skyandtelescope.com/howto/visualobserving/

And this one on collimation (i.e., aligning the optics, esp. critical with your fast scope):
http://skyandtelescope.com/howto/scopes/article_787_1.asp

[vindictive666]

hello ezy

and welcome to IIS

if you divide the focal length of your scope by the 9 mm ep ect ect you wil get youre magnification factor

so 9mm = 111x
4mm = 250x
25mm = 40x

and so on

and for sure you can see some dso's depending on seeing conditions as allways :)


and there are no such things as dumb questions ask away as there are some very smart people her :)

[ving]

1.
a: plantets and closups
b: headaches
c:widefields, DSOs, clusters etc
d: doubles the power of your eyepiece (roughly)

2. about what you have there, sometimes a moon filter

3. you'll see plenty, but dont expect details like you see in pictures.

4. depends on how small... i'd say no. if the scope is brand new tho and the dent was there when you got it i'd take it back

hey! and welcome aboard! :D

[[1ponders]]

:hi: and :welcome:EzyStyles

Ditto to all the above.
5. Don't clean it unless you REALLY have to. A bit of dust (even quite a bit of dust) isn't going to worry it too much. The mirror is too easy to scratch so infrequent cleaning is the order of the day. If you feel you have to, it's not difficult and if you do a search for mirror cleaning you will find plenty of threads/posts

[EzyStyles]

Many thanks for the help. I'm also thinking of picking up astrophotography. Will this telescope do? what camera should I be getting? I don't want to spend too much $$$ on one and came across the Phillips webcam which you can attach to a telescope? would i need filters for it?

thanks.

[[1ponders]]

ES you could do planetary imaging with a webcam through it, but there are much better options if you want to do DSOs as well. The problem is not so much the telescope (is the scope actually 1000mm long or is it only about 500mm long, Important to know this) as the mount. You might be able to track a planet for webcamming if you're careful but DSOs are only going to cause you grief with that setup.

Seriously, if you are thinking of astrophotography, including DSOs, then your minimum setup cost, to do it with a minimum amount of fuss, you are looking $3000 plus. Tha'ts a good motorised mount (EQ5 or HEQ or EQ6 (more expensive)), good quality small scope for imaging (that one might be ok, I don't know the quality of th optex), cheap guidescope and rings, Camera (DSI for about $500) and a reticle for manual guiding. And that's just to start with. If you want goto and autoguiding add another $1500 to $2500 to that. Roughly.

Hope I'm not putting you off :D .

If you want to just do planetary and lunar then depending on the quality of your scope you could probably do it with a webcam and a laptop (opps I forgot about that up above, add another $400 to $700 for a second hand one with serial port and parallel port as well (for long exposure webcamming. need parallel port (LPT1))

Hope that helps :ashamed:

[janoskiss]

For astrophotography, the telescope will probably do, but the mount will probably not. Webcam will do Moon & planets but not so good with deep sky. Mount won't do planets. So that leaves the Moon for imaging, which would still be fun.

[astrogeek]

Seems like quite a good deal you got there, especially if the mount is of good quality :). An 8" can see more objects than you could possibly see in your lifetime so I think you will get a lot of good use out of it for many years to come. I have an 8" and I have had some great views of DSO's (from dark skys) so it is certianly possible. One thing you have to become familiar with is collimation. Reflectors require collimation every time they get bumped around a bit (If you move it carefully out to the backyard should be fine). Collimation is simply aligning the mirrors so that the big one at the bottom of the tube (The Primary Mirror) points directly to the centre of the small one at the top of the tube (The Secondary Mirror), and the secondary mirror points directly to your eye. There are a number of tools to help with this and make the job easy and a quick search of the forums will provide you with more info on the tools and the techniques. Welcome to astronomy.

P.S. I would recomend you spend a few months just doing visual work and familiarising yourself with the sky and the scope before you get into imaging, IMHO.

Leon

[Starcrazzy]

Yep, i'd have to agree with that..The setup you have now will provide you with hours of fun,,,no hassle fun,,,i attended an observing night a few nights ago, and there were guys there with 10,000 bucks worth of gear, trying to do imaging...the cursing and cussing coming from them was unbelievable, they just weren't having any fun...but me and another iis member just pokked around with his dob and my 8" eq newt...we had a blast...So yea...just get out as much as you can...have fun,,,even on moonlit nights(not full moon)...have a good look around the moon...It all helps to learn the art,by the way...have you got the virtual moon atlass?

[acropolite]

:welcome: EzyStyles looks like your questions have been answered, enjoy your new toy and don't be afraid to ask anything. :D

[mickoking]

G,day Ezy, welcome to the forum and the greatest hobby ever.


A 200mm scope like yours will show you thousands of deep sky objects and once you train your eye's to observe efficiently you will even make out some detail in galaxies millions of light years away ;)

[EzyStyles]

Thanks for the warm welcome all. The community is so friendly and helpful around here compared with other forums :)

well i took out the scope last night at 3.15am since down here in Melbourne was so cloudy until that late. I point the 8" at the moon and saw many many details. really fun. Right below it, there was Jupiter so i decide to have a look at it. Was very disappointing as i can only see a blurry white ball? this because of the moon being right next to it?

The pointing scope is not align with the eyepiece, i tired aligning it but the only alignment i got was horizonally not vertically? anyone know how i can align it properly to the eye piece?

@ astrogeek: what is Collimation?

btw, do you guys get sore back using your scope? i did :P


Thanks all for your help so far.

[vindictive666]

ezy

you should have 2 adjustment screws on your finders scope one for up and down and the other for left and right

allso the best way to align it is during the day

you line your scope up on a distant target and look thru your findersscope and adjust it accordingly


collimation is what you have to to line up youre mirrors if you do a search of the forums you will get lots of hits


:)

[janoskiss]

Jupiter should certainly look better than that. You should see the two main cloud belts at least (even in poor conditions). Collimation is getting the mirrors optically aligned. I linked the S&T article in my previous post above. It is one of the best and most accessible articles around on collimation. Whereabouts in Melbourne are you?

[Starcrazzy]

you need a stool or a chair, if you havn't got one the right height go and get one...will save your back;)..Sounds like mabye you weren't focussed properly...once focussed on the moon you shouldn't need to adjust the focus then..start with the lowest mag eyepiece(ie the highest number) and center the object..then try the next lowest number..and center again..but you may need to adjust the focus slightly when you change eyepieces..with jupiter you should see a few bright dots around it aswell..its four main moons(but sometimes 1 or more may be behind him)..don't get dissalusioned,it takes a bit of practise,,you'll get the hang of it;)

[matt]

Sounds like you've got the 8" f5 fl 1000mm.

I've got the same size thing, only in the SkyWatcher and it's good fun and very capable of very nice views of DSOs and planets.

Stick with it. Get familiar with its capabilities and when you're ready get yourself a couple of better quality eyepieces and definitely a better mount.

You'll need slightly better quality eyepieces eventually in a fast scope to get the most out of it but like the previous posts have said, you'll need to learn how to make sure your optics are correctly aligned (collimated).

There's no easy way around this I'm afraid. You've just got to jump in and have a go. You'll more than likely get it wrong the first few times and think you're ruined your scope. Don't worry. The good news is it's not broken. It's just out of alignment and waiting for you to figure it out. And you will. Eventually:lol:

Given that you are not familiar with collimation there's every likelihood you're not aware of what to look for to determine if your collimation is out. So it probably is.

It might have something to do with why Jupiter wasn't so pretty through the eyepiece but the moon was??? The moon's (a little) more forgiving on poor collimation than details on Jupiter.

I'd agree there's also a chance you're not focusing correctly.

Also make sure you were in fact pointing at Jupiter and not a star!:)

Otherwise, go for it. The night sky loves being looked at, when there's not clouds everywhere!!!!!!!!!

[Starcrazzy]

yea, i forgot about that...make sure it is jupiter ur looking at..to allighn your finder use a telegraph pole or something ON EARTH ..put it in the center of the view through the scope first, then allighn the finder to the object and recheck you didnt move it when you adjusted the finder...then do it on the highest mag eyepiece you have..to make it more accurate...and like i tell all newbies..Get a red dot finder...man these tings are worht there weight in gold..only around 20 bucks from ebay..save you heaps of hassles

[matt]

As soon as you get a nice clear night try a 15 or 20mm eyepiece on Tuc 47 or Omega Centauri.

Both spectacular globular clusters and your scope will show them beautifully. You'll also be blown away by the Orion Nebula.

You'll need to be up around 2am (or later, if you can:scared: ) for Omega Centauri to be nice and high but if you've never seen it before it's worth the extra height in the sky. Then hop over to the jewel Box (NGC 4755) in the Southern Cross, sweep over to Eta Carinae ... and keep going to the Tarantula Nebula (NGC 2070) between the constellations Mensa and Dorado and that should be a very enjoyable hour or two... taking in a small slice of the southern sky, before you swing round to the East where Jupiter should be burning bright close to 20 degrees abover the horizon.:)

For Jupiter, try to have an eyepiece in the 6mm to 10mm range, which will give you about 160x to 100x magnification. That should be plenty to bring out at least the 2 major equatorial bands and certainly the 4 main moons, if all are visible?

Do you know anyone who can lend you an eyepiece in that range with acceptable eye relief? By that, I mean an eyepiece where you don't have to push your eyeball right up against the glass to take in the view?:lol:

Good luck

[davidpretorius]

ok, jupiter for me was terrible seeing, so don't despair. At 4am, these were the worst and the best frames from a movie i could get.


keep at it, it can be fickle sometimes, but when it all comes together, wow!!!!

[EzyStyles]

There are 2 screws on the finderscope to hold it down only. pic of it below. I use the two mount screws to adjust horizontally only but can't do it vertically.



just rechecked my scope. its a 8" f4 800mm. i was scared if i collimate the scope, might wreck it. Never done it before :P

lol, naw im quite certain it was jupiter otherwise it was quite big for a star. i use stellarium for my star proggy.



I'm in Glen Waverley, right next to you :)



Pointed it tonight at the Orion Neb, looks really nice but abit blurry. I'm thinking of getting some colour filters?

With Jupiter, i can only see 1 moon tonight at 4.00am . Still a blurry white image and can't see the red cloud storm nor any clouds at all on jupiter. Just a plain white circular dot.



? Those are nice pics!!! i wish my scope can do that.

I've gotta bow to you all :prey2: :prey2: :prey2:

Many thanks for the help. Hope i don't frustrate anyone asking silly questions. I notice that when trying to focus on something, the image shakes around from the eyepiece making it really hard to focus?

oh with colour filters, will it make nebula's more visible?

What eye piece(s)/brands would you recommend to see DSO's/Planets?

Many thanks.

[matt]

That "shaking around" when you're focusing is probably the mount not being stable enough.

You'll always get a little bumping when you manually focus because you're making contact with the scope through the focuser so you cause vibration. A better (smoother) focuser will help, as will a more sturdy mount. An electronic focuser will do away with the wobbles altogether but that's getting costly and unnecessary for your purposes.

F4's even shorter than my Skywatcher (F5), so collimation will prove even more critical and harder to keep. You'll need to learn how to do it. I dare say it's causing your jupiter probs. That and maybe some poor seeing?:)

[RAJAH235]

Hi ezy. Welcome to IIS. :welcome: There are no silly questions, just..........etc..
1. Coloured fiters are useless on nebula. Only for planets.
2. Your finder can easily be collimated to the t'scope using the 6 screws in/on the holder. Nip the 2 screws up that hold the finder bracket to the t'scope tube. Take it outside during the day, (DO NOT POINT ANYWHERE NEAR THE SUN), & as per starcrazzy's post, with the largest E/Pc you have, eg; the biggest number, 25 mm, find an stationary object, (TV antenna, pole etc ), at least 500 to 1000 mtrs away. With it centred in the E/Pc, adjust the finders 6 screws so that the SAME object is in the centre of the finderscope. Just 'nip' the screws. Do not overtighten. Now, put the 9 mm E/Pc in & check the collimation. Gives you a magnified view for more precise adjustments.
3. For the moment, don't worry about new E/Pcs. Get to know your t'scope first.
4. Movement whilst focusing is inevitable. Is there any 'side play' in the focuser tube? If yes, can be fixed, but later...
5. For your t'scope collimation I can only say, see Steve's links & try these also>
http://skyandtelescope.com/printable/howto/scopes/article_790.asp
http://www.andysshotglass.com/Collimating.html
6. If you have any more q's, just ask. O.K.
Regards, L. :D

[Starcrazzy]

It still sounds like focus problems to me..The orion neb is a large gasseous cloud so its not going to resolve to show you hubble detail, try getting the stars in the middle as sharp as you can, they should resolve to tiny pinpoints of light..Jupiter even if the scope is out of collimation should show you lots of detail..ie at lest some banding...has anyone told you how to star test the collimation??if not, its pretty easy,,just get a bright star(or planet) in the view and defocus it a bit, you should see a dark circle sarrouned by some donuts type rings...if the rings aren't perfectly semetrical, then ur out of collimation..if so, don't worry, this really isn't a big problem...you will want to learn how to do it anyway..you won't wreck your scope...just don't for any reason take the mirror out, or touch it with your fingers at all..don't touch any of the optics, not even the eyepieces(the lenses anyway)..good luck...

ps...have you tried saturn yet?

[EzyStyles]

Thanks all. I've attached a picture looking directly down the focuser, what do you guys make out of it?

any tips would be great.

[davidpretorius]

if you slide your hand down the side of the tube nearest the focusser and then find the larger collimation screw, then i would turn then clockwise 1 full turn as you look at the bottom.

do you have 3 or 6 screws on the bottom, 3 are the collimation screws, 3 usually are locking scews(i have taken mine out!)

have another look, and you should start to see it lign up better.

it is hard to see if you secondary is ok, but it should be ok.

[EzyStyles]

Thanks, im currently collimating it right now. From the pics i have attached, i label it right? what mirror is "??" To adjust the primary mirror, do i adjust the screw with the spring or without the spring?

Many thanks.

[davidpretorius]

pic1:
with the springs are the collimation screws!.. i would lossen the other ones right out, so they do not interfere (like i said, i have taken mine away)

pic2:
lets leave the secondary for the moment, as you will need a sight tibe to line it up. the centre screw moves the mirror up and down, the others help stabilize it

pic 3:

???? is a reflection of you and your camera. we want to align the big dot with the little dot to the right of it. i assume the little dot is a centre spot on the big primary mirror.

everything looks left to me, so we want centralise all the circles etc by moving it right. give the collimation screw closest to you a full turn clockwise and then hae another look.

It is best with a cheshire, or a photo film cannister with a hole in it, as you can then make sure you are looking from dead centre of the focusser tube

[EzyStyles]

Oh the small black dot isnt' the centre spot. It's part of my camera.

I grabbed an old black cap lense from my 50mm telescope and pinch a hole in the middle, then placed it in the eye piece for alignment. Fiddled around with the collimation screw at the back. From the pic, is this good enough?

[janoskiss]

It sure looks a lot better than your first pic. Whether it is "good enough" depends on how clear and sharp your want your images. For looking at planets with high magnifications through such a fast scope you need to be spot on. Still if the photos you posted don't lie :P then you should find the views would have improved considerably. Tonight is looking like it's going to be a clear night (the first one for nearly a week). :)

[davidpretorius]

can you take one more shot from thru the focus tube?

you want that sort of look being reflected off the secondary and thru the focusser.

it is lookinig better.

do a star test tonight, pick any bright star and then defocus until the image fills up the view, you want the black central circle to be exactly in the centre. you then slowly focus - all the way making sure the black circle in the middle stays perfectly in the middle until finally you have the focussed star!

[janoskiss]

I have no idea why so expensive, but MyAstroShop sells what appears to be the exact same scope+mount for $1200. :eyepop: (Other places are selling it for even more.) The people running the shop are reputedly very knowledgeable about all things astronomical and honest about what they are selling, so it might be worth contacting them to find out more about the scope. Such a fast scope may be designed for deep sky astrophotography. :shrug:

[EzyStyles]

Been veryy very cloudy the entire week. can't wait to see it tonight esp Jupiter. Hopefully it won't be a blurry ball again :)

here's another pic as requested.

[davidpretorius]

yup, i like it

clips on the mirror can be seen and it look pretty nicely aligned and concentric

you can fine tune with star tests, at least the first few ones anyway

http://legault.club.fr/collim.html

hey, have fun, but do remember, the atmosphere can be a pain and not reveal anything on the surface of planets, no matter how well you have prepared.

[janoskiss]

Don't forget Saturn! It's up well before Jupiter and it's always an impressive sight.

You will really need a good collimation tool (cheshire sighttube with crosshairs) and a centre spot on your mirror to get such a fast scope properly collimated. Start test at this stage may be futile if your secondary is not precisely aligned. But I guess it can't hurt. At least with the short tube you should be able to reach the primary adjustment screws while looking through the focuser.

[janoskiss]

Ezy, Have you been looking at Saturn tonight? If you have, it should have looked pretty darn good! It looked great in my 8" Dob at 180-260x, with Cassini + more detail in the rings and banding on the surface easily visible.

[EzyStyles]

i was out just got back home now at 3.25am :( just had a quick check at the sky, very cloudy and can hardy see the moon. did i miss heaps?

[RAJAH235]

Yeh, but it'll be back again real soon...:P :D L.