I'm no expert but, I have encountered some of the issues you have mentioned & here is my 2 cents worth:
Can't comment on your alignment issues without knowing a bit more detail on what your problems were. If you have a smart phone, you might like to download Skysafari, there is a fully functional free version for both android & iphones. It might help you with identifying stars.
Do you have a dew shield, it won't prevent dew but, it does delay the onset; otherwise, you may consider a dew heater.
To 'turn down the brightness' you need filters. First two filters I ever bought were two Neutral density filters. If you are using a 1.25" diagonal or eyepieces, then buy yourself an ND96 0.9 & ND96 0.3 in the 1.25" size. You can attach them to the diagonal (the bit you insert into the telescope) if it is threaded (intenal) then you can just put the eyepiece you want in; otherwise, you can screw them on to the bottom of the eyepiece but, that is a PITA when changing eyepieces & having to unscrew & rescrew to change them.. They are available for about $19 each. If you have a 2" diagonal or eyepieces they get a bit more expensive. Essential for viewing the moon; .9 is the darkest one & I use it pretty much all of the time when viewing the moon. the .3 is somewhat lighter & is useful for brighter planets. There are other filters out there, colours, emission filters & plenty of others. Do a google search for astronomy filter use, there are some great guides to filter use online.
Viewing of planets can be hit & miss depending on viewing conditions. Clouds, jetstream, moisture can all effect the view & how sharp a view you can get. Try starting with a low powered eyepiece; don't know your scope or setup but, you should be able to achieve pretty sharp focus with a low powered eyepiece, then you can start moving up to higher powers. The better the seeing conditions, the more high powered you can go (in theory). Sometimes, you may find an eyepiece that won't come to focus in your scope; this can be due to not enough intravel or outtravel on your focuser for that particular eyepiece. I have a 15mm GSO Superview that will not come to focus in my 80mm APO. There are solutions, mine was purchasing a Televue adapter that effectively lifted the eyepiece up a little & allow it to come to focus. Other options include trying a different type of eyepiece design, changing to a different focal length eyepiece, etc...
I wear glasses but, I am long sighted with some astigmatism so, whilst I can view through my scope with glasses, I don't need to & I prefer not to. Eyepieces & specifically their cup are designed to place the eye at the right distance from the eyepiece for viewing. If you are wearing glasses, you should fold the rubber down as your glasses will give you the effective eyerelief. I hate doing that so, that's why I don't use my glasses. Your situation may be different. Have you tried viewing without them? You may be able to bring your scope to focus for you without them. I still need them to read stuff, like my handcontroller, use my finderscope, etc... so, bit of a pain taking them on & off but, I still prefer viewing without them.
Watery eyes, can't comment... don't have the problem sorry.
Hope this all helps
Quote:
Originally Posted by TwistedRider
So took the scope out for a few hours tonight.
1. Had a lot of issues finding alignment points for the goto. Mainly lack of knowledge on my part.
2. By the coast is a bit wet without a dew heater.
Now the troubling parts.
How do you turn down the brightness?
Looking at the moon was like starting into a torch.
After looking away, all I could see was black for a couple of minutes. Hope I'm not damaging the old eyes.
Focusing on the moon was good. Nice and clear.
Mars or Jupiter were just blurry blobs. Not sure if I was getting moisture build up or something else.
I do wear glasses and I'm wondering if I need different glasses for using the scope? Any advice.
Also having an issue with eyes watering like mad each time I look into the eyepiece. Not sure if it's wind in my eyes or the directed light. Any glasses wearers for some words of wisdom?
Did get this with the phone though.
Once I'm focusing ok, I'll get the DSLR out.
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