Saxon dob rocks on Saturn!!

janoskiss (Steve H) · #1 13-02-2007, 01:45 AM

I have just been feeding the mozzies and my gosh they are hungry tonight.

Been observing with the Saxon (aka Skywatcher) 10" Dob. I have never seen Saturn look so good through an eyepiece as it did tonight. Seeing has not been good overall but there have been extended periods with moments of good seeing. 200-280x.

The rings looked exquisite. Cassini and the C ring clearly visible all the way around and more subtle structure also showing. Images crisper and sharper than I've ever seen. Very pleased with the Saxon Dob.

Best view of all was with a 12mm UO HD ortho in UO-equiv 2" barlow (giving about 5.3mm effective or 230x). Second best was 6mm Radian. 7mm XW was great but not enough power. Barlowed XWs were not as good - less contrast with unwanted light (in either TV or UO barlow - not sure why). I want a 5mm XW... and a binoviewer. $$$

Altitude motion needs work. The tensioner handles are great for stopping the tube tipping over when changing EPs, but are not a good substitute for balancing the scope. But when the scope is balanced the altitude motion is way too slick.

btw. checked out some DSOs also including the eight-burst planetary neb also. 8.5mm XF with DGM NBP filter showed ring structure very nicely. I was quite surprised considering the amount of light pollution we have here less than just 20km from the heart of Melbourne.

iceman (Mike) · #2 13-02-2007, 06:40 AM

Great report Steve. Did Saturn's rings look brighter due to the "opposition effect"?

janoskiss (Steve H) · #3 13-02-2007, 10:29 AM

I don't know Mike. I used to observe Saturn with the 8" Dob the most and sometimes with the 12" or the 6" Mak, and now with the 10" so I cannot tell. 10" it is of course noticeably brighter than the 8". What is also readily apparent is that Saturn as well as stars and DSOs have a "crispness" (sharpness and/or contrast) that I have not seen in any of my other scopes.

DougAdams · #4 13-02-2007, 11:17 AM

From Mount Waverley? I was out in Oakleigh from about 10 until 11:30 and it seemed pretty turbulent up there. It was settling down as I was packing up, but sleep beckoned. Seemed a real glow about the sky last night, too.

janoskiss (Steve H) · #5 13-02-2007, 11:32 AM

Yes, mt waverley. I was out till about 1:20am. Seeing got better around midnight - until then it was hopeless. Skyglow did not seem worse than usual to me, and transparency was quite good.

Dave47tuc (David) · #6 13-02-2007, 01:23 PM

Nice to read your report Steve.
Darren and I with Rez Observed Saturn last Thursday night re Friday morning.
Had some great views of Saturn and many DSO’s. I was able to use my 4 mm Radian

in my scope with plenty of moments of nice seeing

. I can tell you my new 10:1 focuser(GSO) is a god send

. The best thing I have brought for the scope since the AN.

Very happy I have my 10” back as it rides as smooth as silk! And now focusers beautifully. My scope shows Saturn a lot better than my old mak!!
And DSO’s well it is a 10” compared to a 6”. So no comparison.

Look forward to seeing your scope this Saturday hopefully.

janoskiss (Steve H) · #7 13-02-2007, 03:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave47tuc

...
Look forward to seeing your scope this Saturday hopefully.

I'll be there if the weather is on our side.

I need to fit that 10:1 GSO focuser to my scope as well. The orion motor focuser is just not doing it for me. It's slow when changing EPs that aren't parfocal and there is still too much backlash in the r&p no matter how I adjust it.

PeteMo (Pete) · #8 13-02-2007, 05:26 PM

Hi Steve
I'm interested in a 10" Skywatcher/Saxon dob myself. You say the 10" is noticeably brighter than your 8". Does that mean you can make out more of Saturn's surface details than with your 8"?
Cheers