I'm an idiot!

[cometcatcher (Kevin)]

So last night I decide to set up the EQ3 mount to another location to capture some western sky (after being setup for the east). I set it down, roughly point the PA north/south, connect motor drive and proceed to drift align as is my custom. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get polar alignment. In fact the guide star was drifting as fast in declination as it was in RA. Nothing I did made it better!

I fooled around for an hour like this, wasting all of my imaging time. I was completely baffled. Then all of a sudden it dawned on me. I was trying to align to the NORTH celestial pole! I had the mount swiveled around 180 degrees! Having to flick the motor drive switch to the northern hemisphere to make it track the right way should have been a clue!

Now it's not like I haven't lined up an EQ mount before. I've been doing it since 1976! I'm going senile in my middle age!

I've been doing the same with my amateur radio gear. There's always a switch set to the wrong position. Thank heavens I'm not a pilot!

[Nico13 (Ken)]

Originally Posted by cometcatcher

Thank heavens I'm not a pilot!

Yep, still waiting to see when I start that LOL.

[leon]

All been there Kevin, well I have anyway.

Leon

[pmrid (Peter)]

Originally Posted by leon

All been there Kevin, well I have anyway.

Leon

And sadly, it's a bit like "The Eagles"' Hotel California, once you check in you can never leave!!

Peter

[FlashDrive (Poppy)]

Yep ... !! I've been there ... frustrating isn't it ...!!

Sometimes .. I've had to walk away from it .... and my language has been very ' colourful '.

It's later on when I've calmed down ( and thinking straight again ) ... that suddenly it all comes together .. and you know how to ' remedy ' the problem.

And .... it all worked out ... !!

Flash .. !!

[jjjnettie (Jeanette)]

We've all been there.
Twice I've forgotten to add counter weights. Slew.....bang
My poor finder scope copped it full on both times. (yes, it still works)

[cometcatcher (Kevin)]

I feel a little better now knowing it happens to all of us. It's just funny that I couldn't figure out the obvious.

[stardust steve (Steve)]

One night i kept increasing the altitude adjustment (for reasons unknown) while trying a drift align and ended up bending the bolt
Luckily i could fix it myself with no serious damage done to the mount.
The old adage "you learn from your mistakes" was true in my case

[leon]

And once I was wondering why i couldn't focus on any stars, till I realize I had inserted the eyepiece with the black plastic cap still attached.

Leon

[Rod771 (Rod)]

Ok here we go.....

When I was 11 yrs old I got a tasco 4" newt for Christmas
I thought I was doing the right thing when taking off the "lens cap" the problem was, I was only removing the small inner 2" cap.

I took the scope out of the box earlier this year to start observing again, I couldnt stop laughing at myself when for the first time I removed the full cap.

Yes..... It took me 24 yrs to take the lens cap off properly

(it was in the box for a lot of that time)

[FlashDrive (Poppy)]

Who's put their gear away ... and forgot to turn off the RDF ... ME

Flash .. !!

[cometcatcher (Kevin)]

Yeah forgetting to turn off the red dot is something I do too.

Need to make a power up and power down checklist I think lol.

[silv (Annette)]

so much to look forward to, I still have.

(I do these things, too, but being a newbie, anyway, takes out the funny part.)

[pvelez (Pete)]

How about not setting the scope in the mount correctly? Start to slew and then try (and fail) to catch the scope as it falls to the ground. Lucky for me it was on grass not concrete.

I also tried to focus my new spectroscope with the cover still on.

And tried to guide with the guidescope lens cap on.

Been there, done that.

Pete

[Waxing_Gibbous (Peter)]

I'm a bigger idiot!
I spent 3 hours imaging M39 on a perfect, night - and I mean perfect.
I had however enable Cfn 13 (or ?) on my 40D: Enable use without CF card.
And oooo! Guess what!?

[jjjnettie (Jeanette)]

LOL Peter!! I just did that tonight. Found out when I went back to check on the pics. Only 3x5min lost though, phew.
sigh....

[ZeroID (Brent)]

Originally Posted by FlashDrive

Who's put their gear away ... and forgot to turn off the RDF ... ME

Flash .. !!

You are not alone ....

My redeeming grace on this is that my wife has Led reader light which uses the same battery. When they get a bit dim and I replace them for her I keep the old ones. Plenty of juice to run an RDF for weeks.
I currently have about 20 of them, about 10 years worth !!