Tasco Luminova 114mm Aperture 900mm Focal - Any good or rubbish?

[Draco (Draco)]

Originally Posted by Rob_K

Well done Niv, congratulations! Aside from the planets etc, I think you'll find the 20mm eyepiece the most useful. A cheap 20mm Plossl might be a bit easier on the eyes than the Huygens, but really, you're off and running! Regarding polar alignment, Jon's advice is spot-on. For visual at low powers, a rough job will be perfectly adequate. Your target will stay in the field for ages while advancing the RA knob.

Saturn is great, isn't it, even with a 'tiny' view?! Quite a powerful experience visually with the mind coming to terms with actually seeing what is so familiar from photographs and all we've come to know about it through our lives. In my opinion, no other object in the sky comes close to offering this level of experience. It's a watershed moment, like "Wow, it's all real!!!".

Look forward to an observing report or two from you!

Cheers -

Thanks Rob Yup will definitely post some feedback soon.

[ColHut (Colin)]

At one level you really cannot do wrong. However, it may drive you to tears

You may find the EQ1 mount a little light, the finder (5x24) unusable, the counterweights inadequate and the setting circles useless.

You can spend a bit to make it considerably better, but you might be better off putting the money aside for something less irritating.

You are likely to need some basic collimating tools (a combination cheshire will be fine).

Of the issues noted you can just drop the finder in the bin and get a Rigel Quick finder which is likely to be a much better bet. You might also find you want the cheap clock drive. It is certainly fun to learn the EQ system with all its advantages and dis-advantages.

There are some reviews of basically the same mount in that section.

regards and good hunting

[Draco (Draco)]

Hi Colin.

You have hit the nail on the head. I have been "crying" the last few weekends when my finderscope and tube lose alignment with each other The finderscope is just so hard to lineup! I guess it has more to do with just having one ring where I can tighten the screws. So if I dont have the correct place under the screws, the finderscope becomes a lever and goes up and down slightly as I tighten the screws and loses alignment... hope this makes sense.

The other issue I have got is .. yup as you said.. with the counterweights. The supplied one is not heavy enough and the tube rotates to one side. I have to use the tightening knobs to keep the tube in position. I guess I will spend abit of time this weekend and come up with some counterweights of my own (buying from a shop is quite expensive .. around $40 for a kg .. is this reasonable?) also might see if I can somehow get the finderscope more balanced so that I can align it better ..

ah well.. i guess one good thing about problems .. actually two good things.. one is that you learn lots in a short span of time.. second.. you appreciate the quality of what you get when you spend more

[ColHut (Colin)]

Dear Draco,

Don't despair here. You finder is retained by two gnurled retaining nuts to the telescope tube I'd guess. Then there should be 3 alignment screws in the holder. As a practice, in daytime set up in the shade and find a distant target (lamp-post, radio mast whatever) Point the telescope tube roughly in the right direction by loosening the clutches and sighting like a rifle down the barrel. Tighten the clutches, and putting in your lowest power eyepiece see if you can line it up on that (or any!) prominent feature. Use the slow motion controls to bring it onto the (or a) feature. Now look through the finder (turn head on side , twist head etc ) and using the three (yep should be three) adjustment screws move it onto the target. The screws need to be tightened and loosened together and it does take some playing around. You will get it but do play in daylight, or if it must be at night try and go for the moon to start. Honestly though a Rigel Quick finder is the answer. They can be purchased in a number of places including http://agenaastro.com/rigel-systems-quikfinder.html

For the counterweight, before buying an extension to the counter-weight bar, (do a search on the site for details), I made sure the counterweight was at the bottom, and just wrapped some lead sheet around it (available from Bunnings etc, but I had some spare anyway) and taped it on. Worked fine.

By the way a manual for the same Optical Tube Assembly (OTA) but alt/az mount is here and has some illustrations if yours lacks a manual. http://tasco.com/products/manuals/Lu...076420Inst.pdf

[Draco (Draco)]

Hi Colin.

I had tried exactly what you have outlined above to get the finderscope and the tube aligned. I found the instructions on youtube however it takes soo long to get the finderscope aligned with those pesky screws. And it is so easy to get them unaligned
Is there anything I can do to ensure the alignment is not lost?

I will definitely check out bunnings for lead sheets. I had gone there last week looking for washer weights but they didnt stock any.

Thank you so much for the manual. I did receive one with the telescope but it wasnt of much help since it was one manual for I think 6 different telescopes I guess thats what happens when you mass produce to keep the prices low .. however in this case it was abit to the extreme. The manual is quite basic and doesnt really point out how to use the telescope.. which is a shame .. it just shows the basics of getting it assembled.

[ColHut (Colin)]

Dear Draco,

The alignment problems with the 5x24 finder are a *ahem* feature of the unit. Also there is not much friction between the plastic mounting bracket and the powder-coated OTA. The three alignment screws do work but are very fiddly. You could replace it with a 6x30 finder but the cost would equal what you paid for the scope. Honestly though a unit finder of some kind is likely the best answer. There are some reviews here. http://www.cloudynights.com/documents/9finders.pdf and here http://www.cloudynights.com/item.php...821&pr=2x9x122

regards