Your refractor - let's see it

Discuss your refractor type scopes here.
Post Reply
User avatar
helicon United States of America
Co-Administrator
Co-Administrator
Articles: 584
Online
Posts: 12275
Joined: Mon May 06, 2019 1:35 pm
4
Location: Washington
Status:
Online

TSS Awards Badges

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#81

Post by helicon »


SHRIMPY is a nice add OIen!
-Michael
Refractors: ES AR152 f/6.5 Achromat on Twilight II, Celestron 102mm XLT f/9.8 on Celestron Heavy Duty Alt Az mount, KOWA 90mm spotting scope
Binoculars: Celestron SkyMaster 15x70, Bushnell 10x50
Eyepieces: Various, GSO Superview, 9mm Plossl, Celestron 25mm Plossl
Camera: ZWO ASI 120
Naked Eye: Two Eyeballs
Latitude: 48.7229° N
User avatar
LDW47 Canada
Jupiter Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 245
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2019 5:57 pm
4
Location: north bay,ontario,canada
Status:
Offline

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#82

Post by LDW47 »


My new Svbony 48P, 90mm, f5.5, sliding shield, 2" 2 speed focuser all for $350 C. A perfect pal for my NP101, excellent performance, great views.
704E2320-F29C-4136-B402-3C8DA8356461.jpeg
002A0E2A-5DBA-42CC-8265-13579EF69189.jpeg
User avatar
LDW47 Canada
Jupiter Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 245
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2019 5:57 pm
4
Location: north bay,ontario,canada
Status:
Offline

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#83

Post by LDW47 »


LDW47 wrote: Thu Jun 02, 2022 3:42 am My new Svbony 48P, 90mm, f5.5, sliding shield, 2" 2 speed 360°rotatable focuser, all for $350 C. A perfect pal for my NP101, excellent performance, great views.

704E2320-F29C-4136-B402-3C8DA8356461.jpeg

002A0E2A-5DBA-42CC-8265-13579EF69189.jpeg
User avatar
DeanD Australia
Orion Spur Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 653
Joined: Fri May 17, 2019 7:27 am
4
Location: Adelaide South Australia
Status:
Offline

TSS Awards Badges

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#84

Post by DeanD »


LDW47 wrote: Thu Jun 02, 2022 3:42 am My new Svbony 48P, 90mm, f5.5, sliding shield, 2" 2 speed focuser all for $350 C. A perfect pal for my NP101, excellent performance, great views.

704E2320-F29C-4136-B402-3C8DA8356461.jpeg

002A0E2A-5DBA-42CC-8265-13579EF69189.jpeg
Looks like an AP Stowaway to me... ;)
Telescopes: 12" f5 dob, Celestron CPC800, 150mmf5 Celestron achro, Tak TSA102, TV76, ETX125...
Binos: Steiner Wildlife XP 10x26, Swarovski 8x30 Habicht, Zeiss SFL 8x40, Vanguard Endeavour 10.5x45, Fuji FMTR-SX 10x50, Tak 22x60, Orion Resolux 15x70
Eyepieces: way too many (is that possible?), but I do like my TV 32mm plossl, 13mm Nagler T6, 27mm Panoptic and 3-6mm Nagler zoom, plus Fujiyama 18mm and 25mm orthos and Tak 7.5mm LE
User avatar
turboscrew
Inter-Galactic Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 3233
Joined: Sat Jun 20, 2020 9:22 am
3
Location: Nokia, Finland
Status:
Offline

TSS Awards Badges

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#85

Post by turboscrew »


I've forgotten. Now I have a refractor.
Omegon AC 102/660 on AZ-3 mount.
Sorry for the stuff behind.
IMG_20220414_162610_small.jpg
- Juha

Senior Embedded SW Designer
Telescope: OrionOptics XV12, Mount: CEM120, Tri-pier 360 and alternative dobson mount.
Grab 'n go: Omegon AC 102/660 on AZ-3 mount
Eyepieces: 26 mm Omegon SWAN 70°, 15 mm TV Plössl, 12.5 mm Baader Morpheus, 10 mm TV Delos, 6 mm Baader Classic Ortho, 5 mm TV DeLite, 4 mm and 3 mm TV Radians
Cameras: ZWO ASI 294MM Pro, Omegon veLOX 178C
OAG: TS-Optics TSOAG09, ZWO EFW 7 x 36 mm, ZWO filter sets: LRGB and Ha/OIII/SII
Explore Scientific HR 2" coma corrector, Meade x3 1.25" Barlow, TV PowerMate 4x 2"
Some filters (#80A, ND-96, ND-09, Astronomik UHC)
Laptop: Acer Enduro Urban N3 semi-rugged, Windows 11
LAT 61° 28' 10.9" N, Bortle 5

I don't suffer from insanity. I'm enjoying every minute of it.

Image
User avatar
Johnny Carter
Saturn Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 334
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2022 8:41 pm
2
Location: Tin Top & Uvalde TX
Status:
Offline

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#86

Post by Johnny Carter »


Thanx for posting this, it helps some of newbies to see what folks on here are using.
I’ve learned a lot since I knew it all.
150mm Orion Mak-Cass, Orion StarSeeker IV GoTo mount, Telrad.
Orion 10 & 23mm (set 1.25), Explore Scientific 9 & 18mm, 2x GSO Barlow, just purchased 2” Orion twist diagonal, GSO 32mm plossl and Agena 8-24 zoom.
User avatar
dagadget United States of America
Mars Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 109
Joined: Mon Jun 17, 2019 6:21 pm
4
Location: Avon Park, Florida
Status:
Offline

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#87

Post by dagadget »


post-259937-0-25052500-1632422220_thumb.jpg
My AT 92
Astro-Tech AT 152EDT Ioptron GEM 45 Mount AKA FracZilla
Celestron C11 Carbon Fiber CGEM II Mount AKA Cloudzilla
Sky Watcher Mak Cas 180 Ioptron IEQ 30 AKA MoonZilla
AT 92 on IEQ 30 Pro AKA ClusterZilla
Home Made 8 inch Newtonian Reflector on Rocker Box AKA Scopezilla
Celestron 4 1/2 114 mm Newtonian Telescope 910 F/L GT Mount AKA Frankenscope.


David
User avatar
Ylem United States of America
Universal Ambassador
Articles: 0
Online
Posts: 7477
Joined: Sun May 12, 2019 2:54 am
4
Location: Ocean County, New Jersey
Status:
Online

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#88

Post by Ylem »


IMG_20220714_113942059.jpg
My newly acquired Orion 80ED :)
Clear Skies,
-Jeff :telescopewink:


Member; ASTRA-NJ



Orion 80ED
Celestron C5, 6SE, Celestar 8
Vixen Porta Mount ll
Coronado PST
A big box of Plossls
Little box of filters
:D



User avatar
AstroBee United States of America
Moderator
Moderator
Articles: 0
Online
Posts: 2196
Joined: Thu Nov 14, 2019 11:03 pm
4
Location: Henderson, NV
Status:
Online

TSS Awards Badges

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#89

Post by AstroBee »


davesellars wrote: Mon Mar 21, 2022 10:54 pm ... Although the Moonlite focusers are lovely (such a shame they've stopped making them for visual only purposes).
@davesellars What do you mean by, "they've stopped making them for visual only purposes"?
Greg M.~ "Ad Astra per Aspera"
Scopes: Celestron EdgeHD14", Explore Scientific ED152CF & ED127 APO's, StellarVue SV70T, Classic Orange-Tube C-8, Lunt 80mm Ha double-stack solar scope.
Mounts: Astro-Physics Mach One, iOptron CEM70EC Mount, iOptron ZEQ25 Mount.
Cameras: ZWO ASI2600mm Pro, ZWO 2600MC Pro, ZWO ASI1600mm
Filters: 36mm Chroma LRGB & 3nm Ha, OIII, SII, L-Pro, L-eXtreme
Eyepieces: 27mm TeleVue Panoptic, 4mm TeleVue Radian, Explore Scientific 82° 30mm, 6.7mm , Baader 13mm Hyperion, Explore Scientific 70° 10mm, 15mm, 20mm, Meade 8.8mm UWA
Software: N.I.N.A., SharpCapPro, PixInsight, PhotoShop CC, Phd2, Stellarium
https://www.nevadadesertskies.com
User avatar
AstroBee United States of America
Moderator
Moderator
Articles: 0
Online
Posts: 2196
Joined: Thu Nov 14, 2019 11:03 pm
4
Location: Henderson, NV
Status:
Online

TSS Awards Badges

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#90

Post by AstroBee »


The latest iteration of my setup.
Image Image
Explore Scientific ED152 CF APO
Moonlight NiteCrawler Focuser/Rotator
TS Optics TS2 flattener (1x)
ZWO OAG-L w/ASI290mm Guider
ZWO 7x36 filter wheel w/ Chroma LRGB and 3nm Ha,OIII, & SII filters
ZWO 2600mm Pro camera

All that sits on the iOptron CEM70EC mount and iOptron Tri-Pier w/extension. The 8" pier extension allows this long refractor to point up towards the zenith without hitting the pier legs. I no longer have to worry about getting close to the meridian during flips as I can now track at least 10 minutes past the meridian with no issues.

Mounted on the pier is a dovetail plate that used to piggyback on the scope. With the through-the-mount cabling of the CEM70, I was able to move everything off of the top of the scope to the pier.
On the dovetail is a Pegasus Astro Ultimate Powerbox V2 that acts as a power and USB distribution center. (Now, with the through the mount cabling for USB and power, this device is not as essential as it used to be.) Above the Powerbox is a small i3 NUC running Win10Pro. Attached to the top of the NUC is a small USB powered WiFi travel router, Model TL-WR902AC. The NUC is hardwired to the router and it creates a hotspot that allows me to use TeamViewer or RDP to log into the NUC wirelessly from my laptop or Android tablet. You will also notice there's a small 500GB SSD drive plugged into the NUC. Files are saved to this drive so at the end of the evening I can just unplug it and transfer easily to my desktop for image processing.
Also, you might notice, that directly below the Powerbox/NUC/Router stack is a small Voltage transformer. The Pegasus Astro Powerbox V2 only outputs 12v power but the NUC requires 19v power to operate efficiently. That's where the 12v-19v transformer comes into play.
On the ground below is a YETI 400 battery with an additional 70amp hr battery attached to it. Combined, I have roughly 140amp hrs and a typical 8-hour imaging session leaves me with about 50% power at the end. I wish it was more efficient, but it is what it is at this point. Most nights are single-night outings but when I camp, I have a 100w solar panel that will charge the system from 50% to 90+% in about 5 hours of sunshine.

It's been a long process to get my rig to this point as can be seen from the several previous iterations I've shared here in post:
https://www.theskysearchers.com/viewtop ... 41#p138310,
https://www.theskysearchers.com/viewtop ... 40#p153448,
& https://www.theskysearchers.com/viewtop ... 60#p177823.
Greg M.~ "Ad Astra per Aspera"
Scopes: Celestron EdgeHD14", Explore Scientific ED152CF & ED127 APO's, StellarVue SV70T, Classic Orange-Tube C-8, Lunt 80mm Ha double-stack solar scope.
Mounts: Astro-Physics Mach One, iOptron CEM70EC Mount, iOptron ZEQ25 Mount.
Cameras: ZWO ASI2600mm Pro, ZWO 2600MC Pro, ZWO ASI1600mm
Filters: 36mm Chroma LRGB & 3nm Ha, OIII, SII, L-Pro, L-eXtreme
Eyepieces: 27mm TeleVue Panoptic, 4mm TeleVue Radian, Explore Scientific 82° 30mm, 6.7mm , Baader 13mm Hyperion, Explore Scientific 70° 10mm, 15mm, 20mm, Meade 8.8mm UWA
Software: N.I.N.A., SharpCapPro, PixInsight, PhotoShop CC, Phd2, Stellarium
https://www.nevadadesertskies.com
User avatar
davesellars
Pluto Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 465
Joined: Fri May 31, 2019 1:02 pm
4
Location: UK
Status:
Offline

TSS Awards Badges

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#91

Post by davesellars »


AstroBee wrote: Sun Jul 17, 2022 12:45 am
davesellars wrote: Mon Mar 21, 2022 10:54 pm ... Although the Moonlite focusers are lovely (such a shame they've stopped making them for visual only purposes).
@davesellars What do you mean by, "they've stopped making them for visual only purposes"?
They only now make the Moonlite focusers with motors (serving only the AP interest). I believe the reason was because of the lack of materials at the time meant they had to concentrate on one area, so they stopped making the single and dual speed focusers (for visual use).
SW Flextube 12" Dobsonian.
Starfield ED102 f/7; SW ED80; SW 120ST
EQ5 and AZ4 mounts
Eyepieces: TV Delos 17.3 & 10; Pentax XW 7 & 5; BCO 32,18,10; Fuyiyama Ortho 12.5; Vixen SLV 25.
User avatar
AstroBee United States of America
Moderator
Moderator
Articles: 0
Online
Posts: 2196
Joined: Thu Nov 14, 2019 11:03 pm
4
Location: Henderson, NV
Status:
Online

TSS Awards Badges

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#92

Post by AstroBee »


davesellars wrote: Sun Jul 17, 2022 1:31 am
AstroBee wrote: Sun Jul 17, 2022 12:45 am
davesellars wrote: Mon Mar 21, 2022 10:54 pm ... Although the Moonlite focusers are lovely (such a shame they've stopped making them for visual only purposes).
@davesellars What do you mean by, "they've stopped making them for visual only purposes"?
They only now make the Moonlite focusers with motors (serving only the AP interest). I believe the reason was because of the lack of materials at the time meant they had to concentrate on one area, so they stopped making the single and dual speed focusers (for visual use).
That is so bizarre. Looking at the site, he claims this is due to a severe semiconductor and electronic component shortage. It seems like if that were the case, he would be making MANUAL only and no motorized versions. Something doesn't add up there. Thanks for the info.
Oh well, I guess that makes my E.S. 127 APO with the old-style focuser that also has a motor on it even more valuable.
Greg M.~ "Ad Astra per Aspera"
Scopes: Celestron EdgeHD14", Explore Scientific ED152CF & ED127 APO's, StellarVue SV70T, Classic Orange-Tube C-8, Lunt 80mm Ha double-stack solar scope.
Mounts: Astro-Physics Mach One, iOptron CEM70EC Mount, iOptron ZEQ25 Mount.
Cameras: ZWO ASI2600mm Pro, ZWO 2600MC Pro, ZWO ASI1600mm
Filters: 36mm Chroma LRGB & 3nm Ha, OIII, SII, L-Pro, L-eXtreme
Eyepieces: 27mm TeleVue Panoptic, 4mm TeleVue Radian, Explore Scientific 82° 30mm, 6.7mm , Baader 13mm Hyperion, Explore Scientific 70° 10mm, 15mm, 20mm, Meade 8.8mm UWA
Software: N.I.N.A., SharpCapPro, PixInsight, PhotoShop CC, Phd2, Stellarium
https://www.nevadadesertskies.com
User avatar
davesellars
Pluto Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 465
Joined: Fri May 31, 2019 1:02 pm
4
Location: UK
Status:
Offline

TSS Awards Badges

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#93

Post by davesellars »


AstroBee wrote: Sun Jul 17, 2022 1:41 am
davesellars wrote: Sun Jul 17, 2022 1:31 am
AstroBee wrote: Sun Jul 17, 2022 12:45 am

@davesellars What do you mean by, "they've stopped making them for visual only purposes"?
They only now make the Moonlite focusers with motors (serving only the AP interest). I believe the reason was because of the lack of materials at the time meant they had to concentrate on one area, so they stopped making the single and dual speed focusers (for visual use).
That is so bizarre. Looking at the site, he claims this is due to a severe semiconductor and electronic component shortage. It seems like if that were the case, he would be making MANUAL only and no motorized versions. Something doesn't add up there. Thanks for the info.
Oh well, I guess that makes my E.S. 127 APO with the old-style focuser that also has a motor on it even more valuable.
Seems to be two issues. 1st was supply-chain issues in general... so they cut the manual focusers. The other (possibly later issue) is with the semi-conductors which a lot of companies are still facing at the moment, thus they are giving a very long lead time on getting your focuser. Whatever, it doesn't sound a brilliant situation for the company.
SW Flextube 12" Dobsonian.
Starfield ED102 f/7; SW ED80; SW 120ST
EQ5 and AZ4 mounts
Eyepieces: TV Delos 17.3 & 10; Pentax XW 7 & 5; BCO 32,18,10; Fuyiyama Ortho 12.5; Vixen SLV 25.
Doodlebug
Earth Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 43
Joined: Mon Aug 08, 2022 2:26 am
1
Location: United Stated
Status:
Offline

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#94

Post by Doodlebug »


My AT72EDII
Image
-Shawn

Equipment:
Scope: Astro Tech AT72EDII, William Optics 50mm Guidescope
Mount: ZWO AM5, AZ GTI
Guide Computer: ASIAIR Mini
Finder: Astro-Tech Illuminated Multiple Reticle Finder
Diagonal: William Optics 2" 99% Dielectric Dura Bright Carbon Fiber Mirror Diagonal
Barlow: Celestron X-Cel LX 1.25-Inch 2x Barlow Lens
Eyepiece: SVBONY SV135 Eyepiece 7 to 21mm 1.25 Inch Zoom
Camera ZWO 294mc Pro, ZWO 120mm Mini, Panasonic G9
:Astronomer1:
User avatar
Bigzmey United States of America
Moderator
Moderator
Articles: 8
Online
Posts: 7548
Joined: Sat May 11, 2019 7:55 pm
4
Location: San Diego, CA USA
Status:
Online

TSS Awards Badges

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#95

Post by Bigzmey »


Doodlebug wrote: Tue Aug 09, 2022 12:19 pm My AT72EDII
Image
So cute! Should be great grab and go.
Scopes: Stellarvue: SV102ED; Celestron: 9.25" EdgeHD, 8" SCT, 150ST, Onyx 80ED; iOptron: Hankmeister 6" Mak; SW: 7" Mak; Meade: 80ST.
Mounts: SW: SkyTee2, AzGTi; iOptron: AZMP; ES: Twilight I; Bresser: EXOS2; UA: MicroStar.
Binos: APM: 100-90 APO; Canon: IS 15x50; Orion: Binoviewer, LG II 15x70, WV 10x50, Nikon: AE 16x50, 10x50, 8x40.
EPs: Pentax: XWs & XFs; TeleVue: Delites, Panoptic & Plossls; ES: 68, 62; Vixen: SLVs; Baader: BCOs, Aspherics, Mark IV.
Diagonals: Baader: BBHS mirror, Zeiss Spec T2 prism, Clicklock dielectric; TeleVue: Evebrite dielectric; AltairAstro: 2" prism.
Filters: Lumicon: DeepSky, UHC, OIII, H-beta; Baader: Moon & SkyGlow, Contrast Booster, UHC-S, 6-color set; Astronomik: UHC.

Observing: DSOs: 3106 (Completed: Messier, Herschel 1, 2, 3. In progress: H2,500: 2180, S110: 77). Doubles: 2382, Comets: 34, Asteroids: 255
User avatar
Thefatkitty Canada
Co-Administrator
Co-Administrator
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 4133
Joined: Sat May 11, 2019 4:20 pm
4
Location: Ontario, Canada
Status:
Offline

TSS Awards Badges

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#96

Post by Thefatkitty »


@Doodlebug , I love your scope; nice deal!

Speaking of small scopes, my second-hand (500CDN) and not a mark on it William Optics Zenithstar 61mm. One-handed special!

001.JPG
002.JPG


Unfortunately, in the month and change I've had it, not a single good night for viewing, though it does take a good shot of the Sun (properly equipped, of course).

To make matters worse, I just today received two Japanese-made Plössls I bought used... Gonna be a long few cloudy months for Thefatkitty!!! :lol:

All the best,
Mark

"The Hankmeister" Celestron 8SE, orange tube Vixen made C80, CG4 & AZ-EQ5 mounts.
Too much Towa glass/mirrors.

H/A - PST stage 2 mod with a Baader 90mm ERF on a Celestron XLT 102 (thanks Mike!)
Ca-K - W/O 61mm, Antares 1.6 barlow, Baader 3.8 OD and Ca-K filters with a ZWO ASI174mm.
W/L - C80-HD with Baader 5.0 & 3.8 Solar film, Solar Continuum 7.5nm and UV/IR filters with a Canon EOS 550D.

Oh yeah, and Solar Cycle 25 :D
User avatar
Pitter Canada
Earth Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun May 12, 2019 12:56 am
4
Location: Hamilton, Ontario
Status:
Offline

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#97

Post by Pitter »


My CR150HD6
Attachments
20220906_212438.jpg
Mark
Equipment
Celestron: C11 ~ C8 Orange ~ Celestar 8 ~ CR150HD6 ~ C5 Orange ~ Comet Catcher ~ Firstscope 114
Meade: Starfinder 10eq ~ AS80
Imaging: ZWO ASI120MC ~ ZWO ASI224MC ~ ZWO ADC ~ Canon T3i ~ Meade OAG
Mounts: CGEM ~ Vixen GPEQ5 Synscan ~ Wedged Forks ~ Starfinder GEM
User avatar
Shorty Barlow
Interdicted
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 267
Joined: Thu Jan 30, 2020 1:25 am
4
Status:
Offline

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#98

Post by Shorty Barlow »


Image
Image
Image
User avatar
dagadget United States of America
Mars Ambassador
Articles: 0
Offline
Posts: 109
Joined: Mon Jun 17, 2019 6:21 pm
4
Location: Avon Park, Florida
Status:
Offline

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#99

Post by dagadget »


My skyshed pod and my scopes survived Hurrican Ian with no issues. set back up last night and despite a lot of mosquitoes I saw Jupiter Saturn the moon and andromeda after doing a simple alignment
Astro-Tech AT 152EDT Ioptron GEM 45 Mount AKA FracZilla
Celestron C11 Carbon Fiber CGEM II Mount AKA Cloudzilla
Sky Watcher Mak Cas 180 Ioptron IEQ 30 AKA MoonZilla
AT 92 on IEQ 30 Pro AKA ClusterZilla
Home Made 8 inch Newtonian Reflector on Rocker Box AKA Scopezilla
Celestron 4 1/2 114 mm Newtonian Telescope 910 F/L GT Mount AKA Frankenscope.


David
User avatar
Nakedgun United States of America
Pluto Ambassador
Articles: 0
Online
Posts: 451
Joined: Sat Aug 01, 2020 11:03 pm
3
Location: southwest US
Status:
Online

TSS Awards Badges

TSS Photo of the Day

Re: Your refractor - let's see it

#100

Post by Nakedgun »


.

Agema SD 120
Photo taken August 2021, not long after its arrival.
Here, riding on my GM-8.

IMGP3522 - Copy.JPG

https://www.agemaoptics.com/telescopes/agema-sd-120/


.
"A republic, madam, if you can keep it." - Benjamin Franklin
Post Reply

Create an account or sign in to join the discussion

You need to be a member in order to post a reply

Create an account

Not a member? register to join our community
Members can start their own topics & subscribe to topics
It’s free and only takes a minute

Register

Sign in

Return to “Refractor type Telescopes”