Why aren't there any good finderscopes?
Rich N.
easily accept/focus Tele Vue plossls. I made
a cross hair for a 26mm TV plossl. It works very
nicely. Or you may want use a TV plossl without
a cross hair.
Rich
CC wrote in message <7nlm57$ouq$1...@news.doit.wisc.edu>...
>I have tried several finderscopes and none are very good. Meade's 7x50 is
okay
>but it has, like most finderscopes I have peer through, poor eye relief.
The
>Celestron LER 6x30 has pretty good relief but it's tiny. Orion's 9x60 is
okay
>but shows some distortion around the periphery and has a wretched 12mm eye
>relief. (You may have guessed by now that I have to wear glasses at the
>finderscope.) All have cross hairs that are difficult if not impossible to
see
>in even moderately dark skies. The illuminated Orion 7x50 and 9x60 I have
>heard are too bright.
>
>I realize that my experience is limited, but I'd like to not strike out
again
>by purchasing another less-than-satisfactory model (Lumicon? Others??)
>
>So what's a starhopper to do?
>
>Craig
>
jerry warner
jerry warner
Rich N.
Takahashi 6x30 is outstanding. It is my favorite
straight through finder.
Or, if you want an illuminated finder their 7x50 is very nice but
quite expensive.
Rich
Allister wrote in message <379e74d9...@news.ais.net>...
>Craig,
>
>Try a Takahashi finder. Once you do you'll never go back.
>
>Allister
>a...@ais.net
>
Matthew Ota
CC wrote:
I have tried several finderscopes and none are very good. Meade's 7x50 is okay
but it has, like most finderscopes I have peer through, poor eye relief. The
Celestron LER 6x30 has pretty good relief but it's tiny. Orion's 9x60 is okay
but shows some distortion around the periphery and has a wretched 12mm eye
relief. (You may have guessed by now that I have to wear glasses at the
finderscope.) All have cross hairs that are difficult if not impossible to see
in even moderately dark skies. The illuminated Orion 7x50 and 9x60 I have
heard are too bright.I realize that my experience is limited, but I'd like to not strike out again
by purchasing another less-than-satisfactory model (Lumicon? Others??)So what's a starhopper to do?
Craig
To me that answer was very simple. I slapped a Telerad on my LX-50 and
it works great!
I also wear glasses and have fallen victim to the invisible crosshairs
on the Meade 7x50
finderscope. How about adding a battery powered LED by drilling into
the tube? Like use
one of those battery powered uints made for illuminated reticle eyepieces.
Sounds like a good
modification program after the one-year warranty runs out. I
might give it a go...
Phillip Hosey
PJ wrote in message <379E6991...@flash.net>...
>I have the Antares 8x52 with erect image 90 degree diagonal, and really
like it
>coupled with Celestron's 20mm crosshair Kellner. Pinpoint objects, decent
field of
>view, and very clear.
What does one of those Antares jobs go for and what is their web address?
Thanks,
Phillip Hosey
LaGrange, GA
www.members.tripod.com/ross128
Auburn Astronomical Society
http://www.mindspring.com/~rwhigham/
CC
PJ
coupled with Celestron's 20mm crosshair Kellner. Pinpoint objects, decent field of
view, and very clear.
-Phil
CHASLX200
>Message-id: <379E6991...@flash.net>
>
>I have the Antares 8x52 with erect image 90 degree diagonal, and really like
>it
>coupled with Celestron's 20mm crosshair Kellner. Pinpoint objects, decent
>field of
>view, and very clear.
>
>-Phil
I have the older Celestron 8x50 Illu- Polaris
RA-finder, on my 1977 , C-5!
Works great...
Chas P.
Allister
Ran
>How about adding a battery powered LED by drilling into the tube? Like
>use
>one of those battery powered uints made for illuminated reticle eyepieces.
It depends on how the crosshairs are done: the illuminated reticle
eyepieces actually have a glass reticle in them, and the illuminator
edge-lights it. The cheap 6x30 finders I'm accustomed to have actual
filaments of some sort stretched across an aperture. Some of them look
like copper wire, so they might take to LED illumination. But you'd
probably have to make sure the rest of the inside of the eyepiece was
well-blackened, to avoid looking through a field of little red points.
I'd probably go with a "corded" approach, with a separate battery pack
Velcro'ed to the finder or the scope. Not only is it cheaper than
buying one of those illuminators, you also don't have to worry about
all that weight dangling off the eyepiece (which would probably make it
much harder to get a solid attachment). With only the LED there, you
could use a very tiny drop of super glue to attach it, and just break
it off (tearing out that one small chunk of plastic, but who cares
about a dead 25-cent LED?) if you ever needed to remove it.
Ran
Dustin Smith
>
> The University Optics erect viewing finder will
> easily accept/focus Tele Vue plossls. I made
> a cross hair for a 26mm TV plossl. It works very
> nicely. Or you may want use a TV plossl without
> a cross hair.
>
> Rich
Rich,
How exactly did you make the crosshairs? I would like to do this to
one of my Sirius plossls...
--
-Dustin Smith
Waterloo, AL USA
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
| The Heavens: Astronomy on the Net |
| http://www.airnet.net/dustins/ |
| |
| Orion 8" Deep Space Explorer Online Review |
| http://www.airnet.net/dustins/dob.html |
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
Dustin Smith
> Craig
>
> To me that answer was very simple. I slapped a Telerad on my LX-50 and
> it works great!
> I also wear glasses and have fallen victim to the invisible crosshairs
> on the Meade 7x50
> finderscope. How about adding a battery powered LED by drilling into
> the tube? Like use
> one of those battery powered uints made for illuminated reticle
> eyepieces. Sounds like a good
> modification program after the one-year warranty runs out. I might
> give it a go...
Telrads can't be used for precise star-hopping, because they only allow
use of naked-eye stars. You need a finderscope for star-hopping.
V2Orion
>
>by purchasing another less-than-satisfactory model (Lumicon? Others??)
>
>So what's a starhopper to do?
>
>
I have a Takahashi 7x50 finder on my Vixen R200SS and it is absolutely the best
50mm finder scope. It is sharp across the entire field and bright. Also, the
cross hairs do not meet in the middle, so you have a clear view of an object
when it's centered, even if you get the optional illuminator. As already
mentioned though, it is expensive, but great. (I also have a Telrad mounted.)
Bob C.
brien stratton
refractor on the mirror box. Will this be adequate? I would like to hear
what other big dob owners are using for finderscopes.
Brien
V2Orion wrote in message <19990728063420...@ng-fv1.aol.com>...
Kevin Daly
>use of naked-eye stars. You need a finderscope for star-hopping.
Actually, this isn't quite true. I use a Telrad to get me to the right area,
and then on those rare occasions where the target isn't in the FOV, I use the
stars in the eyepiece to hop from. If you're observing from decently dark
skies, there's not much that can't be star-hopped to using just a Telrad. I do
also have an 8 X 50 finder on my 8", which very rarely gets used.
Kevin Daly
Mattatuck Astronomical Society
http://members.aol.com/kdaly10475/index.html
David Ward
to very bright. I had a loner dobs with a 9x60 illuminated Orion finder,
and I like the finder. Just can't figure a way to fit the Orion 9x60 and a
telrad on my 6" EQ OTA without crowding.....
Find you local astronomy club and 1) talk to others, 2) look at other club
members equpiment at the local gathering, or 3) attend a regional star party
and check out other equipment (4- keep reading S.A.A. of course)......
David Ward
CC <cmca...@facstaff.wisc.edu> wrote in message
news:7nlm57$ouq$1...@news.doit.wisc.edu...
> I have tried several finderscopes and none are very good. Meade's 7x50 is
okay
> but it has, like most finderscopes I have peer through, poor eye relief.
The
> Celestron LER 6x30 has pretty good relief but it's tiny. Orion's 9x60 is
okay
> but shows some distortion around the periphery and has a wretched 12mm eye
> relief. (You may have guessed by now that I have to wear glasses at the
> finderscope.) All have cross hairs that are difficult if not impossible
to see
> in even moderately dark skies. The illuminated Orion 7x50 and 9x60 I have
> heard are too bright.
>
> I realize that my experience is limited, but I'd like to not strike out
again
> by purchasing another less-than-satisfactory model (Lumicon? Others??)
>
> So what's a starhopper to do?
>
> Craig
>
Sue_and_Alan
Some finders can be improved greatly by replacing the eyepiece. The club's
old Criterion 6x30 works much better with a standard 1.25" eyepiece
(although some machining was required).
BTW, I have never found crosshairs mandatory, so the need to add a crosshair
to an eyepiece is not a pressing issue. Your eye is fairly sensitive to
centering - at least well enough to insure that an object that appears
centered in the finder is visible in a low power in the main scope.
Clear skies, Alan
CC wrote in message <7nlm57$ouq$1...@news.doit.wisc.edu>...
>
>So what's a starhopper to do? [about getting a good finder]
Frez
brien stratton <bstr...@sprint.ca> wrote in message
news:VVBn3.39589$jl.28...@newscontent-01.sprint.ca...
> I have a 20 inch dob and was thinking of putting a short tube 80 mm Orion
> refractor on the mirror box. Will this be adequate? I would like to hear
> what other big dob owners are using for finderscopes.
> Brien
>
>
as a second point of view. When used in conjunction with
Sky Map's telescope/eyepiece feature it is very useful.
I removed the crosshair ep from the 9x50 finder and taped it
to a cut down plastic film container. By swapping it between the
two scopes alignment is a snap.
Frez
tfla...@my-deja.com
"Sue_and_Alan" <Sue_and_A...@email.msn.com> wrote:
> BTW, I have never found crosshairs mandatory, so the need to add
> a crosshair to an eyepiece is not a pressing issue. Your eye is
> fairly sensitive to centering - at least well enough to insure
> that an object that appears centered in the finder is visible
> in a low power in the main scope.
The time when crosshairs are nice is when you are already
observing at high power and don't want to swap in a low-powered
eyepiece. As when you have just spent five minutes getting
really good focus on Saturn, and now you want to look at Jupiter.
One situation, by the way, where seeing the crosshairs isn't
a problem!
--
- Tony Flanders
Cambridge, MA
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.
Rich N.
I cut a section of plastic pill vial that fit well in the
eyepiece and cut four little notches in the end
of the little plastic cylinder. I glued very thin wire
across the cylinder attaching them at the notches.
I'm sure you could use human hair or spyder webs.
I colored the plastic black with a marking pen and
stuck it in the eyepiece. You need to find where the
cross hairs will come to focus, usually near the field
stop.
Good luck,
Rich
>Rich,
>
> How exactly did you make the crosshairs? I would like to do this to
>one of my Sirius plossls...
>
Ruud Schmeitz
>The University Optics erect viewing finder will
>easily accept/focus Tele Vue plossls. I made
>a cross hair for a 26mm TV plossl. It works very
>nicely. Or you may want use a TV plossl without
>a cross hair.
>
>Rich
Hi Rich,
Do you have the 8x50 Right Angle ($125.00) or the 8x50
Right Angle Amici ($179.95) ?
There's a picture of one of them at:
http://www.universityoptics.com/acc.htm
Could you give some more technical details, like:
- focal length;
- can it be mounted on a Vixen-refractor ?
- size and weight;
BTW what's the difference between an amici prism and a 45 degree
Erecting Prism ?
TIA,
============================================================
"Live Long and Prosper" - Spock
"And let Wisdom be your Guide" - Spock's brother
Ruud Schmeitz
Universiteit Maastricht
Rich N.
Rich N. wrote in message ...
>
>I cut a section of plastic pill vial that fit well in the
>eyepiece and cut four little notches in the end
>of the little plastic cylinder. I glued very thin wire
>across the cylinder attaching them at the notches.
>I'm sure you could use human hair or spyder webs.
You can even use spider webs. (nuts) rn
Rich N.
Ruud Schmeitz wrote in message <7nnijb$e3k$1...@rl0001.unimaas.nl>...
>Rich N. wrote in message ...
>>easily accept/focus Tele Vue plossls. I made
>>a cross hair for a 26mm TV plossl. It works very
>>nicely. Or you may want use a TV plossl without
>>a cross hair.
>>
>>Rich
>
>
>Hi Rich,
>
>Do you have the 8x50 Right Angle ($125.00) or the 8x50
>Right Angle Amici ($179.95) ?
>There's a picture of one of them at:
> http://www.universityoptics.com/acc.htm
It is the 8x50 right angle Amici.
I don't know the focal length of the finder. Maybe
200mm?
I don't know about mounting it on a Vixen refractor.
UO sells a quick release finder base and bracket
that is the same as the one Orion sells.
Maybe you could stick the UO finder in a Vixen
8x50 finder mount?
With the bracket and eyepiece it weight maybe
2 or 3 lbs.
I don't know about the differences in how the
two erecting prisms are made.
So far I find the 45 deg prism a little easier to use.
Rich
No Spam
Spring Island in British Columbia, Canada. It was intended to be used on an
ETX.
Their URL is:
http://www.imagen.net/mm/parts.htm
to see the Antares finderscopes.
The prices shown on their web pages are in Canadian dollars - so just
multiply by 0.67 to get the price in U.S. Dollars.
They unit was good quality but turned out to be too heavy for continued use
on the ETX. I sold it through AstroMart to Mark D'Ambrosio for use on an
Intes MN-61.
I'd do business with Island Eyepiece again in a heartbeat.
--
Clear (and Dark) skies,
Paul
(186,000 miles/sec: Not just a good idea, it's the LAW!)
Paul Lund
paullun...@ipinc.net (remove nospam)
http://www.ipinc.net/~paullund/default.htm
Phillip Hosey <ros...@usa.net> wrote in message
news:7nlqtp$qug$1...@nntp8.atl.mindspring.net...
>
> PJ wrote in message <379E6991...@flash.net>...
> >I have the Antares 8x52 with erect image 90 degree diagonal, and really
> like it
> >coupled with Celestron's 20mm crosshair Kellner. Pinpoint objects, decent
> field of
> >view, and very clear.
>
>
Ruud Schmeitz
>
>Ruud Schmeitz wrote in message <7nnijb$e3k$1...@rl0001.unimaas.nl>...
>>
>>
>>Do you have the 8x50 Right Angle ($125.00) or the 8x50
>>Right Angle Amici ($179.95) ?
>>There's a picture of one of them at:
>> http://www.universityoptics.com/acc.htm
>
>It is the 8x50 right angle Amici.
>
>I don't know the focal length of the finder. Maybe
>200mm?
Perhaps you can estimate the magnification the 26mm
Plössl provides ?
>I don't know about mounting it on a Vixen refractor.
>UO sells a quick release finder base and bracket
>that is the same as the one Orion sells.
>
>Maybe you could stick the UO finder in a Vixen
>8x50 finder mount?
>
>With the bracket and eyepiece it weight maybe
>2 or 3 lbs.
>
>I don't know about the differences in how the
>two erecting prisms are made.
>
>So far I find the 45 deg prism a little easier to use.
>
>Rich
You think I could use my TV 45 degree Erecting Prism
with the UO finder ?
mark dambrosio
is liked much by both my friend, and i. We like it better than the UO
8x50 erect-image finder that he returned for a refund. The amici prism
was real cheaply made, (Suprising that it came from Japan). Also
quality of finish was quite poor too. Perhaps he had gotten a bad one?
Thanks again Paul! Mark
Rich N.
Ruud Schmeitz wrote in message <7nno1s$a52$1...@rl0001.unimaas.nl>...
>Rich N. wrote in message ...
>>
>>Ruud Schmeitz wrote in message <7nnijb$e3k$1...@rl0001.unimaas.nl>...
>>>
>>>Hi Rich,
>>>
>>>Do you have the 8x50 Right Angle ($125.00) or the 8x50
>>>Right Angle Amici ($179.95) ?
>>>There's a picture of one of them at:
>>> http://www.universityoptics.com/acc.htm
>>
>>It is the 8x50 right angle Amici.
>>
>>I don't know the focal length of the finder. Maybe
>>200mm?
>
>
>Perhaps you can estimate the magnification the 26mm
>Plössl provides ?
I believe the Lumicon 50mm finder is 200mm and the
OU is very close in size.
>
>>I don't know about mounting it on a Vixen refractor.
>>UO sells a quick release finder base and bracket
>>that is the same as the one Orion sells.
>>
>>Maybe you could stick the UO finder in a Vixen
>>8x50 finder mount?
>>
>>With the bracket and eyepiece it weight maybe
>>2 or 3 lbs.
>>
>>I don't know about the differences in how the
>>two erecting prisms are made.
>>
>>So far I find the 45 deg prism a little easier to use.
>
>>
>>Rich
>
>You think I could use my TV 45 degree Erecting Prism
>with the UO finder ?
Maybe. I'll see if Orion still has a TV45 deg erecting prism
at their Cupertino store. If they do I ask them if I can try it
in my UO finder.
Rich
Jeff Ball
long focal length scopes and for astrophotography purposes. It is nice to
know exactly where you are aiming for framing astrophotos.
Sue_and_Alan wrote in message <7nn0j8$14...@news1.newsguy.com>...
>Craig,
>
>
>BTW, I have never found crosshairs mandatory, so the need to add a
crosshair
>to an eyepiece is not a pressing issue. Your eye is fairly sensitive to
>centering - at least well enough to insure that an object that appears
>centered in the finder is visible in a low power in the main scope.
>
galaxy
I have an 8" Orion Deepspace Explorer and I used to have an EZ Finder
hooked to it. Just recently it broke and I put the finderscope that came
with my scope back on and I hated it. I got used to looking at that little
red dot to get me around (and I did quite well with it regardless of what
they say about the dot finders drowning out the star)and now I don't have
it. So I went on a full blown finderscope search and I found that Tele Vue
has one called a Quickpoint T. It was relatively close to what I was using
before so I bought it. I haven't received it yet but when I do I will post
and let ya know the quality of it. Total cost: 40.00 clams
Chris
A.K.A The Galaxy
--
* *
*
*
* *
* *
*
* *
*
*
* *
* *
*
*
CC <cmca...@facstaff.wisc.edu> wrote in message
news:7nlm57$ouq$1...@news.doit.wisc.edu...
> I have tried several finderscopes and none are very good. Meade's 7x50 is
okay
> but it has, like most finderscopes I have peer through, poor eye relief.
The
> Celestron LER 6x30 has pretty good relief but it's tiny. Orion's 9x60 is
okay
> but shows some distortion around the periphery and has a wretched 12mm eye
> relief. (You may have guessed by now that I have to wear glasses at the
> finderscope.) All have cross hairs that are difficult if not impossible
to see
> in even moderately dark skies. The illuminated Orion 7x50 and 9x60 I have
> heard are too bright.
>
> I realize that my experience is limited, but I'd like to not strike out
again
> by purchasing another less-than-satisfactory model (Lumicon? Others??)
>
> So what's a starhopper to do?
>
> Craig
>
Rich N.
So I couldn't see if my TV 26mm plossl would come to focus with
that prism in my UO finder.
Rich
PJ
On page 146 of the August issue of Sky & Telescope is a color ad by Sky
Instruments (there number is (604) 270-2813). The ad contains photos and
prices of the Antares 8x52mm scopes. The one I ordered from Sky Instruments
was $99 and included a cheap binocular crosshair eyepiece. If you order the
scope, I highly recommend obtaining the Celestron 20mm Kellner crosshair
eyepiece. The scope comes in three colors to match your scope (white, Meade
blue, and Celestron black).
-Phil
Ruud Schmeitz
(I guess this reply is meant for me.)
Thanks for trying anyway.
============================================================
Ruud Schmeitz
>
>>>
>>>200mm?
>>
>>Perhaps you can estimate the magnification the 26mm
>>Plössl provides ?
>
>I believe the Lumicon 50mm finder is 200mm and the
>OU is very close in size.
>
>>with the UO finder ?
>
>Maybe. I'll see if Orion still has a TV45 deg erecting prism
>at their Cupertino store. If they do I ask them if I can try it
>
>Rich
--------------------------------
Rich N.
Ruud Schmeitz wrote in message <7nq6c9$5go$1...@rl0001.unimaas.nl>...
>>>
>>>You think I could use my TV 45 degree Erecting Prism
>>>with the UO finder ?
>>
>>Maybe. I'll see if Orion still has a TV45 deg erecting prism
>>at their Cupertino store. If they do I ask them if I can try it
>>in my UO finder.
>>
>>Rich
>
>
>--------------------------------
>
>Rich N. wrote in message ...
>>Sorry to say Orion didn't have a TV 45 deg angled erecting prism.
>>So I couldn't see if my TV 26mm plossl would come to focus with
>>that prism in my UO finder.
>>
>>Rich
>
>
>(I guess this reply is meant for me.)
>
>Thanks for trying anyway.
You are very welcome.
I got to compare Pentax and Radian eyepieces in a TV-85.
Both are very sharp (5.2mm vs 5mm) and I would need look at the planets
and take my time observing to know which was better at showing fine detail.
Rich
RAnder3127
a 60mm objective. I replaced the junk eyepiece in it with
a 28mm orthoscopic, which helped, but the edge definition
is awful. It makes me seasick when I pan the thing around.
I wonder how much a 55mm fluorite Tak is?
-Rich
"Dejanews upfront offering, their "email digest" of newsgroups,
DOES NOT WORK and they can't get it to work."
Mike McIsaac
Amici prism finder that accepts 1.25" eyepieces. It is superb quality
and the RA prism really saves my neck from assuming unnatural positions
when observing near the zenith. It's expensive but once you use one,
you'll keep it forever.
Mike of the Muskeg
--
You should always have respect for Mother Nature
because she has no respect for you.
deljo...@my-deja.com
Telrad. One does not have to see the object to use a Telrad, rather
one simple positions the reticle pattern relative to (but not
necessarily on) visible stars.
To answer the original post, I bought a used Parks 8x50 polar finder
which has surprisingly good optics (better than Orion). Having said
that, I find that very few deep sky objects are visible in the finder,
so it is not much better than a Telrad in that regard. You still have
to star hop in both cases.
Del Johnson
In article <379ED5AA...@hiwaay.net>,
Dustin Smith <dus...@hiwaay.net> wrote:
> Telrads can't be used for precise star-hopping, because they only
allow
> use of naked-eye stars. You need a finderscope for star-hopping.
>
> --
>
> -Dustin Smith
> Waterloo, AL USA
V2Orion
>8x50 finder mount?
>
>
This is likely possible. I've got a Takahashi 7x50 finder in a Vixen 7x50
finder bracket mounted on my R200SS (in the original dovetail base).
Bob C.
Iron...@home.com
Vega what looks centered to me. Then when I use the go to function the object
appears in my finderscope but not my eyepiece, it is off a little. I've rechecked
my time setting on my keypad and it is correct. I'm thanking I don't have the
correct latitude/longitude entered. Is there a website I can go to and enter my city
and it will tell me what my latitude/longitude is. I am in El Cajon, CA.
Thanks,
Mike
J. Scott Miller
You indicated that it is in your finderscope but not eyepiece. Have you
checked for proper alignment between it and your scope. It should center the
object in the finderscope and then have it centered in the eyepiece if so.
Also, check to make sure your scope is level.
As to latitude and longitude, I noticed the other day, using MapBlast! that a
location I put in was on a map with latitude and longitude appearing outside
the map. I didn't get its URL, though I would guess http://www.mapblast.com,
but you could put it in a search engine and check if not.
--
J. Scott Miller, Program Coordinator Scott....@louisville.edu
Gheens Science Center and Rauch Planetarium
http://www.louisville.edu/planetarium
University of Louisville
Richard Robinson
You enter your city and it gives you latitude and Longitude.
You problem does not sound like a latitude & Longitude problem to me, but it doesn't
hurt to have the correct values. You might also want to check out
http://www2.austin.cc.tx.us/astro-ES/AstroDesigns/MAPUG/ArhvList.htm.
It has several articles on polar alignment.
Iron...@home.com wrote:
>
> I am having a difficult time getting my scope polar aligned. I get Polaris and then
> Vega what looks centered to me. Then when I use the go to function the object
> appears in my finderscope but not my eyepiece, it is off a little. I've rechecked
> my time setting on my keypad and it is correct. I'm thanking I don't have the
> correct latitude/longitude entered. Is there a website I can go to and enter my city
> and it will tell me what my latitude/longitude is. I am in El Cajon, CA.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Mike
>
--
__
/ / __ _ _ _ _ __ __
Richard L. Robinson / /__ / / / \// //_// \ \/ /
/____/ /_/ /_/\/ /___/ /_/\_\
...for IQs GREATER than 98...