Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2015 21:59:35 GMT
Okay, okay, yeah, yeah, my 8" DOB is just too much of a hassle to lug out and set up, then have to break back down and lug inside. So, I keep seeing these great reviews on the Orion st80a. I know the glass is not the best, but at my stage in this game I'm thinking it might make some decent images of the brighter DSO's and some decent solar and plantery work. I also want to get a GOTO mount for it and match it with the mallincam micro ex. After I sell my DOB I should be in the 3-5 hundred US dollar range for the complete outfit minus a few extras. 400mm at f5 I think would be great for video , has anyone tried this little gem? I love the ED 80 but it's 12 lbs which goes to adding to the mount and cost.
|
|
|
Post by davy on Nov 2, 2015 23:52:33 GMT
Start slow and build up your kit ,im on my third set up in about 4 years..and I studied video stuff for a year before taking the plunge. A good mount has to be the starting point. whats it going to carry .. and how much weight eq or alt az tracking or full goto budget..by the best you can afford once you ask yourself above questions.
We would all like eq8 or eq6 to fire a pile of kit on .. my reality was an eq3/2 pro not fantastic but affordable to me. scope wise I had an 8" newt on the eq3 not ideal again but with extra balance weight it was ok. I then got an sw st102, coma was bad but yet again best I could afford.i do my video astronomy on a budget and im happy plodding along till i can afford the next upgrade..
|
|
|
Post by Dragon Man on Nov 3, 2015 4:45:32 GMT
Not a lot wrong with the ST80a, except the large amount of False Colour (chromatic aberrations) and violet fringing caused by it's very fast focal length in Achromat format. But as I have explained in a couple of threads, these problems can be overcome with a $15 filter. If you go ahead and get the ST80a, make sure to get a #8 or #12 Yellow Filter. SEE HERE
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2015 5:28:37 GMT
I kinda figured I'd be looking at a few filters and even possibly tearing apart a pair of my binoculars and making a famous DMAN homemade reducer ! I just saw Mallincam sells a scope about the same size and not much more. Sometimes I really need to quit looking ! Oh well, time to sell the DOB.
|
|
|
Post by Dragon Man on Nov 3, 2015 7:17:33 GMT
Yes Crowy, the Mallincam one is an ED80. A bit shorter than the traditional ED80 so that makes it excellent for Video Astronomy, not that the original ED80 at 600mm focal length isn't good. It is excellent too. The advantage of the Mallincam Short Tube ED80 is that it is fantastic WITHOUT a focal reducer. Even wider FOV with one. The 'famous DMAN' focal reducer
|
|
|
Post by Rick in NWArk on Nov 3, 2015 14:31:26 GMT
I have an 80ST that I got cheap for guiding. I haven't used it yet, however. I mostly use my 80EDT which is F/6 at 480mm and has awesome wide fields with moderate focal reduction.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2015 5:26:42 GMT
|
|
|
Post by davy on Nov 8, 2015 6:47:30 GMT
Great image.. defo a nice pairing the camera and scope.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 11, 2015 14:56:53 GMT
The day always brings a surprise ! Well I thought I was going to get the whole ST80A but now I have found a Nexstar 4SE with mount in like new condition for....150.00$ us dollars. Yeah I can't pass that up. SO now I'll have a nice goto EQ mount to sit my ST80 on and I can buy the OTA and be READY ! Oh yeah, I had to break down and put windows on my MAC. Windows 10. It's sad the difference in programs available to us. My little Orion USB cam quit working when I updated to EL CAPATAIN, It's coming together.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 11, 2015 16:03:23 GMT
crowman2, I have a nexstar4 mount as well that I have used with the ST80, it is a good combo, but you will be limited in altitude because the focuser will hit the base when slewing You can set an altitude max in the menu to avoid any damage to the scope or mount, I think 75 degrees or so was the most i could get. Jon
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 11, 2015 18:02:14 GMT
What if you added length to the scope mount and moved the scope forward? I don't see weight being an issue cause the original scope was 11lbs.
|
|
|
Post by Dragon Man on Nov 12, 2015 3:55:24 GMT
WOW, those little Nexstar 4SE's have a long focal length!!! It's 1325 mm. That would be the Maksutov elements causing that. Yeah, rip that sucker off and mount something else on it quick At that price it makes it a good cheap mount with a scope thrown in
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2015 2:28:40 GMT
Got the nexstar today, broke it out this afternoon and WOW I could see the bolts on the radio tower I use thats about a mile away. Little Orion Star Shoot IV usb worked like a charm on it. I should have known this was a setup. I got out tonight and did my 7 alignments before it finally accepted one, and then, it was so far off I couldn't find anything. BUT, it was my fault. Improper procedure caused the malfunction . Came back in and reread the manual . YES DMAN I am going to get the Orion Shorty as soon as I can. First of DEC if not sooner. Got to finish buying for the grandkids Christmas. But this scope will do to learn the mount. I love the mount. You can use it as ALT AZ or EQ. The focal length on this thing is ridiculous and the F stop is like 13. It has an opening in the rear for Prime focus camera's but I just don't see it being very good at all for what I want. I can list it and get just about enough for my camera ! I still got to sell the DOB. Let's begin weeding out the spam on Craigslist.
|
|
|
Post by ChrisV on Dec 16, 2015 4:09:20 GMT
Start slow and build up your kit ,im on my third set up in about 4 years..and I studied video stuff for a year before taking the plunge. A good mount has to be the starting point. whats it going to carry .. and how much weight eq or alt az tracking or full goto budget..by the best you can afford once you ask yourself above questions. We would all like eq8 or eq6 to fire a pile of kit on .. my reality was an eq3/2 pro not fantastic but affordable to me. scope wise I had an 8" newt on the eq3 not ideal again but with extra balance weight it was ok. I then got an sw st102, coma was bad but yet again best I could afford.i do my video astronomy on a budget and im happy plodding along till i can afford the next upgrade.. I've just started videoing and have a C8. I'd like a wider FOV, so I've seen a 2nd hand skywatcher 102 (500mm FL) which might be a cheap option. But above you mention coma problems. Is this scope something to avoid, or can it be fixed a bit with the yellow filter Ken talks about. Is it better or worse than the st80 mentioned in this thread ? Chris
|
|
|
Post by Dragon Man on Dec 16, 2015 5:53:25 GMT
Chris, you'll be OK with a 102 because they suffer Coma mostly on the outside of the camera sensor area.
If you whacked in a DSLR or large format imaging camera it would look terrible, but the chips we mostly use in Video are only 1/4", 1/3", and 1/2". We only see the light from near the centre of the Telescope's optics.
|
|
|
Post by davy on Dec 16, 2015 8:23:06 GMT
I like my st102 and still use it..if I hadn't came into a bit of cash I'd still have it as my main scope..the ed80 is a step up and if it's in your price range or one of several scopes someone is looking at I would say a big yes to it.all scopes are good on video set ups, even just a converted cctv cam and lens works. .aaah the beauty of video lol
|
|
|
Post by davy on Dec 16, 2015 8:25:48 GMT
I still travel to the dark side.. lol.. and use dslrs ooops naughty naughty davy Santa's watching.. and on video
|
|
|
Post by Dragon Man on Dec 16, 2015 8:30:40 GMT
Don't worry Davy, if my DSLR connected to my laptop I'd be using it for broadcasting Stupid thing (Canon 350d) doesn't talk with Win7 and many around the world have tried, without success
|
|
|
Post by davy on Dec 16, 2015 10:38:40 GMT
I conected my 400d was a nice camera. .no live view was a prob.got the 450d and two 600d cameras and loving it..hooked to the sw allview mount superb.
|
|
|
Post by howie1 on Feb 3, 2016 5:55:19 GMT
My grab N go with the ST80 on a Star Adventurer. The photo has my Canon 450 on at the time, but I also use a Nikon J1 which has half the sensor size (and so double the mag) of the Canon. The other is a shot of M42 taken with the J1 running eye-fi wireless transfer of shots to AstroToaster on a bootcamped Macbook. Very lightweight and quick setup GEM tracking (but not goto) setup which I can carry in a backpack.
|
|