Posts Made By: Tom Lacovik

Hi All.
It's been a long time since I've participated on this board... I take the odd night out under the skies, but it's been a slow burn these days.

I am curious, what's new out there? I finished a string dob about a year ago, but wonder if there are any new developments in ATM / Dobs?

Any great advancements in aperture to weight/portability?

Last I heard pyrex was getting rare. Is that still true? Last I heard is obsession was making a flex rocker ultraportable. Has that been a smash hit or a sleeper?

Any cool scopes/pages out there you want to share? Post any link you've found that you think is cool and/or new...

Whatchya got?
Thanks.
Tom.

Hi. I bought a set of beautiful William Optic binoviewers a while back but have never used them (successfully). Kept putting off 'solving that problem' but now it's been a year, and well...

Alas, although reportedly being made for newts, I can't reach focus in my 13.1 f4.5 dob.

Nor can I in my f12 6" Intes MK67 Mak Newt.

Before I sell them here on AM, and thoughts on how to make them reach focus? Are there things like barlows or reducers (ps. i don't know what a reducer is/does) that could fix that? or will nothing short of some major mods to my scopes allow me to play with this accessory.

Hmm... I just thought of something, maybe it could work with my PST solar scope? Or is that even less likely! Anyway, scratch that last thought, the first question stands

Thx.
Tom

I just read this great article by Timothy Ferris on large telescopes in the new National Geographic. I'd like to share it with you all:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/07/telescopes/ferris-text/1

and I have a question I'm hoping somebody may be able to answer. In the section on the subaru telescope, Ferris mentions that of all these giants on Mauna Kea, Subaru is the only one anyone's every actually looked through: "Subaru happens to be one of the few giant telescopes that anybody has ever actually looked through. For its inauguration in 1999, an eyepiece was attached so that Princess Sayako of Japan could have a look through the scope, and for several nights thereafter eager Subaru staffers did the same. "Everything you can see in the Hubble Space Telescope photos—the colors, the knots in the clouds—I could see with my own eyes, in stunning Technicolor," one recalled."


That is simply astounding! Imagine getting full color images at the eyepiece without any electronic 'help'! Subaru is an 8.2m telescope and a few people... a few dozen perhaps, looked through it directly. To see hubble like images, in full color, without electronics must be mind blowing. I hadn't even considered that one could do that. I think it's rare on any giant telescope to have eyepieces anymore, correct? I'd love to know more about this... who were these lucky people, and what was their full unexcerpted story? anybody know who (besides the japanese princess) looked through it?

I assume this is the largest telescope anyone's ever looked through directly but if anybody knows different, let's hear it.

Enjoy the article, and let me know if you know any more about these lucky staffers and/or if there are other 1st hand reports from anyone lucky enough to look through a giant-class scope in full technicolor.

Tom

I'm going off to maui for 10 days. Was wondering if I should use my precious 1 carry on for a small 4.5" travel scope. I have no idea what the star gazing is like off of Kanapali or if there is somewhere I could go that is open to public... a local club or something?

The key for me would be if I could see something there I can't see at home (Portland, OR, USA). The difference in lat. being 45 for home and 21 for maui.

Can I see the LMC and SMC? what else might be a show stopper that I can't see from home? And in general, how's the stargazing from the coasts there (resorts = light pollution?)

Thanks for any advice. Don't want to pack scope unnecessarily and may just take binos.
Thanks.
Tom.

Well, my William Optics 8x42 apos have gone missing from my hotel room in maui! Waiting to hear back from hotel about how they will resolve the situation, but in the mean time, I've been looking at replacements as I may be back in the market if my WO's don't turn up.

So what I liked about the WOs was light and compact, and high quality. What I didn't was the blackouts -- not a huge sweet spot without seeing vignetting, you really have to hold them just right.

So I'm looking for lightweight and widefield binos and see the orion scenix are only a bit heavier:
http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=binocular_astronomy/~pcategory=binoculars/~product_id=09333
at 1.8lbs / 28.8 oz / 816 g
(the WO's were 8x42 and weighed 700g)

the orion's are 7° afov which sounds great and the weight is pretty light. but my question is:

Are there other light or lighter binos at around those specs? ie. 7°, 10x50, 800g ish?
any recommendations or cautions around the scenix?

Thanks.

For general pan and scan, moon, and occassional non astro (travel) use.
opinions:
8x or 10x?
42mm or 50mm?

thanks.

would be great to have lightweight 50 or even 63mm binos that weigh about the same as "regular" (non-lightweight) 42mm binos. ie. about 2 pounds. i know i'm sort of asking 2 questions by including both 50mm and 63mm, but i guess i mean: what are the star weight-to-apertuare performers in this range?

thx.

Hi all.
I used to be on this board all the time. I took a few years off from active stargazing and equipment shopping. I was wondering what's new in equipment? are there beautiful new scopes gorgeously designed? What is that vixen astrophotography gadget that's $300? Other stuff like that?

Basically: catch me up!

Thanks.
Tom.

hi.
i was wondering if there are any tips for how to tune up, (regrease or anything else) an (older) N8? it's almost observing season, and i want to haul out my n8 some more. it's been a couple years honestly.

i've been on haitus and want to return. i see a couple new things have happened in the last few years. things such as skyfi, which would let me (presumably) use my iphone's excellent planitarium apps to drive the n8 over wifi. that's cool. i just want the n8 to be tip top.

any sites you can point me to? or just simple top 3 things you can do to rebuild or tune it up?

Thanks for any advice.
tom

Thanks to all for the tips. You're all a bunch of silly goofs, but thanks for the laughs! I like how even orions web store (typically a serious place), even says, "Ok, so you'll look like a pirate." acknowledging how silly you'll look, but I'm just getting tired of squeezing that other eye shut with a tired facial contortion. So, I'll try wallgreens, I wonder if they come in black like that with air perforations. That would be nice. Anybody know?

Otherwise, thanks to all.
Tom.