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Here's my Main scope- an 8" f/10 Meade LX-50 Schmidt-Cassegrain. This picture shows it sitting on the permanent concrete pier I built in fall 98. In this photo, you'll notice the scope has an 8x50mm Meade finder (not standard for the 8"), an orion dew zapper (a MUST!), a telrad base, a Meade Motorfocus (another must for good focusing), a Meade 201XT autoguider, and my Nikon F2 w/300mm telephoto piggybacked on it. |
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This photo is a closeup of the camera (Nikon F2) with a homemade magnifier made from a Peak 8x lupe. I highly recommend replacing the focus screen with a Beattie Intenscreen Plus (mine has gridlines, which helps in making sure your target is centered). Also shown here is a closeup of the 201xt. |
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This one is a closeup of the Meade Motorfocuser. I suggest this one over the JMI because it allows you to manually focus for rough focusing (a must when switching between eyepieces frequently) without having to remove the focuser. |
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Closeup shot of the Orion Dew Zapper and counterweight system (underneath the OTA). The counterweight system is another must, especially when using a heavy camera like the F2. Also installed, but just off the photo is the Jordan Blessing dec fix kit. |
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If you have an LX-50, you NEED a latitude adjuster. I'm not talking about that crappy little thing they supply with the wedge, but the one pictured here. The problem with the little screw thing supplied with the wedge is it only pushes on one side, causing the wedge to twist, and gives unbalanced weight distribution. When you tighten the latitude bolts down, it almost always screws up your latitude setting. An adjuster like the one pictured here distributes the weight evenly (from the center) and makes drift alignment a lot easier! |
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My newest toy! The little scope mounted on top is a 4" Maksutov-Cassegrain. I'm not certain what the f/ratio is- I got it used and very cheap. In this photo, I have the autoguider attached, but since then, I have abandoned the separate guidescope idea due to flexure problems. The Mak scope was really cheap, and it makes an incredible spotting scope for land viewing- it has a 45degree right-side-up view, perfect for terrestrial viewing. It has a helican focuser, so it's kinda a bitch to use without a really sturdy tripod. But it is a neat toy! |
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A different angle of the previous photo. Notice the camera setup- attached to the scope visual back using a standard Meade prime focus camera adapter and nikon T-ring. |
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This one is a closeup of a good manual-guiding setup. Shown here is the camera with beattie intenscreen, 8x lupe magnifier, Off-axis guider, Meade 9mm wireless reticle (another MUST! - don't mess around with 12mm, and certainly not with corded models), Celestron f6.3 focal reducer (orange lettering), and celestron wide-band deep sky filter (between the reducer and the scope). | |
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A zoom-out shot of the above photo, notice the telrad finder attached. This is another must! It's nearly impossible for a beginner to find deep-space objects by starhopping using just the scope and finderscope. The telrad is great because there is no magnification, and because it is referenced by many resources such as "SkyMap", Turn Left at Orion, and other resources. |
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Classic visual setup- 8x50 finder, telrad finder, 40mm Sirius Plossl eyepiece, motorfocuser, dew heater. |