Ritchey–Chrétien enjoyers thread

[runic violet]

sharpness is the same at high frequencies

sharpness is basically unaffected by CO

[harsh matrix]

I was looking at the aperture reduction part, I didn't notice that all of the aperture vs obstruction examples were 0.2, 0.33, and 0.5

I though it was just steadily increasing with each example

[runic violet]

no this is idealized CO in an aberrator software

for three different COs

[harsh matrix]

It's still a very, very tiny difference.

[runic violet]

because its very idealized

and aberration free

but it does make the point what CO does

[harsh matrix]

Well it's also got the aperture reduction examples on the bottom too which demonstrate a lessening of resolution.

[runic violet]

yes

[harsh matrix]

I thought ALL of the examples were CO only.

Thats what confused me

[runic violet]

yeah nah lol

[harsh matrix]

I didn't sleep very well

[runic violet]

if you were to ask me 6" RC or 4" APO for planetary imaging 6" RC wins

[harsh matrix]

Yeah for sure

Id definitely pick an 8" SCT over a 6" RC for Planetary imaging if that's what i did exclusively, though.

The difference still doesn't terrify me per se.

I got an incredibly photo of Jupiter with my RC 6

[runic violet]

for visual prolly the 4" APO though

[harsh matrix]

Perfect collimation, with a Barlow. Looked like it was shot with an SCT.

[harsh matrix]

Oh yeah for sure

My best experience with visual was my 4" achromat before I got my dob

Incredible contrast.

[runic violet]

people underestimate the results small aperture scopes can get because of how many underperforming images there are with larger apertures

[harsh matrix]

[harsh matrix]

As in how often larger aperture scopes don't seem to provide much of a boost to resolution?

[runic violet]

5" newt

[harsh matrix]

Or because of how far behind a smaller refractor can fall when a larger aperture scope is utilized in the right conditions?

I only have a 2x achromatic Barlow btw

So I'm very impressed with that Jupiter picture, all things considered.

[runic violet]

yeah you're not at the limits of your rc most likely

[harsh matrix]

Yeah and that's crazy to me

[runic violet]

all seeing dependent as well as matching equipment, collimation, etc.

beginners have trouble focusing

and generally people who do have skill/conditions for planetary often don't go back and play with small scopes

more aperture is simply better for planetary imaging so there's no reason to not just go for it if you can

just ignoring the resolution limit you get more light so you can go at higher FPS

[brisk swift]

Wat

I'll be getting a gso rc soon with 2600mm setup, is it gonna be a problem? @harsh matrix

[harsh matrix]

if youre using a 2" EFW with 2" filters, probably

maybe even not with that

[brisk swift]

[runic violet]

Which

[brisk swift]

Saving up for the 10" Truss

Gotta wait for few months, it's not in stock

in like 1-2 months ig

[runic violet]

The truss doesn't have the flop issues

Just remember you need an additional baffle

[brisk swift]

YATTA

[brisk swift]

What's that

[runic violet]

https://agenaastro.com/buckeyestargazer-baffle-extensions-gso-rc-telescopes.html?srsltid=AfmBOopow7nfAikKghd-WxIPK8wA9PRWQHFSKDTAL8SW5lJxPAlJ7YBb

Something like this

The baffle on the stock 10" RCs is insufficient

Until you get or make something like this your flats won't work

That's if you're getting a used scope though

[brisk swift]

New

[runic violet]

If you are getting a new truss then you will be fine

[brisk swift]

Latest gso model

[brisk swift]

YAYY

[frosty shard]

From my experience using my 8" RC for planetary: it is outdone in the contrast department by a 6" Maksutov–Cassegrain, but it's by no means unusable.

You'll probably get better results with a Newtonian, but if you want a quick peek at the planets the RC is completely serviceable.

I'd be curious how a 10" RC fares in that regard

[runic violet]

the central obstruction is about the same so its no different

its actually a little bit bigger

[frosty shard]

Because of the large aperture, the MTF features will apply to different length scales in the image

[runic violet]

Doesn't matter because we're just going with lambda/D as the measurement and 8" -> 10" isn't that much of a difference since it's linear

In a way it gets slightly worse since the length scale is decreasing

But since CO % usually goes down with aperture you expect things to be fine with larger apertures, just not in this case

[frosty shard]

Man, I really am running into the issue of not getting around to doing imaging because I really like using my RC for visual observation...

I need to get started on my M65/66 project. But everything in the eyepiece is so pretty.

[runic violet]

gooood let the boomer flow through you

[frosty shard]

I'll always be an astro boomer in that regard

[harsh matrix]

@frosty shard I accidentally saw the Garland galaxy visually while i was at the B3 site this trip, btw

it's this little guy

located below M81 and M82

[frosty shard]

It is easy to run into some small M81 Group galaxies if you pan around the M81/82 area

[harsh matrix]

@frosty shard my Xena-M just shipped too

[harsh matrix]

[harsh matrix]

im actually mad rn

[analog portal]

that's what i have

[frosty shard]

RIPPERONI

Actually that makes me think

Are GSO RCs made in China or Taiwan? Because that'll affect the upcoming price increases...

[harsh matrix]

I think they're made in china

[analog portal]

oh good point. i should relist mine once prices go up 200% lmao

[harsh matrix]

[analog portal]

how wild would that be, to sell the scope i bought used for more than what i paid for it

[frosty shard]

Moar outreach

I still need a case for the new finder though

[analog portal]

i see a lot of wagons like that at cherry springs. my buddy has one that he has to get help lifting out of the back of his hatchback and then lifting it back in when we're all done.

[frosty shard]

https://youtu.be/KXJxLsG5VUE?t=163

Clip of a quad-OTA Ritchey–Chrétien setup

[frosty shard]

Alright, it's cloudy tonight, so I'm gonna do a dry run for setting up my rig for imaging...

[harsh matrix]

My Xena-M just got delivered

I may finally be able to shoot some difficult galaxies.

[thorny path]

Is Xena M best for OAG ?

Imma try listening my secondary screws and see if that was my issue

I wonder if that will fix my star flares…

[harsh matrix]

Not sure yet

In theory, it will be

[frosty shard]

Depends on whether the sensor is better suited than an IMX249.

[harsh matrix]

Payload secured

I got my ZWO 150 degree lens to work on it too

Not perfect but I made it work

[brisk swift]

@harsh matrix

Uh how will i get backfocus on the rc?

like what extension rings

idk if they provide the extension rings

[harsh matrix]

for a 10 inch?

no idea

if they include a manual or if there is one online somehwere, it will probably say

[brisk swift]

man this shi too confusing

[harsh matrix]

nah not really

if they included spacers, throw them on and take them out until you find a combination where you can reach focus

there's no strict back focus without a reducer, fortunately

[brisk swift]

[frosty shard]

At least with the 8" RC: you can get to visual focus with one 25 mm extension ring and a 2" diagonal, and photographic focus with 100 mm of extension rings if you just have a camera installed

(nothing else in your optical train)

I assume the values would be similar for the 10" version

[frosty shard]

Do y'all have anything mounted to your Losmandy dovetail? I'm thinking of mounting my mini PC there when I get it

[harsh matrix]

I dont have a losmandy

[frosty shard]

Oh wait the RC6 doesn't?

[harsh matrix]

nope

i honestly think my autoguiding would be better if i had a losmandy

im just trying to hold off on getting one until i get the RC8 since i know it comes with one

[brisk swift]

man eq8r is so cheap in eu

almost the same price as cem70ec

[frosty shard]

Debating whether to buy a solar filter for my RC

It's pretty overkill compared to getting one for my C5

but if it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing

[brisk swift]

whitelight solar ap isn't worth it for me tbh ( just my opinion)

big white dot with smoll black dots

[frosty shard]

Oh this isn't for astrophotography really

[brisk swift]

visual?

[frosty shard]

It's more so for public outreach

[brisk swift]

o

go for it

[frosty shard]

I'll get an H-alpha scope one day though

[brisk swift]

me too fs

[frosty shard]

On the other hand, I just realized Touptek's ATR533M has a bundle with a filter wheel and LRGBSHO filters for US$1234

I...can't think of anything better in terms of a camera bundle that gets me everything I need

Also. Red telescope. Green mount. Blue camera. My dreams of an RGB gamer scope have been achieved

[brisk swift]

thats real good price

[analog portal]

i wish they'd offer it with just LRGB filters as an option. but it is what it is. 🙂

[frosty shard]

Do I also get a sodium filter?
https://inskybooks.com/product/mercury-sodium-filter-capture-this-unique-phenomena-with-our-custom-1-25-inch-filter/

[runic violet]

5" suffices tbh

tube currents are going to be a problem

[frosty shard]

Actually the main reason I'm thinking of going overkill is that I can just take one scope out for outreach instead of two

[frosty shard]

Are you in the market for a Touptek cam?

[runic violet]

Okay

[harsh matrix]

looks like ill be buying a Uranus-M Pro by summer instead of an RC8

a little disappointing but at the same time, i dont have control over the tariffs

[frosty shard]

Hopefully you find some listing on CN classifieds or something that could make it feasible sooner

[frosty shard]

What's the reason for the extra cam?

[harsh matrix]

I need high IR sensitivity for my project ideas this summer

and the 585 wins across the board on that front

I want to pair it with the quattro to run a second rig

and ill run the RC6 w/ 533 to go deep on M16/M8 etc.

[frosty shard]

This is why I asked - I'm gonna have to look into the sensitivity...

[harsh matrix]

I want to make a photo of the Lagoon nebula like Hubble did

do an SHO and NIR duo image

get an SHO version and a version of just NIR bands

that will require shooting in the 850+nm region which will be challenging for my 533 to say the least

[frosty shard]

I mean I think I'll still get a 533 at the end of the day, but I do want to image in the near IR relatively often

I'm tied between visual astronomy and imaging, so if I can image on full moon nights in the IR that would help me make the best use of my time

[harsh matrix]

but yeah if this price stays the same or even goes higher, I cant get one of these soon.

[harsh matrix]

533 does the 685nm+ region very well

I think Benny has made 850nm+ work but i blame that on the Quattro's speed

but yeah the 585 has like double the NIR QE efficiency of my 533

and peak QE in red

[frosty shard]

Yeah the 533 isn't as good

[harsh matrix]

yeah exactly

despite that ive been enjoying playing in the dominantly red part of the spectrum

the 585 would let me do more in less time, especially with the quattro

the only thing i need to run another rig every night is another astronomy camera

i could run a second right now, but that means using my DSLR

which has abysmal thermal noise

ill be pulling the quattro back out tonight

wanna shoot M51 with it

[frosty shard]

I guess the 571 has the same characteristics as the 533

[harsh matrix]

yes

theyre the exact same technology

the 533 is just a smaller cut of the 571 iirc

[frosty shard]

Hmm

If I get the 585 I'll have better IR quantum efficiency, but the FOV will be microscopic

[harsh matrix]

yeah

well technically the 585 is like 50% the vertical size of the 533 but about the same width

youve just got less verticality

the pixel size was more of a concern to me for use with the RC

I was already pushing being over sampled with the 533 and the 585 will definitely be over sampled

[frosty shard]

Tight fit

[harsh matrix]

id still probably get the 533 to start, and then get a 585 later

[frosty shard]

Yeah the 533 is a good all-rounder

[harsh matrix]

that way you arent locked into the small fov and the 585 is much cheaper

[frosty shard]

Also I may image with my Askar, and with that thing I don't expect it to do well in the IR

So a 585 is not super useful there

I guess the sampling is better, but I can just drizzle

[runic violet]

why not used

[harsh matrix]

well

that's my only option

but it's still very expensive

about 1k

[runic violet]

i know someone who's about to put one up for like 850

no focuser though

[harsh matrix]

carbonstar?

or other?

[runic violet]

gso CF

[harsh matrix]

idrc

[runic violet]

carbonstar but no red paint

sorry

[harsh matrix]

is he selling it because he cant collimate it due to mechanical misalignments?

or did he upgrade?

[runic violet]

upgraded to RC10

decoupled

[harsh matrix]

gotcha

did he mod this RC8?

[runic violet]

No

[harsh matrix]

I cant buy it right this minute but im interested

so this is GSO CF?

and not an origionally apertura branded RC?

[runic violet]

its TPO branded

[harsh matrix]

cool we got some TPO users here iirc

I already plan to sell my RC6 once i get an 8

and i may sell the reducer with it, get a reducer flattener instead

[runic violet]

it doesn't matter anyways

[frosty shard]

Do you know if the baffle needs an extension?

[runic violet]

the only thing that has changed is the focuser

i'm not aware of any other changes to the RC8

[harsh matrix]

didnt think about that

i doubt it's that old but just in case

[frosty shard]

I gotchu fam

[harsh matrix]

I have 2 OSC narrowband filters I can sell

still

[frosty shard]

What filters?

[harsh matrix]

so i can maybe make up the difference if you want to send him my way

[harsh matrix]

SV220 and Askar colour magic D2

[runic violet]

yes you will need one, yes its that old

[harsh matrix]

(Ha + oiii and Sii + Oiii)

[runic violet]

it might have it already

[harsh matrix]

oh boy

[runic violet]

you know its been a while since opt died

time flies

[frosty shard]

Man I'm sad about that

I used to live in San Diego

[harsh matrix]

i didnt know that

i havent been in the astronomy market terribly long

if he's used that RC8 religiously, it probably has the extension already

worst case, i can probably 3D print one

[runic violet]

i wouldn't be so sure, but yes you can

[harsh matrix]

sounds like i have to budget in a focuser though...

[runic violet]

i mean do you want the gso focuser for it

or a price reduction

[harsh matrix]

temporarily maybe?

i dont think my RC6 will be easy to sell

id really only be able to get a focuser after I sell it

ill tell you what

what is his price with the stock focuser if he is down to include it?

and if not, ill probably try to use the quattro up until the next new moon and then swap back to my redcat for a bit

i dont think ill use my RC for a little while

shouldnt be the end of the world

[runic violet]

oh its 850 with the focuser

[harsh matrix]

[runic violet]

have you seen the prices on RCs

[harsh matrix]

idk if the stock GSO will handle my full blown mono rig

but i can try

[harsh matrix]

on the RC8's rn, yes

they ballooned

[harsh matrix]

o used

[runic violet]

this was an absolute steal

[harsh matrix]

I have been checking it from time to time

[harsh matrix]

WTF

alright im going to list my filters for sale lmao

[runic violet]

there's a reason i buy used 90% of the time

[harsh matrix]

unless you want to buy them straight off of me @frosty shard

[harsh matrix]

I started recently too

that's how I ended up with a fully modded quattro for 500 dollars

[runic violet]

the decoupled RC10 replacing this scope cost $1600 with a 3" moonlite + AF included

I'm glad I forced that deal on him

[harsh matrix]

HOLY

bruh that's good

i still cant afford it

but that's good

[frosty shard]

If I didn't have my 8" RC I'd consider that deal...

[runic violet]

my decoupled CF RC10 was $2k with a lighter Moonlite decoupler and included 3" flattener that I sold for $400, a hotech collimator, and a useless $100 solar filter

[harsh matrix]

holy

im so glad i dont need a hotech

im too good at star collimation

[runic violet]

Nah I keep it around for the noots

[harsh matrix]

valid use lmao

[runic violet]

not really that useful for RCs

[harsh matrix]

I was eyeballing this one

[harsh matrix]

there is an attachment you can get for it which helps with collimating RC's but it was discontinued

i think it may be back in production now?

but that is likely me being crazy

[runic violet]

https://agenaastro.com/gso-rc-6-8-focuser-collimation-ring.html

no it isn't

its also a bandaid

for the decoupling issue

[harsh matrix]

I meant attachement for the hotech

[runic violet]

it'll fix any tilt issues as long as you can keep things from moving about

oh

[harsh matrix]

I know that tilt adapter is kind of stupid

[runic violet]

not really

its $85 it solves the problem partially

[harsh matrix]

I bought it thinking my focuser was out of wack but it ended up causing more problems than it helped solve

[harsh matrix]

I still have mirror flop/sag at extreme declinations

[runic violet]

yes, that's unavoidable

[harsh matrix]

there has to be some way to upgrade the mirror cell right?

[runic violet]

so wait you do have problems with coupling?

I got the impression you did not

[harsh matrix]

at extreme declinations only for some reason

[runic violet]

the worst thing the tilt adapter can do is nothing

[harsh matrix]

anywhere in the northern half of the sky, no

[runic violet]

¯_(ツ)_/¯

you fix all other issues and then work the tilt adapter

[runic violet]

i mean, gravity

[harsh matrix]

that's true ig

[runic violet]

yes, send the scope and $500 to nateman_doo

[harsh matrix]

that's not as bad as i thought it would be tbf

i will get the scope decoupled whenever i get an RC8

[runic violet]

alternatively you wait for someone to sell an already decoupled rc8

[harsh matrix]

i havent seen a single one on CN since i joined

[runic violet]

they were plenty of them last year

they dried up now during galaxy season

they might come back after its over

[harsh matrix]

may still be a waiting game then, huh?

[runic violet]

these RCs were from May and August, during that time I saw a decoupled RC6 and a decoupled RC8 as well

possibly more

the RC8 was on astromart tho

[harsh matrix]

@runic violet if your buddy ends up listing it or is perhaps down to sell it to me, @ me and lmk

ill work on getting my funds together in the meantime

ill probably need about 2 weeks minimum to lock everything down.

[runic violet]

its ok he needs to grab the focuser from me

currently sitting in this abomination

[frosty shard]

What is that...

[runic violet]

the $0 triplet telescope

spare parts only

[frosty shard]

Honestly, what a beauty

[runic violet]

i'll just 3d print a new focuser

[harsh matrix]

What the actual hell

I'll be swapping my hardware over to the Quattro shortly

[runic violet]

dw nothing happened to the focuser

[harsh matrix]

gooooood the redcat + mono is a killer

[analog portal]

I've been trying to sell my tpo rc8 and 2" moonlite cs focuser for a few months. 🥹 not willing to drop as low as those you showed, yikes!

[runic violet]

what price

[analog portal]

$1000 right now, with the adm weight saddle, weights, corrector, and camera angle rotator

[harsh matrix]

My tax return wasn't as big as I was hoping it would be

[harsh matrix]

@frosty shard @undone sedge I am getting M63's friend's RC8

carbon fiber TPO RC8

it will have the stock focuser though

[frosty shard]

NICE, RC8 GANG

[frosty shard]

Do you have a replacement in mind?

[harsh matrix]

Im hyped

my seeing is going to let me get away with some pretty crazy stuff

ill have to see what flattener/reducer options there are now

i want to turn it into a superspeed light bucket and id like to decouple the mirror at some point

i can get a mono 585 once i sell the RC6

this is pretty darn exciting

half debating even selling the RC6

it is slower and doesnt have as much resolving power as an 8 inch in every way, but it is very solid and it's in fantastic shape...

again, my crowning achievement

if I did this with an RC6... what will an RC8 do?

[runic violet]

when's the last time you bumped it

[runic violet]

apex

[harsh matrix]

[brisk swift]

3d print a new one

[harsh matrix]

helllll nawwwwwwww

[harsh matrix]

where can you get this?

[runic violet]

Lots of places sell the apex-L, but it's a common find on cloudynights too

[analog portal]

i actually took it off CN to list other stuff, it's on astrobin. i suppose I ought to relist it. 😅

[analog portal]

Yeah, I was thinking of going with a C6 or a 5" triplet. My back just doesn't like carrying the heavy equipment around any more.

[analog portal]

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/827768-finally-made-an-rc-collimation-adapter/

found this thread of a guy who made his own solution to the RC flop

[frosty shard]

C6? refractor? You can't break our hearts like this

So actually one of my friends sold his C6 because he found it to be too much of a hassle for astrophotography - lots of internal reflections

He went with an Askar 120 APO instead

[analog portal]

well that's nuts

i would go with the astro-tech at130edt for a refractor. i had the 115edt and loved it. i made really dumb decision and sold that instead of the GSO 6" f/4 newt. 😠

if i had a better mount other than the moderately heavy gem45, i might keep the rc8. but out of the two, it's the easier one to part ways with I think.

[copper jasper]

Vel one question, what would you choose between rc6 and Carbon star 150 newt ?

And why

[brisk swift]

rc6, sharper

[harsh matrix]

RC6 because sharper, yes, but also because the CS 150 has some star flar issues that are unfixable.

[frosty shard]

Are you thinking of purely imaging or also doing some visual work too?

[harsh matrix]

They're driving people mad.

[runic violet]

That would be imaging

For visual work a 150 f/5 newt would be more suitable tbh

[runic violet]

How is that not heavy

[harsh matrix]

@runic violet Your friend has a 1x flattener

[runic violet]

I know

[harsh matrix]

I dont think I need to buy it though

[runic violet]

No you shouldn't

[harsh matrix]

cause small sensor

that's what i was thinking

if i had a 571 already i may consider it

[runic violet]

Aren't you going imx571

[harsh matrix]

i was hoping it was a flattener/reducer and not just a 1x

[harsh matrix]

at some point, but that's an end of the year or end of next year goal

[runic violet]

I wouldn't go 1x flattener because f/8 kind of sucks

[harsh matrix]

im not going to be able to pull the trigger on that for a long time

[harsh matrix]

im thinking that just because of my light pollution here at home

personally i get a ton of clear nights starting in the last half of June all the way through the end of october

[runic violet]

I would think that because seeing/guiding considerations

[harsh matrix]

so time isnt the issue, efficiency is my concern

[harsh matrix]

my seeing here is fairly good tbh

[runic violet]

What are your fwhms

[harsh matrix]

average to below average most of the time in the summer

[harsh matrix]

oh boy i dont have anything terribly current atm

[runic violet]

You can check pretty easily in PI

Find your "sharpest" data and pull a sub and estimate

Make sure to crop to the center if you aren't using any corrector

Unless you get <2" often I don't think you'll find f/8 too useful

[harsh matrix]

im trying to use subframe selector in PI to check

my camera gain is of concern and im probably too dumb to figure it out

this is electrons?

[runic violet]

So the way he was using it was that he stacked the 0.67x with the 1x flattener to get to f/4.8 while still having good correction to 4/3" on the 294mm

[runic violet]

No it isn't for fwhm

[harsh matrix]

wtf

you can do that?

[harsh matrix]

okay good

[runic violet]

Yes

[harsh matrix]

ill ignore it

[runic violet]

You just run fwhm estimator and read the px

[runic violet]

It doesn't work for apsc so now it's an apex l

[harsh matrix]

I put my resolution for my reduction rather than for prime focus on this prime focus data oops

for what id consider to be a bad night, my FWHM is sitting around 2.5 on average

at 1377 mm of focal length/prime focus for my RC6

[runic violet]

2.5"?

Ok but what is a good night

[harsh matrix]

I don't remember what data set it was but it was back right after I got my RC6

I had FWHM of 1.4 and 1.5, down to 1.2

I think this is displaying in arcseconds and not pixels but I may be mistaken

yes this is arcseconds

really bad night at 3.6"

[runic violet]

1.2"?

[harsh matrix]

yeah

[runic violet]

Hmm

[harsh matrix]

im going to try to hunt whatever data set it was down but i dont have high hopes

ive shot so much stuff

[runic violet]

But yeah this is what I'd put into consideration for whether you should stay at f/8

Fov vs potential resolution

[harsh matrix]

true

[runic violet]

Having spent years imaging at 1754mm even with some data getting 1.5" fwhms it wasn't worth it and I'm more content at 1332mm

[harsh matrix]

interesting

yeah i think im averaging about 2" of seeing even going through old data sets

though these old ones had more issues than seeing

like bad collimation etc

[runic violet]

It was also a c11 at f/6.3 rife with other problems so maybe I'm a little biased

Bleh

[harsh matrix]

yeah im sitting around 2" on average

looking at a couple of data sets spanning about 6 months

so no flattener it is

gotta get a reducer/flattener

[runic violet]

That's pretty good I'm guessing you must be in the southwest or tx

[harsh matrix]

Texas

upside: good seeing most of the time downside: bad light pollution

[runic violet]

I'm pretty sure I'm also ~2" FWHM most of the time

[harsh matrix]

drizzling has allowed me to resolve things 1" in size

like globs within the disks of M81 and M82

which is nutty asf

dithering + drizzling is really where the benefits come in for me here

[runic violet]

That isn't particularly difficult for a long FL scope

Separate the blobs in the M87 jet and then I'll be impressed

[harsh matrix]

challenge accepted if the weather cooperates lmao

[runic violet]

I already challenged tom to do it with his 24" so hehe

[harsh matrix]

oh Tom is doing it

no shot he doesnt

he's so cracked

[runic violet]

He hasn't exactly beat conventional imaging with lucky imaging yet on DSOs

Tbf he's using a pretty noisy cam rn

[harsh matrix]

after shooting with my quatt and redcat, im really enjoying the advantages that high speed is leveraging for me

[runic violet]

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/570687129118703637/1357843193827295395/post-243927-0-65703100-1556343515.png?ex=67fe33c4&is=67fce244&hm=1fd5f666b28befe6e9a983030a1fd537b8601a9767829eb4bc88ae12af529d4e&

[harsh matrix]

so reducing the RC8 to f/5.4 or 5.2 would be a lot of fun

[runic violet]

From the internet

[harsh matrix]

true

[runic violet]

So apex

[harsh matrix]

AN EDGE 8?

I have a chance

[runic violet]

If an edge8 can do it then you'll be fine

[harsh matrix]

absolutely

[runic violet]

[harsh matrix]

thank god theyre based here in america

i can probably afford it soon if i have to buy it new

[runic violet]

There's one on CN right now if you want a discount

[harsh matrix]

HUh?

i checked last night

saw NONE

[runic violet]

Or you can just wait until next week for another to show up

Lot of people buying them for the wrong telescopes and realizing their mistake

Mostly frac users

[harsh matrix]

it's the 0.65x?

[runic violet]

https://www.cloudynights.com/classifieds/item/406813-starizona-apex-ed-065x-l-reducer-flattener/' title='Starizona Apex ED 0.65x L Reducer / Flattener

Yeah

[harsh matrix]

i see it yeah

[runic violet]

It has to be the L not the S

[harsh matrix]

it got posted 3 hours ago

thats why i didnt see it

[harsh matrix]

does that designate 2" vs 1.25" or something?

[runic violet]

No, just focal length

Long FL scopes vs short

[harsh matrix]

gotcha

hmmmmmm

i dont think i can pull the trigger on this one right now

[runic violet]

Yeah wait until next week

[harsh matrix]

but ill follow it and if it's here in about 2 weeks i will

[runic violet]

They're super common

Lot of silly frac users

[harsh matrix]

oh btw I asked if your buddy's RC8 needs a baffle extension and he said he doesnt believe it does

i looked for extensions on Agena Astro and they specify that only GSO ritchey's, the closed tubes, only need one if they were made prior to 2019

[runic violet]

He would be wrong

[harsh matrix]

worst case scenario i find out the hard way and have to buy one

[runic violet]

Can't you print it

[harsh matrix]

idk if my 3D printers will cooperate

theyve been acting up a lot lately

[runic violet]

I guess I can print one

Might as well

[harsh matrix]

literally unusable

[runic violet]

Beuh

It's also possible that it's been sitting on the RC8 since he bought it and he never knew

[harsh matrix]

true

this is the only picture he has down the front of the tube

it's nearly impossible to tell

[runic violet]

Oh no that helps

[harsh matrix]

the baffle tube looks a little too small

imo

i cant really look down the baffle tube of my RC6 without contorting my neck

[copper jasper]

It is fixable , are you taking about pinched optics?

[copper jasper]

Imaging only

[harsh matrix]

no and no

it's something entirely different

nobody knows what's causing the flare issues, as primary mirror masks dont fix it

[copper jasper]

Is rc6 very hard for a beginner?
Like jumping from dSLR and lens setup to rc6?

[runic violet]

It doesn't have one

[harsh matrix]

does it look too short to you? lol

[harsh matrix]

gotcha so it needs one?

[harsh matrix]

at the focal length, yeah

[runic violet]

Let me see if I can print one

[copper jasper]

Hmm

Thanks vel

[harsh matrix]

If you can, thanks so much

[harsh matrix]

if you dont think unfixable star flares will drive you mad, the CS150 is the best for somebody in your shoes

[runic violet]

Depends on if I have black filament lol

[harsh matrix]

collimating either of them will be difficult

[harsh matrix]

[copper jasper]

Where can I see your photos taken by rc6?

[runic violet]

And even if I do you probably want to paint it anyways

Filament is shiny

[harsh matrix]

I do have black filament so i mean, worst case scenario you could send me an STL and i could TRY to print it

[runic violet]

The stls are everywhere you can pick your favorite

[harsh matrix]

it cooperated for me the last few things i printed but they werent perfect

[harsh matrix]

wait really?

😭

[runic violet]

Imperfections are not a bad thing

You don't want it to be smooth tbh

[harsh matrix]

https://app.astrobin.com/u/Curiosity_Astro

got a few on AB

[runic violet]

The rougher it is the less reflective

[harsh matrix]

it's not that

[runic violet]

If your printer can print and it just has slightly shitty quality that's ok

[harsh matrix]

as much as the walls or bases havent printed perfectly, so material would flake out and protrude into the light path

[harsh matrix]

It can definitely print

[runic violet]

Oh I mean you can just clean it up in post

[harsh matrix]

but the chance the print finishes successfully without a colossal failure is up in the air atm

[runic violet]

Snip snip

[harsh matrix]

yeah true

maybe I should try to print it first?

[runic violet]

Sure

[harsh matrix]

and if i dont get a successful print then you can give it a shot

the problem has been that it will behave and then near the end, the filament stops behaving and the printer screws everything up and it turns into a wormy pile of poo

💀

but tbh my mom has been the only one having that issue

i suspect shes been printing flawed models

[runic violet]

Well there's at least one on both printables and thingiverse

[harsh matrix]

OKAY

good

[runic violet]

The one on thingiverse looks better to me idk

[harsh matrix]

this one?

[runic violet]

Yeah

[harsh matrix]

if it isnt flawless i can probably tweak the model in blender if it needs to be taller or shorter

i'd suspect it was designed to spec at least

[runic violet]

No I was just checking whether it has ridging on the inside since the commercial options all have that

[harsh matrix]

fair point

[harsh matrix]

yeah this is the guy everyone goes to for focuser decouplers

nateman doo has a TPO RC8 carbon too

i think i shall get it decoupled

that may be a mid way through the year thing though

[harsh matrix]

@runic violet @analog portal Do you guys know of any high quality focusers for these RC's which are highly unlikely to leak light around the drawtube?

[runic violet]

Esatto

I was strongly considering it before I decided to just delete all of the light around my observatory instead

[harsh matrix]

oof i wish that was an option for me but it is not

my dumb backyard is flooded with glow from the sky itself

[runic violet]

The 2" feathertouchs can leak

You can technically cover it up as I did but it's not ideal

That stupid gap between the draw tube and the rest of the focuser will always be a problem

[harsh matrix]

exactly

i made a fairly elegant solution to fix it with my RC6

[runic violet]

Unless you get the esatto

[harsh matrix]

and afaik there's not much of a chance of failure with it

[harsh matrix]

BRUH

this thing costs almost as much as the scope

💀

[analog portal]

My moonlite works fine in that regard.

It's not the ideal model though for the scope. It's just a CS instead of a CSL

it works nonetheless 🙂

[runic violet]

have you checked for a leak

[analog portal]

nope 😅 there's a street light in the parking lot that somewhat illuminates my back deck to the south, where the focuser is usually at as I tend to image in the north. i haven't noticed anything looking like a leak in my data.

[harsh matrix]

so nothing like this?

or like this?

[analog portal]

omg no

[analog portal]

You're talking about the ray of light coming from the top right area, not the stacking artifact looking stuff, right?

[harsh matrix]

I'm talking about the entire gradient

The streak of light is irrelevant

[analog portal]

ah

[harsh matrix]

That gradient gets much worse if you try to DBE it

[runic violet]

if you have a streetlight and you haven't actively gone light leak hunting you probably have some sort of light leak

that you just haven't noticed/cared about

RCs are just very prone to it

[analog portal]

i will switch to where my data is and look. you're looking at the stacked result, correct?

[harsh matrix]

Yes

[runic violet]

the idea is that any leak in the camera train can reflect off the secondaryn and go right back at the camera

[harsh matrix]

If it's bad enough you will see it in subs but the stacked image shows best

[runic violet]

on a newt it has to hit the secondary and primary and reflect back again

[harsh matrix]

Yeah this is what was happening to me

Where the light was getting around the drawtube of the focuser, hitting the secondary and coming back down the drawtube onto my sensor 💀

[runic violet]

it sucks

that's one W for refractor users though

[analog portal]

that is a lp gradient on the needle's lum

[runic violet]

is it

[analog portal]

yeah, when i flip the meridian the gradient goes to the other side

lemme open the other filters

[runic violet]

That doesn't mean it's what's on the sky

LP gradients are much larger scale

[analog portal]

it travels over the b7 light dome, i get gradients like that with every scope aiming south

looking at the lights, red was done first, then g, b, and lum. two of the red were after the flip, which could explain why it's less gradient looking 🤷‍♂️

[runic violet]

Oh these are integrations

[analog portal]

yeah

[runic violet]

What does a sub look like

[analog portal]

lum is 180s sub, rgb were 60s subs

something's not right there, i should have amp glow on that lum sub.

ah, i had done 60s subs in lum that night, the next night i did 180 subs in lum to add to it.

there's that night's data

first and last red sub

[runic violet]

Ok

That's LP

[analog portal]

aye. it transited near the zenith thankfully or it would've been worse

[frosty shard]

Everyone, meet Collinder

If I had a nickel for every PC I own named after a Swedish astronomer, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice

[harsh matrix]

Looks like a MeLe Quieter

[frosty shard]

Yup, 4C model.

[harsh matrix]

[brisk swift]

Wtf

[molten holly]

I don’t know why that looks like a old Nintendo

[analog portal]

Looks more like a mini PS2

[ripe crystal]

Build one

[ripe crystal]

Yeah quite

[runic violet]

wat

[undone sedge]

me, ga mountains:
pros: decently dark
cons: b a d s e e i n g

[frosty shard]

Back out again since there's a chance of solar storms!

[frosty shard]

Some of my outreach audience

[harsh matrix]

@thorny path my Quattro is holding collimation incredibly well

[harsh matrix]

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/827768-finally-made-an-rc-collimation-adapter/page-62

so on the page of CN forums where nateman_doo is making his adapter

someone went out of their way to point out that RC's cannot be collimated on an on axis star exclusively

and they went through great lengths to say why

problem is, with the mirror coupled to the focuser, there's not much of a reson to go throug all of the effort of getting collimation absolutely spot on in all axis

[brisk swift]

das crazy

[frosty shard]

Do you have a link directly to the post (or the post number)?

This just takes me to the last page

Is it this one?
https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/827768-finally-made-an-rc-collimation-adapter/page-49#entry14012895

[runic violet]

The main point is that the secondary isn't always centered

Which is true

[harsh matrix]

Page after

[harsh matrix]

I just finalized the purchase of my RC8

[vapid patio]

Pheheeee

[vapid patio]

@harsh matrix You doing anything lately?

[harsh matrix]

Playing with my quattro

And having fun

[vapid patio]

Anything cool to share?

[harsh matrix]

just this for now

the color image was scuffed by clouds that werent forecasted unfortunately

the B&W image on the left is crazy sharp unprocessed

very good data

[vapid patio]

@harsh matrix Woow sick! Mono is crazy

And your in what b9?

[harsh matrix]

yeah p much

both of those are less than an hour of data each

the B&W one is 50 minutes iirc

of 5 minute subs

[vapid patio]

High snr target but you did great

God had to nerf you with b9 skys

[harsh matrix]

fr

[harsh matrix]

I shot M16 a bit too

i have 30 minutes of data from last night

[vapid patio]

You process it?

Can't wait to do m16 with my rc6

[harsh matrix]

my redcat pulled out some crazy stuff in less than 4 hours on Sadr

[harsh matrix]

nope not yet anyway

im going to shoot M16 with the RC8

an unhealthy amount

[vapid patio]

Yeah I saw that like damn

[harsh matrix]

probably

[vapid patio]

Fair enough

Its the target that got me into astro

[harsh matrix]

you can say that again

NASA's fault

[vapid patio]

And I'm nerfed with bad viewing of it smh

[vapid patio]

Fr like NASA made me spend a crap ton on this hobby

[harsh matrix]

i dont have a great view of it but i can force it to work

[vapid patio]

How so

I can get like 2-3hr on it

[harsh matrix]

by positioning my tripod in the right spot on my backyard porch

that way i can get around the tree in my backyard to an extent

[vapid patio]

If it works it works

Can't wait to see your rc8 is gonna crush it 🥀

And day by day i am tempted to get a samyang 135 for wide feild milkyway

[harsh matrix]

I knowwwwww

[harsh matrix]

My roki 135 should be here tomorrow

i bought that before i knew id be getting an RC8

[vapid patio]

MAN YOU GOT ONE

And what brand rc8

I love the carbon one i forget what brand makes it

[harsh matrix]

TPO

[vapid patio]

Hmm not sure but cool

Got the filter wheel on hehe

[harsh matrix]

nice

[harsh matrix]

@vapid patio here's a very rough process lol

I ran blurx on 0.1 for both stellar and nonstellar sharpening

otherwise the stars get super crunchy and artifacted

[vapid patio]

I know what you mean

[harsh matrix]

cause theyre too tight

[vapid patio]

A gift and a curse ahh 😭

But sharpness is great

And snr wooow

[harsh matrix]

3 subs

i did denoise it quite a bit but im still surprised at how much there is in the photo

okay so left is the quattro mono rig and right is 533 OSC dual narrowband with f/7 refractor

and the frac is 3 hours of data

the quattro is 3 SUBS of data

30 minutes

[undone sedge]

[runic violet]

osc bad? shocking

slow frac bad? shocking

[frosty shard]

10 minute subs? Dang

[harsh matrix]

yeah

[brisk swift]

Uh @harsh matrix

[harsh matrix]

https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/493156996644864001/1034463755632922804/caption-1.gif

The Roki is real

[brisk swift]

is it possible to get the m87 jet with a 8" RC

I mean a 8" SCT did it

[harsh matrix]

M63 seems to think it may be possible

Im certainly going to try, assuming I get clear skies

[brisk swift]

what fl was the sct at

[harsh matrix]

idk

[runic violet]

Get the jet? That's extremely easy

Separating the beads is the challenge

[brisk swift]

people got it from a 4" Frac

What's the furthest thing can anyone capture using a 8"? Is there a limit

[harsh matrix]

o my redcat got the jet lmao

[brisk swift]

wtf

[frosty shard]

2032 mm for most SCTs, except I think Meade did make an f/6.3 one some time ago

[brisk swift]

most people reduce it down to like 1400 Or 1600 I think?

[frosty shard]

Right

My ATR533M kit just shipped, w00t

[harsh matrix]

Hopefully you don't get nailed with like $2200 of tariffs

[frosty shard]

Yeah...from what I've been reading about in the news, apparently they're not actually being enforced? I'll just have to wait and see...

[harsh matrix]

I saw a post on Facebook the other day that somebody had bought a seestar or something and got nailed with a 300 or 400 dollar delivery fee to cover the cost of tariffs

[frosty shard]

Looks like my package made it to the US by way of Japan. Not sure if that's just the usual FedEx hub or if there are attempts being made to get around tariffs lol

[thorny path]

fedex has a strong presence in JP

when i order stuff from japan its almost always fedex and it gets here FAST

[harsh matrix]

Weird

I think every time I got something delivered from China, it shipped via DHL

And I'm pretty sure those products should be coming here via straight flight no matter who the courier is

They may be trying to avoid tariffs

[frosty shard]

Yup, that was the case for my Mele Quieter 4C, for instance

[frosty shard]

It's coming Tuesday

[thorny path]

svbony is gonna cover tarrifs until the 30th im told

i got thier new power hub

the onstep one DOES NOT have any protection

[harsh matrix]

well guys

i just collimated my quttro in record time

[harsh matrix]

i need to ask Player One what theyll do

@analog portal have you found the compression ring system on your moonlight focuser to be a problem?

as in, introducting tilt, making collimation a pain?

[analog portal]

i don't use the compression ring system

that part unscrews, and i have a camera angle rotator screwed onto it

[harsh matrix]

Oh really? Thank god

Thats my only concern with moving away from the carbonstars

I love that the focuser lets you screw the camera directly onto it

[analog portal]

i've never had a scope that had that compression ring thing that didn't screw off. even the GSO 6" f/4 newt had that.

[runic violet]

I use a compression ring focuser without problems

Well the one issue is that it's another place you can have a light leak

But threading is always the best way to do things as long as you have a way to rotate

[harsh matrix]

I am printing my baffle extension

[harsh matrix]

i have

[harsh matrix]

I wondered...

💀

[analog portal]

I thought they all came off, until I talked to someone here.

[runic violet]

I've only had one scope where it comes off and that was a frac

[harsh matrix]

@runic violet i printed the baffle and it printed flawlessly lol

I think my mom is just using poor quality PLA material or something

This print had no flaws

[thorny path]

Huh I always wondered why newts don’t do the same as fracs

I’ve seen correctors be screwed in. Even on RCs stuff can be screwed in. But not on newts

Maybe a good reason, probably the coma correctors can be fairly long

And newts don’t ever have some angel rotator

[frosty shard]

I don't know what kind of Eurobeat the FedEx drivers are listening to but my camera comes in today

[harsh matrix]

[harsh matrix]

New drip dropped

[harsh matrix]

Okay wow

The secondary on this one feels like it's secured much more robustly than on my RC6

man im excited

i think the biggest issue is going to be balancing the dec

this one is even heavier in the back i think

I decided to test the collimation with a laser, which can be accurate up to a point, and to my surprise, the focuser was directly in axis to the secondary

the secondary was nowhere near where it was supposed to be but fixing it was super easy

uhhhhhhh

I think my RC6 actually has a baffle tube that is too short

i can see around it all the way down the draw tube of the focuser from behind the secondary mirror, in prime focus configuration

maybe that's why i always had issues

[harsh matrix]

(this cant happen on the RC8)

[brisk swift]

damn

[frosty shard]

Just abandoned my scope in a schoolyard. It it's lost here's what it looks like

(I forgot my OAG at home 💀)

[harsh matrix]

😭

[frosty shard]

Well I got the OAG but I forgot to install ASTAP

[thorny path]

Vro what happened to your Red car? Is it still in WO in Taiwan ?

I was gonna ask cause I found out a while ago that you can check colimation on a refractor with a Cheshire

[harsh matrix]

I got it back and got to use it for a real first light lol

It's obnoxiously sharp now

This was first light post collimation

Sadr region was crazy sharp

[harsh matrix]

I tried it but the general concensus with that method is that it doesn't afford you enough accuracy to matter

[thorny path]

Holy

Serous QC issues at Wo

Hey at least they collimated it in the end

[harsh matrix]

Fr

I was expecting to get it back and not see any changes

2x drizzling makes a noticeable impact on the resolution now too

Before it used to double the size of the image at the cost of sharpness, so it would actually make my images appear blurrier

Now it's doubling the size of the image and further boosting the sharpness

While increasing the resolution by a lot.

[thorny path]

Damn

I wonder if I should also drizzle

I got new cpu also

[frosty shard]

if you're shooting OSC, definitely Bayer drizzle to improve your noise characteristics

If you're shooting mono, it depends on your sampling. You can't drizzle past the resolution limit with an oversampled image

[thorny path]

Good to know

My scale seems to be 1.44

[harsh matrix]

So undersampled in most conditions

You can always 2x drizzle then

Your drive will hate you though

[thorny path]

I was kinda confused on whether or not I was under sampled. It says I’m in green

Hope I don’t fill up my drive. I don’t got much of my 1tb in my SSD

I got one for videos and photos. May need to upgrade

[frosty shard]

Well, I guess that's my real first light image. Just 20 s of data lol

[frosty shard]

after some closer inspection it looks like I still need to tweak my collimation

[harsh matrix]

Yeah

Those stars weren't quite focused and that could very well be due to poor collimation

[frosty shard]

I know the focus was a bit off but how could you tell here?

(I don't have an EAF so I'm doing this by hand)

Also, now that I think about it: I never even bothered to lock the focuser lol

and I'm using the stock one so I don't expect it to be good lol

[harsh matrix]

The stock one on the carbonstars is a cut above the rest

It's quite good.

[harsh matrix]

If you look at the stars, the small ones specifically, there is a brightness bias on the right half of them

That's coma, and coma is a dead giveaway of bad collimation on an RC if you ever see it.

[frosty shard]

Oh I thought you were just talking about the focus. The coma is pretty evident, though I should also note that M13 was not well centered

(RCs do have a small amount of fifth-order coma)

That being said I'm going to have a better look once I can take the rig out for imaging again, ideally with the mono cam so I have smaller pixels to work with

[harsh matrix]

I can tell the focus was off because the stars are huge

[frosty shard]

That could also be due to the wacky guiding I was dealing with but I doubt my focus was that good anyway

@harsh matrix do you have a camera rotator in your imaging train?

[harsh matrix]

Nope

Not for now anyway

[harsh matrix]

alright boys, 2 minute lum sub through bad clouds and horrid seeing

with the RC8

feeling really good tbh

I got it collimated in about an hour

super easy compared to the RC6

the adjustment screws for the primary always got my dumb allen wrench stuck

doesnt happen with this scope

[thorny path]

woah you got the rc8 ??

[harsh matrix]

Yeah

Not the carbonstar unfortunately but the next best thing

[ripe crystal]

Gso?

[ripe crystal]

PINPOINT STARS

noice

[thorny path]

Honestly doesn’t really matter. Paying a premium for the CF

[brisk swift]

He got a TPO CF rc

[runic violet]

Same thing

[thorny path]

Lol

Still , the carbon star I had was nice but not worth the 2.5x premium

[harsh matrix]

Yeah, GSO/TPO

Same thing

[brisk swift]

I think TPO is better?

TPO 8" CF rc costs 3k+usd

gso one sells for 1k

[harsh matrix]

Wtf?

Well TPO is defunct

They're out of business and have been for years now

They could be pricier due to a lower quantity of them being out in the wild.

[analog portal]

It's sold out, so maybe they never bothered to update their price. Where do you see them for that much?

[harsh matrix]

It's an old OTA no longer produced

Idk where they're getting those numbers though

[analog portal]

that's roughly the same price astro-tech was selling their cf rc8 (also out of stock) and the GSO one

[harsh matrix]

Indeed

The carbonstar was less than that before the tariffs happened, iirc.

[harsh matrix]

guys am i crazy

or does my image kind of have this going on?

[harsh matrix]

this is apparently what youre supposed to see if the baffle tube is too short

[harsh matrix]

and this persists with the focuser light leak fixed and without the reducer

[runic violet]

someone needs a baffle extension

or its originating from some other godforsaken source

[harsh matrix]

that's what im thinking

it's strange that the apertura carbonstars could still have an issue

[runic violet]

they have more than one lol

[harsh matrix]

well ofc, like the focuser still being coupled to the primary mirror, what are the others i may not have heard of?

lol

im going to watch it

hopefully they drop the price because this is what it costs new

aint nobody going to buy this if theyre in their right mind

gonna wait on this one too

[runic violet]

this is primarily what i take issue with

[harsh matrix]

ik i wasnt happy with that either

when i figured out that it was still coupled i was like, if yall could upgrade the focuser and maybe fix the baffle issue, why couldnt you change the primary mirror cell issue?

💀

[runic violet]

2023

[harsh matrix]

oh fuq youre right

😭

i think id like a focuser first

not seeing any feather touches atm

I do have an idea

I could probably test if the RC8 needs a baffle extension

Without ever shooting the sky

I'm dying to use this scope and there's not a clear night in sight 😭

[harsh matrix]

Well I'm testing the RC8 configuration for any possible light leaks outside of the focuser/imaging train

Flat and that sub on M104 looked a little suspect but I'm not seeing evidence of it being the focuser