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[-=CROMAN=-]

After a long chain of emails with Atomant and endless hours researching I decided on the the Atlas EQ-G from Orion.

www.telescope.com/Mounts-Tripods/Equatorial-Mounts-Tripods/Orion-Atlas-EQ-G-Computerized-GoTo-Telescope-Mount/pc/-1/c/2/sc/34/p/24338.uts

I have been eager to get into the Astrophoto world for a while now and think this mount should do well.

I am now in the market for a decent, new or used, DSLR. I plan on initially utilizing the C8 with focal reducer but may switch to a nice 80mm APO if I can find a good deal. This is new territory for me so any and all advice would be greatly appreciated!

I'll post pics and details after she arrives.

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

C.A. Bill knows his stuff.

[patrickm]

Call Calumet Photo in Chicago and ask what used cams they have that may work for you.

[headdunce]

Wow, that mount is 76 lbs

[-=CROMAN=-]

lets mount the 12" to it... =)

[headdunce]

Feb 26, 2012 21:20:10 GMT -6 -=CROMAN=- said:

lets mount the 12" to it... =)

That's what she said.

[tomlee]

Congratulation Rich! That's the mount!!

[-=CROMAN=-]

I ordered a Samsung scb-2000 for video this morning. Now i need a 3.3 CCD reducer to help it out a bit. I was watching a guy on the night skies network with one of these and the video looked pretty decent. I dont have mallincam cash right now so I'll give this a shot. I plan on hooking this up to a bnc to vga connector so I can attach a 17" lcd to the mount leg on the atlas.

Heres a demo: www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uT9QFJmmOA

[erikruud]

Where did you get the cam from?

[-=CROMAN=-]

I bought it from bhphoto on the web. This is going to be cool. Especially out by Conway

[erikruud]

Feb 21, 2012 13:09:25 GMT -6 -=CROMAN=- said:

...but may switch to a nice 80mm APO if I can find a good deal. This is new territory for me so any and all advice would be greatly appreciated!

Wow! Out of curiosity I, went browsing for APO's. They are not cheap.

So far this looks like one of the best deals I can find. starizona.com/acb/Explore-Scientific-80mm-ED-APO-Triplet-P3086C1.aspx

[-=CROMAN=-]

Something similar would be this triplet from Orion

www.telescope.com/Astrophotography/Astrophotography-Telescopes/Orion-ED80T-CF-Triplet-Apochromatic-Refractor-Telescope/pc/-1/c/4/sc/57/p/101422.uts

At F/6 I think a reducer is still required.


I also like this doublet from orion

www.telescope.com/Astrophotography/Astrophotography-Telescopes/Orion-EON-80mm-f625-ED-Apochromatic-Refractor-Telescope/pc/-1/c/4/sc/57/p/99617.uts

I still need to purchase a guide scope as well. I'm going to begin treating this like child support and just send Orion 15% of my take home

[patrickm]

Can't wait to check this out! Very nice.

[erikruud]

Correct me if I am wrong, but as I understand it the OTA for a guide scope doesn't need to be all that special. I just needs to be able to see a brighter star for guiding. It is the guide camera that makes it special. Right?

[-=CROMAN=-]

From my limited knowledge on the subject yes. The camera is important but i think the scope capable of widefield views helps. Then again i'm just winging it here. Perhaps Bill can chime in.

[erikruud]

I checked a few sites and it does appear that almost any fast scope can be used. Lots of short tube 50 and 60 achromats being used.

The camera and the rigidity of the mount seem to be much more important than the optics.

[-=CROMAN=-]

First light with the Atlas was a bust last night.

I setup my Atlas for the first time last night and had a very hard time performing 1 , 2 or 3 star alignment. I made sure the scope was polar aligned using the built in polar scope. I centered polaris in the indicated circle on the polar scope. I added my long /lat, time, date, etc... I added the Atlas head unit and properly balanced my c8 in RA and DEC.

The problems begin:

I chose 3 star alignment and chose Sirius as my first star. The Atlas slewed to where it thought it should be. It was off by a fair margin so I attempted to use the directional pad to manually get Sirius into view. Pushing the directional buttons didnt appear to do anything. I tried to adjust the Rate to see if it would move faster, it didnt.

I unlocked Ra and Dec and pushed Sirius into view. I then locked it all in and accepted it. I then went for the 2nd star, Rigel. At this point the automated slewing pointed towards the ground.

I tried this many times and even reset the controller back to factory as not to use any settings that may have been saved. I gave up after a couple of hours in the cold and brought it all back in the house.

Was it wrong to manually push the scope to the target then lock it in and accept on the scope? If this is wrong how do you use the directional pad buttons so they actually move the scope?

[patrickm]

Heya.
Never used that kind of set up, but I am pretty sure that you want Polaris on the circle, not in it. On mine, you orient Dipper and CAS to get polaris on the correct part of the circle. This is a matter of only ~1deg, so it shouldn't cause the problems you seem to be having. That's on my polar scope. Assuming yours is similar.

Good luck with the rest. I know how frustrating it can be when it doesn't work the way I think it should, esp. for first light.

[-=CROMAN=-]

I just got off the phone with Orion support and they are sending me a new controller. They said that above all else when the directional pads are pressed and the slew rate is set to high, the OTA should move quick. Hopefully I can give this another try this weekend

[-=CROMAN=-]

Patrick This is what the polar scope reticule looks like. I put polaris in the polaris circle

[erikruud]

How is the C8 mounted to the Atlas? Did you add a dovetail?

[-=CROMAN=-]

Erik... I purchased a dovetail from ADM for $70. Too my surprise the Atlas came with a 13" dovetail bar that would have done the job as well. I'll use that on my my future refractor.

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

I like the etched reticulated finders, but I often wondered about if they are aligned properly or where the Polaris dot should be.

For precise polar aligning, I like the apps and programs available to assist.


For PC - is this: myastroimages.com/Polar_FinderScope_by_Jason_Dale/


But for Android, (which I prefer), is this:

play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.granchio.polarfinder&hl=en


For Patrick, there is Apple version...

itunes.apple.com/us/app/polaralign/id372966709?mt=8

[patrickm]

Mar 7, 2012 9:51:41 GMT -6 -=CROMAN=- said:

Patrick This is what the polar scope reticule looks like. I put polaris in the polaris circle

Right! The tiny circle, not the big one. You're on it. Mine just has a dot not a circle for Polarid.

In that case, I have no help to offer. Hopefully somebody else can!

[atomant]

Hey Croman, it's been a while.
Let's see some pics of the Atlas.

In terms of guide scope, it depends on the primary astrograph's focal length.
Shorter <1000mm, a 9x50 finderscope with webcam guider should be enough.
Longer >1000mm, a guide scope with enough light gathering ability like the ubiquitous 80mm, would be needed to keep fainter stars on track for high powered imaging.
Orion's website and tech staff should be able to "guide" you to right solution to match your main imaging scope.

You should be able to find a solidly-built used 80mm ED APO with FPL53 color correcting glass relatively cheap in the various classifieds like AMart and CN.
I sold my Commie-made Vixen ed80sf APO with case to Pete for around a cool three ben franklins not too long ago.....

As soon as the moon moves away, it's time to get busy hunting galaxies.

[-=CROMAN=-]

Here she is staring at the sun


Atomant... I have not had it out as much as i wanted to. I do have a facebook page dedicated to the Atlas series though with some pics I took.

www.facebook.com/Atlas.EQG?filter=2

Thanks for the guidescope info! I'll be on the hunt for an 80mm to compliment the c8. My next scope is either an 8" or 10" Orion astrograph with rotating ring setup. I miss the newt way of life.

As far as galaxy hunting is concerned I really want to head out with you guys next time the hunt is on. I want to test out my scb-2000 video capture setup.

[atomant]

Hey Croman,

Hopefully galaxy hunting in dark skies in two weeks.
And get a chance to check out SN in M95.

Nice CAT on a mighty mount.
That's a strange position of the scope on mount though.
Looks like it's pointed north?!