Hi Darron,

You might have answered a question that has been puzzling me. I don't
seem to see much detail in my 8" lx50. Perhaps I need to collimate.
Though I don't seem to see the off centered rings when unfocused. I
really haven't observed this at anything over 24mm. Maybe it's time to
buy Bob's nobs. I find that when I do something to the best of my
ability everything in life it works better. Too bad Meade didn't do this
with their documentation. You might not have fried a fuse or potentially
worse.

Steve Brown

Darron Black wrote:
>
> Hi all. I've got a 8" LX200 at f10. Main use: attempts at CCD images with
> the 416XTE.
>
> I would love to thank all of you... I've been lurking for a while. I've
> read so many articles, and I've learned a great deal.
>
> Questions:
>
> 1) Focusing my CCD, I usually watch FWHM values in Maxim DL. What values
> should I be able to obtain on good nights? The best I've managed has been
> 2.5 pixels.
>
> 2) My backlash correction is maxxed at 99. It's enough to avoid delay
> switching directions, but the correction is so large the image jumps when
> it starts. I've read about the DEC bearing mods... would this be worth
> doing on an 8" scope? Is the small jump (half the diameter of the circle
> in the 9mm illuminated recticle) going to affect me much?
>
> I've done mods to the cheapest part of the setup... the wedge... replacing
> the plastic knobs on the azimuth adjuster with allen head bolts and drilling
> a hole through the end of the deluxe latitude adjuster screw and running a
> nice long metal crossbar through it for easy turning. Oh, nylon washers
> here and there too. Works great.
>
> Doing mods to the scope itself is a much scarier thing. :)
>
> 3) Anyone have any idea how to focus the 201 autoguider on the off-axis
> guider when using the 416XTE AND the color wheel? I couldn't extend the
> barrel enough to manage it. I have yet to successfully use the autoguider.
>
> A quick story:
>
> I spent 3 and a half hours tonight setting up my scope. 3 and a half hours.
> Why, you ask? Well, the night before I got impatient and rushed it... as
> a result the only CCD image I actually saved was a single dark frame. So...
> I decided THIS TIME I'd calibrate the scope to the absolute best of my
> ability. Which, at present, isn't so much. :) Still, I was determined.
> I wanted to near-perfectly polar align, re-collimate, PEC erase and retrain,
> and focus to the best FWHM values I had ever seen.
>
> You know what? I did it. Mars, which was basically featureless before
> collimation, had really great detail to it. I finally understood drift
> alignment and actually had it aligned out past 6 minutes before drift
> noticably set in. I had a really good feeling about my PEC session... and
> 2.5 pixels FWHM was about my best ever focusing job.
>
> Literally a minute or so from getting serious and taking my first image of
> the night... I decide to grab the serial cable and connect my laptop to the
> LX200 so I can easily see where my scope is pointing in Starry Night Pro.
> Not sure which cable, I check the 416 manual I had handy (recalling it was
> in there somewhere too), and following it's directions proceed to plug in
> the black phone cable and watch my ammeter peg, then go black.
>
> The power cord fuse is not blown. The spare power cord doesn't work either.
> The AC supply through an inverter doesn't work. No... no way! Defeated, I
> pack everything up and head inside. Dreading having to ship the scope to
> Meade for repair, I decide to take the panel off and just check if anything
> looks obvious. I grab my multimeter and a screwdriver and open it up.
> What's just about the first thing I see? A fuse. Blown. I notice it's the
> same fuse as the power cord fuse... so I take the fuse from the spare cord
> and try that. 4 red bars... IT'S ALIVE!
>
> You have no idea how scary that was. What really bugs me is how well the
> scope was set up, and what great images I just barely missed.
>
> Darron Black

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