More scope

I decided I needed a fairly fast (short focal length) high quality refractor for wide field and grab-and-go viewing. It's not always easy to drag out the big scope every good night.

After some researching I decided to get an Explore Scientific 80mm f/6 APO refractor. It's in the mail now.

Scope update

Last fall I tokk over the management of my brother Von's 10" LX-200. It was working too well up at his ranch in Utah so I brought it back with me to Colorado. Here's what I did to get it working:

Upgraded the AutoStar firmware to the latest version
Installed new Alt gears and clutch plate
Installed Bob's Collimation Knobs
Added a JMI Scope Buggy so I can wheel the machine outof the garage
Added a 2" high reflective diagonal, a Telrad and bought some new eyepieces
Added a counterweight to offset the extra weight of the new 2" diagonal
Re-collimated the secondary, retrained the drives

The go-to's are pretty much spot on - at least within the Telrad finder.

Haven't had a chance to have it out much during the winter but I've had it out a couple of times in the last week or so and it seems to be holding its own.