iOptron 120EC Mounts Guiding

[Jkulin]

Just a bit of a tip that my mate passed onto me.

I was using a Lodestar X2 as my guide camera in PHD2 with an OAG at 2007mm and was achieving around 0.35-0.6rms, occasionally it would drop a little bit lower but I knew that it could perform better.

I purchased from Altair a Starlight Ultrastar and although it really is a premium guide camera, when I first setup up with binning x1 the guiding was poor at around the 0.75rms, then I remember what my mate Peter Shah said to do and that was to Bin x2, bingo, gobsmacked and I'm now guiding at between 0.18-0.3rms on average.

So give it a go on your setup and see how it improves your guiding.

HTH

[MarkAR]

Do you mean the binning or getting an Ultrastar ? 

I forgot that I had tried binning when I first started, can't really remember if it was any better. Might give it another try with the GPCAM3 224C. Though I have been tempted by the Lodestar X2.

[Jkulin]

Posted by: @MarkAR

Do you mean the binning or getting an Ultrastar ? 

I forgot that I had tried binning when I first started, can't really remember if it was any better. Might give it another try with the GPCAM3 224C. Though I have been tempted by the Lodestar X2.

I never tried it with the lodestar, although Peter did say it worked wonders with that, I just used it with the ultrastar.

Might be worth you trying it Mark

 

[Jkulin]

@AstroOlly It is perfect with my imaging scale and I very much doubt that people will get results like this with x1 binning and an OAG.

With a FL of 2007 it is madness to not use an OAG.

I am however going to use the same guide setup with OAG with my Esprits.

using an OAG is just so much more efficient as well with zero flexure.

[geoflewis]

Posted by: @Jkulin

Just a bit of a tip that my mate passed onto me.

I was using a Lodestar X2 as my guide camera in PHD2 with an OAG at 2007mm and was achieving around 0.35-0.6rms, occasionally it would drop a little bit lower but I knew that it could perform better.

I purchased from Altair Starlight Ultrastar and although it really is a premium guide camera, when I first setup up with binning x1 the guiding was poor at around the 0.75rms, then I remember what my mate Peter Shah said to do and that was to Bin x2, bingo, gobsmacked and I'm not guiding at between 0.18-0.3rms on average.

So give it a go on your setup and see how it improves your guiding.

HTH

Hi John,

I agree with Peter. I have both the original Lodestar and the later X2 version. In the X2 Handbook, Starlight Xpress recommend x2 binning and I think it was the same for the original Lodestar. I have always x2 binned mine for guiding, whether I'm imaging with the C14 (at 2500mm FL), or the 4" APO (580mm FL). NB with both scopes I'm OAG with the QSI583wsg-5.

Cheers, Geof

[geoflewis]

Posted by: @AstroOlly

@geoflewis

Yes I think with an OAG it would be fine, my concern was whether it would work with a smaller guidescope in this manner....I would be interested to know.. ??

Stew

Sorry Stewart, I can’t answer that as I have only ever used them with the OAG. I was just confirming Peter Shah’s advice to John to bin the camera as that is the recommendation by SX in the camera handbook.

[Jkulin]

Posted by: @AstroOlly

@geoflewis

Yes I think with an OAG it would be fine, my concern was whether it would work with a smaller guidescope in this manner....I would be interested to know.. ??

Stew

I have had special adapters made up so that I can use my OAG with both of my Esprits, so have 55mm backfocus perfectly.

The main reason people don't use OAG's on Refractors is because of the backfocus, it just takes a bit of thinking of.

When I switch over, there is absolutely no reason that the OAG and x2 Binning shouldn't work, in fact it should be a massive improvements over a separate guide scope as no flexure and far more accurate guiding.