From: Perry Holcomb <hpholcomb@yahoo.com>

Date: February 13, 2008 7:04:33 AM MST

To: Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com

Subject: Re: [Astro_IIDC] Re: Focusing

This needs forwarding to the Macastronomer group on

Yahoo!!!!

Perry

--- Tim <tjp314@pacbell.net> wrote:

Hi folks!

I had over a month of bad weather, followed by some

business trips, so

I haven't had the covers off my scopes since before

the Holidays

(withdrawals are getting painful!), but I thought

I'd chime in with my

focuser experiences:

For my 9.25", which is mounted in the roof of my

house, once I get the

scope and camera on my subject, I close doors

beneath the scope (to

isolate it from internal heat) and run it from my

desk in the attic. 

I use s Robofocus for robotic control of the 9.25"

focuser. 

Previously, I've used their software on an old HP

laptop.  But

recently I downloaded the demo version of Darryl

Robertson's EquinoX

Image, which has robofocus control.  Works like a

charm in OSX, so I

may be one step closer to retiring that PC!  It'll

also operate SBIG

cameras, so if you have one of those, you can image

with it while

guiding with your firewire camera (or vice versa).

For manual focusing on my other scopes, I've found

this method to work

very well if you don't have a focuser with a

microfocus on it, or even

if you do but your mount shakes when you grab the

knob:

*If you're way out of focus, set the exposure to 1"

and bump the

brightness all the way up.  That usually reveals the

out of focus

stars and planets pretty well (something you can't

do with a webcam at

fraction of a second exposures).

*Get the focus in the ballpark manually, then clamp

one of those 6"

"quickclamps" (that's a brand name for them, there

are a number of

makers, though) to the focus knob.  Now, you can

fine focus by simply

pushing on the end of the clamp bar with your

finger, thus minimizing

shake.  I call this my "armstrong microfocuser"! 

;oD

Hope this helps.

-Tim.

--- In Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com, "gaffney.mark"

<markgaffney@...> wrote:

--- In Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com, Milton Aupperle

<milton@> wrote:

Hi Mark;

On 10-Feb-08, at 8:40 PM, gaffney.mark wrote:

--- In Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com, Milton

Aupperle <milton@> wrote:

My problem is that I`m not using a lap-top

near the telescope

when  

focusing and the

process can be quite a pain ( walking

backwards and forwards from  

scope to computer to

consult changes in focus). I was looking for

anything which would  

make it easier- short of

taking the computer outside on a table or

something. Even without  

computer control a

remote with long cable to a motor outside

might be the only  

solution. I gather the other

platform for the Lacey controller is called

CCDSoft. Mark.

That's a different problem then. What would be

cheap for manual

focus  

is a

Shoe String Astronomy USB Focus Motor Controller

(FCUSB)

http://www.store.shoestringastronomy.com/products_fc.htm

which is said to work with several focusers (JMI

Motofocus, Moonlite  

DC motorized focusers, Orion AccuFocus, Meade

1209, and Televue  

Focusmate)

and then use this software for manual focus

http://www.stark-labs.com./SSFocus.html

control. I'll lay bets you can hook multiple

cables together between  

the focuser and the USB device that will be long

enough for you to  

focus remotely.

HTH..

Milton J. Aupperle

President

ASC - Aupperle Services and Contracting

Mac Software (Drivers, Components and

Application) Specialist

#1005 - 815 14th Avenue. S.W.

Calgary Alberta T2R0N5

1-(403)-229-9456

milton@

www.outcastsoft.com

Thanks Milton, I`ll get around to all this when

I`m more solvent! I

have 2x 25 foot cables  

already for the GPUSB device and a connector-

It`ll just be a matter

of getting some more 

of the same description. Mark.

     ____________________________________________________________________________________

Never miss a thing.  Make Yahoo your home page. 

http://www.yahoo.com/r/hs