Anyone know of any good books or websites the will help me figure out my telescope?

Question

I recently bought a used Tasco Luminova reflector. I seem to be too incompetent to figure out how to use the equatorial mount. I also can't seem get anything to appear in the eyepiece, I've swept the sky randomly and can't seem to see anything at all, and before you say it I did remove the end cap.

Answer 1

"Nightwatch" by Terrance Dickinson is a good book to help you learn to use your telescope. You may also be able to find an online manual here: http://www.theusermanualsite.com/manuals/mfg/tasco/tasco_luminova_40114675_40114675.html

The basics of setting up the mount: You should set everything up once in daytime so you can see what you're doing. Position the counterweight on the shaft so that the telescope is balanced around the polar (lower) axis. Slide the telescope in its rings (with eyepiece and finder attached) to balance it around the other (declination) axis, and be sure to re-tighten the rings. Set the elevation of the polar axis to your latitude. Then turn the mount so the polar axis points at Polaris (true north). For normal use you don't have to be super precise.

Pick a distant terrestrial target and get it centered in your eyepiece. You'll find it easier to use the lowest power eyepiece (the one with the highest focal length marked on it - probably a 25mm) to start with. If you have a barlow lens, leave it in the box. Adjust the focus to make the object as sharp as possible. Now adjust the finder scope so it's centered on the same object as the telescope. Now you can center something in the finder and have it show up in the telescope.

Finding stuff in the night sky is a bit of an art and takes some practice. You start by learning to recognize major constellations so you can orient yourself. Nightwatch will help you find some targets. You can find simple star charts at skyandtelescope.com to get you started.

A few easy things this time of year are the Pleiades, the Double Cluster (hazy spot between Casseiopeia and Perseus), and Comet 17P/Holmes (the fuzzy star in Perseus). Later in the evening , you can find M42 in Orion's sword. If you have binoculars, you can use them to locate some objects of potential interest, and then find them with the telescope.

You may also need to collimate your reflector to get the most out of it. This is a simple process that seems mysterious until you get the hang of it. There are lots of collimation sites on the web; here's one: http://www.rfroyce.com/collimat.htm
If the telescope didn't come with a collimation cap you can make a simple collimation tool with a 35mm film cannister.

All of this will be easier to figure out if you can have someone at the telescope to help you. If there's an astronomy club in your area, seek them out. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/ can help you find the nearest one.

Good lick and clear skies.

Answer 2

The first thing you need is a set of Star Maps. Otherwise you won't know what to look for or where it is in the sky.
Become familiar with the constellations.
A terrific website/forum is www.iceinspace.com.au.
Lots of friendly people willing to talk you through any problems you may have with your scope.
Good luck with your scope and don't give up yet.