good polar alignment without expensive equipment

[stash]

Proof in the pudding (even if its good old M42) https://goo.gl/photos/8v5xyNE2wUHexdLQ7  stack 18 iso 800 x 60 secs + 5 darks unguided and unmodified canon 100d centred with APT/Platesolve on AZEQ6/GT using Bresser 127/635 no filters. So very please with SharpCap 2.9 Polar align and my mods. 

[red dwalf]

Looks great

[Orion]

I'll add a bit morr to my post above,  very easy to use, download sharpcap 2.9, run it, select your guide camera, now with the mount in the home position I.e. pointing at Polaris, select tools, polar alignment and set exposure to 4 - 5 seconds so it can see a number of stars, and then follow the instructions at the bottom of the screen, after it has solved it will tell you to rotate the mount 90 degrees in RA then it will solve again and as you to adjust the alt azimuth and the rotation which is easy to do as it will show an arrow on th screen so you know your adjusting in the correct direction.

Rob. I'll have to try that on my Fullerscope equatorial sometime. I'd have to mount my AA 60mm mini guider scope on the reflector - temporarily - because I want it for use on my GT81 (or maybe attach a permanent thing to the reflector to receive the 60mm whenever I want to re check PA of Fullerscope - would some kind of dovetail base plate accept the AA 60mm guidescope? ).

A few years back whilst on Astronomyshed, Dion referred me to some PA software which could be used with a web cam on a scope (I think the main scope). I can't remember if that was sharpcap then, but I would guess not - I thought it was individual PA s/w. I do have the s/w archived. The PA s/w showed a circle and cross hairs, which appeared on the live screen and it was just a case of moving alt and az until polaris was in the position for the given time. True pole would then be in the centre and polaris should rotate around if the scope was rotated manually in RA.

I will seek out latest sharpcap.
The method you describe sounds like it makes assumptions that a certain mount is to be used - and my Fullerscope equatorial won't be included. Also, the calculations it makes, I will not be able to move the mount N or S with required precision without running its position that may be close. East West could be done with my mounts extra precise movement for that. But it still may be useful. I might not be able to go all thro the instruction but could get to a place where the job is still done. The PA s/w was basically a Golden Shot approach, up a bit down a bit, left a bit right a bit, clamp. (Whilst the RA and Dec axes were locked and at 90 deg to each other - how that latter part is done is highly dependent on the accuracy of the Dec pointer being exact. I think mine is 1.5 deg out - its just a metal pointer held by one screw).

Meanwhile. The GT81 arrived with the HEQ5 PRO. I also bought a SW Star Adventurer, which ive started with that first. The HEQ5 looks more involved for the time Ive got before Christmas. I got a Baader Sky Surfer V and a Rigel QF red dot. I have a power supply but not the power cable and dew controller, which I'm getting made. At some time I may want to know more detail on portable 13.8V power supplies if I go to dark site, but I saved a FB thread on some chat a while back. I didn't want a battery designed for high ampage such as for starting cars, in case it blew circuits in the HEQ5.

I'm not familiar with the use of Tapa Talk (using a mobile) but happened to see a notification and a subject by you on PA, which I was interested in. Also difficult to navigate to where the post originates without seeing unrelated posts peppered in between when I scroll through.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

[red dwalf]

glad your getting the kit ready Derek, just in time for the dark, cold nights, look forward to see some images.

[Bottletopburly]

On 11/13/2016 at 19:41, StuartJPP said:

I did a comparison of the PoleMaster software and SharpCap over on SGL...for the money SharpCap can't be beat

 

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/280702-comparing-polemaster-and-sharpcapphotopolaralign-mount-polar-alignment-routines/

 

 

Good info and a good read