FIRSTSCOPE 60 EQ REFRACTORS MODELS #21067 FIRSTSCOPE 70 EQ REFRACTOR MODEL #21076 FIRSTSCOPE 80 EQ REFRACTORS MODELS #21086 INSTRUCTION MANUAL FIRSTSCOPE EQ REFRACTORS FIGURE 1 3 LIST OF PARTS: FIRSTSCOPE EQ REFRACTORS 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. Telescope Objective (inside) Diagonal Star Pointer Finderscope Star Pointer adjustment knob (Altitude) Star Pointer bracket Star Pointer adjustment knob (Azimuth) Eyepiece Tripod leg adjusting screw Focusing knob Rack and pinion focuser Telescope optical tube Tube mounting plate and bolts Declination cable holder Safety washer for counterweight Tripod head (part of mount) Polar axis knob Latitude scale Declination cable 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. Tripod tray bracket (Collapsible leg brace on some models) Tripod leg Finderscope bracket mounting screws Declination tightening knob Right ascension setting circle Right ascension tightening knob Declination setting circle Front lens cover Right ascension cable holder Horizontal adjustment knob Counterweight shaft Counterweight Right ascension cable Tripod accessory tray & hardware Equatorial mount Tripod leg mounting hardware Tripod leg tips Optical Tube with Mounting Rings for 70mm/80mm Telescopes 4 INTRODUCTION Congratulations on your purchase of a Celestron equatorial refractor telescope. This telescope is a precision scientific instrument that will allow you to enjoy viewing numerous objects in the night sky -- planets, nebulae, star clusters, galaxies and more. Before embarking upon an exploration of the sky, please take time to read this manual and familiarize yourself with both the parts and operation of your telescope. WARNING NEVER LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN WITH THE NAKED EYE OR WITH A TELESCOPE. NEVER POINT YOUR TELESCOPE AT THE SUN UNLESS YOU ARE USING THE PROPER SOLAR FILTER. PERMANENT AND IRREVERSIBLE EYE DAMAGE MAY RESULT. NEVER USE YOUR TELESCOPE TO PROJECT AN IMAGE OF THE SUN ONTO ANY SURFACE. INTERNAL HEAT BUILD UP CAN DAMAGE THE TELESCOPE AND/OR ANY ACCESSORIES THAT MAY BE ATTACHED TO IT. NEVER LEAVE YOUR TELESCOPE UNSUPERVISED, ESPECIALLY WHEN CHILDREN ARE PRESENT. THIS ALSO HOLDS TRUE FOR ADULTS WHO MAY NOT BE FAMILIAR WITH THE CORRECT OPERATING PROCEDURES FOR YOUR TELESCOPE. NEVER USE AN EYEPIECE SOLAR FILTER OR A HERSCHEL WEDGE. INTERNAL HEAT BUILD UP WITHIN THE TELESCOPE CAN CAUSE THESE DEVICES TO CRACK, BREAK OR DAMAGE YOUR TELESCOPE. ANY SOLAR FILTER USED SHOULD BE A FILTER FOR THE PRIMARY OR OBJECTIVE LENS, SUCH AS CELESTRON'S ASTROSOLAR FILTER. ALWAYS COVER THE FINDERSCOPE WHEN USING YOUR TELESCOPE WITH THE CORRECT SOLAR FILTER. ALTHOUGH SMALL IN APERTURE, THIS INSTRUMENT HAS ENOUGH LIGHT GATHERING POWER TO CAUSE PERMANENT AND IRREVERSIBLE EYE DAMAGE. THE IMAGE PROJECTED BY THE FINDERSCOPE IS HOT ENOUGH TO BURN SKIN OR CLOTHING. TELESCOPE ASSEMBLY The Firstscope comes packed in one box, with all the parts you need to assemble it. Unpack and lay out all of the telescope parts in a large, clear area where you'll have room to work. Use the parts list and the telescope diagram to confirm you have, and can identify each part. The parts you'll unpack include: ALL TELESCOPES INCLUDE · Telescope Optical Tube · German Equatorial Mount · Adjustable Tripod · Star Pointer Finderscope and Bracket · Counterweight and Shaft · Tripod Accessory Tray · Declination Cable · Right Ascension Cable · Star Diagonal · The Sky® CD-ROM · 20mm 1¼" eyepiece · 10mm 1¼" eyepiece 5 Setting Up the Tripod To set up the tripod, locate the German equatorial mount, the tripod legs, the tripod mounting hardware and the tripod accessory tray. Extend the center portion (35) of each of the three tripod legs down 6-8". Use the three tightening screws (8) to secure each of the extended legs by threading these screws through the holes in the brackets at the bottom of each leg. It is important that you extend the legs before the equatorial mount is attached, otherwise the inner legs may become difficult to slide down. Fine tuning of the tripod height can be done later, and the tightening screws can be adjusted to secure the telescope at the desired height NOTE: Some of the following steps may have been pre-assembled at the factory for certain models. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Orient the three tripod legs so the brackets that hold the accessory tray are on the inside (19). Slide the two top portions of each tripod leg around the sides of each flange on the tripod head (15) of the equatorial mount, so the flange is secured between them. Slide the screw through the tripod leg and flange, until the screw extends out the other side. Slide the washer and the nut over the screw and tighten. This can be left slightly loose, to allow for positioning the legs later, when attaching the accessory tray. Repeat this process for the remaining two legs. Now the tripod will stand by itself. 1. 2. Attaching the Accessory Tray: 1. 2. Set the tripod with the equatorial mount attached in the standing position by spreading the legs apart far enough for the tripod accessory tray to fit. You are now ready to install the tripod accessory tray. The tripod tray fits over the holes in the tripod leg brace. Insert the winged bolts through the holes in the bottom of the tripod leg brace and thread them into the holes in the accessory tray. Tighten all bolts to ensure proper stability to the mount. (For the Firstscope 60 model, the accessory tray will attach to the holes in each of the hinge brackets on the inside of each tripod leg). SETTING UP THE TELESCOPE Orienting the Telescope 1. 2. 3. 4. Begin by identifying and loosening knobs #16, 22, 24 and 28, using the diagram in Figure 1 to guide you. Next, loosen the Right Ascension and declination knobs #24 and #22 on the upper portion of the mount. Rotate the mount head so that it is in the same orientation as shown in Figure 1. Lock down the Right Ascension and declination knobs before attaching the optical tube. Attaching the Declination and Right Ascension Cables 1. 2. Locate the declination cable holder (13) and the declination cable, which is the shorter of the two cables provided. Insert the declination cable (18) into the cable holder such that the cable is about ¼" short of being fully engaged in the cable holder. Tighten the thumb screw on the end of the cable down completely. This method helps ensure there's no slippage when using the cable. Please note that the orientation of the declination cable can be adjusted to the position that suits you best. Locate the right ascension cable holder (27) and the right ascension cable (31) and assemble the cable to the holder in the same manner described for the declination cable. 3. 6 Attaching the Counterweight 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Thread the counterweight shaft (29) clockwise into the equatorial mount (33) as shown in Figure 1. Remove the safety screw (14) from the end of the counterweight shaft Slide the counterweight (30) over the counterweight shaft (29). Use the screw on the side of the counterweight to secure the counterweight in place. Reattach the counterweight shaft safety screw. Installing the Telescope Optical Tube on the Equatorial Mount (60mm Models) 1. 2. 3. Remove the two locking nuts and two washers from the telescope optical tube (12). Put the screws through the holes in the mounting plate of the equatorial mount. Tighten the locking nuts on the screws. Installing the Telescope Optical Tube on the Equatorial Mount (70mm & 80mm Models) The optical tube is held to the mount with two mounting rings. On the bottom of the mounting rings are square extrusions one on each ring. This portion of the ring sits on top of the mounting platform to hold the telescope in place. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Slightly loosen the screws that hold the mounting rings on the telescope in place. Slide the rings apart so that each is at the same distance as the holes in the mounting platform. Place the telescope tube on the mount so that the flat portion of the tube rings rest on the mounting platform. Align the holes on the square extrusions with the holes at the ends of the mounting platform. Starting with the ring closest to the objective lens end of the tube, insert the bolt through the hole in the mounting platform and thread it into the mounting ring. Repeat this process for the remaining mounting ring. Attaching the Star Pointer Finderscope To attach the Star Pointer Finderscope on the F60 and F70 EQ: 1. 2. Remove the nuts from the studs where the Star Pointer will mount. Mount the Star Pointer bracket by placing the bracket over the studs protruding from the tube and tightening it down with the supplied nuts. Orient the Star Pointer so that the glass window is facing towards the front of the tube. To attach the Star Pointer Finderscope on the F80 EQ: 1. 2. 3. Slide the Star Pointer bracket into the dovetail mounting platform on top of the focuser assembly. Orient the Star Pointer so that the glass window is facing towards the front of the tube. Secure the Star Pointer bracket by tightening the thumb screw on the mounting platform. 7 Installing Eyepieces Once your telescope has been fully assembled, you are ready to attach the accessories. The accessory adapter is the short black tube with the set screw that allows the attachment of visual accessories (i.e., the star diagonal, erect image diagonal, eyepieces, etc.). The accessory adapter comes attached to the focus tube and is removed only when attaching photographic accessories. The Star Diagonal The star diagonal diverts the light at a right angle from the light path of the telescope. For astronomical observing, this allows you to observe in positions that are more comfortable than if you were to look straight through. To attach the diagonal: 1. 2. 3. Loosen the thumbscrew on the accessory adapter until it no longer obstructs the inner diameter. Slide the chrome portion of the star diagonal into the accessory adapter of the focuser. Tighten the thumbscrew on the accessory adapter to hold the diagonal in place. If you wish to change the orientation to the diagonal, loosen the thumbscrew on the accessory adapter until the diagonal rotates freely. Move the diagonal to the desired position and tighten the thumbscrew. TELESCOPE OPERATION -- GETTING SET UP Setting Latitude Loosen the polar axis knob (16) with one hand, while holding the equatorial mount with the other hand. Turn the latitude adjustment knob located at the rear of the mount to adjust the angle of the mount. Look at the latitude scale (17) on the side of the mount, then set the mount at the latitude of your location. For example, Los Angeles, California is located at about 34º. If you don't know your latitude, it can be found on a road atlas of your area. Once the latitude is set, tighten the polar axis knob. This only has to be done once for any given latitude, and then readjusted if the telescope is used at a different latitude. Adjusting and Balancing Declination and Right Ascension To move the telescope in declination (north/south) there are two options. For large and quick movements, release the declination knob (22), move the telescope in the direction of the object you want to view, then tighten the knob when you're near the object. For very small movements and fine adjustments, use the declination cable (18). The declination cable has a range of about 30°. If you get to the end of this range but haven't yet reached the object 8 you're trying to view, you'll want to loosen the declination lock for greater movement. Manually move the telescope tube past the object you want to view, then use the slow motion control, in the opposite direction, to go back to the object. Tighten the knob and reverse the direction of the declination cable. Do not try to force movement when the declination cable has reached the end of its range. There are the same two options for moving the telescope in right ascension (east/west). For large and quick movements, release the right ascension knob (24), move the telescope toward the object you want to view, then tighten the knob when you're near the object. For very small movements and fine adjustments, use the right ascension cable (31). For quick horizontal movement, loosen the horizontal adjustment knob. In order for the telescope to move smoothly on both axes it must be properly balanced. To balance the right ascension axis, move the counterweight shaft so it is parallel with the ground. Slowly release the right ascension knob (24) and check to see if the optical tube moves. If the optical tube does move, then slide the counterweight up or down the counterweight shaft until the optical tube remains stationary in a position parallel to the ground. When you have achieved balance, tighten the counterweight lock nut. To balance the declination axis, follow the same procedure, using the declination knob (22) and the tube mounting rings. Aligning the Star Pointer Finderscope The S ...