AmScope EQUATORIAL Series User manual

TELESCOPE
INSTRUCTION
MANUAL
EQUATORIAL SERIES

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Our Ofce Hours are Monday to Friday, from 5:00am to 6:00pm Pacic Time.
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1. INTRODUCTION
United Scope’s Equatorial (EQ) telescope line has everything you need
to advance your night sky adventure. It is a perfect telescope line for us-
ers from a beginner to the intermediate user and with the included items
you can view some of the most well-known celestial objects with lots of joy.
The EQ series comes with a variety of apertures including 60, 70, 80 refractors,
114, 127, 130 reflectors, and the size of the objective lens determines how
much detail one can observe with the telescope. Some apertures also come
in different focal length which determines the magnification of the telescope.
This telescope is available with the following OTAs (Optical Tube Assembly)
and mount styles:
SKU Aperture (mm) Focal Length (mm)
TLS-MEQ-60800 60 800
TLS-MEQ-70900 70 900
TLS-MEQ-80900 80 900
TLS-PEQ-114900 114 900
TLS-PEQ-1271000 127 1000
TLS-PEQ-130650 130 650
Each telescope in this series features a solid German Equatorial mount and
a sturdy stainless steel tripod with fully adjustable legs to make it perfectly
viewable for either youngsters or adults.
The EQ mount also equips with a slow-motion control mechanism for both
axes to make it possible to make fine adjustments when tracking celestial
objects as they move across the sky. They are conveniently located close to
the viewer making it easy to view and adjust the telescope at the same time.
With the included eyepieces, you can view a wide range of objects.
With the included Barlow lens, the observer can see great details such as
the crater of the moon, Saturn’s ring, and even deep-sky objects such as the
Orion Nebula Galaxy.
Each telescope also comes with a high-performance red dot viewfinder to
help you locate celestial objects you want to observe with the most joy.
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2. SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS
• The safest way to look at the sun through your telescope is NOT to! Not
only could you damage your eye(s), but you can also damage the lenses
in the telescope. Never look at the sun through this telescope without a
proper solar filter. Looking at or even near the sun will cause instant and
irreversible damage to your eye(s).
SOLAR WARNING
Never look at the sun
with your telescope
without appropriate
lters in place.
Permanent and
irreversible damage
to your eyes and your
equipment will occur.
• Never let the telescope unattended, pointing at or near the sun.
• Never leave the telescope unsupervised, either when children are present
or adults who may not be familiar with the correct operating procedures of
the telescope.
• Do not look through the telescope or its viewfinder as it is moving.
• This device may be used by children under 18 and by people with reduced
physical, sensory, or mental skills or a lack of experience or knowledge,
provided that they are supervised or have been instructed on how to use
the device safely, and are fully aware of the consequent risks of use.
• Do not disassemble! Disassembly of the telescope could result in personal
injury and telescope malfunction.
• Always place the telescope on a completely flat surface. Unstable
placement of the telescope may cause it to fall, and if handled without
caution, it may easily injure yourself and others.
• Never subject the device, especially the lenses, to direct sunlight. Lightray
concentration can cause fires and/or burns.
• Never use your telescope under rainy conditions: this telescope is not
designed to be water-proof. If your telescope accidentally gets caught in
rain, please wipe down the water with a soft dry clean cloth, but if the lens
gets soaked by water, please contact us at [email protected] right away
for details on a service solution.
3. BEFORE INITIAL USE
Before you use the telescope for the first time, you must:
• Read this instruction manual carefully before using the telescope and
keep it for future reference.
• Unpack the items supplied.
ITEM DESCRIPTION QTY
OTA Optical Tube Assembly 1
Mount Equatorial Mount 1
Eyepiece
1.25 MA 26mm 1
1.25 MA 9mm 1
1.25 MA 6.3mm 1
Barlow Lens 2x Barlow Lens 1
View Finder Red Dot Viewfinder 1
Tripod Stainless Steel Full Height Tripod 1
Diagonal Erect Image Diagonal 1
Other Accessories
Accessory Tray 1
Slow Motion Control Cables 2
Generic Manual 1
3.1 Packing List
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3.2 Unpacking
Ensure that the device is complete with all the accessories and that it
doesn’t present abnormalities, failures, or damage.
If the device is missing parts (see chapter 3.1 “The packing list”), or
shows clear aesthetic damages due to collisions or shipping damage,
please contact us at [email protected]
Unpack carefully as some parts are small.
Do not leave packaging material lying around carelessly. It may become
dangerous playing material for children. Do not dispose of the packing
materials until the telescope is installed and working.
WARNING: To avoid the danger of suffocation, keep
plastic bags away from babies and children!
WARNING: Contains small parts, not for children under
3 years or any individuals who tend to place inedible
objects in their mouths.
WARNING: The red dot viewfinder contains a button or
coin cell battery. A swallowed button or coin cell battery
can cause internal chemical burns in as little as two hours
and lead to death. Dispose of used batteries immediately.
Keep new and used batteries away from children. If you
think batteries might have been swallowed or placed
inside any part of the body, seek immediate medical
attention.
Ensure all packaging materials and any promotional labels or stickers are
removed from the machine and accessories before the first use.
4. INITIAL USE
Put your telescope together for the first time when you are indoors and have
lots of light. Just because a telescope is normally used during evening hours
doesn’t mean you have to set it up in the dark! Identify the various parts and
familiarize yourself with the correct assembly procedure before attempting it
outdoors (see chapter 6 “Setting up the telescope”).
Choose a large, open area to work to allow room for all parts to be unpackaged.
Once you are finished with assembly, stay indoors and take some time to
learn a bit more about its features before you take your telescope outside for
the first time.
RESPECT PRIVACY: Respect other’s privacy. Do not use the telescope
to look into other people‘s homes, or otherwise infringe on their privacy.
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5. TELESCOPE PARTS
Inset A:
Accessory Tray
Inset C:
Tripod Leg
REFLECTOR TELESCOPE
27
29
28
32
33
01
12
30
31
01. Tripod legs
02. Counterweight
safety knob
03. Cainterweight shaft
04. Countenweight(s)
05. Counterweight
lock knobs
06. Right Ascension
control cable
07. Declination
setting circle
08. OTA saddle plate
lock knob(s)
09. Vixen dovetail
10. Front dust cover
(not visible in
the image)
01
25
24
21
18
20
17
26
15
12
11
08
10
06
09
03
04
02
05
07
14
13
16
19
23
22
32. Tripod leg lock knob
(see Inset C)
33. Sliding leg extension
(see Inset C)
34. Latitude adjustment
lock (not visible in
the image)
35. Latitude indicator
(not visible in
the image)
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Inset A:
Accessory Tray
Inset C:
Tripod Leg
24
26
25
29
30
15
27
28
01
01
REFRACTOR TELESCOPE
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Our Ofce Hours are Monday to Friday, from 5:00am to 6:00pm Pacic Time.
www.amscope.com
© 2021 AmScope. All Rights Reserved.
01. Tripod legs
02. Counterweight
safety knob
03. Counterweight(s)
04. Counterweight shaft
05. Counterweight lock
knobs
06. Declination setting
circle
07. Light shield
08. Front dust cover
(not visible in
the image)
09. Main optical tube
assembly
10. Vixen Dovetail
29. Tripod leg lock knob
(see Inset C)
30. Sliding leg extension
(see Inset C)
22
23
18
14
13
15
17
04
03
02
01
05
06
16
07
20
21
19
09
08
12
11
10
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6. SETTING PARTS
6.1 Tripod
• Set up telescope where there is a clear view of the sky and the ground
is stable.
• Fully spread the tripod legs apart and set the height of tripod by
loosening the tripod leg lock knobs so it is at the appropriate height.
• Level the top of the tripod by adjusting the height of the three tripod
legs
• Attach the accessory tray to the tripod by placing the tray under
the leg spreader bars, then align the three built-in channels with the
spreader bars and tighten the hand knob to secure it in place
6.2 Mount
• Place the mount onto the tripod so that the base of the mount is on
top of the tripod.
a) Best practice: place the mount so that the counterweight shaft
will be on top of one of the three tripod legs. By doing so, the
telescope will be more stable and not tip over.
• Secure the mount to the tripod by tightening the large Azimuth lock
knob to a firm feel.
• Thread in the latitude adjustment screw to the back of the mount.
• Thread the counterweight shaft into the declination axis till it stops,
and remove the safety knob on the bottom of the shaft.
• Slide the counterweight up onto the shaft and secure the
counterweight by tightening the counterweight lock knob.
• Re-install the safety knob back onto the counterweight shaft.
• Install the slow-motion control cables and make sure that the slow-
motion cable thumb screws are placed against the flat spot on the
shaft and tighten the thumbscrew on each cable to a firm feel.
6.3 Ocular Tube Assembly
• Place the optical tube onto the saddle plate and tighten the OTA lock
knobs to a firm feel.
6.4 Viewnder Alignment
• Point the telescope at a land object that is at a far distance during the
daytime, such as a distanced stop sign.
• It is best practice to use a higher power eyepiece to align the
telescope.
• Look through the eyepiece and center the object in the eyepiece.
• Focus the telescope by turning the focus knob till a clear and sharp
image appears.
• Loosen one of the view finder’s alignment screws and tighten another
at a time till the crosshair is overlapping the same object.
• To further align the optical tube and viewfinder, repeat this procedure
at night by pointing at a celestial object such as the moon.
• For a reflector, slide in the eyepiece into the eyepiece holder and
tighten the eyepiece lock knob to a firm feel.
a) Due to the design of the OTAs, the location of the eyepiece
on a refractor will be closer to the ground than the location of
the eyepiece on a reflector, adjust the height of the telescope
accordingly.
• For a refractor, first install the diagonal into the optical tube, and
secure the diagonal by tightening the diagonal lock knob.
• Slide an eyepiece into the diagonal and secure the eyepiece by
tightening the diagonal lock knob.
• Install the view finder and secure it by tightening the view finder lock
knob to a firm feel.
6.5 Balancing
• Balancing Right Ascension Axis
a) Loosening the right ascension knob and rotate the telescope
until the counterweight shaft is pointing horizontally.
b) Slide the counterweight after loosening the counterweight
lock knob till the telescope is balanced on the right ascension axis.
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6.7 How to use a telescope
• To track a celestial object in the sky, simply loosen the right ascension
and declination lock knobs and move the telescope manually so it is
pointing at the object roughly, then re-lock the lock knobs.
• Use the two slow-motion control cables to center the object.
• Keep in mind that the telescope does not need to be re-aligned if it
is not moved to another observing site.
7. THE RED DOT VIEWFINDER
An eyepiece has a narrow field of view. The red dot viewfinder has a wider field
of view, which makes it easier to locate objects. Once the red dot viewfinder
is aligned to the optical tube, the red dot can be used to locate and place
objects more easily in the eyepiece of the telescope.
The viewfinder is powered by a 3V Lithium Coin battery (type CR2032) which
is included. Before using the viewfinder for the first time, remember to remove
the plastic insulator that is blocking the battery from connecting.
When it is time to replace the battery, push the left side of the viewfinder
housing. The battery compartment will slide out on the right side of the
device. Take out the battery and slide a new battery in place with the positive
side up. Then push the battery compartment back into the viewfinder and
power on the device.
To preserve battery life, don’t forget to turn off the viewfinder after use.
8. HANDLING OR TRANSPORTING YOUR TELESCOPE
Handling the telescope around or transporting it to the observing site requires
careful handling.
The telescope can be transported in 2 main parts: The telescope tube and
the mount.
We suggest removing the accessories from the optical tube. Cover the
telescope tube and the eyepiece with their caps. It is also convenient to
remove the fine-adjustment control cables and counterweights.
• Balancing the Declination axis.
a) Move the optical tube back and forth till the telescope is
balanced in the declination axis.
• Note that, without a proper balance, an EQ telescope may experience
unsmooth motion which leads to jerky view while viewing.
6.6 Polar Alignment
• To align an EQ telescope with the celestial pole, loosen the azimuth
lock knob and rotate the entire telescope mount till the telescope is
pointing at true north.
• Reset the position of the OTA by loosening the right ascension and
declination lock knobs and rotating the OTA so that the telescope
is pointing forward and up and the counterweight shaft is pointing
toward the ground.
• Make sure the declination circle is at 90 degrees.
• Loosen the latitude adjustment knob and adjust the latitude to the
latitude of the observing sites
a) For example, Los Angeles’s latitude is roughly 34 degrees: The
latitude of the mount should be set to 34 degrees.
• The telescope should be pointing at Polaris at this point.
• Center Polaris in the eyepiece by only using the latitude adjustment
knob.
• Once complete, tighten the latitude adjustment and the azimuth lock
knob to complete the setup.
Battery
Compartment
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The accessory tray should be removed to be able to transport with the 3
tripod legs closed.
The telescope can be transported in a vehicle without a problem. Padded
insulation can prevent scratches on the tube but it is not necessary. The
mirrors may go out of collimation after a bumpy ride but collimation would be
required after transportation anyway, with or without padding.
9. CLEANING YOUR TELESCOPE
While your telescope requires little maintenance, there are a few things to
remember that will ensure your telescope performs at its best.
Use a slightly damp soft cloth to clean the outside of the tube and tripod.
Water should be enough to do the job. Please do not use any organic solvent
on your telescope, for example, alcohol, benzene, and other hazardous
chemicals as this might ruin it. Do not let any liquid enter the telescope.
Occasionally, dust and/or moisture may build up on the objective lens of your
telescope. Special care should be taken when cleaning the instrument so as
not to damage the optics.
If dust has built upon the lens, remove it with a brush (made of camel’s hair) or
with a can of pressurized air. Spray at an angle to the lens for approximately
two to four seconds. Next, use an optical cleaning solution and white tissue
paper to remove any remaining debris. Apply the solution to the tissue and
apply the tissue paper to the lens. Low-pressure strokes should go from the
center of the corrector to the outer portion. Do NOT rub in circles!
10. STORING THE TELESCOPE
• Store the telescope in a place not exposed to sunlight, humidity, and
dust-free (indoors or in a dry garage).
• Do not store the device in extremely high or extremely low temperatures.
• If not properly stored, it may develop mildew growth and other preventable
build-ups.
• Be practically careful after a night observation that the lens has no dew on
it before storing the telescope away.
• Do not leave the telescope outside when not in use.
• When not in use, keep the dust cover on as well as the dust cap for the
eyepiece opening.
• Accessories should be stored separately in a box, with all their caps on.
11. DISPOSAL - RECYCLING
11.1 Disposal of the telescope
The telescope is designed and manufactured with high-
quality materials and components, which can be recycled
and reused.
Dispose of the telescope with your normal household
waste is not allowed. Dispose must be done through
an approved waste disposal firm or by your local waste
facility. When discarding the product, comply with the
rules and regulations that apply in your country. If in
doubt, consult your local waste disposal facility.
Correct disposal of old devices, packaging materials, and batteries helps
prevent negative consequences for the environment and human health.
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11.2 Disposal of the viewnder
The viewfinder is classed as Electrical or Electronic
equipment so please ensure that at the end of the life of
this product it is disposed of correctly following the local
authority requirements. It must not be disposed of with
household waste.
Fulfill your statutory obligations and contribute to the
protection of the environment.
11.3 Disposal of the battery
The red dot viewfinder contains a 3V Lithium coin battery
which cannot be disposed of with normal household
waste. It should be returned to the manufacturer for
disposal or recycled elsewhere following your local
regulations.
Remove the Lithium battery from the red dot viewfinder
before disposal. Protect the used lithium battery against
potential short circuits by covering the poles with
adhesive tape.
11.4 Disposal of the packaging material
Ensure that plastic bags, packaging, etc. are properly disposed of. Do
not just dispose of these materials with your normal household waste,
but make sure they are collected for recycling. Contact your local waste-
disposal facility or environmental authority for information on the proper
disposal.
12. TIP’S
Picking a place to observe
Where you place your telescope when observing is dependent upon your
unique situation, but if you have a choice, follow these suggestions:
• Find a level or near level spot.
• Choose grass or dirt whenever possible.
• Stay away from decks or other elevated surfaces. They vibrate when
you walk on them and will shake your telescope and therefore, the
image.
• Never look across or over objects that are producing heatwaves. This
includes asphalt parking lots on hot summer days or building rooftops.
It will take a while before the surface stops radiating heat, which
distorts the air and therefore, the image.
• Try to stay away from sources of light. Turn off your porch lights, and
if you are friendly with your neighbors, ask them to turn theirs off as
well.
• Pick a location with the widest view of the sky you can find. In wooded
areas and those with lots of tall buildings, this can be a challenge.
General Observing
When working with a telescope, there are a few things to remember to ensure
you get the best possible image.
• Never look through window glass. Glass found in household windows
is optically imperfect, and as a result, may vary in thickness from one
part of a window to the next. This inconsistency can and will affect
the ability to focus your telescope. In most cases, you will not be able
to achieve a truly sharp image, while in some cases you may see a
double image. An open window can be even worse, because warmer
indoor air will escape out the window, causing turbulence which also
affects images. Astronomy is an outdoor activity.
• If you wear corrective lenses (specifically glasses), you may want to
remove them when observing with an eyepiece attached to the
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