Orion Observer 60 User manual

INSTRUCTION MANUAL
IN 194 Rev. B 02/09
Providing Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975
Customer Support (800)-676-1343
E-mail: [email protected]
Corporate Offices (831)-763-7000
89 Hangar Way, Watsonville, CA 95076
Orion®
Observer™60mm AZ
#9854 60mm Altazimuth Refracting Telescope

2

3
Table of Contents
1. Unpacking........................ 3
2. Parts List......................... 3
3. The Basic Components
of Your Telescope .................. 5
4. Assembly ........................ 9
5. Getting Started ................... 10
6. Using your Telescope-
Astronomical Viewing .............. 12
7. Specifications .................... 15
1. Unpacking
The entire telescope system will arrive in one box. Be careful
unpacking the box since some of the contents are small and
easy to overlook. We recommend keeping the original shipping
container. In the event you need to ship the telescope to anoth-
er location, or return it to Orion for warranty repair, having the
proper shipping container will help ensure that your telescope
will survive the journey intact.
Make sure all the parts in the parts list are present. Familiarize
yourself with their features and compare them to the callouts
on Figures 1, 2, and 3 when possible. If anything appears to be
missing or broken, immediately call Orion Customer Support
(1-800-676-1343) for assistance.
Welcome to the exciting world of amateur astronomy. Your new Observer 60 Altazimuth Refractor is a
quality optical instrument that will deliver countless hours of exciting stargazing, from magnified views of
the Moon, star clusters and nebulas to glimpses of Jupiter’s moons and Saturn’s rings. The Observer 60
includes everything you need to go from box to backyard in less than half an hour.
These instructions will help you set up, use and care for your new telescope.
2. Parts List
Qty. Description
1 Optical tube assembly (1)
1 “Yoke” altazimuth mount (5)
1 Altitude micro-motion control rod and thumbwheel (13)
3 Tripod legs (6) with attached accessory tray bracket (22)
1 Accessory tray (7)
1 EZ Finder II reflex sight (4)
3 Tripod attachment screws (21) with wingnuts and
washers
3 Accessory tray attachment wing screws
3 Leg lock knobs (23)
2 “Yoke” knobs (18)
1 25mm Kellner eyepiece (3)
1 10mm Kellner eyepiece
1 Dust cover
Warning: Never look directly at the Sun through
your telescope or its finder scope—even for an
instant—without a professionally made solar
filter that completely covers the front of the
instrument, or permanent eye damage could
result. Young children should use this telescope
only with adult supervision.
®

4
Figure 1. Observer 60 Components
2
3
4
5
6
7
1
Observer™60 Refractor

1Optical tube
This is the main optical component of the telescope. The
glass lens at the front of the tube gathers incoming light
and focuses it by bending (or refracting) the light rays.
The tube assembly has several parts built into it, which
are shown and discussed in detail in the next section.
290° Mirror star diagonal
The diagonal contains a mirror that reflects the light gath-
ered through the optical tube to the eyepiece. The
diagonal is angled to allow you to view objects that are
high in the sky from a comfortable position.
325mm Kellner eyepiece
The eyepiece is the part of the telescope that you actu-
ally look through to see things. The focal length of the
eyepiece and the telescope determines the magnifying
power of the telescope. Magnification is discussed in
more detail in the Using Your Telescope section.
4EZ Finder IITM reflex sight
This is a special “finder” that helps you aim the telescope
and locate objects in the sky for close-up viewing with
your telescope. The EZ Finder II generates a red LED
“dot” that shows where your telescope is aimed. The
use of the EZ Finder II is discussed in the Getting
Started section.
5“Yoke” altazimuth mount
The mount couples the telescope to the tripod and allows
you to move the optical tube easily both up-and-down
and right-and-left.
6Tripod legs
These aluminum tripod legs support the telescope and
keep it steady. They can extend from 27" to 50" long.
7Accessory tray
This tray is a convenient place for holding extra eyepieces
and other small pieces of equipment.
5
®
3. The Basic Components of Your Telescope
Figure 1 shows the fully assembled Observer 60 . All the major components of the telescope are described and numbered to help
you identify each part and understand its use. Refer back to this figure when assembling the telescope.

6
Figure 2a. Optical tube components
8
9
10
11
12 13
14 15
16
17
18
Observer 60 Telescope Tube
Figure 2b. Observer 60 focuser detail
3
2
14
16
17
15

7
8Objective lens:
This is the main optical component of the telescope. It is
an achromatic, fully coated 60mm lens.
9Glare/Dew shield:
This is a simple “hood” for the objective lens that prevents
dew from forming and stray light from hitting the lens.
10 Altitude castings:
These castings are built into the optical tube. The “yoke”
knobs thread into these castings through the holes in
the top of the “yoke” altazimuth mount to secure the two
parts together.
11 EZ Finder II mounting bracket:
The EZ Finder II is secured to this bracket located on the
optical tube.
12 Micro-motion rod attachment post:
This post is where the micro-motion rod will be attached to
the optical tube.
13 Altitude micro-motion control rod and thumb-
wheel:
This allows fine adjustment of the telescope in the
altitude (up-down) direction. For more details, see the
Getting Started section.
14 Focuser drawtube:
This is where the 90° mirror star diagonal, or other optional
diagonal, is inserted. The drawtube is adjusted by the
turning the focus wheel, which adjusts a rack-and-pin-
ion system to bring objects into focus.
15 Focus wheels:
These wheels, when turned, move the focuser drawtube
in or out. Use it to bring things into focus when you are
looking in the eyepiece.
16 Diagonal holder thumbscrews:
These two thumbscrews secure the 90° mirror star diag-
onal into the focuser drawtube. These should only be
loosened to remove or rotate the star diagonal.
17 Eyepiece holder thumbscrew:
This thumbscrew holds the eyepiece in position. Tighten
it after inserting an eyepiece; loosen it before removing
or changing eyepieces.
18 “Yoke” knobs:
These knobs secure the optical tube to the “yoke” alt-
azimuth mount. They should always be securely
tightened.
Details of the Optical Tube and Components
Figure 2a shows the details of the optical tube and its various parts. The optical tube is shown attached to the mount for clarity.
Figure 2b is a close-up of the focuser with even more detail.
®

8
19 Altitude lock knob:
This locks the telescope in the altitude (up/down) direc-
tion. Keep this knob tightened unless you are moving
the telescope a significant distance in the altitude direc-
tion. For smaller altitude adjustments, use the altitude
micro-motion control rod and thumbwheel.
20 Azimuth lock knob:
This locks the telescope in the azimuth (left/right) direction.
Keep this knob tightened unless you are adjusting the
telescope in the azimuth direction.
21 Tripod leg attachment screws:
These screws attach the tripod legs to the “yoke” altazimuth
mount. Each screw has a wingnut and two washers.
22 Accessory tray bracket:
This bracket holds the accessory tray.
23 Leg lock knobs:
These knobs lock the tripod legs into place. Loosen them
to lengthen or shorten the tripod legs. Tighten them
once you have the legs at the desired length. Be cer-
tain that all three tripod legs are equally extended to
assure your telescope is level.
These items are included with your telescope, but are not
shown in Figures 1, 2 or 3.
10mm Kellner eyepiece: This is a second, high-pow-
ered eyepiece, providing 70x magnification. For more details
see the Using Your Telescope section.
Dust cover: Use this to cover the objective lens when the
telescope is not in use. It will prevent dust from collecting on
the objective lens.
Figure 3a. Tripod and mount detail
19
5
21
22
6
23
7
18
20
Observer 60 Tripod and Mount
Details of the Tripod and Mount
Figure 3a shows a close up of the telescope’s mount and tripod. Important features are pointed out for greater clarity and detail.

9
4. Assembly
Assembling the telescope for the first time should take about
30 minutes. The only tools you will need are a Phillips head
screwdriver and a flat head screwdriver. As a general note,
tighten all screws securely to eliminate flexing and wobbling,
but be careful not to over-tighten and thereby strip the threads.
Refer to Figures 1 through 4 during the assembly process.
During assembly (and any other time, for that matter), do
not touch the surfaces of the telescope objective lens or the
lenses of the finder scope and eyepiece with your fingers.
These optical surfaces have delicate coatings that can eas-
ily be damaged if touched. Never remove any lens assembly
from its housing for any reason, or the product warranty will
be voided.
Begin set-up of the telescope by assembling the tripod and
mount first:
1. Lay the “Yoke” altazimuth mount (5) on its side. Attach the
tripod legs (6), one at a time, to the base of the mount by
sliding a tripod leg attachment screw (21) through the top
of a leg and through the holes in the base of the mount.
The washers should be on the outside of the tripod legs.
Secure the wing nuts finger-tight. Figure 3b shows a clo-
seup detail of the screws attaching the tripod legs to the
altazimuth mount.
2. Install and tighten the leg lock knobs (23) on the bottom
braces of the tripod legs (6). For now, keep the legs at their
shortest (fully retracted) length; you can extend them to a
more desirable length later, once the tripod is completely
assembled.
3. Stand the tripod and mount upright and spread the tripod
legs apart as far as they will go, until the accessory tray
bracket (22) is taut. Connect the accessory tray (7) to the
accessory tray bracket (22) with the three wing screws
already installed in the tray. Push the wing screws up
through the holes in the accessory tray bracket and thread
them into the holes in the accessory tray.
4. Tighten the tripod leg attachment screws (21) at the tops
of the tripod legs so the legs are securely fastened to the
mount. Use the Phillips head screwdriver and/or your fin-
gers to do this.
5. Attach the altitude micro-motion rod and thumbwheel (13)
to the optical tube by first removing the flat-head screw
from the micro-motion rod attachment post (12) on the side
of the optical tube. Slide the screw through the hole at the
end of the micro-motion rod and rethread the screw into
the attachment post. Make sure the screw is tightened.
The tripod is now completely assembled and the “yoke” altazi-
muth mount is ready for the installation of the optical tube
6. To install the optical tube (1) in the “yoke” altazimuth mount
(5), first slide the altitude micro-motion control rod into its
receptacle, at the same location as the altitude lock knob
(19) on the side of the yoke. (Figure 4). Then, with the rod
in place in the receptacle, gently drop the optical tube into
the yoke so that the holes on the altitude castings (10) on
the side of the optical tube line up with the holes on the top
of the “yoke” altazimuth mount. Slide the yoke knobs (18)
through the holes on top of the mount and thread them
into the altitude castings on the optical tube. Tighten the
altitude lock knob (19) securely.
7. Attach the EZ Finder II reflex sight (4) to the EZ Finder II
mounting bracket (11). Loosen the two securing screws on
the EZ Finder II (Figure 6) and slide it onto the mounting
bracket. Tighten the two securing screws. You will align the
EZ Finder II later, in the Getting Started section.
8. Insert the chrome barrel of the 90° mirror star diagonal
(2) into the focuser drawtube (14). Secure the mirror star
diagonal with the diagonal holder thumbscrews (16).
9. Insert the chrome barrel of the 25mm Kellner eyepiece (3)
into the 90° mirror star diagonal. Secure the eyepiece in
the diagonal with the eyepiece holder thumbscrew (17).
The eyepiece and diagonal properly installed should look
like Figure 2b.
Your telescope is now fully assembled.
Figure 4. Installing the optical tube in the “yoke” altazimuth mount
Figure 3b. Observer 60 Tripod leg and mount attachment detail
20 21
21
21 6
6

10
Altitude and Azimuth (Aiming the Telescope)
The Observer 60 altazimuth mount permits motion along two
axes: altitude (up/down) and azimuth (left/right). See Figure 5.
Moving the telescope up/down and right/left is the “natural” way
people aim objects and this makes pointing the telescope intui-
tive and easy.
To move the telescope in the azimuth direction, loosen the azi-
muth lock knob, take hold of the telescope by the “yoke”, and
gently rotate the telescope to the desired position. Then re-tight-
en the azimuth lock knob. To move the telescope in the altitude
direction, loosen the altitude lock knob, take hold of the end of
the optical tube and move the tube up or down to the desired
position. Then re-tighten the altitude lock knob.
Note about the Altitude Micro-Motion Rod and Thumbwheel
Since making fine adjustments to the altitude of the telescope
can be tricky, the Observer 60 comes with an altitude micro-
motion rod and thumbwheel. By turning the thumbwheel, the
telescope will move very slightly either up or down, depending
on which direction you turn the thumbwheel. Since there is a
limit to how far the thumbwheel can turn in either direction, if you
need to make any large altitude movements to the telescope it is
best to simply loosen the altitude lock knob and move the scope
by hand.
Focusing the Telescope
With the 25mm Kellner eyepiece inserted into the 90° mirror star
diagonal and secured with the thumbscrews, aim the optical tube
so the front (open) end is pointing in the general direction of an
object at least 1/4-mile away. Now, with your fingers, slowly rotate
one of the focus wheels until the object comes into sharp focus.
Go a little bit beyond sharp focus until the image starts to blur
again, then reverse the rotation of the knob, just to make sure
you’ve hit the exact focus point.
Figure 5 The Observer 60 has two axes of motion: altitude and
azimuth.
Azimuth
Altitude
Do You Wear Eyeglasses?
If you wear eyeglasses, you may be able to keep them on
while you observe. In order to do this, your eyepiece must
have enough “eye relief” to allow you to see the entire field
of view with glasses on. You can try looking through the
eyepiece first with your glasses on and then with them
off, to see if the glasses restrict the view to only a portion
of the full field. If the glasses do restrict the field of view,
you may be able to observe with your glasses off by just
refocusing the telescope to your unaided vision.
If your eyes are astigmatic, images will probably appear
best with glasses on. This is because a telescope’s
focuser can accommodate for nearsightedness or far-
sightedness, but not astigmatism. If you have to wear your
glasses while observing and cannot see the entire field of
view, you may want to purchase additional eyepieces that
have longer eye relief.
Short
eye relief
restricts
the field
of view for
eyeglass
wearers.
Long eye
relief allows
full field
of view to
be seen with
or without
eyeglasses.
5. Getting Started
Now that your Observer 60 is assembled, you’re ready to begin observing. This section will instruct you on using your telescope
effectively.