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INSTRUCTION MANUAL
16" Starfinder
Reflecting Telescope
Meade Instruments Corporation
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WARNING! Never use the Meade 16" Starfinder Telescope to look at the Sun! Observing the Sun, even for the shortest fraction of a second, will cause instant and irreversible damage to your eye as well as physical damage to the telescope itself. When observing with the telescope during the daytime, do not point the telescope even close to the Sun. 1 2 24 3 23 4 21 22 5 6 20 7 8 19 18 9 14 17 15 10 13 11 16 12
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- 3 - Captions for Fig. 1 Contents 1. Viewfinder 16" Starfinder Equatorial Telescope 2. Spider vane/diagonal Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 3. Focuser Parts Listing and Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 4. Main optical tube Tripod . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 5. Polar axis Attaching the Equatorial Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 6. Declination ho
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- 4 - Fig. 1, and remove the counterweight safety washer (11), 16" STARFINDER REFLECTING TELESCOPE: Fig. 1. Slide the two counterweights (9), Fig 1, onto the INTRODUCTION declination shaft (10), Fig 1, and lock them in place about The 16" Starfinder Equatorial telescope will open up the skies one quarter of the way up the shaft. It does not matter which for a breathtaking array of visual observations. Galaxies, counterweight goes on first if the two counterweights are nebulae, star clusters —
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- 5 - Fig. 1; this should prevent rotation of the telescope about the declination axis. 2 3 1 BALANCING THE TELESCOPE The telescope must be balanced around both axes in order for the mount to track accurately, keeping an object within the 4 telescope's field of view. Most tracking errors are the result of improper balancing. With an improperly balanced telescope objects may become difficult to find or, once found, may be easily lost. To balance the telescope: 1. Loosen the declination lock kn
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- 6 - 12vDC Outlet The 12vDC Outlet accepts a #607 Power Cord (See OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES, page 12) for powering the 16" Starfinder Equatorial Telescope from a 12vDC automobile cigarette lighter plug. While the recommended supply voltage is 12vDC, the telescope will operate in a range of 6-18vDC. COLLIMATION OF THE OPTICAL SYSTEM After the secondary mirror assembly has been installed, it will be necessary to collimate, or align the secondary mirror with the primary mirror. 1. Correct Collimation
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- 7 - 1. The viewfinder bracket (4), Fig. 9, includes six alignment 4. Primary Mirror Adjustments screws. Turn the three rear-most alignment screws (1), Fig. If the secondary mirror and the reflection of the primary mirror 9, so that the viewfinder tube is roughly centered within the (1), Fig. 8, appear centered within the drawtube (2), Fig. 8, but viewfinder bracket, as viewed from the eyepiece-end of the the reflection of your eye (3), Fig. 8, appears off-center, one or telescope. more of th
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- 8 - Most observers will want to have 3 or 4 eyepieces and perhaps (e.g., the Declination of the South Celestial Pole is -90°). See the #140 2x Barlow Lens to achieve the full range of reasonable Fig. 10. Any point on the celestial equator itself (which, for magnifications. See OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES, page 11, for example, passes through the constellations Orion, Virgo and further details. Aquarius) is specified as having a Declination of zero, shown as 0° 0' 0". The celestial analog to Eart
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- 9 - circles with the Celestial Pole at the center. By lining up the How to Locate Objects in the Night Sky telescope's polar axis with the North Celestial Pole (or South Now that your telescope is fully assembled and polar aligned, Celestial Pole if observing from the Earth's Southern you are ready to begin observations. Hemisphere), celestial objects may be followed (tracked) by moving the telescope about one axis, the polar axis. Note that although the above assembly and polar alignment pro
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- 10 - if the telescope was well-aligned with the pole, the desired object should now be in the telescopic field of a low-power 1 eyepiece. 5 If the object is not immediately visible through the telescope, try searching the adjacent sky area. Because of its much wider 2 field, the viewfinder may be of significant assistance in locating and centering objects, after the setting circles have been used to locate the approximate position of the object. Pinpoint application of the setting circles req
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- 11 - ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY Your reflecting telescope can be used as a powerful astrophotographic lens with the addition of virtually any 35mm Single Lens Reflex (SLR) camera body. The Basic Camera Adapter (see OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES, this page) and T- Mount for your specific brand of SLR camera serve as the link between telescope and camera. The Starfinder Equatorial Telescope design allows the user to take short exposure photographs of the Moon and planets using either prime-focus or eyepiece projec
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- 12 - Eyepiece 16" f/4.5 #65RS Manual Declination Control: Power Attaches directly to the equatorial mount, this Manual Declination Control allows the SP 6.4mm 286X* user to make fine micrometric SP 9.7mm 187X adjustments in Declination. SP 12.4mm 148X SP 15mm 122X SP 20mm 92X SP 26mm 70X #140 2x Barlow Lens: The Barlow SP 32mm 57X Lens, or Telenegative Amplifier, is a convenient accessory used to SWA 13.8mm 133X increase the effective magnification SWA 18mm 102X of any given eyepiece. The Bar
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- 13 - and point the telescope at a moderately bright (second or third harm to your equipment. This fuse can be replaced by magnitude) star, then center the star image in the telescope’s removing the dust cover to expose the fuse holder on the field-of-view. With the star centered, follow the method below: back of the control panel. 1. Bring the star image slowly out of focus until one or more 3. Balance: The telescope may not be properly balanced - rings are visible around the central disc.
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- 14 - plug (10), Fig. 18, to the circuit board (as described Specifications: TM above in Step 4c). Replace the dust cover. Meade Starfinder 16" Reflecting Telescope TELESCOPE: Starfinder Equatorial 16 Meade Customer Service If you have a question concerning your Meade Starfinder Optical Design Newtonian Reflector telescope, call Meade Instruments/Customer Service Dept. at 949-451-1450, or fax at 949-451-1460. Customer Service hours Diameter/Clear Aperture 406mm (16") are 8:30AM - 4:00PM, Pac
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- 15 - FCC NOTICE This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a CLASS A digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment is operated in a commercial environment. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications
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Meade Instruments Corporation World’s leading manufacturer of astronomical telescopes for the serious amateur. 6001 Oak Canyon, Irvine, California 92620 (949) 451-1450 Fax: (949) 451-1460 www.meade.com Ver. 0698 Part no. 14-0221-50
