Levenhuk Skyline PLUS Telescopes Instruction Manual

By Lucija Apr 9, 2021

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Levenhuk Skyline PLUS Telescopes Instruction Manual

Dust cap (1а: not shown; remove before viewing)
Dew cap
Telescope tube
Objective lens
Primary mirror
Secondary mirror
Focuser tube
Finderscope
Finderscope bracket
Adjustment screws
Diagonal mirror
Eyepiece
Focusing knob
Declination slow-motion control
Latitude adjustment T-bolt
Latitude lock knob
R.A. axis scale
R.A. slow-motion control
Counterweight
Counterweight lock screw
Counterweight bar
R.A. lock knob
Declination axis scale
Dec. lock knob
Mounting plate
Accessory tray
Tripod leg
Tripod lock knob
Piggyback bracket
Ring clamps

Scope
Azimuth adjustment knob
Altitude adjustment knob
Battery compartment cover
Brightness control

R.A. adjustment
Altitude adjustment (up-down)
Azimuth adjustment (left-right)
R.A. scale
Dec. adjustment
R.A. fine adjustment
R.A. adjustment
Dec. fine adjustment

Big Dipper
Little Dipper
Polaris
NCP (North Celestial Pole)
Cassiopeia
β Crucis

R.A. lock knob
R.A. settling circle
Arrow

Zenith
Meridian
Latitude
Nadir
N E S W
Right Ascension
Meridian line
Plane of Celestial Equator
Polaris
Plane of local horizon
Object you are viewing
Apparent movement of stars
Mount aligned on North
Celestial Pole
Declination

Focuser
Eyepiece holder
Extender
T-adapter
Camera

CAUTION! Never look directly at the Sun – even for an instant – through your telescope or finderscope without a professionally made solar filter that completely covers the front of the instrument, or permanent eye damage may result. To avoid damage to the internal parts of your telescope, make sure the front end of the finderscope is covered with aluminum foil or another non- transparent material. Children should use the telescope under adult supervision only.

All parts of the telescope will arrive in one box. Be careful when unpacking it. We recommend keeping the original shipping containers. In the event that the telescope needs to be shipped to another location, having the proper shipping containers will help ensure that your telescope survives the journey intact. Be sure to check the box carefully, as some parts are small. All screws should be tightened securely to eliminate flexing and wobbling, but be careful not to overtighten them, as that may strip the threads. During assembly (and anytime, for that matter), do not touch the surfaces of the optical elements with your fingers. The optical surfaces have delicate coatings on them that can easily be
damaged if touched. Never remove lenses or mirrors from their housing, or the product warranty will be null and void.

Telescope optical system and construction

Levenhuk Skyline PLUS is a series of modern telescopes for entry-level and amateur astronomers. Reflectors are good for studying solar system and bright deep-sky objects, while Maksutov-Cassegrain and refractor telescopes are suitable for planetary observations as well as for studying terrestrial objects. This user manual is applicable to several Maksutov-Cassegrain telescopes (fig. 1a), reflector telescopes (fig. 1b, 1d) and refractor telescopes (fig. 1c) on equatorial mounts. Read the user manual carefully to find the information about the assembling and adjustment of your telescope model, and carefully follow the instructions.

Telescope assembly

Slowly loosen the tripod locking knobs and gently pull out the lower section of each tripod leg. Tighten the clamps to hold the legs in place. Spread the tripod legs apart to stand the tripod upright.
Adjust the height of each tripod leg until the tripod head is properly leveled. Note that the tripod legs may not be the same length when the equatorial mount is leveled.
Place the accessory tray on top of the bracket, and secure it with thumbscrews from underneath. Attach the equatorial mount to the tripod head.
Turn the azimuth adjustment knob up and tighten the knurled knob underneath the tripod head to secure mount to tripod (fig. 2).
Orient the mount vertically.
Loosen the Dec. lock knob. Rotate the mount 180°.
Loosen the R.A. lock knob located on the opposite side. Rotate the mount 180°.
Loosen the latitude lock knob. Set the angle according to your location latitude. Rotate the mount 180°.
Retighten the Dec. and R.A. lock knobs (fig. 3).
Slide the counterweights halfway along the counterweight bar.
Holding the counterweights with one hand, screw the counterweight bar into the threaded hole on the mount. Tighten the locknut on the counterweight bar until it is locked.
Attach the slow-motion control to the worm gear mechanism. Tighten the locking screws to secure the control in place (fig. 4a).

Telescope tube with ring clamps

Remove the ring clamps from the telescope by releasing their thumbscrews and opening their hinges.
Using the bolts provided, fasten the ring clamps to the mount with a wrench.
Place the telescope tube between the rings and balance it.
Close the hinges around the telescope and retighten the thumbscrews. Do not overtighten (fig. 4b).

Telescope tube without ring clamps

Place the telescope tube at the saddle and balance it. Fix the telescope tube with the lock knobs provided (fig. 4a).

Optical accessories assembly

Your telescope can be equipped with additional accessories, such as eyepieces, diagonal mirror or prism, or a Barlow lens. The accessories should be installed in well-defined ordering.

Maksutov-Cassegrain (fig. 5a) and refractor (fig. 5c) telescopes: Loosen the focuser thumbscrew. Insert the diagonal mirror into the focuser tube and retighten the thumbscrew to hold the diagonal mirror in place. Then, insert the desired eyepiece into the diagonal mirror and secure it by retightening the thumbscrew. If a Barlow lens is needed, install it between the focuser and the eyepiece.

Reflectors (fig. 5b): Loosen the focuser thumbscrew and take off the plastic cap from the focuser tube. Insert the selected eyepiece and secure it by retightening the thumbscrew. If a Barlow lens is needed, install it between the focuser and the eyepiece.

Red dot finderscope assembly and alignment

Insert the finderscope bracket into a holder on the telescope tube and lock it in place with a thumbscrew (fig. 5a, 5b). The red dot finder is a zero magnification pointing tool that uses a coated glass window to superimpose the image of a small red dot onto the night sky. The red dot finder is equipped with a variable brightness control, azimuth adjustment knob, and altitude adjustment knob. The finder is powered by
a 3-volt lithium battery located underneath at the front. To use the red dot finder, simply look through the sight tube and move your telescope until the red dot overlaps the object. Make sure to keep both eyes open when sighting.

Like all finderscopes, the red dot finder must be properly aligned with the telescope before use. This is a simple process using the azimuth and altitude adjustment knobs (fig. 6).

Open the battery compartment by pulling down the cover and remove the plastic shipping cover over the battery.
Turn on the red dot finder by rotating the variable brightness control clockwise until you hear a click. Continue rotating the control knob to increase the brightness level.
Insert a low power eyepiece into the focuser. Locate a bright object and aim the telescope so that the object is in the center of the field of view.
With both eyes open, look through the sight tube at the object. If the red dot overlaps the object, your red dot finder is perfectly aligned. If not, turn its azimuth and altitude adjustment knob until the red dot overlaps the object.

Optical finderscope assembly and alignment

Unthread two screws in the back of the telescope tube. Place the finderscope base above the holes on the tube. Lock the finderscope base into position by tightening the screws (refractor 7a, reflector 7b).

Optical finderscopes are very useful accessories. When they are correctly aligned with the telescope, objects can be quickly located and brought to the center of the view. Turn the scope end in and out to adjust focus (fig. 8).

To align the finderscope, choose a distant object that is at least 550 yards (500 meters) away and point the telescope at the object. Adjust the telescope so that the object is in the center of the view inyour eyepiece. Check the finderscope to see if the object is also centered on the crosshairs. Use three adjustment screws to center the finderscope crosshairs on the object (fig. 9).

Focusing

Slowly rotate the focus knobs (Maksutov-Cassegrain 1a, reflector 1b, 1d, refractor 1c) one way or the other until the image in the eyepiece is sharp. The image usually has to be finely refocused over time due to small variations caused by temperature changes, flexures, etc. Refocusing is almost always necessary when you change an eyepiece, add or remove a Barlow lens.

Balancing the telescope

A telescope should be balanced before each observing session. Balancing reduces stress on the telescope mount and allows precise slow-motion movements. A balanced telescope is especially crucial when using the optional clock drive for astrophotography. The telescope should be balanced after all accessories (eyepiece, camera, etc.) have been attached. Before balancing your telescope, make sure that your
tripod is balanced and on a stable surface. For photography, point the telescope in the direction you will be taking photos before performing the balancing steps.

R.A. Balancing

For best results, adjust the altitude of the mount to between 15º and 30º if possible, by using the altitude adjustment T-bolt. Slowly unlock the R.A. and Dec. lock knobs. Rotate the telescope until both the optical tube and the counterweight rod are horizontal to the ground, and the telescope tube is to the side of the mount.
Tighten the Dec. lock knob.
Move the counterweights along the counterweight rod until the telescope is balanced and remains stationary when released.
Tighten the counterweight screws to secure the counterweights.

Dec. Balancing

All accessories should be attached to the telescope before R.A. balancing, and the R.A. balancing should be done before proceeding with Dec. balancing. For best results, adjust the altitude of the mount to between 60° and 75° if possible.

Release the R.A. lock knob and rotate around the R.A. axis so that the counterweight rod is in a horizontal position. Tighten the R.A. lock knob.
Unlock the Dec. lock knob and rotate the telescope tube until it is parallel to the ground.
Slowly release the telescope and determine in which direction it rotates. Loosen the tube clamps or ring clamps and slide the telescope tube forward or backward between the rings until it is balanced.
Once the telescope no longer rotates from its parallel starting position, retighten the tube clamps or ring clamps and the Dec. lock knob. Reset the altitude axis to your local latitude.

Operating the mount

The mount has controls for both conventional altitude (up-down) and azimuth (left-right) directions of motion. These two adjustments are suggested for large direction changes and for terrestrial viewing. To adjust azimuth, loosen the big knob under the mount base and rotate the mount head about the azimuth axis. Use the altitude adjustment T-bolts to set the required altitude.

In addition, the equatorial mount has R.A. (hour angle) and Dec. controls for polar-aligned astronomical observing. Loosen the lock knobs to make large direction changes. Use the slow-motion controls for fine adjustment after the lock knobs have both been locked. An additional scale is included for the altitude
axis. This allows polar alignment at your local latitude (fig. 10).

Polar adjustment

In order for your telescope to track objects in the sky you have to align your mount. This means tilting the head over so that it points to the North (or South) celestial pole. For people in the Northern Hemisphere this is rather easy as the bright star Polaris is very near the North Celestial Pole. For casual observing, rough polar alignment is adequate. Make sure your equatorial mount is leveled and the finderscope is aligned with the telescope before beginning.

Look up your latitude on a map, road maps are good for this purpose. Now look at the side of your mount head, there you will see a scale running from 0 to 90°. Loosen the mount latch slightly rotating the lock handle counterclockwise. A thumbscrew located underneath the mount head pushes the latch plate, thus changing the angle. Turn the screw until the pointer on the latitude scale is set at the latitude of your observation site (fig. 11).

Loosen the Dec. lock knob and rotate the telescope tube until the pointer on the setting circle reads 90°. Retighten the Dec. lock knob. Loosen the azimuth lock knob and move the mount so that the R.A. axis points roughly at Polaris. Use the two azimuth adjustment knobs above the “N” to make fine adjustments in azimuth if needed. For more accurate alignment, look through the finderscope and center the Polaris on the crosshairs using the azimuth and latitude adjustment knobs (fig. 12).

After a while you will notice your target drifting slowly North or South depending on the direction of the pole relative to Polaris. To keep the target in the center of the view, turn only the R.A. slow-motion control.

Tracking celestial objects

When observing through a telescope, astronomical objects appear to move slowly through the telescope’s field of view. When the mount is correctly polar aligned, you only need to turn the R.A. slow-motion control to follow or track objects as they move through the field. A R.A. motor drive can be added to automatically track celestial objects by counteracting the rotation of Earth. If the object is too faint you may want to use setting circles on an equatorial mount. Setting circles allow you to locate celestial objects whose celestial coordinates have been determined from star charts.

The telescope’s R.A. setting circle is scaled in hours, from 1 to 24, with small lines in between representing 10 minute increments. The upper set of numbers applies to observations in the Northern Hemisphere, while the numbers below them apply to observations in the Southern Hemisphere.

Setting (calibrating) the R.A. setting circle: in order to set your Right Ascension circle you must first find a star in your field of view with known coordinates. A good one would be the 0.0 magnitude star Vega in the Constellation Lyra. From a star chart we know the R.A. coordinate of Vega is 18h 36m.

Loosen the R.A. and DEC. lock knobs on the mount and adjust the telescope so that Vega is centered in the field of view of the eyepiece. Tighten the R.A. and DEC. lock knobs to lock the mount in place. Now rotate the R.A. setting circle until it reads 18h36m. You are now ready to use the setting circles to find objects in the sky (fig. 13).

A German Equatorial mount has an adjustment, sometimes called a wedge, which tilts the mount’s polar axis so that it points at the appropriate Celestial Pole (NCP or SCP). Once the mount has been polar aligned, it needs to be rotated around the polar axis only to keep an object centered. Do not reposition the mount base or change the latitude setting. The mount has already been correctly aligned for your
geographical location (i.e. Latitude), and all remaining telescope pointing is done by rotating the telescope tube around the polar (R.A.) and declination axes (fig. 14).

A problem for many beginners is recognizing that a polar-aligned, equatorial mount acts like an altazimuth mount which has been aligned to a celestial pole. The wedge tilts the mount to an angle equal to the observer’s Latitude, and therefore it swivels around a plane which is parallel to the celestial (and Earth’s) equator. This is now its “horizon”; but remember that part of the new horizon is usually blocked by Earth. This new “azimuth” motion is called Right Ascension (R.A.). In addition, the mount swivels North (+) and South (–) from the Celestial Equator towards the celestial poles. This plus or minus “altitude” from the celestial equator is called Declination (Dec.).

Now, consider pointing the telescope to the western or eastern horizon. If the counterweight is pointing North, the telescope can be swiveled from one horizon to the other around the Dec. axis in an arc that passes through the NCP (any Dec. arc will pass through the NCP if the mount is polar-aligned). It can be seen then that if the optical tube needs to be pointed at an object north or south of this arc, it has to be also rotated around the R.A. axis. Pointing in any direction other than due North requires a combination of R.A. and Dec. positions.

Telescopes with long focal lengths often have a “blind spot” when pointing near the zenith, because the eyepiece-end of the optical tube bumps into the mount’s legs. To avoid this, the tube can be very carefully slipped up inside the ring clamps. This can be done safely because the tube is pointing almost vertically, and therefore moving it does not cause a Dec. balance problem. It is very important to move the tube back to the Dec. balanced position before observing other sky areas.

Something which can also be a problem is that the optical tube often rotates so that the eyepiece, finderscope and the focusing knobs are in less convenient positions. The diagonal mirror can be rotated to adjust the eyepiece. However, to adjust the positions of the finderscope and focusing knobs, loosen the tube rings holding the telescope tube and gently rotate it. Do this when you are going to observe an area for while, as it is inconvenient to repeat every time you briefly go to a new area.

Finally, there are a few things to consider to ensure that you are comfortable during the viewing session. First is setting the height of the mount above the ground by adjusting the tripod legs. You must consider the height that you want your eyepiece to be, and if possible plan on sitting on a comfortable chair or stool. Very long optical tubes need to be mounted higher or you will end up crouching or lying on the ground when looking at objects near the zenith. However, a short optical tube can be mounted lower so that there is less movement due to vibration sources, such as wind. This is something that should be decided before going through the effort of polar aligning the mount.

Camera adapter

To attach a camera to your telescope you may need an adapter to get the camera focused. Some reflectors require wider motion range than the one allowed by the focuser; some Maksutov-Cassegrain and refractor telescopes are designed to be used with diagonal mirrors and thus need a longer focal length when used with camera. To achieve that, simply attach an extender to the focuser of your telescope and then attach the camera with a T-adapter to the extender (fig. 15).

Specifications

	Skyline PLUS 60T	Skyline PLUS 70T	Skyline PLUS 80S	Skyline PLUS 120S	Skyline PLUS 130S	Skyline PLUS 90 MAK	Skyline PLUS 105 MAK	Skyline PLUS 115S
Optical design	refractor	refractor	Newtonian reflector	Newtonian reflector	Newtonian reflector	MaksutovCassegrain	MaksutovCassegrain	Newtonian reflector
Optics material	fully multi-coated optical glass
Aperture, mm	60	70	76	114	130	90	102	114
Focal length, mm	700	700	700	900	900	1250	1300	450
Highest practical power, x	120	140	152	228	260	180	204	228
Focal ratio	f/11.6	f/10	f/9	f/8	f/6.9	f/12.5	f/12.5	f/4
Tube material	metal
Tube mounting type	tube clamps	tube rings	tube clamps	tube rings	tube rings	tube clamps	tube clamps	tube clamps
Mount	EQ1	EQ1	EQ1	EQ1	EQ2	EQ1	EQ1	EQ1
Eyepiece barrel diameter	1.25″
Tripod	aluminium, 650–1200mm	aluminium, 650–1200mm	aluminium, 650–1200mm	aluminium, 650–1200mm	aluminium, 700–1270mm	aluminium, 710–1230mm	aluminium, 710–1230mm	aluminium, 710–1230mm
Accessory tray	+
Finderscope	5×24, optical	6×24, optical	6×24, optical	6×24, optical	6×24, optical	red dot	red dot	red dot
Eyepieces	4mm, 2.5mm, 20mm	10mm, 25mm	10mm, 25mm	10mm, 25mm	10mm, 25mm	10mm, 20mm	10mm, 20mm	10mm, 20mm
Diagonal mirror	+	+	–	–	–	+	+	–
Barlow lens	–	+	+	+	+	–	–	–

The manufacturer reserves the right to make changes to the product range and specifications without.

Care and maintenance

Never, under any circumstances, look directly at the Sun through this device without a special filter, or look at another bright source of light or at a laser, as this may cause PERMANENT RETINAL DAMAGE and may lead to BLINDNESS.
Take necessary precautions when using the device with children or others who have not read or who do not fully understand these instructions.
Do not try to disassemble the device on your own for any reason, including to clean the mirror. For repairs and cleaning of any kind, please contact your local specialized service center.
Protect the device from sudden impact and excessive mechanical force.
Do not touch the optical surfaces with your fingers. To clean the telescope exterior, use only special cleaning wipes and special optics cleaning tools from Levenhuk.
Store the device in a dry, cool place away from hazardous acids and other chemicals, away from heaters, open fire and other sources of high temperatures.
Replace the dust cap over the front end of the telescope whenever it is not in use. This prevents dust or dirt from settling on the mirror or lens surfaces.
Children should use the telescope under adult supervision only.

Batteries safety instructions

Always purchase the correct size and grade of battery most suitable for the intended use.
Always replace the whole set of batteries at one time; taking care not to mix old and new ones, or batteries of different types.
Clean the battery contacts and also those of the device prior to battery installation.
Make sure the batteries are installed correctly with regard to polarity (+ and –).
Remove batteries from equipment that is not to be used for an extended period of time.
Remove used batteries promptly.
Never attempt to recharge primary batteries as this may cause leakage, fire, or explosion.
Never short-circuit batteries as this may lead to high temperatures, leakage, or explosion.
Never heat batteries in order to revive them.
Remember to switch off devices after use.
Keep batteries out of the reach of children, to avoid risk of ingestion, suffocation, or poisoning.
Utilize used batteries as prescribed by your country laws.

Levenhuk International Lifetime Warranty

All Levenhuk telescopes, microscopes, binoculars and other optical products, except for accessories, carry a lifetime warranty against defects in materials and workmanship. Lifetime warranty is a guarantee on the lifetime of the product on the market. All Levenhuk accessories are warranted to be free of defects in materials and workmanship for six months from date of retail purchase. The warranty entitles you to free repair or replacement of the Levenhuk product in any country where a Levenhuk office is located if all warranty conditions are met. For further details please visit our web site: www.levenhuk.com/warranty/

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