ORION TELESCOPES & BINOCULARS SpaceProbe 3 Altaz 9883 Instruction Manual

INSTRUCTION MANUAL

Orion®

SpaceProbe™ 3 Altaz

#9883 Altazimuth Reflector Telescope

Providing Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975

Customer Support [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]
OrionTelescopes.com
Corporate Offices [phone]
89 Hangar Way, Watsonville, CA 95076

IN 207 Rev. D 02/09

EZ Finder II

EZ Finder II bracket

Micro-motion rod
attachment post

“Yoke”

Azimuth lock knob

Eyepiece

Focuser

Altitude micro-motion
control thumbwheel

Yoke knob

Altitude lock knob

Tripod leg

Accessory tray

Leg lock knob

Altitude micro-motion
control rod

Accessory tray bracket

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Figure 1. The SpaceProbe 3 AZ.

Welcome to the exciting world of amateur astronomy! Your SpaceProbe 3 Altazimuth Reflector is a high-

quality optical instrument designed for nighttime stargazing. With its precision optics and intuitive altazi­muth mount, you’ll be able to locate and enjoy fascinating denizens of the night sky, including the planets,
Moon, and a variety of deep-sky objects. Lightweight and easy to use, this scope will provide many hours
of enjoyment for the whole family.

These instructions will help you set up, properly use, and care for your telescope. Please read them over
thoroughly before getting started.

Table of Contents

1. Unpacking........................ 3

2. Parts List......................... 3

3. Assembly ........................ 3

4. Getting Started .................... 4

5. Using your Telescope—

Astronomical Observing ............. 6

6. Care and Maintenance .............. 8

7. Specifications ..................... 8

Appendix A: Collimating

(Aligning the Mirrors) ............... 8

Appendix B: Cleaning the Optics ..... 10

1. Unpacking

The entire telescope system will arrive in one box. Be careful
unpacking the box. We recommend keeping all of the original
packaging. In the event that the telescope needs to be shipped
to another location, or returned to Orion for warranty repair,
having the proper packaging will help ensure that your tele­scope will survive the journey intact.

Make sure all the parts in the Parts List are present. Be sure
to check the box carefully, as some parts are small. If anything
appears to be missing or broken, immediately call Orion
Customer Support (800-676-1343) for assistance.

Warning: Never look at the sun with your
telescope or its finderscope—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.

2. Parts List

Qty. Description

1 Optical tube assembly

1 Altazimuth yoke mount

1 Altitude micro-motion rod with thumbwheel

3 Tripod legs with accessory tray bracket attached

1 EZ Finder II reflex sight and mounting bracket

1 Accessory tray

3 Tripod attachment screws with wing nuts and

washers

3 Leg lock knobs

2 Yoke knobs

3 Accessory tray attachment wingscrews with lock

nuts and washers

1 25mm Explorer II eyepiece

1 10mm Explorer II eyepiece

1 Dust cover

1 Collimation cap

3. Assembly

Assembling the telescope for the first time should take about
30 minutes. You will need a Phillips head screwdriver and a
flat head screwdriver. All screws should be tightened securely
to eliminate flexing and wobbling, but be careful not to over­tighten or the threads may strip. Refer to Figure 1 during the
assembly process.

During assembly (and anytime, for that matter), DO NOT
touch the surfaces of the telescope mirrors or the lenses of
the finder scope or eyepieces with your fingers. The optical
surfaces have delicate coatings on them that can easily be
damaged if touched inappropriately. NEVER remove any lens
assembly from its housing for any reason, or the product war­ranty and return policy will be voided.

1. Lay the altazimuth mount on its side. Attach the tripod
legs, one at a time, to the base of the mount by sliding a
tripod attachment screw through the top of a leg and

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Micro-motion
rod attachment
post

Altitude
casting

Altitude

Yoke

Figure 2.

mount.

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.

2. Install and tighten the leg lock knobs on the bottom braces
of the tripod legs. For now, keep the legs at their shortest
(fully retracted) length; you can extend them to a more
desirable length later, after 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 bracket is taut.
Connect the accessory tray to the accessory tray bracket
with the three wing screws already installed in the tray. Do
this by pushing the wing screws up through the holes in
the accessory tray bracket and threading them into the
holes in the accessory tray.

4. Tighten the screws at the tops of the tripod legs, so the
legs are securely fastened to the mount. Use the Phillips
head screwdriver and your fingers to do this.

5. Attach the altitude micro-motion rod to the optical tube
assembly by first removing the flat head screw from the
micro-motion rod attachment post 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 securely tightened.

6. To install the optical tube in the yoke of the altazimuth
mount, slide the altitude micro-motion rod into its recepta­cle on the side of the yoke first. Make sure the altitude lock
knob is adequetely loosened. Then, with the rod in place in
the receptacle, place the optical tube assembly into the
yoke so that the metal altitude castings on the side of the
optical tube slide into the grooves (Figure 2.) To secure the
optical tube to the mount, slide the yoke knobs through the
holes in the of the mount and thread them into the altitude
castings on the optical tube. Tighten the altitude lock
knob.

Installing the optical tube into the yoke of the altazimuth

Altitude
micro-motion rod

Altitude lock knob

Azimuth

Figure 3. The SpaceProbe 3 has two axes of motion: Altitude and

Azimuth.

7. Remove the two metal thumbnuts from the optical tube.
Place the bracket of the EZ Finder II on the tube so that
the holes in the bracket slide over the two threaded posts.
The EZ Finder should be oriented so that it appears as in
Figure 1. Thread the thumbnuts back onto the posts to
secure the EZ Finder II in place.

8. Insert the 25mm Explorer II eyepiece into the focuser
drawtube and secure it in place with the thumbscrew.

Your telescope is now fully assembled and should appear as
it does in Figure 1. Keep the dust cover on until you are ready
to observe.

4. Getting Started

Altitude and Azimuth

The SpaceProbe 3 Altaz permits motion along two axis: alti­tude (up/down) and azimuth (left/right) (see Figure 3). This is
very convenient, since up/down and left/right are the most
“natural” ways that people aim. As a result, pointing the tele­scope is easy.

To move the telescope in the azimuth direction, loosen the
azimuth lock knob, take hold of the telescope by the end of
the optical tube, and gently rotate the telescope to the desired
position. Then re-tighten 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. If the telescope moves too freely in the in
the altitude direction, then tighten the yoke knobs.

Note about the Altitude Micro-Motion Rod and Thumb­wheel: Since making fine-adjustments to the altitude of the

telescope can be difficult, the SpaceProbe 3 Altaz comes with
an altitude micro-motion rod and thumbwheel. By turning the
thumbwheel, the telescope will move a very small amount
either up or down, depending on which direction you turn the
thumbwheel. You do not loosen the altitude lock knob to make

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