The life of a street astronomer is not just fame and glory, despite what you may have heard. Equipment needs maintaining. There are optics to collimate, eyepieces to clean, mounts to balance, and more – all of which I enjoy doing.
After a night of hard work, one of my mounts needed a little care. I always keep some essential tools in my telescope kit, so even when I’m away from home (as I am now), I can handle basic adjustments and repairs.
Fifteen minutes was all it took and the mount was ready for a night at First Encounter Beach. More on that next . . .