a.
b.
tion by tightening the knurled thumbscrew on the dovetail holder.
Inserting an Eyepiece
The final step in the assembly process is to insert an eye- piece into the telescope’s focuser. Take the cover cap off the end of the focuser drawtube. Loosen the thumbscrews on the focuser drawtube and insert one of the eyepieces. Secure it in place by
The assembly of your SkyQuest Dobsonian is now complete. It should appear as shown in Figure 1. The dust cap on the front of the telescope tube should always remain in place when the telescope is not in use. It is also a good idea to
Focus lock ring Alignment thumb screw 
Tensioner
Figure 8a: The 6x26 correct-image finder scope and bracket.
Figure 7: (a) To attach the spring to the base, grip the pull loop with your index finger and pull down on the spring. (b) While pulling down, slip the end ring of the spring over the screw head and onto the narrow part of the nylon spacer, then release the pull loop.
To place the finder scope in the finder scope bracket, first unthread the two black nylon screws until the screw ends are flush with the inside diameter of the bracket. Place the O-ring that comes on the base of the bracket over the body of the finder scope until it seats into the groove on the middle of the finder scope. Slide the eyepiece end (narrow end) of the find- er scope into the end of the bracket’s cylinder that does not have the alignment screws while pulling the chrome, spring- loaded tensioner on the bracket with your fingers (see Figure 8b). Push the finder scope through the bracket until the O- ring seats just inside the front opening of the bracket’s cylinder. Now, release the tensioner and tighten the two black nylon screws a couple of turns each to secure the finder scope in place. The tips of the tensioner and nylon screws should seat into the wide groove on the rear of the finder scope’s body.
Slide the base of the finder scope bracket into the dovetail holder on the top of the focuser. Lock the bracket into posi-
Figure 8b: Inserting the finder scope into the finder scope bracket
store eyepieces in an eyepiece case and to replace the cover caps on the focuser drawtube and on both ends of the finder scope when the telescope is idle.
3. Using Your Telescope
It is best to get a feel for the basic functions of the SkyQuest
6