Thanks MrGreyface, I hope you can find out his secret. P.s, I think the forum is a great idea.

Without a doubt 'JLW' (Simon Anderson) has some amazing Moon shots, but his 'space machine' videos definitely caused a stir back in the late 2000s. When the UFO skywatch forum UFONV.com was around I made it my mission to find out what his secret was behind his UFO videos. Like most people that emailed JLW for some answers, silence was my response. With my slight obsession with camcorders back then and watching every video JLW and GRIDKEEPER had, I eventually worked out the camcorder that he was using was a Sony HDR-HC1 coupled to his then 8" telescope. GRIDKEEPER did let it slip on a few occasions on various forums that a tube was involved and the camcorder had it's optics removed, also the space machine videos were viewed using digital zoom, not optical.

Eventually, working with what I had at the time, a 4" refractor and a trusty Sony TRV40 camcorder I managed to create this...

The optics were removed from the camcorder so essentially it became a huge webcam.

Here is some footage that this setup produced.

A crude version of what JLW was using I think, but I was confident I was on the right track.

Several wrecked camcorders later and a new 5" MAK, I had a very much improved setup

Optics were removed using precision screwdrivers and a soldering iron. :/

Jupiter this time...

Soon after this I decided to give it up as it was getting expensive. At the time a sony hc1 camcorder and an 8" telescope was behold my reach, but I am confident that was his setup. As the forum thread came to an end on my 'Space Machine Quest', JLW did actually email me with some good advice regarding astronomy, we exchanged emails, but didn't say whether I was right or wrong about his set up. Going by some of JLW UFO videos at the time were very questionable, plus a lot of amateur astronomers around the world doubting his 'space machines' I think the general feeling is they are not what his is claiming.

Darren.

A classic hoax from JLW... pointless image manipulating and obvious lens flare. Even a description to go with it to try and throw the truth. It's footage like this that bring the others in to question. Greed and popularity seems to take over with some people, but it always bites their arse in the end.

Thank you Darren, your information is much appreciated. For those of us that have been ufologist for some time, it is our duty to inform newbies of past experiences, this way we stop our self's from going round in a circle, we must press forward. If we could manage to recreate JLW's footage then maybe he will disappear into fraudsters void.

This was my initial investigation before my account forgot my name (like it has again) Brian Paton, and I had to delete and try to sort it out.

As Charles and myself first thought that perhaps JLW was blurring or recording a tight bunch of stars and throwing them out of focus using some kind of light refracting device.

So I tried to emulate using my equipment.

These are the results.

This video also shows that the average amateur astronomer cannot achieve what JLW is filming or faking without owning the more expensive equipment required to do so.

I.e. higher iso and faster frame rate.

The equipment I am using here are an 11" cassegrain telescope and an Atik Infinity astro camera. I had to use a minimum of 3 to 4 seconds exposure to gather enough light to see what I'd imagine JLW would see using his equipment.

This means that only a small amount of people can do what he is doing.

A 3 to 4 second time lapse occurs in video mode, or a picture taken every 3 to 4 seconds. Not exactly the "fast" frame rate required.

So my attempt at an emulation or simulation was a failure.

I doubt I could even come close to what he is using knowing what I know now. Camera's of that caliber cost an absolute fortune.

On other research areas I found out that "gridkeeper" has a name Duncan Davis. I believe the person on JLW yt channel answering all the comments and asking for more money is possibly this person and not JLW himself. Gridkeeper is from Malta I believe.

I say this because this fellow can't speak or write proper english.

And after hearing JLW speak in his interview, you can tell he is a definite Englishman.

Here are some pics I've gathered over the last few days including from JLWs new but old (from 2007/2008) video uploads.

JLW with Kerry Lynn Cassidy who interviewed him.

This is his equipment from his video.

And how he uses night vision or IR

This is the "Star Wars project" he say's he filmed ships from.

Good find! That's interesting, I made very similar, but with a cascade tube. It's even the same scope. I'm guessing it gave me around 40x plus zoom. The sky looked amazing..

Jupiter with the same set up

Could it be possible that 'JLW' was actually filming a tiny fixed model that was some way away? These space machine videos are grainy where it is claimed to be digital zoom, with the telescope in a tracking mode that gives the impression the 'UFO' is moving?

He is claiming this is actually the ISS in this video? it obviously isnt, so what could it be that he is actually filming?

I filmed this last night......................NOT!

I took a still image of an anaglyph 3d ISS type object, I found it here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptSwIkc49LA

at 00:36

I put the image in MS Paint, reduced the size to 25% of original. coloured the rest of the page black. I then turned the image to jpeg then loaded into a graphics program, I changed the colour values, then used the preview window in motion blur, I recorded the window while moving the still object with the horizontal and vertical bars. I then played the clip through VLC, altering colour again. I recorded the result.

This process took about 15 mins using programs that were available in 2007. Im sure with a little more experimentation I could emulate JLW.

Thanks guys,

Geez Darren I wanted to do what you did with the P8079HP tube attached to the telescope, but I think it would have broken my scope lol. I still would love to try it maybe with a lighter gen3 nv.

It pees me off knowing that JLW owns a Sony A7s now and is filming the Moon and stars using that. And yet still asks for money for a new van. I'd love one of those cameras, but out here they are $4k plus for the A7sll version.

Charles the video you were thinking off showing the expansion of an object he supposedly filmed is here :- at the 19:07 mark.

Also in this 2nd video, it appears like he is filming grass! through a long dark tube :- from the 2:43 mark. According to Gridkeeper, he was into crop circles too.

I'm not sure I can do much more with my limited equipment.

I'm still undecided whether to get a gen 3 nv for the scope or a Sony A7sll with the ridiculously high iso. Definitely temping the latter one. :)

Cheers.

Maybe grass, how about it being a microscope image?

Im just reading some of the countless JLW is a hoax articles, this is a good one.

http://www.astronomyufo.com/UFO/UFOorbit.htm

Nice one MrGreyface! just goes to show he could be using anything with the right software. I remember reading that article and thinking 'that about sums it up' I still think that he is using his telescope to produce these images in some way, it's just how? I do remember one time JLW uploaded one of his 'UFO' vids and it looked almost too good, very clear and high resolution. Needless to say, within just a few minutes he'd pulled it... and I never saw it again. That alone set some alarm bell rings ringing.

If any of these JLW's crafts did actually exist in our space, amateur astronomers worldwide would have found them by now surely?

I photographed the ISS a while ago with my modded P900 (after many attempts) and with the right camera settings managed to resolve this blob of fast moving light to an actual craft that showed definition.

If i can do this with a handheld camera, i'm sure some of the pros out there with the right equipment can find some of JLW's parked space machines? Oddly enough, in the last ten years, no one has.

Great pic Darren! I think JLW uses a combination of both telescope and cgi. I expect he chanced on an effect, and has been using it ever since.

Charles's idea of a altered physical filter, could that work? Im just a point and shoot kind of guy, I dont have any filters to alter or the right equipment to use. Ive only ever used NV scopes for UFO hunting, my first cam was a Sony xray, still got it. So I never really did any telescope work as I was looking for closer objects. I use CCTV camera's too. I just won a ebay auction for a WATEC LCL-902C CAMERA WITH COMPUTAR 3.5-8MM LENS, NIGHT VISION / ASTRONOMY. So as soon as the British skies clear, im going to give it a go, I have a selection of c mount zoom lens's so Im hopeful, if its no good it will go in the draw with all the others I though would be good lol.

Great find Mr G.

Yeah, so it appears he is using some kind of light refracting or stuffed up camcorder lens on bright stars like Charles suggested.

In my mind watching that video at the 19 min mark, I see an optical lens or filter being rotated to expand the bright object in 2 separate directions.

I'm going to try and make a couple of acrylic filters to use in my scope.

I don't have a camcorder adapter for it, so I will probably use my Nikon dslr. I may not get the zoom effect, but hopefully get some kind of distortion to expand the bright object or star. By rotating the filters.

I also own a filter wheel that rotates the filters around.

Seen here.

http://www.astroshop.com.au/products/details.asp?id=MAS-029

And I still have my old 8" reflector telescope. May have to drag that out again.

Nice one Mr P, it looks like the magazine for a Tommy Gun.

JLW BS

I haven't given up on trying to debunk this guy yet.

The weather is crap at the moment and I can't use the telescope.

But I have some time off work now, so hopefully get back into it.

In the meantime, here are some updates.

This is to prove about Duncan Davis being Gridkeeper.

Also looking through a lot of comments where yt people are asking how he records these things, I came across some interesting answers.

It's the usual copy/paste crap, but there were a few gems in the rough.

Here is a few.

Unfortunately the first link has been deleted.

Above he says"do not forget to use the prism correctly in this" (first pic)

I can't see the prism, but it must be there somewhere.

These are the pics from the links above.

He is still not showing the "invention" of his. But note the filter wheel in the first pic.

But then I found a comment where he compared his invention to the AOLI. The telescope they were trying to build that could see to the extreme diffraction limit.

But it was in the report where I saw what looks like we have all been talking about or trying to explain how JLW does his trickery.

The highlighted part explains a lot. Plus JLW (or Duncan) mentioned prism above.

Here is a link to the pdf if interested.

https://www.ast.cam.ac.uk/sites/default/files/AOLI_report_081013.pdf

So the way I see it is, All we have to do is make a long tubey prism thing that disperses the light. Then focus on a object in space using a gen3 nv device as a guide scope with a tracking program.

Fine tune the prism filters (rotate) and there you have it. Star wars. :)

Actually he denies saying they were all ufos and stars wars sats that he spoke of in the early years when accused in a yt comment.

And he's still asking for an apology lol.

Anyhow, the BS continues.............

Thanks Charles, It's not even JLW doing all the talking here I don't think. It's the Gridkeeper on behalf of. This guy has dug such a big hole for the both of them that there is no turning back now.

I'm going to look up prisms now lol. I don't think my slit acrylic filters will work based on what I've found out now. I like these type of experiments. But they take a while to set up.

So stay tuned :)

Good work Mr P, this is why you are IUFO's Technical expert. My head hurts : )

Great work Brian! 'JLW' followed me on twitter the other day, I wonder if he's seen this? I'm sure he'd love to spill the beans... Lol.