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so after dragging my scope out of retirement i found the handset for the focuser motor was knackered ( would sometimes work if you really mashed the buttons that felt shot). i tried re soldering the parts of the board i could access but nothing worked as i felt the buttons and the variable dial had given up the ghost so i thought "can i make one" and i turns out i could bastardising the old one and by buying a reversible and variable fan motor switch this one i removed the heat sinks off the board (cos i didn't think 9v would need em) and added an "on/off" switch and crammed them all into an old baccy tin i had alan keys in and bingo used it for the first time last night. worked a treat and is actually better ( finer control ) than before i used one of those mobile phone magnetic mounts to attach it to the scope it even has lights to tell me the power is on / which way the motor is turning

which is better for a mix of visual and dslr photos Astronomik CLS versus Baader neodymium moon and skyglow? thanks Ira

hello does anyone use one of these? what are they like? i hope to maybe use with my Star Adventurer and try my hand at a bit of astrophotography

Footnote to this thread due to @malc-c and @ozarchie sorting out how to fix @Astro-Geek’s boards my scope is now back up and running thanks to all that assisted this is why these forums are so great. Ira

HI can testify to just how easy it is to fry these boards having toasted both do to me being very casual about what I plugged where. Be careful out there. And if you do mess up. Hit @malc-c up for a fix

So far.... so good!... powered up without errors slews without hesitation or fault just need to check the tracking once the clouds clear @malc-c If you ever need anything for your car. Hit me up. 86D6016B-4240-421E-BF2F-8D9434CCB628.MOV FD9C15C2-1780-4437-98D3-7980D8BAE529.mov

i have everything crossed....twice.. thanks again to malc for the help with my dead boards

is there a recording of this on youtube or somesuch? thanks ira

i have updated the handset today do i need to update the motor controllers? Firmware: Skyliner Series Dobsonian GO-TO Mounts, Version 2.09 For 8" to 16" Dobsonian GOTO mounts. Support turning off auxiliary encoders. Size: 5 KB | 25-06-2018 | Motor Controllers

ok i have ran the same voltage test and got the same voltages as astro got for the main board checked cables and connections etc checked the motors with a probe. they run with direct connection to teh probe what do i need to do/test to try to find whats wrong also looking at the chips i dont think i have the skill set to solder them out or in again. they are very small

thanks malc i will go through the other thread and try to do the tests you have said it will have to be tomorrow or saturday as i'm working tomorrow day

hi astror yeah i think ive got my wires crossed as i think i tried evey combo of plug in every socket at one point

ive added photos to one of my posts...lol

hi Malc 1 no i bought the scope about 7 years ago, the version of the starsense autoalign is for skywatcher scopes 2 mc004 boards on each axis photo's attached 3 didnt hear anything but i'm deaf on the left side so anything could have happened 4 how do i help do that,its beond my skill level of 0 5 i have a multimeter at work 6 yes i can solder i really appreciate teh effort if i need to buy new boards i will but i'm getting the vibe that that isnt that easy either ira

i have advised to explain at length what has happened to my scope so here goes firstly the scope has been stored in the garage for nearly 4 years due to moving house and other factors a family of mice nested in the tube and i have cleaned it all out and the boards didnt lok to be damaged but what do i know then i attempted to connect the starsense camera and handset to the scope but didnt have instructions so tried to plug the starsense handset into the aux port in the synscan handset with no success i then plugged it direct to teh scope with no joy obvs. i then worked out how to plug the starsense set up properly via google and there was zero response from the motors. the next day i tried to go back to original synscan set up and the handset gave the error message" cauion no response from both axes" ive had a friend check that theres 12volt at teh main "side" board i'm not very clued up with electronics so here i am thanks for looking ira forgot to add photos, thus showing my luddite prowess

This Is my original post. I will write at length what I experienced later. Thanks ira

sorry to hijack but i'm in dire straights.. can anybody help me? i think ive messed up one or possibly both boards trying to connect a Celestron StarSense Accessory for Sky-Watcher Mounts to me 250 goto flextube dob any help would be appreciated i'm not looking for a free fix but i can get any of the shops to even discuss it at the moment thanks ira

This is what i was hoping for thanks unfortunately my scope is knackered so i cant test it

i know this is an old thread but... does anyone have a spare hand controller?

i was going to put it there first . thanks

ps is this the correct sub forum? its all a bit new to me

will these work together? or has anyone tried? my 250 flextube goto is broken so i can't try i have bought the starsense camera but have been told the celestron wifi adaptor doesn't work on skywatcher scopes thanks ira

May I ask. How is the software compatible if you can’t connect to it? Sorry if this is a dumb question but I’m new to this sort of tech.

My scope is the 250 flex tube goto. So I need someone who fixes skywatcher boards/mounts.