stu640

It is very fiddly. Whenever I see anyone showing this mount off as a new acquisition, I always warn them not to go any distance with the dec controller to avoid this problem. Great starter mount for learning how the sky 'works' and not forking out too much cash before deciding whether it's for you, and then upgrade asap!!

Thank you so much for getting back to me. I’ve not had the courage to get the pliers out on that knob yet, but if it’s worked out well for you, then I’ll have a slug of whisky and go for it!!!

Hi Al-man, hope you're still about on here? I'm just about to go through this process. I've not found anywhere else on the web anyone discussing this exact problem for the 150PL. You're it! Did you successfully fit the auto focuser after getting the knob off? How did it work out? Thank you! Stu

Jam1e1, I'm just off Jn 8 too - Reigate. Don't get the chance to get out much, but good to know there's folks local!

Another holiday in Brittany would've been good, the skies were great when we camped there a couple of summers back! And thanks for the tip - I'll get the WD40 out! Thanks again!

Yes, fixed it! Unscrewed as suggested, but realised I could probably have just jiggled the piston rod back through its hole. Not pictured, but the spring behind pic 1 looks pretty heavy duty! Essentially, it looks like if you wind the dec controller all the way in, the metal plate can push the piston rod all the way its hole and the flat part of its face gets caught the wrong side (pic 3)... Some pics to help explain... Thank you so much for your help Rich! I wouldn't have wanted to unscrew stuff without knowing it was going to be ok!!

Thanks Peter - lesson learned! Just need to know if whatever it is I've broken in there can be fixed...

Hi Julian, thank you - I don't think meshing is part of this mechanism. The dec controller seems to be a push rod. It's not easy to see in the pictures, but the mechanism is under the plate, which you can see changes position in the first and second picture according to the declination motion. In the third of the pics you can see inside to the pointy end of the rod. Hope this helps!

PROBLEM FIXED I'm pretty sure I have, but don't know if it's terminal! I have the EQ2 supplied with my Skywatcher Explorer 130. The Dec control stopped working last night. It winds until it hits its hard stop at either end, but only moves the mount under control if the end of the rod internally pushes against a just visible metal plate. When the Dec control is 'unwound' this plate and the mount/scope moves freely on the Dec axis by maybe around 10 degrees. Wind it in and the Dec axis is solid, and only movable by unlocking the dec lock screw. From what I've understood from google, basically, firstly I shouldn't have been using the Dec control for anything more than a few degrees of motion in the middle of its range and secondly, the 'return' on winding is probably meant to have been spring loaded against the back of that metal plate. If the latter there's definitely no spring in there anymore! And the system is not as I thought a worm screw like the RA motion control! This free movement of the mount renders the whole setup pretty useless. If the diagnosis of a broken spring somewhere in the dec mechanism is right, is this easily reparable? And is it cost effective to do/easy to acquire parts? Thank you in advance for any advice!

See my profile pic...! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Fantastic, I now have a list of jobs to prepare for my first forays into the night sky! One of the most useful posts I've seen for a novice like me! I'm sure to have wasted a lot of time without this prep advice, thank you! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk