GTom

Looks interesting, thank you! I was wondering if it goes in place of the 85mm diam. mounting pan or just screws on top of it: former would be of course the proper solution.

Just realized how anti-transport the HEQ5's original tripod is, I was wondering if there is a ready-made adapter that is compatible with the ZWO tc40?

On 18/02/2021 at 19:52, Viktiste said:

Old thread I know, but Kudos to the OP for this! I just made a spare EQDIR cable for my HEQ5pro.

I bought a "FT232RL 3.3V 5.5V FTDI USB to TTL Serial Adapter Module for Arduino Mini Port" on e-bay for next to nothing. Made sure the jumper was set to 5V. Crimped a RJ45 connector to a piece of CAT5 cable and wired them together.

Here is the finished cable. I 3D printed a case for the Serial adapter board:

 

Inside the box:

 

Wiring:

 

👍🙂

 

 

 

Great job, time allowing I'll copy this one! For the time being picked up a more realistically priced EQdir variant from Amazon.

8 hours ago, Dr_Ju_ju said:

Personally, I'd drop the 14v down to 12v using either a regulator (7812), but the 2v difference may be problematical (they work better with a 3v difference), or even a simple resistance/12v zenner/capacitor combo....

Actually as far as I know, the HEQ5 loves 14V. The actual plan is to power everything with 4s LiFEPO4 banks without voltage conversion.

I am experimenting with a custom TEC cooling and a bit worried about my mount electronics. The Peltiers will operate at ~14V, so far the plan is just to hook them up on the same splitter where the HEQ5 is connected. Can I go wrong with that?

The Ugreen USB to serial cable might be a good, though a bit pricier solution: https://www.amazon.co.uk/UGREEN-20210-Converter-Connecting-Controller-grey/product-reviews/B00QUZY4UG/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_viewopt_kywd?ie=UTF8&reviewerType=all_reviews&pageNumber=1&filterByKeyword=guiding

Will definitely do my research regarding the wifi adapter

Meantime I found the USB to serial cable I used to update my hand controller: https://www.amazon.co.uk/UGREEN-20210-Converter-Connecting-Controller-grey/dp/B00QUZY4UG , one user apparently used it as a two-cable guiding solution.

Phew, was definitely worth to ask😅, thank you. I have updated the firmware of my old EQ3-2 in the past using a usb to serial cable connected to Skywatcher's RJ45 cable, obviously that one didn't push all the 24V on the handset :D. But I'll check thoroughly if I use that cable again. Besides the EQdir, I'll take a look how reliable the wireless solutions are. One cable is better than two, but no cables should be the best - IF...

  I recently treated myself with a Panasonic toughbook (chill out, not the newest £3000 wonder, just an old one for 1/10th of that 🤪). And it has a D sub 9 pin connector. I was wondering can I just grab ANY decent RJ45 to RS232 modem cable to operate and guide the mount from the laptop? Saving a usb to serial converter from the equation I suspect that a direct serial connection could be faster and more reliable.

The EQMod site speaks quite positively in the RS232 connection: https://eq-mod.sourceforge.net/reqindex.html

The mount can carry an 8" f/4 Newtonian if well balanced, but that scope is not an easy start, it's right at the working limit of the mount. Can be cheap though if bought second hand! Just like the nice folks above I'd recommend a small APO, whatever the second hand market brings up, to get photography started and for the time being use the Newtonian for visuals. 

The mount was a very good choice for a growing scope collection😅!

Shopping for additional batteries, I want to make sure that they can travel with me anywhere during their lifespan and that lifespan doesn't end up in an airport bin...

Just checked Namibia/KLM (def bucket list item): you need to ask permission to bring anything between 100 and 160Wh on board. How does that work? They decide on the spot that the $$$ battery I brought to the aircraft goes  to the bin just because they have a bad day? https://www.klm.com.na/information/baggage/restricted-items-hand-baggage

Airlink, South Africa relives you from that worry, anything above 100Wh definitely goes in the bin: https://www.flyairlink.com/en/za/baggage-portable-electronic-devices

Europe/Canaries: 160Wh usually fine.

When assessing a new mount purely based on specifications what do these values mean for practical usability:

R.A. Worm Gear 73.4mm Diameter, 144 Teeth vs: R.A. worm gear 180 teeth, 92.5mm diameter.

R.A. Worm Drive 11mm Diameter vs: R.A. wheel gear 15.8mm diameter

Rookie thinks the more teeth, the bigger diameter the better. Is that so? This case the manufacturer is the same, mounts: SA GTi and AL55i.

Piece of art! Reminds me to check it out next time when in the Canaries

Welcome to the community! I started my journey among the stars with just naked eyes when I was around 6 later with a friend's borrowed 10x50 binoculars. Enjoy the ride, you have one of the best skies in the world! Time and budget allowing I might visit your wonderful country one day🙂.

Absolutely worth the effort!

Does the AZ-EQ5 use the same tripod connection as the HEQ5, EQ5 pro? Can I use e.g. a HEQ5 or EQ3-2 head on an AZ-EQ5 tripod?

30 minutes ago, vlaiv said:

Then, there is this thing:

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/equatorial-astronomy-mounts/sky-watcher-eq-al55i-pro-go-to-astronomy-mount.html

(not quite up to HEQ5 level and to be honest, not even sure how it compares to EQ5, but it is capable of going all the way from 0 to 90).

Thank you Vlaiv, yes, this mount is on the list of candidates, waiting for real-life reviews how much photography load it can carry. Pros and cons really: much lighter, even carry-on airline compatible but one might need the weight for stability. 

4 hours ago, wimvb said:

With most skywatcher mounts, you can put the mount head turned 180 degrees. The counterweight bar will then fit between two tripod legs, rather than be above one leg. To clear the tripod legs, you may also need a pier extender. One trick that people living living on high latitudes use is to not extend the tripod legs completely. This has the effect of not placing the mount head exactly horizontal. Even then, reaching 4 degrees will be tricky. You might consider investing in a harmonic drive mount that doesn't need counterweights.

Counterweights are not really an issue, they are small and fit in the checked luggage. There are several mounts doing this fine with adjustable counterweight shaft, like the AL55, Adventurer GTI, CEM26.

Coming late to the party, anyone tried the Flat73R reducer with a full-frame camera? I have a 6D and a nikon Z6, if the specifications are correct and the full frame borders are free of distortions, this little scope could be a great F/4.8 companion.

Checking travel mount options, Latitude range is critical to me. I see, the HEQ5 covers only 10 to 65°, EQ5 pro 28 to 65°.

Any chance to get these two working at 4° South of the Equator?
 

(I know, I also need a proper, short and less heavy tripod, I am on the hunt ATM)

On 28/02/2024 at 19:28, MonsterMagnet said:

I think I know the answers to these questions but I would be very pleased if I could get some views from here to confirm or put me straight:

• What is the advantage of getting something like a 90mm refractor over a 70mm refractor when using a reducer brings the FL of the 90mm to about the same as that of the 70mm?  Is it simply more flexibility in that you can use the 90mm without a reducer at the native FL for more magnified image?
• With a double and a triplet one requires a field flattener, with a quintuplet upwards this isn't the case but if you use a reducer on those scopes then you once again need to use a field flattener?
• A triplet provides better colour than a doublet (all being equal) but does a quintuplet also usually provide that colour or is it usually a doublet with two more corrective lens?

Cheers.

MM

 

As others also stated, the key advantage is the faster focal ratio, meaning that at the same FL you'll need approx 40% shorter exposures to reach the same signal strength. Quintuplets are there to get rid of the image curvature and cover a larger than 1/2" sensor properly. Basically an apo/semiapo + flattener or reducer kit does the same.

RVO scopes are actually individually tested to my knowledge.

I am upgrading my Lightrack II tracker to a more user and telescope friendly mount and happy to see that many fly with mounts checked-in. Until now I was considering a SA GTi, but that one would be seriously overloaded. Might still get one, but an HEQ5 would be a much more reliable support to my TSAPO906...

Tripod lengths are critical for airline travel, I am currently looking at options, how to adapt an EQ5/HEQ5 properly to an innorel RT carbon tripod.

Do you have a UVIR-blocker filter available? The tighter the better (i.e. Astronomik L3, blocking even deep blue and red). If it is an "IR converted" camera, with an IR-pass filter installed, you'll se a black screen or a VEEERY dark one calling for long exposure. If the filter was simply removed, nothing else in place, then the light meter will ask for a ~2x longer exposure.

There are some artistic mods, with filters passing above a certain visible wavelength, let's hope it's not the case. That one could be investigated with a simple DIY "spectrometer", made of a piece of DVD/CD and a fluorescent lamp.

1 hour ago, Elp said:

I had a 130PDS, I didn't use it much. It's small, but no where near as user friendly as a refractor, the volume is the issue as well as eyepiece position, you don't want to keep rotating the OTA around within it's rings, and they are also wind sails and vibrate at the slight catch of a breeze so the tripod needs to be even more sturdy. The dob would be a good one, stable mount so tripod stability is out of the equation.

I have a C5: I even mounted it on a mini tabletop photo tripod to show the Moon to the kids in the neighborhood. Perfect eyepiece position for the 3-4yr olds 😂 Also fits in a carry-on baggage on any airlines I flew with. Wouldn't try that with a 4" refractor, not to mention 5... As I recall I paid around £300 new, CA is as good as any triplets (zero). The only drawback is the slower cooldown, but again, a C5 is not a c14 in terms of thermals.

6 hours ago, vlaiv said:

It is worth noting that LiFePo4 batteries are much much safer to handle than regular lithium ion batteries - so they are good choice where premium power density is not required

(they have slightly lower power density than lithium ion batteries - while they might not be the best choice for say a drone, they are perfectly fine for this application among others - like electric cars and such).

Besides safety I really like their flat characterostics. They provide almost constant voltage until they are almost depleted. That may be particularly important for some cameras.