Ags

Found a thread on a German forum, one user has tested it successfully with 10kg load for visual use successfully, seemingly with a mak-newt, so both load and length.. Unfortunately I can't seem to link to it.

Half the weight of a HEQ5PRO head though! I've been using an AZGTi for years, so had quite forgotten about physical hand controllers... I am scanning for reviews of this mount but so far nothing.

Not sure on this. Doesn't the EQ5 also have 144 RA teeth? The EQM-35 has more. Not sure how much of an issue the servo motors are. The AVX also uses servos and seems well-respected.

Harmonic mounts are great but not cheap. The AL55i may be all I need for EQ tracking for my small refractors and C6, with the added bonus of AZ operation too.

I remember when my grandson was 6. I had a NexStar 4SE then and he was an enthusiatic observer. Binoculars are not easy to use... they are shaky, you have to align the eyepieces with the eyes, they're heavy... with the 4SE I could point the scope at .e.g. the Moon and the target would stay in the field of view. Also, far higher magnification can be used and you can be sure that any kid is going to be amazed at a close-=up look at the Moon or a planet.

What scope is going on this setup?

My partner and I are talking a lot about a move to sunnier climes. The south of France is our current fixation. I have the option to work from anywhere, so why not?

I have a Celestron 6" SCT and I live in Bortle 8/9. I can still see plenty of stuff. These days I mostly observe with the 6.3 reducer fitted, but if it wasn't fitted I would tend to use 12 mm and 9 mm EPs as my higher power options.

But... which six came and which six went?

Gorgeous!

I am intrigued. I am going to try photograph my ash with ASI485MC. I will collect several loads of ash and take a couple of 10-minute subs next to the ash and away from the ash.

How can this be? Surely the ash I scrape out of my fireplace is exactly as radioactive and the wood I feed into it? My fireplace seems to work on the basis of chemical combustion, not nuclear fusion. But perhaps I am doing it wrong?

Rain doubled down today. Garden flooded.

I am planning on setting up a decoy telescope a few miles away. It should attract the clouds, and then I can nip out for a quick look.

This looks really interesting! Was it really simple to install? I only have basic DIY skills.

I have been informed by one supplier that the mount "probably" does not support Alt-Az mode, despite having a 0-90 latitude range. That's really silly, and if it is the case I am sure they will eventually bring out a firmware option supporting Alt-Az (like they did for the EQ variant for the AZ-GTi). But if this is true, the mount becomes less interesting to me. Of course it can be used as an Alt-Az mount by setting the RA axis vertical, but the firmware needs to support using both motors for Alt-Az tracking. At least it could be used as a motorized dob, even if it doesn't have tracking or goto. I would like tracking, but unlikely to use goto.

The reason I had 2 AZ-GTi mounts was because the first one had a bad case of "DEC runaway" regardless of what firmware was on it. I was hoping to use as an EQ tracker if I could at least get the RA axis smooth (I wouldn't need DEC and if DEC still did its runaway thing, I could even disconnect the DEC motor). So I will just see if anyone wants it for scrap parts and move on to something new and shiny.

Wish my books would sell like that 🤣

Grabbed a brief session while the clouds weren't looking! Jupiter was very steady in my 90 mm refractor and I could easily pick out the details in the four visible belts. The four Galilean moons showed anice range of magnitudes and colors, and a few field stars were visible despite the Jovian glare. I then tried viewing the Pleiades with a few different eyepieces in my 50 mm RACI, as a test session for a bare-bones travel setup. I settled on my NLV 12 as offering the most aesthetic view at 3mm exit pupil and 17x magnification. I think it might just work as a holiday setup! The little scope can't tolerate any higher magnification. Finished off with a quick peek at the Double Cluster, which has to be my favorite object in the sky. But then the clouds spotted me and quickly covered up the gap they had carelessly left open.

No, movement seems free and easy... New mount! New mount!

I tested the overhauled mount tonight and it the 'ticking' behavior is unchanged. I have an "I'm getting a new mount" feeling. Who needs two AZ-GTis anyway?

I had a chance to try out the finder with a few eyepieces tonight. The Svbony 3-8 is out - the little scope has terrible astigmatism, but the NLV 12 mm was ok, especially as I could wear my glasses with that EP. If I do go with this plan, maybe I will just take my NPL20 and NLV 12 - I can wear my glasses with both.

I am looking at doing a brief trip to Greece in a few months, so if take just a backpack, what can go? Leaving photography aside, and assuming I sensibly leave some room for a change or two of clothes and a toothbrush, I am thinking my 50 mm RACI finderscope and AZT6 mount head might be the plan. A 20 mm plossl gives 5 degrees FOV, and my indispensable Svbony 3-8 gives 2.5 degrees FOV at the wide end and 70 mag at the sharp end, which is further than I would normally push the amici prism of the finder. Add my CF tripod and I am good to go, right? Maybe I will squeeze in my NLV 12 mm for a 3 degree field - I think that will be the best balance between magnification and sharpness, using one on my best eyepieces. I'd normally take some star maps, but I guess I'll just work from my phone. I might take a very underused OIII filter and try and catch some nebulae - depending on when we go, I might be able to try and finally catch sight of the Veil. I could go smaller and more upmarket with my Askar FMA 135, but I think 30 mm aperture is too restrictive. And then I will want to pack the AZ-GTi, battery, laptop, camera... Let's not go there! At least with but the 50 mm I won't need to bother with a counterweight for the AZT6 - I find I need one even when using a relatively small Zenithstar 66. I will need to attach an RDF to the setup, yes I need one even with a finderscope. Has anyone tried a similar setup on holiday? I suppose this would be similar to taking binoculars but with a little more flexibility and stability.

Very likely, AI assisted night vision to pierce through the light pollution.

ISO8601!