balancing your scope....

[bigbox]

Hi guys, Whats the best way to actually balance your scope? Some say to do the R.A first, others say do the DEC 1st... Does it really matter which way around you do it, so long as its balanced?

[keithatrochdale]

IIRC there is a good video on YouTube worth a quick look.

[Quatermass]

This might help

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[keithatrochdale]

This was the one I was thinking of, he does a few more too:

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[andrew s]

If it is balanced it is balanced no matter how you get there! Just remember for a GEM you need to balance the tube with respect to the Dec axis both with the tube horizontal and vertical (assuming the Dec axis is horizontal) as well as the single balance about the RA axis. The same principle applies to a fork mount but the details are different.

Andrew.

[Robert L Clark]

Just keep in mind that balanced means balanced in all positions. A typical screw-up (one that I have done twice) is to get the center of gravity directly above an axis. The result is stability in exactly that position but a slight adjustment makes it unstable.

RLC