Mounts

[Kevdan]

Hello All,

Ive been looking at some mounts, I will be getting a Skywatcher 250p ds but am unsure about what mount and the choices are :-

EQ5 Pro synscan Goto at £486 from FLO

or

NEQ6 Pro synscan at £927 from FLO

question is, is the difference worth £441 and what is significant about the differences, I will be entering more deeply into astro photography with the set up.

Kev.

[Tinker1947]

The 250P DS will need a NEQ6 due to the weight..

[hemihaggis]

i think with the 250pds the eq 5 would be near its limit ... then you would be adding a dslr camera ,possibly a guide scope , dew heater , and other accesories . the 6 would carry it all with room to spare

[ollypenrice]

You absolutely do need an NEQ6 for a ten inch Newt. The smaller mount couldn't hold it well enough by a long way. It's pushed with an 8 inch so it would be hopeless for imaging with a ten. A ten inch Newt as an imaging scope is not a toy!!

Olly

[Kevdan]

Thanks guys,

I had a feeling it may have been about the size and weight but the EQ5 does look quite meaty, shame about the replies though I could have got so much more kit instead.

Kev.

[hemihaggis]

i had a 200 pds for a short while , it was a vey good scope

[valleyman]

Photograph is very expensive, but the one item you must not skimp on is the mount

It has to be the 6 with a 250

[Cornelius Varley]

Thanks guys,

I had a feeling it may have been about the size and weight but the EQ5 does look quite meaty, shame about the replies though I could have got so much more kit instead.

Kev.

The EQ5 may look meaty but compared to the EQ6 it is a lightweight. I wouldn't even put the 250 on a HEQ5.

Peter

[The_PSY3NTIST]

I wish I'd have gone for the eq6 with my 200p

[Neil McRae]

With my 200P and a camera fitted on an EQ5 Synscan it is at its maximum and I believe on an HEQ5 also resulting in star trailing on long exposures so definitely the NEQ6

Neil

[malc-c]

200P + camera + guide scope is right on the edge of the HEQ5's limit. A 250 would need the EQ6.

It's not just the weight, it's how stable the mount is when there's a breeze blowing on the OTA, and the EQ5 would simply not hold the 250P steady

[E621Keith]

Twice the money buys you twice as much mount. EQ5 weights 16kg, EQ6 weights 34kg.

Seriously, a EQ5 will struggle with an 8" for visual. You will be pushing it with a 10".

[The_PSY3NTIST]

34kg wow didn't realise it was that heavy!

[Chris]

If you haven't seen the 250pds in the flesh I think you will be gobsmacked at actually how big it is! I think it would kill an EQ5, please get the NEQ6 if you can affored it. I had an EQ5 and upgraded to the HEQ5 with a 200p and after using my small frac I was almost overwelmed by how big this setup was! even though the HEQ5 is considerably more sturdy than the EQ5 I wouldn't dare put a 10" Newt on it, you definately need the NEQ6 for sure

[malc-c]

This is my 200P on an HEQ5 - the 250P is another 2" in diameter and is around another 8" longer

To give you some comparison this is the same scope on an EQ5 - I'm 5' 6" if that helps

the 250P on an EQ5 wouldn't be practical.

Look how stable it looks on an EQ6

[brantuk]

NEQ6 without a doubt - anything less will give you loads of stability problems - especially in a breeze of any sort where large tubes act like a sail - and that would limit your time using it. I'd drop down to an 8" if you intend photography but you might get away with it. I've only ever used this 10"/NEQ6 combo for visual

[Photosbykev]

You can save some money by buying the EQ6 Syntrek version as you will most likely need a laptop for guiding and the photography and you should be using EQAscom to control the mount. If you buy the Synscan version the handset will just end up being completely redundant.