took the plunge !!

[beamish]

Just wanted to share this with others, this afternoon finally took the plunge and removed all of the sticky transparent gloop from the the HEQ5 and cleaned and replaced with white lithium grease. I have to say it wasn't quite as scary as I thought it'd be. It's done wonders for my confidence and understanding of how it all works-no dark art! I used the method courtesy of Ozzy' Astro pages,

http://ozastro.dyndns.org/

So I would also just like to say thanks to Phattire for his tips re power supply,

http://stargazerslounge.com/index.php?topic=15281.0

as this has certainly made a huge difference and I am thoroughly impressed with the Optimate3 . So if there are any others out there wondering if they could manage a strip-down and regrease of their mount I'd have to say bite the bullet and do it .Be methodical, ensure you're not interupted (wife/kids/pets/phone etc), ensure you have all the tools and bits you will need and make a check list and tick off as you go along andd don't panic.

There certainly appears to be an improvement in the movement.

Go for it!

Karlo

[Naz]

Brave move there Karlo, but like all things, take your time and suddenly it seems so easy, you can't understand why others are holding back. ( says he, who has been putting off the same job on an EQ3-2)

naz

[geppetto]

Well done Karlo.. 8)

Were there any tricky bits or did it all go smoothly?

[beamish]

Honestly Naz, just lay out all you need on a table with a cover of some sort and just take your time, make note and sketches if you feel you need to and just be methodical. I know you've said you've got an EQ3-2 but it can't be too different. Do an internet search for any strip-down procedures. I printed off Ozzy's and kept that beside me and ticked off each stage.

[zhgutas]

That sure makes a huge difference Karlo! Naz, I now have an eq3 as well, and the re-greasing thing wasn't that scary as I expected quite easy indeed. U just have to have ALL the tools u need BEFOREHAND and know what goes where.. Not like I did A bit of WD 40 helped to remove the old sticky bits wonderfully as well.

Marius

[beamish]

To be frank it all went pretty smoothly. Once I'd put it all back together I found a little too much play in the RA, so unafraid took it back to the table, striped it back to the stage where i could take the play out and then re-assembled. Hook it up and had it all going and it was smooooth.

Marius- I used white spirit to clean the gunk off.

[Cloudwatcher]

What did you do with all the bits you had left over after reassemble?

[centroid]

removed all of the sticky transparent gloop from the the HEQ5 and cleaned and replaced with white lithium grease.

'Sticky transparent gloop', that was obviously supposed to be an "improvement" over the 'sticky black gloop' that I had on the CG5 that I had some 5 years ago

Went through a similar process as you have, with the HEQ5. Was well worth the effort.

Dave

[beamish]

What did you do with all the bits you had left over after reassemble?

Oh those bits erm I s'pose that they may come in useful. You never know when yer might need 'em so I'll put them with the bits left over from all the other jobs, car, computer, vacuum cleaner...................

removed all of the sticky transparent gloop from the the HEQ5 and cleaned and replaced with white lithium grease.

'Sticky transparent gloop', that was obviously supposed to be an "improvement" over the 'sticky black gloop' that I had on the CG5 that I had some 5 years ago

Went through a similar process as you have, with the HEQ5. Was well worth the effort.

Dave

I was very surprised at just how sticky/slimy this stuff was, reminded me of silicone sealer !! I am so glad I've done it, "popped my cherry" as it were, no fears held now! Hooray for Ozzy !

Karlo