Calling all Moonlite stepper motor focuser owners...

[Takahashi]

Is there a (safe) way to disengage the motor gears so that I can slide the barrel to roughly the focus length I need, then re-engage them to then utilise the motor's precision? I've visited the Moonlite webby recently, and they seem to have addressed this issue in recent models, adopting a clutch-dial approach, but short of shipping the whole kit 'n' kaboodle off to the U. S. of A. to get it retro-fitted (if that's even possible) right at the start of the good season, at likely high-cost for both shipping and re-jiggling, is there a safe way to do so with my current setup?

This is the model I have, the CFL 2.5" :

[harry page]

Hi

You can loosed this screw but all it does is let you rotate the motor position

Do you want to move the focuser a large amount every time then ?

Harry

[Takahashi]

Hi Harry, thanks for the reply...

Yep, I just find it inconvenient to have to wait while the barrel travels almost its entire length sometimes (at motor speeds) when I change setup, e.g. between camera & eyepiece, or sometimes even between eyepieces, so would like to find out if I can safely do so without damaging or misaligning anything. Also, it can take tens of seconds of travel at times just to discover I'm racking it in the wrong direction to reach focus, only to have to reverse direction and go all the way back! I can only assume this issue was raised by others, since there is now a clutch mechanism on newer models to accommodate this.

[Takahashi]

...aaaaand, I've since learned from Ron @ Moonlite that they do an upgrade for the older models, at a fairly reasonable price, but with the unfortunate complication of being without the focuser for X amount of weeks while it ships between here and the U.S and back again.

Still, I'd rather go without for a short time than have to go through all that palaver when I change eyepiece etc...

[Takahashi]

OK, just an update... sent the focuser off to Ron, who upgraded it in very quick fashion, and I now have a very much more usable telescope as a result. No more waiting 5 minutes to go from eyepiece to eyepiece focal point, or eyepiece to camera focal point etc. The motorised (only) version would have been a great observatory instrument, where everything could be computer controlled 24/7, but on my mobile "pack-car-n-run" setup, it was a real hindrance. Now, I have the convenience of quick manual focus, with the mega-precision of the stepper-drive only a clutch-turn away. However, there is a HUGE caveat to this upgrade process, for UK owners... :

My shipping cost to Ron in Pennsylvania, one-way, was just over £80 due to the weight and value, and the return cost, while cheaper, was still ridiculous, and came with a near-criminal customs charge of over £30! This means I paid Ron (Moonlite) the paltry sum of £49 to refit the focuser with the clutch, with an additional £18.50 to drill & tap the flange to allow fitting and anchoring of the (new, replacement) stepper-drive assembly. All in all, I paid £67.50 for the upgrade job, and over £150 for shipping. I'm in the process of contacting C&E to claim back £25 they've tried to charge me for "Import VAT"... hilarious, considering they already charged me the same thing when I originally bought the focuser. Nice little cash-generator they have there...