Converting 300P Auto dob to Synscan

[paulhutch]

A friend of mine has said that all I need is a synscan handset to convert my 300P Auto dobsonian (Skywatcher) to a full Synscan GO-TO. Can anyone confirm this is true? The 300P Synscan is around £1400 but the handset is only £150, as I only paid £950 for my auto surely can't be true as for £1100 I could have a GOTO thus saving £300. Thanking you in advance.

[Cornelius Varley]

That's all you need to do. You wil probably need to find the correct handset to mount cable as well if you purchase a secondhand V3 handset.

Peter

[SeedyF]

Yep, it's true. When I wanted the 250 last year I was trying to do the same thing. Only to discover that I couldn't source a 250 Auto anywhere. I was gutted. So splashed out on the GOTO itself

There were quite a few threads on here about doing it at that time (say August last year)

[chesty]

can this also be done with my 200p flextube auto ?

[SeedyF]

can this also be done with my 200p flextube auto ?

I believe it can. Have a look at the threads below, these were helping me last year. I was genuinely considering buying a small goto on an AZ tripod and swapping the handsets so the 250 dob could be upgraded to a goto and I would still have a grab and go set up as well. I had my heart set on a 250 dob though so when I couldn't source an auto version I abandoned those plans.

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/104279-skywatcher-dob-auto-to-goto-conversion/page__hl__%2Bskywatcher+%2Bauto+%2Bsynscan+%2Bconvert

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/47354-goto-for-skywatcher-flextube-auto-dobs-is-a-reality/#post1360399

[dtr42]

yes the 200 flex auto can be made goto as, i have one, it was an auto originally and the synscan was added just b4 the guy sold it to me

[chesty]

nice one thats got me thinking cheers guys

[paulhutch]

yes the 200 flex auto can be made goto as, i have one, it was an auto originally and the synscan was added just b4 the guy sold it to me

What handset would I need? Is it just a case of getting a second hand GO-TO unit and plugging it in? After a little bit of research they vary from £149 to £329 (New) and I'm a little confused to which one I need.

[Cornelius Varley]

The V3 handset costs about £150. You may also need to purchase suitable cable to connect the handset to the mount and a firmware update cable

.

Peter

[66mikeg]

I believe that the latest beta firmware upgrade includes both AZ and EQ fuctionality in the same release and relies on the mount to diferentiate, so you may get away with one handset.

[brantuk]

You want the "AZ Synscan Goto Replacement Handset". That's what it's officially called. Mine works perfectly - I took it off a brand new AZ Synscan Goto mount and simply switched the handsets - they are interchangeable. Then I sold the spare mount as an AZ Tracking mount. You'll need version 3.0 or above - avoid the older pre V3.0 handsets cos they don't work with the auto dobs. I've no experience of the dual eq/az handsets so can't comment there.

[paulhutch]

As always, thank you all very much, I will let you know how I get on. I am so pleased I plumped for the auto. I love saving a few quid and if this works (and I see no reason why it shouldn't) then I've saved quite a lot and got a GOTO 12 inch dob in with the bargain.

[freeflyjay]

I was gonna do that then they withdrew the auto, probably because every one was just buying the auto and changing the handset, my plan was to get the auto and buy a mount with a synscan swap them over then sell the mount as tracking as others have done (seems the best value and you get to sell the mount on) , in the end picked up a second hand 10" manual dob, but i still love it.

[chesty]

let us know how you get on paul hopefully i will doing the same around xmas time

[paulhutch]

I will let you all know how I get on, as of yet I'm undecided on how I'm going to go about this. Second hand mounts with controllers are going for around £100-£150, So I could do that and put my travel scope on the mount and swap handsets so the TS converts into an auto. I could buy a (Pre owned) Skywatcher 127 SC for around £270 and just swap the controller and re sell the 127 for around the same price give or take £40 or I could just buy the new controller, lead and PC connection for £170, failing that I could buy a brand new (SkyWatcher Mercury 707 SynScan AZ GOTO 70mm Refractor Telescope) for around £210, swap the handsets and sell the brand new auto frac for, I don't know say £140, someone saves £70 and so do I. Like I said (Once I've made my mind up) I'll let you know how I get on. Thanks for all the advice. Paul

[crashtestdummy]

i was lead to believe that the motors on the goto are more powerful than the ones on the auto so you may find the goto function slow process.i have a 300p auto and looked into it for the future and thats what i saw,£150 for the remote plus a cable but weaker motors.maybe the motors can be upgraded too?

[dtr42]

motors are fine on my 200 flex which was auto and is now a goto . dont know if they were bigger motor in the goto but if your happy with the auto motor then it should make no difference as, it is only the software part that is diffrent you can still use the up/down,left/right button on the synscan like an auto and it would drive the motor the same way

[crashtestdummy]

just wondering why the 300p goto would be £500 more expensive if it was just a £150 controller difference.

[paulhutch]

motors are fine on my 200 flex which was auto and is now a goto . dont know if they were bigger motor in the goto but if your happy with the auto motor then it should make no difference as, it is only the software part that is diffrent you can still use the up/down,left/right button on the synscan like an auto and it would drive the motor the same way

just wondering why the 300p goto would be £500 more expensive if it was just a £150 controller difference.

Well the box I got my base in (I still have it) said 300P Auto/Goto so I'd have to agree with the motors being the same. Skywatcher discontinued the auto because of savvy stargazers realising it was indeed just a case of plugging in a V3.X controler in and away you go. The 300P goto is £500 more as we live in 'rip off Britain'

[brantuk]

Hmmm.... I'm sure that figured in their decision - but the original motors were a bit poor with sloppy pinions - I had mine to bits and wasn't impressed with what I found. I understand they had a lot of complaints about accuracy. The autos then dissappeared from the market for a while and were upgraded to better more positive motors before re-releasing the recent goto dobs.

The older one's are fine though if you follow the manual advice for "using the keys to avoid backlash". Mine tracks an object dead center of eyepiece for a good 30 mins (at 8mm) before any noticeable drift sets in. More than enough for dso viewing imho.