Five minutes with my new EQ5

[heathenwoods]

Well, new to me. Despite all other household budget considerations I decided that, when faced with an EQ5 with a new dual tracking motor set and a couple of decent weights for £140 I couldn't say "no" so I picked it up last Friday. Having got some rings for my ex-dob mounted 150PL (and after a mild panic as one of the fixing nuts from the dob mounting fell on my main mirror when I disassembled it) and covered the bolt holes in the OTA in the best bodge I could muster, off out into the night I went. WEll, for the ten minutes I managed before the clouds came rolling in.

Polar alignment was a lot easier than I feared. Set the latitude to (very!) roughly 53 degrees, point the thing North (thanks iPad app) and peer through the hole where the polar alignment scope should be... there's the pole star, nudge it to the middle with the nobs on either side of the mount fitting notch and there we go...

And what a ten minutes! I could actually concentrate on looking at Jupiter and not on keeping the 'scope pointing where it should be. It was the most relaxed time I've had star gazing; I was also able to use my TMB II 8mm in anger for the first time and not watch the planet flit across teh screen but stay in the centre of view and let me have a much better look at it than I have done before.

I'm truly impressed by the EQ5 and it I think it makes so much more sense for a 6" scope than a dob mount. Well worth it.

[cantharis]

Glad you are enjoying your EQ5 - you have the same setup that I currently do. GEM tracking is certainly the business, makes Dob mounts look just so end of the pier.