C9.25 on HEQ5 anyone?

[kirkster501]

Well.. what about C14 on HEQ5? Although I still have to balance it with a longer counterweight shaft

That's incredible! You are a brave man !

[perfrej]

Well.. what about C14 on HEQ5? Although I still have to balance it with a longer counterweight shaft

Ouch! That clamp is so small! Any flex in that setup?

/per

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

9.25, one Lepus corrector, SX filter wheel, SBIG ST-8300M, dew controller and hood, Orion Shorttube guide scope, guide camera... That should be about it It weighs in at 17.5 actually, no joke. I had both counter weights and the shaft extender, the weights all the way out and barely made it.

I got really nice shots with it, but the NEQ6 cannot handle that load for photographic work should there be the smallest breeze or other disturbance.

Maybe most people don't realize how much weight the actually put on their mounts?

/per

Part of the problem is probably not just the weight, but the long focal length of that set-up. Guiding a 17.5 kg setup with a focal length of 800mm or the same weight at 2000mm makes a big difference.

[perfrej]

I agree. The Lepus yields 1480mm FL on my 9.25 and I did have to ditch a few subs in between good ones. I have run the same scope/reducer/camera on my new mount without guiding for 15 minutes without any hint of star trailing - and that was with just a four-star pointing model. The NEQ6 never came close to that WITH guiding...

Generally speaking, and for astrophotography specifically, I would say the mount is the most important component to not try to save money on.

/per