Which mount?

[rockinrome]

Hello everyone!

Been a member for a while, but this is my first post....

I have a Vixen 110mm modified Mak and looking for a simple sturdy EQ platform.

My research has led me to either the Celestron Omni CG-4 EQ or the SkyWatcher EQ5 Deluxe (which look identical to me).

Do any of you own these/have comment please. I would love to stick around the £200ish mark.

Thanks in advance.

[helicalwave]

I believe that Celestron and Sky Watcher use the same manufacturer, so that's why they look the same.

[MartinB]

Either should be fine

[rowan46]

the cg4 has a slightly more stable tripod and I believe the bearings are slightly better

[rockinrome]

Much appreciated all.

I was erring on the side of Celestron, so that's good news.

regards

[Schorhr]

I have a 102/1300 Mak on Astro3, not sure how much bulkier the 110mm is, but this could be a budget solution as the astro 3 sells used pretty darn cheap (for example Skylux or bresser with a 70/700 or 900):

[Naemeth]

the cg4 has a slightly more stable tripod and I believe the bearings are slightly better

Agreed, the CG4 should be a good bet .

Hope it goes well for you.

[rockinrome]

Again, much appreciated. This forum rocks!

[rockinrome]

Just to complete and update this post as you were very kind to reply to it.
I did get the OMNI CG-4 (from FirstLight optics) and it is indeed a perfect, very sturdy platform for the Vixen.

Regards

[jonathan]

I have the Omni CG-4, I love it.  The motorised tracking upgrade is good too.  It handles my 150P / 100 refractor fine.  I did try the 8SE on it once but it was a bit of a delicate balancing act, wouldn't recommend it for anything bigger than a 6SE.

One thing about the motorised tracking upgrade package - after doing some digging on the internet it seems that many of the D cells available are in fact just re-packaged AA cells in a large package, the capacity is not nearly as high as it should be for the battery size.  I bought some D cell adaptors which take AA cells, works a treat in the supplied D cell battery holder, although they are fiddly to take in and out so I went one step further - the battery pack is just on the end of a plug, and as I was only using AA batteries anyway I decided to attach an AA battery holder to the end of a wire and plug that would fit the existing connection, so now I have a much smaller battery pack for just a bit of simple soldering and a few Pounds spent at the local electrical hobby shop.  Works just as well, and batteries are much easier to replace.

[RichieP]

Hang on a mo. The CG4 is the equivalent of the Skywatcher EQ3-2 not the EQ5. The CG5 is the equivalent of the EQ5.

[rowan46]

Hang on a mo. The CG4 is the equivalent of the Skywatcher EQ3-2 not the EQ5. The CG5 is the equivalent of the EQ5.

Ritchie you are right my old eyes are playing tricks I was sure it said eq3. Nonetheless the cg4 will be more than adequate for the vixen 110

[rockinrome]

Just to clarify the legs on the OMNI CG-4 are tubular as opposed to "flat" like on the EQ3-2 (the middle leg slides inside the outer 2). The CG-4 is MUCH sturdier.

The head may be the same, but I cannot tell from images.