'How to' guide for an EQ5

[starwonder]

I have recently ordered a OOUK VX10 with a motorised EQ5 mount for observing only.  I am really looking forward to using it but I am dreading how to setup the EQ5 mount, it looks so complicated with all those levers and rotating knobs, not to mention that big long bar with weights on the end!  I was originally going to get a dob mount but I have since decided the EQ5 would be better for tracking the object I'll be looking at.

Simple things like:

How do you move the OTA once it's mounted, manually by physically pushing the OTA itself or by using a control knob on the mount, if that's what they are? 

How do you engage and disengage the tracking motors? 

I'm guessing the weights on the bar act to balance the OTA for equilibrium to ensure there is no unnecessary strain on the mount and it's bearings?  

Does it matter where the weights are positioned on the bar and also how do you gauge when equilibrium has been reached?

Any help would be greatly appreciated on how to use/setup an EQ5.

Thanks.

[RikM]

Setting up and using an equatorial mount is really quite difficult to explain, fairly easy to demonstrate, but fortunately quite easy to do...unless you have a large Newtonian on a small equatorial mount! You might have to think carefully about rotator rings or aligning the focuser with the counterweight shaft or you might not be able to comfortably reach the eyepiece.

This is probably the most comprehensive and useful guide I have come across http://www.themcdonalds.net/richard/index.php?title=Setting_Up_an_Equatorial_Mount but the best way would be to pop along to your local astronomy society and ask someone to walk you through it. It is really quite straight forward with the kit in front of you and someone to say, lock this bit, turn that bit, set that to 53°, slide the weights to here etc.

[iksose7]

Hi Starwonder, you shouldn't worry at all about setting up your EQ5, it will be very easy. Heres a link to a Youtube video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtZEgMOwFeU - i've not watched it but it should help you out. Youtube is great for things like this. I recommend the 'astronomyshed' channel. You will also get instructions with the mount which will help if you have any doubts after a bit more research

I just took delivery of my NEQ6 a couple weeks ago and was amazed how easy it was to set up, even though i was thinking the exact same thing you are at first! Best thing to do is take it easy and have fun, you will manage no bother! 

[starwonder]

Thanks guys, both of your links have provided me with exactly the information I needed to know, instructions and a demo of 'how to'.

I already feel more confident just by what I've read and seen so far, thank you.

It's also nice to know that I'm not the only one who's felt this way.

Cheers.

[philh]

And here's a Youtube link to one of the 'Astronomy Shed' videos that iksose7 mentioned: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fO6hyYtPwM

And one about using the Synscan controller: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_QOZUjgo60

Good luck!

Phil

[starwonder]

Cool, thanks for that Phil - the more info I get the better as far as I'm concerned.

I guess my most major fear is if the OTA dropped out of the dovetail, I mean it seems daft that there's only that one screw locking it in place!  What if it got loose? 

And I'd also hate the OTA to swing round and bash into the side of one of the tripod legs!  But I guess if it's properly balanced and locked in place on both axis that won't happen, right?

Not opted for the Synscan, initially I thought I couldn't find anything in the sky without one so must have GOTO but most of the planets are quite easy to find and after following a star chart managed to find two galaxies!  So think it might actually be quite fun finding stuff rather depending on a computer to do it for me.  I may change may mind later on but I have that option if needs be.

[Charic]

I have recently ordered a OOUK VX10 with a motorised EQ5 mount for observing only.  I am really looking forward to using it but I am dreading how to setup the EQ5 mount,

starwonder......You`ll be fine really, in its simplistic form  an EQ tripod/mount is positioned  on the North-South line, and facing North. The Mount  is then aligned to your Latitude.  Find your Latitude from google earth or from your own GPS gadget (phone ect) take  this figure N55 for example,  being  the angle that the mount is tilted upwards. This will allow, after some  minor adjustments, for  you to align your scope to Polaris, the celestrial North Pole. As the reason for the equatorial mount is to track  and follow the objects, which by chance, rotate around the Pole Star. As you have a  motor drive, and as long as it is correctly alligned, it will follow an object  that your looking at, centrally in the viewfinder. Thats the easy part, and the reason I text this message is, you mentioned "observing only". dont try a Dobsonian mount just yet. Enjoy the learning curve of locking, un-locking, and rotation of the Optical tube everytime  you need to re-align to a different object to track. I found the EQ mount on my recently aquired scope to be a right pain in the rear,  just too much fiddling about, and not enough viewing, and cant recommend highly enough  the Dobsonians up,down, nudge simplicity  for just Observing. The cheapy Celestron 127EQ that I recently aquired was just to see what its all about. I could fit a motor to it should I desire, but I wont, and with hindsight, Im more impressed with the books that came with it( private sale)

By the way, VX10, Nice scope .I wish you well.

[starwonder]

I'd actually convinced myself on getting a dob mount for the OTA but when I visited the OO factory on Friday the owner advised me to not get a dob mount because it's much more of a fiddle for the beginner, having to nudge the OTA in the opposite direction to follow the object in view.  He does have a point and I knew this to be the case several times when I tried my friends OOUK 8" dob and repeatedly lost Saturn in the eyepiece!  Having to then find it again with the finder scope and then carry on as before making sure I didn't nudge too much or I might lose it again.  I suppose the nudging did detract me from enjoying what I was actually looking at bit, I just wanted to look and take it all in.

The daunting look of a complicated contraption as an equatorial mount looks to me compared to a dob seemed to be enough, for me, to decide the dob was the best bet for a simple bloke like me and I was quite happy to buy it, the OO dob mount in particular is a lovely piece of precision engineering and takes up a smaller footprint than a SW.  Fortunately I have agreed with OO that if I can't get my head round using the EQ5 then I can take it back and swap it for the dob mount, can't say fairer than that can I?

I am worried about the EQ5 thing and what you have mentioned but there are also a lot of positives like gaining more height from the position of where I'll be viewing mostly from by back garden, the added height will be able to clear more of the surrounding houses for objects lower down, the higher position of the EP will mean I won't be straining my poor knees or neck and the added bonus of the motors tracking an object is a big bonus not have to nudge to keep track.  Having to unlock and lock the axis are a minor issue as far as I'm concerned, maybe they will get annoying, maybe they won't, maybe lifting the OTA onto the dovetail might be a pain after a bit but the OTA is light at only 11kg compared to some other 10" OTA's and as it's a short tube at only 1.1m it is easily manageable for me.  I don't think I'll have much of a problem with it but time will tell I guess.

I also plan to show my family what's up there in the heavens, it'll be far easier I think with the EQ mount than a dob as all they'll need to do once I've find the object initially is look in the EP, the object will always be in view.

If absolutely necessary I can always buy a dob mount as well in the future but as you said yourself Charic I think I need to at least try the EQ, I might even like it! 

[RikM]

I do hope it works out well for you. As you say, some people like Newtonians on EQ mounts for visual observing....I'm not one of them. Personally, I can't think of anything simpler to use than a Dob for visual use but, each to their own.

[starwonder]

I am puzzled by your reply RickM when your profile pic looks like a Newt on an EQ mount?

However, I do agree, I think the dob is simpler to use because there's nothing to mounting the OTA, it is the  very reason I was dead keen on getting one.  I am still not 100% with the EQ decision and may well end up taking it back to change it for a dob.  However, if I don't give it a go I guess I will never know what it's like

I'm not a big bloke or have big muscles but the OTA itself is only 11kg, even I can lift it with ease, and as it's only 1 metre long it's easily manageable for me, not like the L version which would be 1.5 metres! 

I'm prepared to give the EQ5 the benefit of the doubt as this is what I was recommended but I do agree that the dob is by far a much more simpler affair, easier to setup but not as easy to use for the reasons already explained.  You have to remember at every stage that whatever you're looking at, the next movement/nudge has to be the opposite of the normal direction, it is a bit odd, but probably something people get used to and it doesn't track the object either, although some SW's do.

However, the height advantage of the EQ will give me a distinct advantage over A) getting a bad back over long term viewing and being able to see things lower in the sky.  I was worried before that the dob may be too low down for both these issues due to high fences around my garden.

So I could cancel the EQ5 order or go with it, see how it goes and if I can't do it or I don't like it, I can take it back and swap it for the dob.  For me it's a perfect scenario and I've lost nothing in the process.  I can't say fairer than that can I? I think it's very good of OO to offer me this arrangement and I feel assured that I can't really lose, can I?

[John]

If the EQ arrangement is on a "try before you buy" basis then thats excellent, as long as you also get a chance to use a dob mount with the scope as well so you can decide which is the best for you. Stability while viewing is another factor you will want to test both mounts on. I've owned an Orion Optics 10" F/4.8 and an EQ5 and, to be honest, I'm not 100% sure the mount is up to carrying the scope solidly enough when using high magnifications. The dob design, though simple, does dampen vibrations remarkably well. 

I've owned a few EQ mounted scopes in the past but I'm now firmly in the same camp that Rik is - alt-azimuth / dobsonian mounts are for me 

[starwonder]

I'm starting to feel that my gut instinct to get a dob in the first place, as it was to get an OOUK OTA, was the right decision.  I'm not going to be doing any photography just pure observing, doesn't this make a difference which mount I buy?

But I am getting concerned now that maybe I'd have been better trying the dob first and if not satisfied with that swap it for the EQ5.  I have tried an OOUK 8" dob and was really struck with how smooth the movement was, beautiful in fact, a lovely piece of engineering excellence and dead easy to set everything up, just plonk the OTA on the dob mount and that's it, apart from collimation. Tracking is all manual of course but then there's no messing about with axis locks or pointing it North or anything else.  It would also have been easier to store the thing in the garage because I guess the OTA could have just rested vertically in the saddle of the dob?  There is indeed a lot to be said for a dob and believe me this is, or was, my preferred choice.

But tell me people don't you find you get a strain in your back or neck bending down quite low sometimes?  I know a chair or stool would help but is it that simple and does it really solve the problem?  Do you find there are issues not having enough height to see over garden fences and the like? 

[RikM]

Sorry if my avatar pic is confusing. Yes, that is a 10" Newtonian on an NEQ6 but in this configuration, is used solely for astrophotography, not for observing.

In some positions, it is too high for me to get near the eyepiece for observing (I'm a whisker off 6ft) and certainly no way for the kids to reach even with steps. The eyepiece can end up pointing in all sorts of uncomfortable directions unless you can rotate the tube in the rings. I normally use a smaller 6" Newtonian for imaging though and the 10" sits on a Dob mount for observing.

You are right that the eyepiece height of the 10" Dobs isn't the most comfortable if you are standing up for a long time. I found that a tall ironing stool is the perfect height for me to perch on and can observe with ease. If you prefer to stand while observing, then some people have used water-butt stands to sit the Dob base on to raise it up. Another alternative is a heavy duty altaz mount like a Giro or SkyTee II. I don't find it a bother that the Dob sits lower down, because at my location the atmosphere is all murky and not much good for observing low down anyway.

It is quite possible to use a Newtonian on an EQ mount though, and if OOUK give you the option to try it out and see if you like it, then kudos to them for fine customer service. The OOUK 10" is substantially lighter than the SkyWatcher, so you may find it stable enough on the lighter mount, but I would doubt it. Another thing you can do, to make it more comfortable to use a Newt on an EQ is to align the focuser/eyepiece to the counter weight shaft. It still isn't the most comfortable observing position but it does ensure you can always reach it. You may well need to re-site the finderscope though.

Being dyslexic, with left/right issues, I was very worried about using a Dobsonian at first. I started out with a 150P on an EQ3-2 as a first scope. But actually I found it took all of 15-20 seconds to get the hang of moving the Dob about.

[starwonder]

Thanks for your honest feedback RickM and to everyone for their help on this topic.

In light of what I've heard from people on SGL obviously far more experienced than me and my gut instinct I had when I first started looking at what I was going to buy, I have decided that I'm going to change my order and request the dob mount.  As although I think I could have mastered the EQ mount I'm not certain the EQ5, in particular, is the correct match for the 10".  No point the image dancing about in the EP if I want to enjoy this amazing hobby from the off, I want to see a stable image regardless of what EP I use.

Thanks all, I know what I need to do...

[RikM]

Good choice

[starwonder]

It is done, I've changed the order now.  I have tried a friends 8" OOUK dob and that was superb, hence why I wanted to get one myself in the first place.  I think I had talked myself into believing the EQ mount would be a better option all round but alas there are many factors which stargazers have aired here that I hadn't considered, thank you to everyone.

The phrase I have heard time and time again when trying to choose the right scope "the right scope is the one you'll use the most" is the underlying issue and I think I was kidding myself to think I'd have the time to spend setting up the EQ before viewing every time.  The reality is I simply don't have a lot of time in the evenings and for medical reasons I have to get to bed before midnight or I might turn into a pumpkin  !  So for some the EQ mount may be perfect but for me with limited time I think the dob is the better option, it's more likely I'll use it more frequently because I think it's so much simpler to setup and use.  Gravity is my friend with a dob, with an EQ it'd be against me because even though the OTA is light at 11kg I think hoisting it up onto the dovetail for every viewing might become a chore and possibly negate the right scope theory and that's the last thing I want to do starting out.   

[John]

Good decision I think. You can always mount the scope equatorially at some point in the future if you wish - you would just need a dovetail bar which is a low cost accessory. 

A 24 lb optical tube is not that light when you start hefting it around a fair amount. It's really easy though to carry it to the mount and just drop it into the cut outs where the altitude bearing sits. 

My 12" F/5.3 OO is really quite manageable in this way but goodness knows what sort of equatorial mount it would require if I even went down that route

Another bonus is, with our variable weather, the ability to put up and take down a scope quickly is really often rather useful !