Eye piece and spotter scope always in an odd position

[stargazerlily]

Hi everything,

Bit of a silly one this ... but no matter how much I try, I always end up with the eye piece and/or spotter scope in an position.

I can align the mount to Polaris no problem ... I can mount to tube onto the mount and balance it ... no problem ... but when I turn the whole thing round to point at, say Jupiter, the spotter scope (and/or eye piece) is either under the tube or at some odd angle.   So I loosen the nuts to rotate the tube ... then it slips and I have to re-balance it all again ... argh!!

Are there any tricks of the trade ... or hints etc to prevent this sort of thing from happening or is it just one of those things

Many thanks

Pete

[Bizibilder]

Eventually you will find a position for the tube where the eyepiece is accessible most of the time.  Some folk put an extra tube ring on, adjacent to one of the regular rings, which prevents the tube slipping when the regular rings are loosened in order to rotate the scope tube.

[stargazerlily]

Hi Roger,

That's a great tip about the extra tube ring, thanks.

Pete

[Astro Imp]

Want an extra ring here's a great "how to" article: -http://www.astro-baby.com/articles/rotating%20rings/Rotating%20Rings%20Project.htm

[stargazerlily]

Want an extra ring here's a great "how to" article: -http://www.astro-baby.com/articles/rotating%20rings/Rotating%20Rings%20Project.htm

Hi Alan,

Perfect!!!!  A great "how to" article.  Thanks for the link and Big Thanks to Astro Baby

Pete

[Charic]

Hi everything,

Bit of a silly one this ... but no matter how much I try, I always end up with the eye piece and/or spotter scope in an position.

I can align the mount to Polaris no problem ... I can mount to tube onto the mount and balance it ... no problem ... but when I turn the whole thing round to point at, say Jupiter, the spotter scope (and/or eye piece) is either under the tube or at some odd angle.   So I loosen the nuts to rotate the tube ... then it slips and I have to re-balance it all again ... argh!!

Are there any tricks of the trade ... or hints etc to prevent this sort of thing from happening or is it just one of those things

Many thanks

Pete

stargazerlilly...........Hi. There is nothing abnormal about what your experiencing, or how you correct the issue. Its exactly the reason I chose the Dobsonian mount over an EQ/GEM mount. My issues were on the Celestron 127EQ. That's  quite a small telescope, and slippage wasn't such an issue, however on an 8" scope it would cause problems. For me, I  had to change. It was too much faffing about, and not enough viewing. The extra tube ring could be an option. Hope you work something out.

[Bobble]

Hi there, Pete.

My solution was to put together a pair of wilcox rings.

With a couple of gear clamps and some tubing this DIY mod does the trick.

Google up "wilcox rings" for more info if your interested in this easy and effective solution.

Regards

Bob

[nickd]

Hi Pete,

Not sure I understand the problem correctly as I am just learning myself but...  I found this useful, maybe you will too.  This guy makes it look easy:

Hope it helps.

Nick.

[esxste]

Another tip I've recently picked up, which might do as a stopgap is to balance the scope, then use tape or a marker to mark where the tube should sit.

Another simple trick is to put the scope in a horizontal position before rotating the tube.

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