Tracking for a Dob...

[emadmoussa]

I've been looking around on how to add tracking capabilities to my 10" Dob. It seems there's the option of the so-called equatorial platform. Do you know if it's  effective?

[ollypenrice]

They're very effective in visual use. The devil is in the detail, notably, How fast are they to reset? They give you a certain duration of tracking, often around 15 to 20 minutes. Then they need to be rewound. Depending on the design this can be easier or more tedious.

Olly

[Laurie61]

I decided to get one and received it before Christmas, It was bought for my OO dob and it does complement the scopes ability's. I did a quick review here  http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/204807-the-watch-house-equatorial-platform/ 

When I ordered mine they had none in stock and the lead time was about a month.  

[Scooot]

I have the same one. It tracks for about 40 45 minutes. Very quick to set up, just plonk it down roughly facing north and thats usually good enough for visual observing. I haven't had any issues with the scope toppling, but my scope is f4.8.

[emadmoussa]

They're very effective in visual use. The devil is in the detail, notably, How fast are they to reset? They give you a certain duration of tracking, often around 15 to 20 minutes. Then they need to be rewound. Depending on the design this can be easier or more tedious.

Olly

rewind?

[ollypenrice]

They don't track indefinitely so need to be reset after the end of their tracking spell. The guys above are saying 40 to 45 mins for theirs, which is good. At this point they can be more or less hassle to reset to the beginning again. It depends on the design. On well designed ones I think it's easy and quick.

Olly

[emadmoussa]

They don't track indefinitely so need to be reset after the end of their tracking spell. The guys above are saying 40 to 45 mins for theirs, which is good. At this point they can be more or less hassle to reset to the beginning again. It depends on the design. On well designed ones I think it's easy and quick.

Olly

Aha, for a moment there I thought it used a 12v power plug like a normal mount. Thanks! No wires...always better.

[Pig]

I thought having a Dob was all about the experience and helpful gadgets were a big No No    

Sorry guys I couldn't resist it

[Laurie61]

It runs for about 20 hrs on one 9v battery according to the manufacturer, mine is still on its first battery having used it for 12-13 hrs. I reset the platform by lifting the corner above the drive roller, letting the platform move back to its start position, this takes about 10 sec and off you go again.    

[ollypenrice]

It runs for about 20 hrs on one 9v battery according to the manufacturer, mine is still on its first battery having used it for 12-13 hrs. I reset the platform by lifting the corner above the drive roller, letting the platform move back to its start position, this takes about 10 sec and off you go again.    

Which sounds like a good design! 

Olly

[John]

I had one of the Watchtower Eq Platforms for a while. I posted some stuff on it here:

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/186625-my-12-orion-optics-dob-with-equatorial-platform/

[Moonshane]

I made my own http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/88506-equatorial-platform-for-dobsonian-telescopes/

made a few mistakes along the way but it works well and maintains stars in field for several minutes at 500x, for long periods at 200x. runs for about 45 minutes and takes about a minute to reset but I am working on improving this time. If I spent more time doing initial alignment then it tracks more accurately but I just do a rough alignment with Polaris with a squint and it's great.

I only use it with the 6" f11 as this is long and slim and takes a few seconds to settle after every nudge but not so with the platform.

my 12" and 16" scopes settle instantly and track easily by hand even at silly magnifications with the 'put to one side, watch it drift across the field, put back to the side' approach.

making one is a lot of fun, tests your maths and DIY skills and provides an excellent solution for maybe £50-100 depending what you have already.

[SteveOD]

I have auto tracking capability on my 10" dob, was playing around with it a few weeks ago in my sitting room, after setting the auto track to track the andromeda galaxy, I fell asleep on the sofa for a few hours ( wasn't intended).

Upon waking up 3.5 hrs later all foggy brained, to my delight my dob was still tracking andromeda perfectly, albeit it was just slightly off center in my ep, but no real adjustments needed.

[emadmoussa]

Are you saying if you fall asleep your Dob is  more likely to track better? :D