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slightly less than impressed

petergc

By petergc
in Discussions - Mounts

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petergc

petergc

Posted
Posted

After taking delivery of my Sky Watcher NEQ 6 mount  2 weeks ago I've used it once. I've been reading up a lot about the "bendy bolts" as I found it hard to fine adjust the latitude. I removed the mount head from the tripod and low and behold a belt bolt. So I ordered the upgrades  I received them today and after spending a good 45min removing a bent bolt I fitted the  new ones but I feel that they are not firmly holding the mount at 52ish degrees.

I'm a bit miffed as I've only used it once and the bolt was bent :(

Sorry for this rant, is there anything I could do? Or anyone who I may send / take me mount head to who may be able to modify for me?

thanks all

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Mukv

Mukv

Posted
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Greetings

I also have NEQ6 Pro and suffered with soft bolts however I set my polar alignment without a scope fitted to the mount this way there is less chance to over stress the bolts, when I used the tripod I marked the slabs where the tripod feet stood and it was easy to reset the next time out.

Andy

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Alien 13

Alien 13

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It is an anoying problem I have the EQ3-2 and was very carefull making sure i slackened one before tightening another etc but still got a bendy bolt.

The real problem i think is that the UK is not the target market so the angles are all wrong, the polar scope is too close to the bolt etc im still trying to figure a way of modding mine to fix the problem not the symptom.

Alan

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FLO

FLO

Posted
Posted

I removed the mount head from the tripod and low and behold a belt bolt. So I ordered the upgrades  I received them today and after spending a good 45min removing a bent bolt I fitted the  new ones but I feel that they are not firmly holding the mount at 52ish degrees.

I will contact FLO in the morning but I have cut the bolt now :(

We are never far away and please don't worry about having cut the bolt  :smiley:

Unfortunately it is true, the bolts are prone to bending if you are not careful because the casting the rear bolt pushes against isn't set at the best angle for our latitudes. But I am not sure from your post whether it is the mount or the replacement bolts that are troubling you. If it is the mount then we will be pleased to help. But if it is the upgraded bolts (we don't sell those) then it might be better to contact the supplier or manufacturer. 

HTH, 

Steve 

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Alien 13

Alien 13

Posted
Posted

We are never far away and please don't worry about having cut the bolt  :smiley:

Unfortunately it is true, the bolts are prone to bending if you are not careful because the casting the rear bolt pushes against isn't set at the best angle for our latitudes. But I am not sure from your post whether it is the mount or the replacement bolts that are troubling you. If it is the mount then we will be pleased to help. But if it is the upgraded bolts (we don't sell those) then it might be better to contact the supplier or manufacturer. 

HTH, 

Steve 

Steve it looks like you could be onto a winner here if there was a machined block or something that could correct the angle a bit.

Alan

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petergc

petergc

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We are never far away and please don't worry about having cut the bolt  :smiley:

Unfortunately it is true, the bolts are prone to bending if you are not careful because the casting the rear bolt pushes against isn't set at the best angle for our latitudes. But I am not sure from your post whether it is the mount or the replacement bolts that are troubling you. If it is the mount then we will be pleased to help. But if it is the upgraded bolts (we don't sell those) then it might be better to contact the supplier or manufacturer. 

HTH, 

Steve 

Hi Steve

Its just the crabby bolts I believe the mount is fine but feel cheated by Sky watcher as I'm sure many others do. I'm just having a moan. Nothing against you guys because your service is impeccable.

I will call tomorrow :)

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FLO

FLO

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Steve it looks like you could be onto a winner here if there was a machined block or something that could correct the angle a bit.

I think an SGL member already offers an upgrade kit that provides an angle better suited to our latitude. I'll see if I can find the thread. 

Steve 

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FLO

FLO

Posted
Posted

Hi Steve

Its just the crabby bolts I believe the mount is fine but feel cheated by Sky watcher as I'm sure many others do. I'm just having a moan. Nothing against you guys because your service is impeccable.

I will call tomorrow :)

Thank-you Peter :smiley:

The bolts are actually okay, the problem lies with the casting they screw against. Whilst it does work it isn't set at the optimum angle for our latitude. Some more expensive mounts offer screw on plates suited to different latitudes but unfortunately Skywatcher don't. Regarding the third-party stiffer bolts, they are less prone to bending but they can chew up the casting so you still need to be careful to unscrew one bolt before screwing in the other and try not to make significant adjustments with the mount fully loaded. 

HTH, 

Steve 

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tekkydave

tekkydave

Posted
Posted

I would return it for a refund.

This was not a dig at FLO as I know they give excellent service having purchased from them myself. It's a shame that such a venerated mount on this forum seems to suffer from this design flaw. This is something Skywatcher should be looking at and fixing.

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petergc

petergc

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This was not a dig at FLO as I know they give excellent service having purchased from them myself. It's a shame that such a venerated mount on this forum seems to suffer from this design flaw. This is something Skywatcher should be looking at and fixing.

I completely agree. I knew about the issues before I bought the mount but as I've only used it once it really annoying. Apart from this I cant flaw it (compared to my 3-2 is solid). The upgraded bolts seem stronger yet I cant help feel that they don't hold the mount steady enough. I don't want to be shooting the night sky without a solid mount "every imager starts with a solid mount"

I want to be purchasing My SW ED 80 in the next few weeks and plan to take it on my hols. Tripping to Minehead and Exmoor national park is a short car journey away.

I just felt the need to let off some steam to like minded people who would understand.

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Wolfgangwand

Wolfgangwand

Posted
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On a side note , I like most others have a few interests and hobbies away from astronomy and I must say that I've never heard of a supplier of equipment answering queries direct or not at something past 10 at night , Forum sponsors or not.

Service and care in your customers seems first class to say the very least. Think I'll be looking to make my purchases through FLO when possible as it speaks volumes for your company . 10/10 for putting the OPs mind at rest until morning.

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tekkydave

tekkydave

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On a side note , I like most others have a few interests and hobbies away from astronomy and I must say that I've never heard of a supplier of equipment answering queries direct or not at something past 10 at night , Forum sponsors or not.

Service and care in your customers seems first class to say the very least. Think I'll be looking to make my purchases through FLO when possible as it speaks volumes for your company . 10/10 for putting the OPs mind at rest until morning.

Indeed. I will be in the market for a better mount at some point, probably a Celestron AVX as it will work with my Starsense and GPS accessories apart from being an excellent mount. FLO will be my first option as I know I will get good service.
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FLO

FLO

Posted
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Currently waiting on my replacement.

I am not aware of anyone waiting for a replacement so I guess you must have purchased it elsewhere. Hopefully you will be back up and running soon :smiley:

I don't want to downplay the niggles mentioned here but, to be fair to Skywatcher, the NEQ6-PRO is a hugely popular mount that outperforms everything else at it's price-point. Skywatcher also offer the more expensive AZ EQ6-GT with the NEQ6 PRO creases ironed out. 

Steve 

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petergc

petergc

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Like I said can't fault the mount itself just the crabby bolts and lack of attention to the alt part of the mount. After the first complaints came in you would think Skywatcher would of maybe came up with an add on like Steve mentions above :)

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nightfisher

nightfisher

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I think an SGL member already offers an upgrade kit that provides an angle better suited to our latitude. I'll see if I can find the thread. 

Steve 

Steve, you really do go the extra mile

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