Ever thinking of rectifying that one big drawback......

[toilandtrouble123]

.......and that drawback is with my beloved AZ 4 mount, it really cricks my neck when trying to use my nice little SkyScout when mounted on the refractor.  It has been hibernating in its case for a long while now, and now that my other half is showing an interest in my dithering about with my set up, I'd like to bring that cool little gadget out of semi retirement no.1 for sentimentality's sake, since, the SkyScout 90 bundle was what my nan's got me to start off my set up, no.2, he might find it helpful like I did when first navigating around the sky when using a scope for the first time. Yes, smart phone apps can also do this too, but the light of the screen don't half wreck your night vision.  I have been thinking of a L-bracket style kind of addition to use in conjunction with my scope and AZ4, so the orientation of the scope would be back to how it was when the scope was on it's original (crappy) mount, so the screen and buttons of the SkyScout will no longer be facing straight to the ground.  But I would need one with a dovetail bar on the vertical length of the L bracket, to fit into the vice of the AZ4, and a vice situated in a perpendicular fashion on the horizontal length of the L bracket (kind of like a cross) to secure the dovetail bar of the refractor.  Does anyone know where I could find such a piece of equipment? or who could fabricate one for me, as Google has been of zero assistance to me on this one? Many Thanks, Nat xx

[Pig]

Nat,

Can you not simply attach it to a finer scope bracket ? or indeed replace you current finder with it ? That's what I was going to do

[toilandtrouble123]

Wont have enough clearance for both the Sky Scout's mount and new tube rings, already tried years ago.  Need a sort of L bracket since the Sky Scout is mounted via it's own special attachment, which is part of the tube rings and dove tail for the refractor.

The dove tail and Sky Scout mount are 180 degrees from each other, and when I attempted a new set of tube rings to accomodate a new dove tail 90 degrees from the Sky Scout, since the AZ4 is attached on the right side of the scope, so my theory would be the Scout would be 90 degrees from where the scopes attached, but it all got in the way of each other.

When I thought of maybe moving one set of these tube rings (remember I have one set which has the mount for the Scout molded into the tube rings, and also an immovable dove tail at the bottom - this also ensures the tube rings do not move apart so as not to break the Scout's mount.  I had another set of rings with a secondary dove tail to try attaching to the AZ4.) up or down the tube itself, but then either the Scout itself got in the way of the mount, or bashed against my finderscope. So that was a no go.

So I am left with the idea of some sort of L bracket to use, to give me that 90 degree clearance for both my mount and using the Scout as a useful lovely little on-board guide once more, not just as a hand held gimmicky little box to collect dust in the bottom of a storage container, where the majority of my other belongings are since moving back home 1 1/2yrs ago to save up for a mortgage deposit.

p.s the Scout's mount is also useful as a DSLR piggyback too!!! Although at the moment, its at a nervous angle on the side of the scope, hence the utilisation of several hair bands anchoring the DSLR to the Scout mount in the chance of the thread giving out, as it does only screw in about a third of a way.

[Pig]

Take a picture and post it as it is hard to visualise the problem.... I understand the "L" bracket idea but it seems a little complex for what you need. I am sure you know what your talking about  so no offence intended.

[toilandtrouble123]

Only have the scope with me, not Scout, in fact the L bracket would be the simplest lol! Here are pics of my DSLR where the scout should be. imagine another set of tube rings on, and imagine the issues of scout, dove tails, finder scope, and mount all getting in the way of each other.  An L bracket would so easily fix this, hence my question of where I could find one with a dove tail on the vertical to attach to the mount, and a vice to attach to the dovetail of the scope, or if someone could create one for me.

[Pig]

I see your reasoning, there is already quite a lot to fit it around.....