ADM Dual Saddle Upgrade

[DRT]

I recently bought an AZ-EQ6 GT and really love it apart from one thing, the saddles, which flop around a little and have an annoying trait that both screws need to be adjusted in tandem otherwise they get stuck. I have had two instances when I thought they were clamped around the dovetail only to find that it wa still loose and the screws had just become tight due to slight misalignment.

I have ADM Vixen saddles on my Ercole and they are extremely easy to use and very solid. I therefore looked into upgrading my AZ-EQ6 with the ADM saddles and gulped at the £240 price tag!

Has anyone upgraded to these and if so do you feel it was money well spent?

Any tips on how to make the standard saddles work better would be appreciated. 

[michaelmorris]

I may have misunderstood what you are after, but FLO have them for £120

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/adm-replacement-saddles/adm-dual-saddle-upgrade-for-heq5-neq6-avx-zeq-ioptron.html

[Neil27]

14 minutes ago, michaelmorris said:

I may have misunderstood what you are after, but FLO have them £120

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/adm-replacement-saddles/adm-dual-saddle-upgrade-for-heq5-neq6-avx-zeq-ioptron.html

I think Derek may mean the price for 2!

Having one of these mounts myself, this is my next upgrade as they are very well engineered.

[moriniboy]

If you need a Losmandy fixing then there's not a lot you can do.

I bought a Vixen only ADM saddle and a new puck and tapped some holes to suit the revised centres, all's been well since.

[DRT]

1 hour ago, michaelmorris said:

I may have misunderstood what you are after, but FLO have them for £120

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/adm-replacement-saddles/adm-dual-saddle-upgrade-for-heq5-neq6-avx-zeq-ioptron.html

Yes, that's them, but as Mike points out above I would need two. 

4 minutes ago, moriniboy said:

If you need a Losmandy fixing then there's not a lot you can do.

I bought a Vixen only ADM saddle and a new puck and tapped some holes to suit the revised centres, all's been well since.

The ADM in the link above takes both Losmandy and Vixen bars. Good to know you are pleased with yours though. 

[SkyGibbon]

Same mount here, only Orion brand. Yes, it is a pain with the locking bolts. I usually just turn each a quarter turn, alternating from one to the other. I don't notice any flop in mine though. But, I also would like to change mine out, so I will be looking to see if there is a cheaper solution. I haven't found one. I have dual vixen ADM saddles on a vixen bar and love the setup on my AVX, so I may just spend the money and probably will be getting the best out there available.

 

Love the mount too.

[DRT]

18 minutes ago, SkyGibbon said:

I don't notice any flop in mine

That's interesting. I wonder if we have slightly different saddles?

When I say "flop" what I mean is that the top (locking) part of the saddle that has the locking bolts going through it has some play between the bolts and the holes they go through. I haven't measured them but at a guess it is 10mm bolts going through a 12mm hole. As a result the locking mechanism does not sit square to the mounting plate when tightened.

I suspect I will bite the bullet and pay for the upgrade as the thought of a wobbly moment or a false lock with a 15kg £2,000 scope in my arms in the dark terrifies me

[DRT]

The bullet has been bitten. Two ADM saddles now incoming from FLO

 

[SkyGibbon]

I just need to convince the wife. She sees the issues as a inconvenience not a necessity.

 

Hope they do well, as I am sure they will.

 

And, yes, my bolts do flop a little unless the are tight.

[DRT]

The ADM saddles are now fitted and look very secure

 

Monty seems quite impressed, or perhaps he's just telling me it's dinner time

 

[Stu]

They look excellent Derek, very secure.

[John]

The APM hardware seems very well made. I guess Skywatcher have to hit a price point with their gear which is otherwise excellent for what you pay but it's always bothered me that the compromise seems to be made to parts which could cause such an expensive outcome if they fail

The standard dovetail clamps on the Skytee II were rather weak as well and the APM upgraded clamps made such a difference to peace of mind that they justified the additional cost.

Looks very nice now Derek

[DRT]

Another benefit of these over the supplied clamps is that the clamping surface of the ADMs are almost twice as long, which should add even further stability and grip.

[DRT]

I used these new saddles for the first time today and I must say they are a huge improvement in terms of ease of use and stability when mounting and unmounting large scopes. Very pleased

 

[spaceboy]

Worth the investment then mate

[Paul73]

Good buy Derek

Mine work a treat. I wouldn't trust anything else with more than 5kg.

When you think of £££ of scope smashing into the ground..... Suddenly £120 doesn't seem that much!

Glad that the urge to shop is still strong!

Paul

[DRT]

37 minutes ago, Paul73 said:

Glad that the urge to shop is still strong!

So much so that I am hovering over the "buy" button to order two more to replace the vixen ADM saddles on my Ercole with these dual saddles

 

[Paul73]

I find that the indecision gives me headaches.....

Best just hit the button (again)!

Paul