Skytee II mount slow motion controls turns=degrees

[Knighty2112]

After a slow day again I decided to work out what a full turn on the slow motion control equates to in degrees on my Skytee II mount. So from having my telescope absolutely vertical (with the help of my trusty boat level) when mounted on my Skytee II mount I then wound the slow motion control until I had completed just about bang on 36 full turns measured off the locking screw on the slow motion cable until the telescope was nice and horizontal. So for the 90 degrees change every turn of the slow motion control equates to 2.5 degrees with these 36 turns. I worked this out to be exactly the same in the horizontal plane too. This should make it a little easier for any Skytee II user who needs to star hop to any targets in the night sky. Going to try it out on the next clear night with some help from Skysafari to work out the degree of separation between objects etc.  

[John]

Interesting Gus.

So when we hear Skytee II users counting to themselves we will know what they are up to

 

[Knighty2112]

Yep! Better than counting sheep at least John!  

[laudropb]

Very interesting information. I will have a go with mine and see if it is the same.

[Paul73]

Good work! That will make things easier.

Any idea what a moderate nudge of my Dob equates to?

Paul

[Knighty2112]

53 minutes ago, laudropb said:

Very interesting information. I will have a go with mine and see if it is the same.

I need to now work out a way to be able to utilise this well out in the dark when observing. Clearly looking at the locking screw turn around at the end of the cable is not an option, so there needs to be something on the knob that we turn, so this will be something best done by feel when using the mount. So for example a small protrusion on the edge on the knob so I know what position it is in before I then turn it needs to be implemented. Watch this space!  

[Knighty2112]

49 minutes ago, Paul73 said:

Good work! That will make things easier.

Any idea what a moderate nudge of my Dob equates to?

Paul

After extensive testing I've worked out that a moderate nudge moves the scope just a little, whilst a heavier nudge moves it a lot! Hehe!  

[Knighty2112]

OK, going to try version no; 1 mod to the slow motion knobs; I've drilled a hole through the edge of each knob all the way into the centre part and fitted a long pin that will protrude from the edge of the knob by about half an inch. Just applied some gorilla glue, so going to leave it overnight to set fully. Hopefully tomorrow they'll be nicely secured. Fingers crossed!  

If all goes well then I should be able to 'feel' what position the knobs are in when I apply any star hoping settings to gauge the correct distance moved by the mount. If the pins protrude too far out so it impedes easy rotation of the knobs I should be able to trim them down via trial and error with my dremmel to a suitable length if required.  

[Knighty2112]

Update:

After setting all night and cleaning up some of the excess Gorilla glue (it expands out like a foam after setting) the results are as the images below. Turning them by hand seems OK and the pin doesn't seem to get in the way at all, plus protruding just a half inch allows me to be able to gauge well by feel what position the knob is in before I do any turns to it. All in all pleased so far, but now need a clear sky later on tonight to test it all in the field!