EQ3 issues

[Dan-G]

Hello!

I've recently bought a Skywather 102/1000 refracting telescope mounted on an EQ3 with aluminum tripod.

The optics are okay, but I'm very disappointed by the low quality of the mount. Here's why.

1)First of all, it is too wobbly for my taste.

2)Then, the latitude markings are off by about 10 degrees from the vertical/horizontal. This is not a functional problem, rather an eye sore. Can it be fixed? I guess not. The black plates seem to have been glued into place.  

3)There are two marks on the mount for setting the declination circle but they are not on the same diagonal, meaning they don't show the same declination. One of them is on the declination knob assembly, which is slightly rotated so as to not hit the telescope. Does this second indicator have any meaning? I don't think so.

 

4)Hard as I tried, I was unable to attach the round cover to the polar scope (the part where you are supposed to stick it in). Do you need a polar scope to be able to attach it? 

5)The manual is very light, it should really more information on the mount. For instance, what's the use of the piece I've marked by a red circle? 

 

[wookie1965]

The setting circles on those are rubbish unusable really. To gain stability fill the legs with play sand keep tapping the legs to compact it you can then hang a weight to the tripod accessory tray not too heavy. You can get the HEQ5 tripod which fits the mount I did that before I got my EQ5.

[BigRD]

You can pop/pries the black altitude cap off and re glue it in the correct position once you've levelled and polar aligned.

The part you've circled in red is for mounting a Dec motor. The angle of that bracket is parallel with the worm gear that the hand control is attached to.

Fit your scope and turn it until it's horizontal using a spirit level, turn the Dec setting circle to 90 degrees, now turn your scope until the setting circle shows 0 you should now be vertical.

[Stub Mandrel]

On 03/09/2017 at 19:23, Dan-G said:

1)First of all, it is too wobbly for my taste.

Get an EQ5 type tubular leg tripod, or search this site for suggestions of how to beef up the tripod, like filling the legs with sand or adding a clamp to keep top of the sliding parts together.

On 03/09/2017 at 19:23, Dan-G said:

2)Then, the latitude markings are off by about 10 degrees from the vertical/horizontal. This is not a functional problem, rather an eye sore. Can it be fixed? I guess not. The black plates seem to have been glued into place.  

Not sure, I think they might pop off.

On 03/09/2017 at 19:23, Dan-G said:

3)There are two marks on the mount for setting the declination circle but they are not on the same diagonal, meaning they don't show the same declination. One of them is on the declination knob assembly, which is slightly rotated so as to not hit the telescope. Does this second indicator have any meaning? I don't think so.

The DEC dial isn't fixed, you line up on a target of known DEC, loosen the grubscrew and rotate the dial to the correct reading.

On 03/09/2017 at 19:23, Dan-G said:

4)Hard as I tried, I was unable to attach the round cover to the polar scope (the part where you are supposed to stick it in). Do you need a polar scope to be able to attach it? 

It should just be a push fit over the RA dial.

On 03/09/2017 at 19:23, Dan-G said:

5)The manual is very light, it should really more information on the mount. For instance, what's the use of the piece I've marked by a red circle?

For attaching a motor to move the DEC axis if you do a GOTO upgrade.