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Skytee II V's AYO II


John

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Simple question, I hope.

I'm currently using a Skytee II plus ADM clamps on a Berlebach Uni 28 tripod to handle my 9.5 kg TMB/LZOS 130 F/9.2 triplet refractor. Generally the mount does a good job but I've an opportunity to acquire an AYO II mount and I wonder how that would compare with the Skytee II in terms of stability with the big refractor ?

The AYO build and finish will be better of course and there are no slow motion controls but how about vibration control and damping, smoothness of motion and general high power viewing prowess with the long tube on board ?

I realise that balancing the rig is important with these "T" style alt az mounts.

As a benchmark I have owned and compared a Giro Ercole to the Skytee II and found the latter slightly better at handling the 130 frac (a little to my surprise) so comparisons between the Ercole and the AYO II would be useful as well.

Assume that I'll be using the Berlebach Uni 28 tripod throughout.

Many thanks :icon_biggrin:

 

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I had the William Optics version of the Ayo mount. The Ayo II is a bit heavier duty though. I liked the smoothness of movement but as you rightly say everything must be balanced properly. Not just  for stability but to keep that smoothness of movement.

I ended up keeping the Skytee Ii and sold the WO on though as I liked the slo-mo controls. I found the WO more fiddly to set up.

I’d say the Skytee is better for planetary use at higher mag because of the slo-mo controls but the WO (AYO) worked well for lower mag wide field.

      John

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I rather like the AYO II as you know, its a nice looking and well made bit of kit.
This last year I have owned a Giro Ercole, Skytee 2 and now an Altair Sabre.
Of them all the Sabre remains as its the best made for build quality and smoothness of movement, even at high powers.
If I was in your position, I would be going for the AYO II, but do bear in mind my first line!
 

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42 minutes ago, Alan White said:

I rather like the AYO II as you know, its a nice looking and well made bit of kit.
This last year I have owned a Giro Ercole, Skytee 2 and now an Altair Sabre.
Of them all the Sabre remains as its the best made for build quality and smoothness of movement, even at high powers.
If I was in your positilosmandyon, I would be going for the AYO II, but do bear in mind my first line!

That the AYO allows a Losmandy clamp on one side is a big plus point. Ditto the M10 thread as 3/8 does not look strong enough.

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I have no experience with the Skytee II so, unfortunately, I cannot tell how the two mount heads compare against each other. 

The AYO II is a beautiful mount and in my opinion (..and the reason why I bought one!) the larger bearings make the axes movements smoother reducing vibration damping. The reasoning simply comes from the observation that most, if not all, very good dobsons (e.g. Teeter, Obsession, Astrysystems) have larger bearings compared to the cheaper mass produced alternatives by Skywatcher, GSO, etc. I use the AYO II with my Tak FC100 f/7.4. Movements are just perfectly smooth, and vibration damping is minimal (<1s) when the UNI19 tripod legs and central column are fully extended. I'm very satisfied with this setup and would not change anything.

In my opinion the AYO II should be adequate for telescopes up to 120mm aperture. For a 130 f/9.2 triplet like yours my mind would be uncertain between the AYO II and the AYO Digi II, whereas for a telescopes like the TEC 140, I'd get the AYO Digi II without any doubt. 

Although it has been said many times, just be prepare to a long wait for it, if you decide to order one. Mine took about 6 month. Beat, the AOK owner, is a great guy and he kindly answers your questions. 

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Thanks folks.

I'm still in two minds over this. While it is a bit "agricultural" and has it's quirks, my Skytee II is currently doing a decent job of carrying my big refractor and it does have slow motion controls. I don't want to fork out £400 or so and find that I need to keep the Skytee II. It's not the £'s but the grief from my better half over having more equipment cluttering up the place you understand ! :rolleyes2:

I'll continue to think on this ....... :smiley:

   

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30 minutes ago, John said:

Thanks folks.

I'm still in two minds over this. While it is a bit "agricultural" and has it's quirks, my Skytee II is currently doing a decent job of carrying my big refractor and it does have slow motion controls. I don't want to fork out £400 or so and find that I need to keep the Skytee II. It's not the £'s but the grief from my better half over having more equipment cluttering up the place you understand ! :rolleyes2:

I'll continue to think on this ....... :smiley:

   

As your TEC is heavy, why not just buy another Skytee 2 head? Even in a steel tripod kit it would be cheaper than an AYO on its own. You get weights, slo mo, and if one of 2 breaks down, a mount you can cannabilise.

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58 minutes ago, 25585 said:

As your TEC is heavy, why not just buy another Skytee 2 head? Even in a steel tripod kit it would be cheaper than an AYO on its own. You get weights, slo mo, and if one of 2 breaks down, a mount you can cannabilise.

I see your point but my other half might not ! :smiley:

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The Skytee II might not be the most sophisticated bit of kit out there but what it does have gping for it is that it simply gets the job done. Yes it’s mainly made up of bits from the EQ5 parts bin but they are well proven bits. It works and works well and isn’t overpriced.

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Interesting, I had both and returned the Ayo as it was not as smooth at the Skytee. Mind you I did get rid of the Chinese glue and replaced with a better alternative.
Was using anything from a TV60 up to a C9.25 on mine.
Have you converted your Skytee to the 3 saddles yet, that IMO is its best feature and something an AYO can't do.

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3 hours ago, 25585 said:

Why are you considering replacing the ST2? Sorry, I thought you wanted a second mount. 

If I can find a mount that is even better at dealing with my largest refractor while remaining reasonably portable when I use it with my smaller refractors and is made to higher standards than the Skytee II then I might be interested in replacing the Skytee II with it.

But I'm not moaning about the ST2 at all considering it's cost - as has been said, it's a very good workhorse :icon_biggrin:

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52 minutes ago, John said:

If I can find a mount that is even better at dealing with my largest refractor while remaining reasonably portable when I use it with my smaller refractors and is made to higher standards than the Skytee II then I might be interested in replacing the Skytee II with it.

But I'm not moaning about the ST2 at all considering it's cost - as has been said, it's a very good workhorse :icon_biggrin:

I think a T-Rex would suit you well John ? Don’t think I’ve ever seen one for sale second hand though

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2 hours ago, GavStar said:

I think a T-Rex would suit you well John ? Don’t think I’ve ever seen one for sale second hand though

I nearly did buy one from Germany last year - it was £2K though for a used one. I thought that a little steep but perhaps with hindsight it wasn't ?

The Bray Tablet mount used to get good feedback as a heavy duty alt-azimuth but when I eventually owned one I found that it was not quite as stable as I'd hoped.

Another option is the APM Maxload which seems to retail for around £1K.

On the other hand, the humble Skytee II is doing the job and could probably be tweaked here and there to improve it a little further .......

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6 hours ago, moriniboy said:

Interesting, I had both and returned the Ayo as it was not as smooth at the Skytee. Mind you I did get rid of the Chinese glue and replaced with a better alternative.
Was using anything from a TV60 up to a C9.25 on mine.
Have you converted your Skytee to the 3 saddles yet, that IMO is its best feature and something an AYO can't do.

I've not done that conversion yet - 99% of the time it's just the single scope on the Skytee II so the current ADM clamp on the end of the altitude axis is enough.

Very interesting comments about the AYO vs Skytee though. As mentioned in my previous post, I reckon I could fettle the ST2 a bit further.

Thanks for all the suggestions though folks - much appreciated :icon_biggrin:

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5 hours ago, John said:

I'm not sure that the Losmandy, nice though it is, would exceed the stability of the Skytee II ?

I'm convinced the build quality is better - you won't see pictures of an AZ8 with bits shorn off. Mechanically, it's sound. I like the way it's put together (I have taken one apart and re-assembled it with ease).

Would it exceed the stability of the SkyTee II? Well, possibly, but not necessarily. The AZ8 is essentially a GM8 on its side, and what John really needs (in these terms) is an AZ11 - which doesn't exist.

Best case, the stability would be marginally better. Worst case, you would still have a marginal preference for the SkyTee. If yours is properly tuned and working well, might as well stick with it.

For the money, the SkyTee II is pretty good value - it's just that it seems like a lottery whether you get a good one.

Conversely, for its price, the AZ8 is - at the very least - like getting a SkyTee that won't fall apart.

Whether the price differential is worth it is a matter of preference. You can have more than one SkyTee fail before an AZ8 becomes the economic option in hindsight.

:rolleyes2:

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Is there an option of trying the AYO before pulling the trigger? At least then you could make a better comparison as it seems you do have a functional well working Skytee so in essence it may not be cost effective to change or indeed offer you anything much that you do not already have especially if you like the SM controls?

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Of my 2 Skytees,  the one I bought new has slo mo that does not work, while the one I bought pre-loved does, though a bit loose. I let it be.

For the money they are just acceptable. Their mechanical quality puts me off wanting any other SW mount. I bought the first with only the impression of strength and solidity from photos, and for what seemed a not unreasonable price at the time as a good tripod was included. For the C8 I only had then, it seemed OK.

Would I have bought another type, knowing what I do now? Possibly not as for first kit it's still good value with tripod included. But if I already had an appropriately strong tripod, the AYO II would have tempted me. C8 OTAS are not too heavy.

However, if owning an expensive, heavy, refractor, I would buy an expensive heavy mount and tripod for it. A Tele Vue would have a Gibraltar mount, an Astro Physics an AZ EQ6 or T-Rex at least. But neither has a top saddle in AZ mode, which is what keeps me sticking to Skytee. 

 

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6 hours ago, 25585 said:

.... But neither has a top saddle in AZ mode, which is what keeps me sticking to Skytee. 

 

Thats not the place on the Skytee II to put anything other than a light, short scope in my experience with the mount. But we have discussed this before .......

Thanks for the input :smiley:

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