HEQ5 PRO SynScan

[rockinrome]

Hello all ...

I have just acquired the HEQ5 PRO Synscan (new one with green bits!).
All seems OK on a test run the other night and seems to track perfectly.
Just one question though - each time I go to a target it makes quite a bit of noise initially and then goes near silent for the rest of the go to movement. Is this normal?

Thanks in advance as always and hope the skies clear (for more than a day soon!)
:)

 

[AKB]

Yes, I think so.  A terrible grinding noise is generally the norm when starting and stopping a rapid slew.  For more peace of mind (and, perhaps, peace in general) then consider the belt drive modification which makes it almost completely silent (and improves the tracking.)

[RichLD]

+1 for the Rowan Belt Mod. It's worth it  just for reducing the initial slew noise!

[rockinrome]

Thanks for the replies AKB and RichLD - much appreciated.
Glad it's normal <wipes brow>.
Rowan belt mod is deffo something I will consider.

[Cornelius Varley]

If it wasn't making that noise there would be something wrong with the mount.

[spillage]

my eq6 sounded like a bag of bolts in a blender before doing the belt mod...

[Grierson]

56 minutes ago, RichLD said:

+1 for the Rowan Belt Mod. It's worth it  just for reducing the initial slew noise!

And another +1 here for the belt mod. As an aside, it seems daft to produce what is a decent mount for the money and market it with such a design shortcoming. Scared me to death when I first got mine. ?

[Patbloke]

I have a Celestron AVX and thought that wasn't too bad noise wise... Until I recently heard my mates belt modified HEQ5 / 6 mount....

Super quiet!! very impressed, that belt mod is superb... 

[rockinrome]

56 minutes ago, Cornelius Varley said:

If it wasn't making that noise there would be something wrong with the mount.

hahahahaaa

[Stub Mandrel]

My HEq5 slews with a sound comparable to an electric razor, a soft whirring noise. I've been asked if it has had the belt mod - it hasn't.

I suspect most people with noisy mounts have grease that is too thin and too much backlash in the spur gear train.

[Moonshane]

Mine does the same. I have sorted the backlash and I think I'll now clean off the current yellowish grease and replace with a thicker white lithium (I have some somewhere). It's not hard to unscrew the cover and do this I suppose.

[rockinrome]

Hmmmm, I have some lithium grease too from doing focuser re-greasing ....... might do that ......