Accptable weight for accessories on a Dobsonian Base Plate

[Ledge1962]

Hi all,

I can not find an answer on Orions site, but I have the XX14G and wonder if anyone has any idea as the maximum weight is that can be put on the turning base plate. I want to put a 30ah battery on it so it can power all the heaters etc, but I am not sure what is defined as an acceptable load. I do not want to destroy the bearings any faster than necessary.  Any ideas please?

Also, does anyone know if we need to lubricate the bearings on the Dobs?

Thanks

[banjaxed]

Looks like a sturdy base so it looks like you should give it a try and see if it has any problem with the weight. How heavy is the battery?

[NGC 1502]

Hello to a member in NZ ?

If it were me, I’d try adding substitute weights ( food tins, bags of sugar ) and see if it affected the azimuth movement.

If the movement was good, I’d be ok with adding a battery of similar weight. You may find that adding significant weight unevenly on one side only may not be ok, but the same weight distributed evenly is better. Not an exact science of course.

As to lubricating the bearings, with regular Teflon pads there are differing opinions on that. Some use car polish on the mating surface.  Grease is a bad idea, as it collects dust and grit quickly.  But some Dobs like yours have a ‘lazy Susan’ roller bearing, don’t know what’s best with those, although grease is also probably a bad idea.

Ed.

[Ledge1962]

Hi all. Sorry for the late response, the battery weighs about 6kgs so is not light. 

I agree, I am not a fan off grease on these type of bearings as our area is pretty dusty at times.  I will approach Orion and see what they say as I don't want to void any warranties either. Thanks for the suggestions, I will try them out this weekend.

 

[JRWASTRO]

I have a 10" dob like the one you have and place a 20 Ah  battery as close to the centre as is possible.  The OTA just misses the battery. As they say " a miss is as good as a mile". This arrangement works well but I am looking for a "cheap" lithium battery of 20Ah but, so  far, I have been unsuccessful. Hope this helps.

Jeremy.

[Seanelly]

My Meade Starfinder Dob has teflon pad bearings. I use a dry lube teflon spray to ease friction and wear on the tube saddles and base; separate the base and clean it, spray on the teflon pads and the runway, wait until dry (not long, but don't rush it) before reassembly. Been good for me for 20 years.