NEW Rowan AZ100 Alt-Az Mount

[JG777]

55 minutes ago, Stu said:

I see you mentioning the II, I have the one before. Functionality seems to be good enough, do you know what the difference is? All it needs to do is read the encoders and then transmit this over wifi which I think the Neixs should do I think?

 

Stu, it should be the same or better, ie it should work. I only have the full beans DSC, I like SS but prefer the box to do the work.  

 

 

 

[John]

14 minutes ago, johninderby said:

Ah but they have good memories and will remember to ask for it back. 😁

I'm going to spray my Skytee II black, pop it in the AZ100 box and hope they won't notice the difference ........

[FLO]

16 hours ago, John said:

I believe so. I'm expecting this setup when I unpack the packages on Monday. Plus a Berlebach Uni 28 tripod, a power supply and a Losmandy plate to attach the scope that I'll be testing the mount with. What nice people they are

Credit should go equally to Rowan Astronomy. They sent us the pre-production prototype mount, the one now loaned to John for beta-testing. 

I probably should stress the mount sent to John is not a production model. John is not writing a product review. He is a beta-tester. Rowan will assess feedback provided by him (together with points raised in this thread) then modify the design if necessary prior to its official release in November. 

HTH, 

Steve 

[FLO]

22 hours ago, John said:

Personally I'd not use the encoders or the Nexus DSC unit so I hope the mount functions well without them.

 

21 hours ago, Stu said:

I have a Nexus, would think it should work. The website says it works as a wireless DSC and I used to use one with encoders on my 16" Sumerian. I love Skysafari, so this would work well.

@Stu has kindly agreed to beta-test the mount after John 🙂 

So, two beta testers. One keen on manual grab & go astronomy and another interested in the encoder / electronic side. 

Steve 

[John]

Good point from Steve regarding the status of the mount that I have been sent. I will repeat it when I'm posting on the mount to avoid any confusion.

I'm pleased that Stu will have a crack at it too - his experience and enthusiam for the technology side of things is much greater than mine

I'm unwrapping the mount and other accessories now and will post some photos and initial reaction ASAP.

Many thanks to Rowan Astronomy and Steve / FLO for trusting me with the inital "tyre kick" of this product

[Davey-T]

Damn just when I thought I'd finished buying stuff, who knows maybe the reviews will put me off but I get a bit [removed word] doing visual on an EQ mount 

Dave

[djpaul]

I'm unwrapping the mount and other accessories now and will post some photos and initial reaction ASAP

Im eagerly waiting for your initial thoughts John.😁

[Alan White]

I think many of us are Paul.

 

[johninderby]

.

Edited October 8, 2019 by johninderby

[Davey-T]

24hours to unwrap, it must be well packed 😂

Dave

[djpaul]

Its all part of Johns plan to keep us waiting lol

[johninderby]

A good showman knows how to build the tension.🤡

[John]

Sorry folks. I have checked the contents of the packages (all fine) but I've had no chance to assemble and play with anything due to extensive DIY work going on here.

I'll try and get some photos taken when I get a chance. Weather forecast looks poor so actually using the mount may have to wait a bit longer.

 

[John]

Ok, I've posted some initial feedback on the AZ100 mount here:

 

[AstroDevices]

On 07/10/2019 at 05:02, Stu said:

I have a Nexus, would think it should work. The website says it works as a wireless DSC and I used to use one with encoders on my 16" Sumerian. I love Skysafari, so this would work well.

Stu,

All of our Nexus (Nexus DSC, Nexus-II and Nexus) devices will work with encoders installed in AZ100. Other DSC's are unlikely to work with those encoders unless you move the telescope VEEEERY SLOOOOWLY - they are 152,000 steps.

Best Regards,

Serge.

[FLO]

The new Rowan AZ100 Alt-Az Mount and accessories are now listed at our website 🙂 

 

[johninderby]

And order placed. 🙂🙂🙂

[FLO]

Well done that man 🤗

[FLO]

Regarding delivery ETA.  Currently our best guess is sometime in November (hopefully in time for the International Astronomy Show) but that depends to an extent on the feedback provided by John and Stu. 

Rowan themselves are continuing to test and develop the mount, i.e. we learned Wednesday they have updated the gear mesh adjustment mechanism to better enable it to handle larger/longer scopes or scopes that are a little out of balance. They have already sent another prototype mount with the latest mod to John (I think before he had even begun testing the first one) so currently he has two. The plan is for them to collect then fit the latest mod to the first mount, then send it together with a Nexus DSC to Stu next week. Then, John will be testing a purely manual AZ100 (without encoders) and Stu will be testing one with encoders and DSC. Hope I got that right 😄 

Steve 

[johninderby]

I don’t mind waiting a bit longer. More important that Rowan don’t ship untill they are fully satisfied that they have got it right.  😎

Will make a nice Xmas pressie to myself.....ahh early Xmas pressie that is. 😁

Edited October 11, 2019 by johninderby

[FLO]

Thank-you 🙂 

Also, we have learned the encoders will be made available separately so those who purchase an AZ100 mount-only (without encoders) can later add encoders. However, at this stage Rowan recommend they are fitted by Rob in our workshop or by themselves at theirs to ensure they are properly fitted and working 100%. We will post details at our website soon. 

[johninderby]

I’m not sure if I want to bother with the encoders but perhaps if anyone wants them fitted later an encoder installation service should be available. 🤔

Edited October 11, 2019 by johninderby

[Alan White]

@FLO the feedback you are having is super, the addition at a later date of encoders is an excellent option.
Looking forward to seeing one in the metal and of course you fine folks at the IAS.
 

[Rick_It]

Congrats FLO and Rowan, the mount is a very interesting product.

The mount is heavy and quite expensive: I think you could explore the possibility of producing a smaller mount - call it Rowan 50. It should have a payload of about 8-12kg (with/without counterweights), a weight of about 3-4kg, no slo-mo controls (as a cost-saving measure) but still the encoders option (this is what really differentiate this class of mounts).

Edited November 2, 2019 by Rick_It

[GlenM]

A very good idea. The 100 would be too heavy for my glass back.

 

Glen.