Skywatcher base

[Paul63]

Hi there

sorry if this is the wrong section to post I have took the plunge and taken stock dobsonian skywatcher 150p OTA only.Is it possible to get the base on its own or will I have to get one man unfortunately out of my league or are there any other options be grateful for any feed back

many thanks

Paul

[Steve Clay]

You could buy the az 4 or 5 with steel tripod.  Both manual mounts. The 5 has slow motion controls.

Neither are dobsonian bases.

The 150p is designed to be attached to a vixen type mount head.

Steve

[jacobingonzo]

Hi Paul

 

what steve said

you state it is a Dobsonian OTA???  a bit confused does it have tube rings on it-if so it is meant to be mounted on a mount or is it a dobsonian tube without a base? if its a base you need  I found this  https://www.orionoptics.co.uk/MOUNTS/dobsonianmount.html or if you are handy with DIY many opt to build their own- or else they do come up for sale second hand.

 

J

[Paul63]

Hi

its a tube with out the base could I attach tube rings and mount on a tripod as it looks the same size as a skywatcher 150pl 1200mm , if it could work what size tripod would I need as for building a base not sure if I’m capable 

regards

 

[John]

A Skytee II on a beefy tripod could handle it. You would need to add tube rings and a dovetail bar to the OTA.

 

 

[Cosmic Geoff]

The original idea of the Dobsonian was that you could build the whole thing yourself from junk parts.  Offering them for sale as factory-made retail items is a more recent development.

The Eq3-2 is the kind of mount you would use if you wanted an equatorial mount.  

If you want a manual alt-azimuth there are various mounts that might work, but check the tube clearance.

[Paul63]

Hi

Im in the U.K if it helps

[M40]

1 hour ago, Paul63 said:

Hi

its a tube with out the base could I attach tube rings and mount on a tripod as it looks the same size as a skywatcher 150pl 1200mm ,

 

Hello Paul, You may be lucky on one of the online auction sites, but it's unlikely that you will get just the Dobsonian base so you will need a bit of DIY skill. The dobsonian mounts on the telescope can be unscrewed so as you say, you can remove these and get a pair of skywatcher tube rings and a dovetail mounting bar. Then depending on your budget, weigh the telescope or find out the weight and then just look for either a manual or tracking mount that will take the weight plus some for eyepieces, camera etc. If you are into a bit of DIY, I think there are some posts on here where someone made a Dobsonian base.

Enjoy

[Anthony1979]

I used to use mine on my eq5 with no problems

[Paul63]

Hi 

I am going to try the tube rings first which size dove tail do you recommend I will get them first then save some cash.Have been looking at the EQ5 looks a decent mount and tripod 

[Anthony1979]

1 hour ago, Paul63 said:

Hi 

I am going to try the tube rings first which size dove tail do you recommend I will get them first then save some cash.Have been looking at the EQ5 looks a decent mount and tripod 

Did you not get the rings and bar with the scope

[dweller25]

Here is my 200p dob OTA on an Equatorial mount for your reference

[Geoff Lister]

And the budget mounting option....

This is my first telescope, a Tasco 3T, 3", 700mm, and 0.963" eyepieces, bought in 1986 to see Halley's Comet; it's a fork-and-rod Az/Alt mount.

This is my DIY ring and dovetail assembly

and this is the setup on my Skymax mount, for full GoTo.

Geoff

[M40]

9 hours ago, Paul63 said:

Hi 

I am going to try the tube rings first which size dove tail do you recommend I will get them first then save some cash.Have been looking at the EQ5 looks a decent mount and tripod 

Go for a long one, I notice that on FLO they do a StellaMira 15" which looks pretty useful. The EQ5 is a good choice as well, I like the idea that it can be upgraded to provide a motor drive in the future and reading the info I could find it looks like it has a load capacity of 9Kgs 👍

[M40]

1 hour ago, Geoff Lister said:

And the budget mounting option....

This is my DIY ring and dovetail assembly

Loving this, jubilee clips, brilliant 👍

[Paul63]

hi all really appreciate all the reply's and ideas I think I will go with the EQ5 option in the new year if theres any in stock anywhere.

Picking up the 150p on Monday  which is apparently in the condition when it left the factory/store never been used hence no base, comes with the stock EP's 10 & 25 any suggestions on the EP will be great but I will upgrade in due course.

All so some time along the line will also get a telrad finder and may be a tracking motor

all the best

Paul

[M40]

Cough..... just noticed an EQ5 in the for sale/swap section..... 😜

[Geoff Lister]

6 hours ago, M40 said:

Loving this, jubilee clips, brilliant 👍

Not quite, even cheaper, Screwfix's galvanised builder's strip, a few bits of double-sided sticky foam, and a couple of nuts and bolts from my "come-in-handy" bits box. Even the wood was recycled from something else.

Geoff

[Paul63]

hi all

I have managed to get a EQ 5 but with no motion controls but  hoping the motion controls on my EQ2 will do the job all so one other thing missing is the screw to set the AZ are these easy to obtain

plus I stll need to get the tube rings

regards

Paul  

[Paul63]

Hi

Btw it’s the new version EQ5 got it for £180 I gather that is a very good price