Mount suitable for Vixen P-102L

[Chanet]

Recently I have salvaged my old telescope from my storage and looking to upgrade the mount.

The old mount is the Vixen Saturn Equatorial Mount.

I was wondering which mount would and legs will fit my Vixen P-102L.

The telescope itself is D=102mm FL=1500mm

 

I have seen as in the attached photo the type with automatic mount and would ideally like something similar with GPS on it.

 

[Franklin]

That's a Skywatcher HEQ5 type mount. That or an EQ6 would carry your lovely long refractor. Vixen 102mm f/15, don't see many of them around. What's wrong with the Saturn mount?

[Froeng]

Hi Chanet,

a shame you are in Thailand, otherwise I would have offered to buy your Saturn! Have you looked at the newer Vixen offerings? An AXJ or even an SXP2 should do the trick. You could also upgrade your Saturn with new motors and a third-party handset like TeenAstro, FS-2 or MTS-3, the latter you should be able to buy as you are outside the EU. There is also a japanese  company offering various upgrade kits for old Takahashi and Vixen mounts. I think they are called K-Astec…

That 102 f/15 is an amazing classical instrument btw…

Frank

Edited September 24, 2021 by Froeng

[Chanet]

Wow, I didn't expect  anyone to reply so quickly.  Thank you Franklin and Froeng.

Actually my father bought me the telescope about 37 years ago when I was 13 and was living in Japan.

Back then I think the whole set costed 1,000 USD.  I kept it for long time and planning to bring the telescope to Japan after Covid for overhaul as it has so much memories in it.

The Saturn mount is still there but together with the stand its extremely heavy and its now quite rusted and after being decades away from astronomy I forgot how to find stars and etc, so 

I thought I might just as well get one of the go to mounts with GPS and start star gazing again this time with my son.

@Froeng I checked out the AXJ and SXP2 on the Japanese website, but the price is super expensive, I will try to look for a used one in the Japanese auction sites, also I found out the just recently that my telescope is one of the good ones made back then.

I will definitely require more advice as I want to get back into the hobby, so if you both don't mind I will ask for further advice.

With the digital DSLR cameras, taking photos of stars should be much easier than 30 years ago.

 

Thank you for the response

 

[Chanet]

I have been looking at the Skywatcher website and also saw the smaller EQM-35 mount and was wondering if it would be too small.

The weight of the P-102L is only 14.4 Pounds.

[Froeng]

Hi Chanet,

always happy to help. The EQ35 is definitely too small. The lever arm of your f/15 frac will make it wobble like jelly. There was a reason they sold that telescope with the Saturn mount at the time 😉

Astrophotography is indeed much easier these days, but with f/15 you will still need a VERY sturdy mount. I wouldn’t give up on the Saturn just yet. It’s a perfect match for the refractor and known to be a lifetime investment. Maybe a Losmandy G11G could be an alternative?

you could also get a nice Berlebach tripod for the G11 or the Saturn, more portable than your pier…

[Chanet]

Dear Froeng,

I will definitely keep the Saturn and clean it up.  The pricing for the Skywatch is quite good for my budget so now looking at the HEQ5 mount.

Actually it would be much easier if travelling to Japan was like pre-covid as I am fluent in Japanese so can get the overhaul done faster, but now have to wait until the travel restriction is gone.  When I checked the lens of my P-102L luckily it still looks clean with no fungus on it.

I also didn't realize that I have the option of upgrading the Saturn with Goto functions, thank you.

 

[Froeng]

Hi Chanet,

happy to have helped! If you are fluent in Japanese, check out this website: http://k-astec.com

They maybe able to help you with your Saturn. I own an old Super Polaris DX, which is also from the 80s. I have goto via the MTS-3 controller and SkySafari on my iphone. Much easier and better quality than the Skywatcher kit… Good Luck!

[Chanet]

Hi Froeng,

I looked at the k-astec homepage and found read about the MTS-3, the price is quite reasonable and yes it would be best if I can resurrect the Saturn and use it with upgrade.

I will try calling them up this Monday and consult them.  At the same time I also found a company in Thailand and will talk to them also.

Thank you.

[Froeng]

Great! Let us all know how you get on…

[mikeDnight]

A Vixen Super Polaris or Vixen GP or GPDX would carry it well, providing you have a solid tripod or pier. With an F15 you might find a Hargreaves strut, which extends from behind the lens cell to the end of the counterweight shaft, halts residual vibration.

[Franklin]

I'd do the Saturn up and keep it all as the Vixen Gods intended. Set up with a tracking motor in RA, you have a superb instrument for visual astronomy. The scope may only weigh around 6kg but it's the sheer length of it which will render it unusable on a smaller mount, even if the smaller mount has a higher weight capacity.

EQ6, G11 or do up the Saturn IMHO.

 

Edited September 26, 2021 by Franklin
addition

[Chanet]

From a week of delay today I brought the P-102L to overhaul.  Luckily the telescope shop is able to do it for me. The guy at the shop was surprised to see the telescope as it is 1500mm and 

he says he haven't seen this long D=102mm in Thailand.

After discussions with him he suggested I upgrade the motors and just do a setup of GOTO functions on the Saturn.  I think I will take his advise, but at the same time might also get the Skywatcher HEQ5 for moving around.

WIll update on the outcome of overhaul, luckily after over 20 years in storage the lens seems to be fine and fungus free and no mark on it, except full of dust.