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Rowan AZ75 - Stu’s thoughts


Stu

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2 hours ago, Stu said:

Yes, pretty sure the FC100DC would be ok without the pillar. The LZOS mounts a bit further back because of its beast of a lens and cell, so that’s probably why it needs the pillar.

I’ve not snagged the LZOS on the AZ100 yet, but it’s always close when visiting the zenith. I’m holding out against getting a half pillar as it’s an extra 4 kg. 

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3 hours ago, Stu said:

EDIT, thinking about it, this was with the x2 lens on my iPhone, so presumably actually x500???

 

That’s a good demonstration  of how easy it is to nudge Stu, especially at 500x !! I would imagine with a long pan handle it could be even easier. I can see that life without slo mo’s is possible! 

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1 hour ago, johninderby said:

I still think a Rowan pilar would be a good idea. Perhaps sectional,so sections could be stacked to the height required. 

I agree John. My 130 does get uncomfortably close to the tripod when at the Zenith so a pillar would just make life easier. Can’t recall if it actually clashes or not, I think it does at times. I’ll check. Not bothered about a little extra weight, it could stay on the tripod no problem.

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10 hours ago, Space Hopper said:

+1 for a pier option.

I'd probably have brought my own AZ100 by now if it was available.

I thought they were Space Hopper, well at Rowan Towers we had a stack of machined AZ100 parts that I was shown.
Perhaps things have changed?

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18 hours ago, Space Hopper said:

+1 for a pier option.

I'd probably have brought my own AZ100 by now if it was available.

You could use a Baader half pier, that works and matches the AZ range. 

If Rowan are doing a pier I'd be interested in knowing the weight.

The advantage of the Baader pier is that many other vendors mounts can be placed on top.

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1 hour ago, Deadlake said:

If Rowan are doing a pier I'd be interested in knowing the weight.

Do you take your kit away a lot Martin? Seems like weight is a very big factor for you.

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51 minutes ago, Stu said:

Do you take your kit away a lot Martin? Seems like weight is a very big factor for you.

I have a back that can get pulled/strained easily. Also like two trips out, mount + tripod and then scope for ease of use. However I do hope to go away to see family in Wales and the size of the t-pod / az100 and LZOS means it takes up just a bit more room then a 100 mm scope with a ScopeTech mount and tripod. 

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32 minutes ago, Deadlake said:

I have a back that can get pulled/strained easily. Also like two trips out, mount + tripod and then scope for ease of use.... 

Very much the same as myself on both counts :rolleyes2:

Edited by John
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Just now, John said:

Very much the same as myself :rolleyes2:

Ditto! Mine is much better than it used to be but still not the strongest.

Last night the AZ75 with pillar and Uni-28 was an easy lift (one hand). The whole rig including Tak with finder, diagonal and eyepiece could easily be lifted and repositioned around the garden. I had to do this to get sight of the Moon past my tree! With a more optimised (lighter) pillar it would be even better.

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13 minutes ago, Stu said:

Ditto! Mine is much better than it used to be but still not the strongest.

Last night the AZ75 with pillar and Uni-28 was an easy lift (one hand). The whole rig including Tak with finder, diagonal and eyepiece could easily be lifted and repositioned around the garden. I had to do this to get sight of the Moon past my tree! With a more optimised (lighter) pillar it would be even better.

Last night I had to reposition before Jupiter was hidden by the roof line.

With the T-pod (7 kg) + AZ100 and LZOS 130 I can shift it along. 

I did try and track Jupiter using the pan handle but no fun. The SXP2 tracking is superb, however with limited time to view (roof obstruction) AZ100 comes into its own with setup time.

A grab n' go with a 130 mm APO. 😀

Ps: it's not fun when you back get's pulled, sorry to hear.

PPS: Light-wieght A75 with slow mo, I'm sure there would be a market for that.

Edited by Deadlake
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19 minutes ago, Stu said:

Ditto! Mine is much better than it used to be but still not the strongest.

Last night the AZ75 with pillar and Uni-28 was an easy lift (one hand). The whole rig including Tak with finder, diagonal and eyepiece could easily be lifted and repositioned around the garden. I had to do this to get sight of the Moon past my tree! With a more optimised (lighter) pillar it would be even better.

You must be fitter than I am Stu. I don't find the UNI 28 on it's own a safe or easy one armed lift I'm afraid. :rolleyes2:

 

 

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53 minutes ago, John said:

You must be fitter than I am Stu. I don't find the UNI 28 on it's own a safe or easy one armed lift I'm afraid. :rolleyes2:

 

 

Fair enough John, we are all different so make choices accordingly. With the Planet and AZ100, I can lift it together but choose not to as that feels like sooner or later I would either have an accident or strain my back, so I get where you are coming from. I always separate these two to carry them, refitting is very quick.

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30 minutes ago, Stu said:

Fair enough John, we are all different so make choices accordingly. With the Planet and AZ100, I can lift it together but choose not to as that feels like sooner or later I would either have an accident or strain my back, so I get where you are coming from. I always separate these two to carry them, refitting is very quick.

I can carry the T-Rex on the GMT-128 tripod outside (with both hands !) in one piece relatively easily. I have a 20cm pier extension as well but I've not tried adding that yet. The GMT-128 (EQ6 equivalent) is tall enough, most of the time.

With the TMB/LZOS 130 F/9.2 on board I can move the whole shebang short and level distances around my garden / patio, taking some care.

 

 

 

Edited by John
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Just revisiting the whole slow motion debate, it’s interesting how preferences change over time @John. Reading back over previous posts, you have very much been an advocate of manual Dobs and alt Az mounts in the past, and their ability to track at high powers, whilst being fairly ambivalent about slow motion controls. I’m guessing that since the T-Rex you are now more of a convert?

It’s also interesting how this debate seems to be ALL about high power planetary observing when there is so much more to astronomy than that. A lot of DSO observing is done at lower powers, and having a lightweight mount which is easy to get to dark sites is definitely a benefit. The encoders (for those that want them) will make for very enjoyable and easy object finding.

That said, I do hope we can move beyond the slo mo/no slo mo debate which has been well covered, and focus on what the mount actually is, rather than what it is not.

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1 hour ago, Stu said:

Just revisiting the whole slow motion debate, it’s interesting how preferences change over time @John. Reading back over previous posts, you have very much been an advocate of manual Dobs and alt Az mounts in the past, and their ability to track at high powers, whilst being fairly ambivalent about slow motion controls. I’m guessing that since the T-Rex you are now more of a convert?

It’s also interesting how this debate seems to be ALL about high power planetary observing when there is so much more to astronomy than that. A lot of DSO observing is done at lower powers, and having a lightweight mount which is easy to get to dark sites is definitely a benefit. The encoders (for those that want them) will make for very enjoyable and easy object finding.

That said, I do hope we can move beyond the slo mo/no slo mo debate which has been well covered, and focus on what the mount actually is, rather than what it is not.

To be honest Stu, I don't have hard and fast preferences on many things astro-wise. As long as I can get out and observe I'll make the best of whatever is available :smiley:

 

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2 hours ago, Stu said:

I do hope we can move beyond the slo mo/no slo mo debate which has been well covered

The main use case for has been planets. What about looking at doubles, your LZOS should be very good for that?

Thats is something I can do well with the AZ100 pan handle with push-to to point me in the right direction.
 

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14 minutes ago, Deadlake said:

The main use case for has been planets. What about looking at doubles, your LZOS should be very good for that?

Thats is something I can do well with the AZ100 pan handle with push-to to point me in the right direction.
 

But that’s the point, since when did planets become the only thing we are bothered about? We are having some good planetary views currently, but for a lot of Astro a good, solid smooth running mount is fine for a lot of DSO observing and this is done at lower powers.

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1 hour ago, Stu said:

But that’s the point, since when did planets become the only thing we are bothered about? We are having some good planetary views currently, but for a lot of Astro a good, solid smooth running mount is fine for a lot of DSO observing and this is done at lower powers.

That's exactly my thoughts @Stu,
if you do just Planets, then you have a very limited menu.

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