Helios 200p & EQ5

[chrisdg1968]

Just a quick shout out for the opinion of all you good people…I’ve got a 150p Skyliner dob at the moment, and was looking to upgrade to an 8” dob in near future but have now got opportunity to get myself a good condition Helios 200p on aluminium tripod EQ5 for around £170.  EQ’s are not unfamiliar to me, I’ve had them in the past but have generally gravitated towards alt-az mounts.  Anyway, question is, is this a good price for this set up and how manageable is this ota on the EQ mount ?

Thanks all !

Chris

 

 

[Cornelius Varley]

It will depend on which version of the Helios brand it is. The older ones are the same as Skywatcher and the newer ones should not be touched with a barge pole.

See this thread

 

[chrisdg1968]

I’m as certain as can be it’s the older type which was taken over directly by Skywatcher branding.

[Cosmic Geoff]

Assuming the Helios is the same size and weight as a Skywatcher, an EQ5 with steel legs would be considered a barely adequate mount for it.

I once had a Helios 200mm newtonian on a manual EQ5 mount, and I thought the combination was horrible. With legs extended, the eyepiece could be 7ft off the ground, and with them retracted it could not see lower altitude objects over a 6ft fence.  The eyepiece could get into awkward positions and I had great difficulty getting non-obvious objects into the field of view.    The combination was quite stable for visual use though, in a sheltered location.  I bought a C8 SE within a few months.

[chrisdg1968]

9 minutes ago, Cosmic Geoff said:

Assuming the Helios is the same size and weight as a Skywatcher, an EQ5 with steel legs would be considered a barely adequate mount for it.

I once had a Helios 200mm newtonian on a manual EQ5 mount, and I thought the combination was horrible. With legs extended, the eyepiece could be 7ft off the ground, and with them retracted it could not see lower altitude objects over a 6ft fence.  The eyepiece could get into awkward positions and I had great difficulty getting non-obvious objects into the field of view.    The combination was quite stable for visual use though, in a sheltered location.  I bought a C8 SE within a few months.

Okay thanks, though the Sky at Night review of the Skywatcher version on the FLO website mentions it is stable with steel legs, and I may be able swap the aluminium ones out for such.  Does the ability to rotate the tube in the rings not eliminate a lot of the eyepiece positioning issues ?

[malc-c]

Wasn't Helios the brand that used internal barlow lenses in the focuser and used spherical rather than parabolic mirrors ?? -  

 

[chrisdg1968]

39 minutes ago, malc-c said:

Wasn't Helios the brand that used internal barlow lenses in the focuser and used spherical rather than parabolic mirrors ?? -  

 

I believe that was the later models…originally Helios was manufactured by Synta same as Skywatcher so they simply re-branded the earlier equipment but it’s identical.

Edited December 24, 2021 by chrisdg1968