Mount repair

[David Levi]

Does anyone know  of any companies that repair mounts? I'm asking for a friend who has a Skywatcher  HEQ5 Pro that is currently not working. 

Edited March 6, 2022 by David Levi

[david_taurus83]

Altair Astro and Rother Valley Optics both do repair services. Does he know what the issue is? 

[David Levi]

Thanks for the reply @david_taurus83.

The mount fell on concrete. It turns on and can be set up and aligned but then does not slew to the correct position to view an object. In addition while the handset is lit up and you tell it to slew to a target, the handset says slewing but the mount does not move. The red dot in the red dot finder also seems to jump when the mount does slew.

So basically the problem could be electrical, mechanical or a combination of both, but there's damage somewhere.

[Same old newbie alert]

On 06/03/2022 at 16:52, David Levi said:

Thanks for the reply @david_taurus83.

The mount fell on concrete. It turns on and can be set up and aligned but then does not slew to the correct position to view an object. In addition while the handset is lit up and you tell it to slew to a target, the handset says slewing but the mount does not move. The red dot in the red dot finder also seems to jump when the mount does slew.

So basically the problem could be electrical, mechanical or a combination of both, but there's damage somewhere.

Ouch, mounts don't tend to like a impact with concrete floors..

He could check the time /date/ latitude etc and check that the motor contacts are actually working.. the mount sounds like it thinks it's slewing but either the power to the motor isn't or the motor isn't driving it...

Mounts aren't complicated, and plenty of info online... Just components to the mount might be hard to source

[malc-c]

If the handset displayed a "no response" message for either or both axis that would suggest that the issue is a damaged control board.  The fact the handset is displaying "slewing" and other information would suggest that the communications between the handset and motor board in the mount are fine, and the issue is more mechanical rather than electrical (unless the power keeps dropping due to a damaged port which would stop the mount slewing).

When you say the mount doesn't slew, is it still making noises, ie the motors are running or do the motors stop.  Is the mount belt driven or does it have the original gearing.  ?  In either case it's worth removing the cover over the motors to check the gears are meshed or the belt still has tension.  I would also slacken off the worm gear on both axis and check that the mount rotates in both axis without binding.  If it binds with the worm disengaged then it would suggest that the issue is mechanical, which could be bearings or a bent shaft. If it freely rotates in both axis, and both motors turn correctly then maybe it's just a case of remeshing the drive train for both axis which hopefully resolves the problem.

Even the motorboard can be fixed if it turns out to be the suspect.  - have a read of this thread

[David Levi]

Thanks for the replies. @malc-c I will pass on the information.

[coedybrenin2]

On 08/03/2022 at 11:52, malc-c said:

If the handset displayed a "no response" message for either or both axis that would suggest that the issue is a damaged control board.  The fact the handset is displaying "slewing" and other information would suggest that the communications between the handset and motor board in the mount are fine, and the issue is more mechanical rather than electrical (unless the power keeps dropping due to a damaged port which would stop the mount slewing).

When you say the mount doesn't slew, is it still making noises, ie the motors are running or do the motors stop.  Is the mount belt driven or does it have the original gearing.  ?  In either case it's worth removing the cover over the motors to check the gears are meshed or the belt still has tension.  I would also slacken off the worm gear on both axis and check that the mount rotates in both axis without binding.  If it binds with the worm disengaged then it would suggest that the issue is mechanical, which could be bearings or a bent shaft. If it freely rotates in both axis, and both motors turn correctly then maybe it's just a case of remeshing the drive train for both axis which hopefully resolves the problem.

Even the motorboard can be fixed if it turns out to be the suspect.  - have a read of this thread

Thanks for the responses - the handset does not say error or no response and when it says slewing the mount does not move anything and there is no noise indicating the mount is trying to slew.
Initially I thought it may have been powerbut I am using the LiFePo4 power tank so ? Can rule that out. 

The mount has the original gearing. I did take off the cover and watch as it did slew and it seemed to work.
when I was out the other evening testing to see if it was u/s I noticed, while using red dot finder it slews for a while and then appears to jump, which says to me its the worm gear on one or both of the axis.
 

[malc-c]

I

19 hours ago, coedybrenin2 said:

Thanks for the responses - the handset does not say error or no response and when it says slewing the mount does not move anything and there is no noise indicating the mount is trying to slew.
Initially I thought it may have been powerbut I am using the LiFePo4 power tank so ? Can rule that out. 

The mount has the original gearing. I did take off the cover and watch as it did slew and it seemed to work.
when I was out the other evening testing to see if it was u/s I noticed, while using red dot finder it slews for a while and then appears to jump, which says to me its the worm gear on one or both of the axis.
 

I'm confused... you say the handset states its slewing to target but the mount doesn't move... but then say you watched the gears and it all works....

If the motors are running and the mount slews but then stalls or skips then I agree, it does indeed sound as if the worm gear has too much slop in it and needs adjusting

[Cornelius Varley]

27 minutes ago, malc-c said:

I'm confused

You're not the only one.

@coedybrenin2 are you the friend @David Levi mentioned in the OP ?'

[David Levi]

@Cornelius Varley Yes, it looks like my friend has just joined us.