EQ6-R Pro - keep or sell?

[badhex]

Hello all,

 

Of late I've been wrestling with a problem of my own making which has left me perplexed and unsure of my next move, so I'm seeking some guidance. 

Around three years ago after a hiatus from astronomy I jumped right back in with both feet, and I was fortunate enough to be able to afford an EQ6-R Pro, reasoning it would be a forever mount and future proof me for likely any potential scope I may later buy. 

Unfortunately, as is sometimes the way, I have not had the circumstances in which to use it;  in fact I have since come to the conclusion that I prefer alt-az mounts, being purely a visual observer, and don't really use goto at all. Thus the mount has not been used in earnest, only to test it works.

With hindsight it probably wasn't the right purchase, and indeed if I had my time again I'd probably buy something like a Rowan AZ100 with encoders, and the potential option to upgrade to push-to or motors later if I wanted. As it happens, the AZ100 is roughly the same price as the mount head!

Anyway, on one hand I could cut my losses, sell the mount and make possibly a significant loss on an essentially brand new item, maybe make a bad decision into a worse one, and / or end up regretting my decision. On the other hand I could hold out and see if in the future my circumstances change and the EQ6-R becomes the right thing, which may never come to fruition and have a excellent mount sitting doing nothing, which is also sad. 

To be honest I'm not really sure what to do for the best, especially since currently I'm not flush so making a loss hits more than it might a couple of years ago - although I must note that I don't need to sell in order to recoup money to live so to speak, any money recouped would go back into the purchase of an alternative mount. 

I've spent quite some time now thinking myself into a corner! Any thoughts or opinions welcomed on this matter, or advice from anyone who has found themselves in a similar position. 

Edited September 12, 2023 by badhex

[Elp]

If you can afford to have it sitting around (space and value tied in) it wouldn't hurt to keep it. But if you haven't used it much in the time you've had it, will you ever use it as intended?

[david_taurus83]

If weight isn't an issue then you could put the feelers out and see if anyone wants to swap your EQ6R for an AZEQ6? The AZ can mount 2 scopes at the same time. I had a 200p and a 71mm frac on mine at a star party a few years ago. It's a heavy mount though but not a problem if you can leave it in your preferred observing position. 

[badhex]

12 hours ago, Elp said:

If you can afford to have it sitting around (space and value tied in) it wouldn't hurt to keep it. But if you haven't used it much in the time you've had it, will you ever use it as intended?

Indeed this is the concern. I do have the space and I've already spent the money, but it will be at a least a year before I live somewhere that I can realistically use such a mount, and for visual only, I'm not sure that it's the right fit. That said, because I've never been able to use the mount in earnest, I don't really know how well or badly I would get on with it, so there's some guesswork based only on my last few years of observing with alt-az. 

[Elp]

I'd try it out, if you haven't used goto you'll find you can spend more time observing rather than trying to find objects. Polar alignment is straightforward enough, even when done manually with a polar scope.

[badhex]

11 hours ago, david_taurus83 said:

If weight isn't an issue then you could put the feelers out and see if anyone wants to swap your EQ6R for an AZEQ6? The AZ can mount 2 scopes at the same time. I had a 200p and a 71mm frac on mine at a star party a few years ago. It's a heavy mount though but not a problem if you can leave it in your preferred observing position. 

Thanks, a very good point. This thought had occurred to me too - best of both worlds, so to speak. However the problem currently is that I won't have place to set up a large mount for at least a year, and I have genuinely no idea what that will look like in terms a more permanent setup. 

[badhex]

39 minutes ago, Elp said:

I'd try it out, if you haven't used goto you'll find you can spend more time observing rather than trying to find objects. Polar alignment is straightforward enough, even when done manually with a polar scope.

I have used goto plenty with an AZ-GTi, and it is great, especially for short sessions - but I also quite enjoy the satisfaction of hunting down objects. I also own/ed a couple of older EQ mounts and used to find polar alignment generally easy enough, but an additional pain when setting up since I've always loved in flats and have to basically start from scratch each time. I do wonder if having a more permanent location in the future would change my mind though. 

[Mr Spock]

I made the mistake of selling my EQ6 because it was too heavy to lift. Instead what I should have done is bought a pier and stuck it out in the garden.

[StarryEyed]

15 hours ago, badhex said:

....

To be honest I'm not really sure what to do for the best,...

Then do nothing. which can often be the right thing to do.

[badhex]

3 hours ago, Mr Spock said:

I made the mistake of selling my EQ6 because it was too heavy to lift. Instead what I should have done is bought a pier and stuck it out in the garden.

Certainly a pier is what I eventually had in mind when I first bought it, assuming that when we buy somewhere it will be with better observing space in mind. It's a long term  investment in that case, and that way I arguably don't lose any money. 

[badhex]

2 hours ago, StarryEyed said:

Then do nothing. which can often be the right thing to do.

Certainly the easiest option, and no money lost unless you account for something going unused! 

[Mutley]

This is the sunk cost fallacy. Sell my friend.

Dictionary

Definitions from Oxford Languages · Learn more

 

noun

noun: sunk-cost fallacy

1. the phenomenon whereby a person is reluctant to abandon a strategy or course of action because they have invested heavily in it, even when it is clear that abandonment would be more beneficial.

   "the sunk-cost fallacy creeps into a lot of major financial decisions"

[badhex]

1 hour ago, Mutley said:

This is the sunk cost fallacy. Sell my friend.

Dictionary

Definitions from Oxford Languages · Learn more

 

noun

noun: sunk-cost fallacy

1. the phenomenon whereby a person is reluctant to abandon a strategy or course of action because they have invested heavily in it, even when it is clear that abandonment would be more beneficial.

   "the sunk-cost fallacy creeps into a lot of major financial decisions"

Indeed! My partner and I have been chatting occasionally about this for a few weeks and she is generally of the opinion that right now I'm essentially £1400 down with nothing to show, and should take the hit and put money towards a mount that I actually definitely want!

Edited September 12, 2023 by badhex

[Alan White]

1 hour ago, Mutley said:

This is the sunk cost fallacy. Sell my friend.

Dictionary

Definitions from Oxford Languages · Learn more

 

noun

noun: sunk-cost fallacy

1. the phenomenon whereby a person is reluctant to abandon a strategy or course of action because they have invested heavily in it, even when it is clear that abandonment would be more beneficial.

   "the sunk-cost fallacy creeps into a lot of major financial decisions"

 

17 minutes ago, badhex said:

Indeed! My partner and I have been chatting occasionally about this for a few weeks and she is generally of the opinion that right now I'm essentially £1400 down with nothing to show, and should take the hit and put money towards a mount that I actually definitely want!

I think the advice given and the discussion with your partner are both good advice that I would agree with.
 

[Mutley]

1 hour ago, badhex said:

Indeed! My partner and I have been chatting occasionally about this for a few weeks and she is generally of the opinion that right now I'm essentially £1400 down with nothing to show, and should take the hit and put money towards a mount that I actually definitely want!

FWIW, I too have an EQ6-R pro, used visually only. A lockdown purchase which I regret slightly every time I have to rotate the eyepiece.  I've grown to love it though - it's a magnificent lump, and I've finally got a handle on the quirky, erratic GOTO (in a sentence, accurate polar align so the software doesn't have to do anything). Can't help thinking there's some imager out there who could make better use of it.

Maybe I should take my own advice and cash in for an AZ100.  Quite a hefty investment though.

[badhex]

1 hour ago, Alan White said:

I think the advice given and the discussion with your partner are both good advice that I would agree with.

Thanks @Alan White, I know you've been through several iterations of your observing setup so are no stranger to changing tack when the existing setup no longer makes sense - even when significant time or effort has been invested. 

[badhex]

35 minutes ago, Mutley said:

FWIW, I too have an EQ6-R pro, used visually only. A lockdown purchase which I regret slightly every time I have to rotate the eyepiece.  I've grown to love it though - it's a magnificent lump, and I've finally got a handle on the quirky, erratic GOTO (in a sentence, accurate polar align so the software doesn't have to do anything). Can't help thinking there's some imager out there who could make better use of it.

Maybe I should take my own advice and cash in for an AZ100.  Quite a hefty investment though.

This is the thing. I know it's an excellent mount even without having had chance to use it. The kind of thing you both expect and want in a small observatory! 

[Space Hopper]

I'm in a similar predicament with a Vixen SXP2 eq mount.  

Lovely piece of kit : beautifully engineered, but i never use it. I've thought about selling it many times.

I'm also visual only in all honesty, and much prefer alt-az mounts, so thats what i use.

[Roy Challen]

20 hours ago, badhex said:

 It's a long term  investment 

Keep it that way. You'll only regret it when it's gone, then buy another one.

I nearly let my Tak EQ go, so glad I didn't even though a lighter AZ would be easier for me. Eventually it'll go on a pier in the garden.

Edited September 13, 2023 by Roy Challen

[badhex]

So far it seems like we're almost evenly split on keep vs sell and buy a new mount. Does that mean "keep the EQ6-R, save up for a the new mount as well"? 😂