Equatorial wedge

[JonHigh]

Hi all. 
Just a quick question. I have a skywatcher AZ-GTi that I have converted for use in EQ mode using the Skywatcher wedge. However it really isn’t great. Any suggestions on a decent replacement without spending a vast amount. Looked at the WO but costs the same as the mount so that’s out. Any advice would be appreciated. 

Edited April 24 by JonHigh

[Elp]

I've used 4 and the best one to avoid the most frustration and have a pleasant PA experience is the WO one bar none. If you're patient they do come up for sale used quite often.

Second would be the ioptron one.

[JonHigh]

Thanks. Agreed, the WO does look the business. There was one on Astro Buy/sell for £120 but sold already. That’s about as much as I want to spend in all honesty. I did see the Bresser star tracker wedge but can’t find much by way of reviews other than Amazon. Will have a look at the IOptron. Can only be better than the SW offering. 😂 
 

[Elp]

Which Bresser product?

The ioptron one is fine, much better than the sloppy fit of the altitude assembly of the Skywatcher one, you might just have to remove the vixen saddle locking lever for a bolt so the azgti has clearance to rotate in RA, I had to use a normal hex head bolt.

[JonHigh]

https://amzn.eu/d/3kv0drE
Sloppy is a good word to use. As soon as you go to lock it down PA is lost! 
Yes. I had to do a bit of a fix as you say to get it working. I bought a M8 x 20mm thread with a push button ratchet that worked well. I know it’s for fun in EQ mode but I have got some decent images from it. The wedge is just frustrating and flimsy as you know.  I take it this is the Ioptron one… 
https://www.firstlightoptics.com/ioptron-mount-accessories/ioptron-alt-azimuth-adjustable-base.html?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw26KxBhBDEiwAu6KXtxoA7i09_s7AiV0qKB67t_C7gp52irh5ZkZ77biFQv4mbmP8is7FvRoCQH0QAvD_BwE

Seen the Omegon polar wedge as well if it’s any good but starting to see £200!!

Seems to me that I will have to have patience and get a used WO wedge. 🙄

Edited April 24 by JonHigh

[Elp]

That Bresser payload is only 5Kg I believe so you'll be limited on what you can mount onto it.

That is the ioptron one.

There is a more "advanced" ioptron wedge marketed as the SGP version for their tracker, never used it though. One is on eBay from overseas but by the time you add in import tax it'll be closer in price to the WO one.

Edited April 25 by Elp

[rotatux]

Maybe try a 2D "fluid" head (the kind used by video makers) ?

Mine handles up to 4-5kg, but there are some more robust ones which can handle 10kg and even more, and you usually don't pay the "astro tax" on them, so you may get a very good one for the price of your SW/Bresser/iOptron/Omegon wedge.

I'm using mine with a Minitrack LX3 plus camera and lens (~3kg total) and it's a breeze to setup and lock the altitude, with no shift while locking, and no play once locked. YMMV.

PS : of course you would need a good tripod and photo plate to fit, if you don't have them already.

[JonHigh]

Cool. Thanks for that. i believe the AZGTI  can handle up to 5Kg payload and I’m not putting anything too heavy on it so should be okay. 
The Ioptron seems to be the one to get if it doesn’t move when locking everything down.

Will check out the Minitrack so thanks for all your help.  
 

 

[Chaz2b]

I’m glad I’ve come across this thread, I’d forgotten my wedge, out of site out of mind with me.

I have the ioptron one but have either misplaced the plate or it didn’t come with one, I bought it used.

Luckily FLO had one in stock as a return, so that’s saved a few quid!

I’ve mounted mine on top of the SW pier so the plate needs to have 3/8” hole for the AZ GTI.

chaz

[StevieDvd]

On 24/04/2024 at 23:38, JonHigh said:

https://amzn.eu/d/3kv0drE
Sloppy is a good word to use. As soon as you go to lock it down PA is lost! 
Yes. I had to do a bit of a fix as you say to get it working. I bought a M8 x 20mm thread with a push button ratchet that worked well. I know it’s for fun in EQ mode but I have got some decent images from it. The wedge is just frustrating and flimsy as you know.  I take it this is the Ioptron one… 
https://www.firstlightoptics.com/ioptron-mount-accessories/ioptron-alt-azimuth-adjustable-base.html?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw26KxBhBDEiwAu6KXtxoA7i09_s7AiV0qKB67t_C7gp52irh5ZkZ77biFQv4mbmP8is7FvRoCQH0QAvD_BwE

Seen the Omegon polar wedge as well if it’s any good but starting to see £200!!

Seems to me that I will have to have patience and get a used WO wedge. 🙄

The Omegon one is sold at widescreen deluxe metal version  or slightly cheaper (if they have stock) at Altair for base version or deluxe metal version

 

[PhilB61]

I found the SW wedge to be acceptable after I had shimmed it with a nylon washer and nipped up the locking lever in stages as I approached good PA. Certainly I felt it was on par with the quality of the rest of the rig ie the AZ-gti itself so don't expect a huge difference in go-to, tracking guiding etc. If you want to improve these then your money may be better directed towards a higher quality mount. 

[JonHigh]

Hi all,

Thanks for all the replies. I have had another look at the skywatcher wedge last night after dismantling it. The pin for the Az was a bit loose so tightened that up! Indeed it seems better once everything is nipped up followed by small adjustments. Went slightly higher in Alt then eased it south so it’s resting on the gear and seems to be better. I think I might save up and get the WO one. However, I’m only using the Az-GTi for a light AP payload or a quick visual setup. Otherwise my modded StellarDrive HEQ5 comes out!

Edited Wednesday at 11:54 by JonHigh

[Elp]

I am knowingly using 6.5Kg on my azgti for imaging, works fine for the quality (and price range) of the mount.

[StevieDvd]

On 24/04/2024 at 23:38, JonHigh said:

https://amzn.eu/d/3kv0drE
Sloppy is a good word to use. As soon as you go to lock it down PA is lost! 
Yes. I had to do a bit of a fix as you say to get it working. I bought a M8 x 20mm thread with a push button ratchet that worked well.

Out of interest was the ratchet for the clamp (M8) and was it long enough at 20mm. And was it from Amazon/Ebay?

I think the SW needs a better Alt ratchet as well (M6) - with those replaced it should be a workable wedge.  I used to have a WO one for an AZ-GTi setup but sold it, doh!

 

[Teun]

I have the omegon deluxe. It does what it needs to and is solid.

[JonHigh]

23 hours ago, StevieDvd said:

Out of interest was the ratchet for the clamp (M8) and was it long enough at 20mm. And was it from Amazon/Ebay?

I think the SW needs a better Alt ratchet as well (M6) - with those replaced it should be a workable wedge.  I used to have a WO one for an AZ-GTi setup but sold it, doh!

 

Yup I got that for upper clamp to lock the scope down as the supplied thumb screw was too big for the RA axis to revolve. Bought from Amazon (made by Sourcing Map). I haven’t upgraded the Alt ratchet, although it could do with it but I really don’t want to spend any more on it. Looking at prices and to save £70 odd pounds, the Omegon Deluxe might be the way to go. Seems to be a solid performer. 

[StevieDvd]

1 hour ago, JonHigh said:

Yup I got that for upper clamp to lock the scope down as the supplied thumb screw was too big for the RA axis to revolve. Bought from Amazon (made by Sourcing Map). I haven’t upgraded the Alt ratchet, although it could do with it but I really don’t want to spend any more on it. Looking at prices and to save £70 odd pounds, the Omegon Deluxe might be the way to go. Seems to be a solid performer. 

Thanks,

I've ordered a ratchet for both the clamp and alt bolt (same maker as yours) from Amazon for my SW wedge. If that fails to be as stable as expected then I'll go for the Omegon Deluxe (in stock at Altair but they did not confirm it includes a dovetail - though I did ask in my email).

 

[JonHigh]

Cool. Please do let me know if that works. 

[StevieDvd]

20 hours ago, JonHigh said:

Cool. Please do let me know if that works. 

The ratchets arrived today and though not high quality they seem robust enough.

The M8 one is to lock the dovetail in place without it getting in the way, so the ratchet let's the handle be moved to a better position once locked in place.

The M6 one replaces the plastic/nylon handle which was slipping when tightened to much, I thought I'd broken it at one time but checked inside and though it was unbroken it was obviously a weak point for anyone heavy handed. The replacement allows a much tighter solution so  this should now be a proper solution though not as pretty as the William Optics wedge.

If I needed to adjust this for each session I'd probably go for a WO wedge if one came up for sale used, but for the Seestar S50/Dwarf in EQ mode it will do just fine.

 

[JonHigh]

3 hours ago, StevieDvd said:

The ratchets arrived today and though not high quality they seem robust enough.

The M8 one is to lock the dovetail in place without it getting in the way, so the ratchet let's the handle be moved to a better position once locked in place.

The M6 one replaces the plastic/nylon handle which was slipping when tightened to much, I thought I'd broken it at one time but checked inside and though it was unbroken it was obviously a weak point for anyone heavy handed. The replacement allows a much tighter solution so  this should now be a proper solution though not as pretty as the William Optics wedge.

If I needed to adjust this for each session I'd probably go for a WO wedge if one came up for sale used, but for the Seestar S50/Dwarf in EQ mode it will do just fine.

 

That’s great to hear and thank you for the feedback! 👍🏻

May I ask which M6 one did you get as sounds like a good a solution to that ‘to a price’ handle? 
At the moment if I can find a cheap second hand WO wedge at a sensible price then I will go for it but in the meantime I have a wedge that is modded to how should have been. 

 

[LondonNeil]

Reading with interest!  I picked up a skywatcher wedge cheap (£25) on ebay to try with my gtiX.  I knew they weren't amazing but figured it's worth £25 and a bit of a play. 

I've changed the dovetail clamping bolt to an 8mm Allen bolt so the gtix rotates in RA without fouling the bolt but agree the polypropylene ratchet handle on the az clamp of weak,  I too thought I'd broken it when it slipped as I was tightening it. 

I've not taken it apart so... @StevieDvd did you use a female ratcheting handle ...

sourcing map M6 Handle Adjustable Clamping Lever Thread Push Button Ratchet Female Threaded Stud 2 Pcs https://amzn.eu/d/2iIVgFe

Or did you have to get a male one...

sourcing map 6pcs Adjustable Clamping Lever Handles M6 x 50mm Male Thread Bolt Knobs Rotating Screw Locking Quick Release Ratchet Push Button Handle, Black https://amzn.eu/d/31SpL00

And if so,  what length? If you need a male one I think I'd just get the appropriate length m6 Allen bolt and use an Allen key to tighten,  I carry a multitool/ set of Allen keys anyway. 

[LondonNeil]

Also how do you actually polar align the thing! 

[Elp]

28 minutes ago, LondonNeil said:

bolt

Just use a long t bolt, never failed to clamp down my payload securely, you do need some pliers though. But what's more important, the bother of having to use pliers or securing your payload.

[Elp]

28 minutes ago, LondonNeil said:

Also how do you actually polar align the thing! 

This is the issue a lot of people have with using it in EQ mode. A computer controller makes it easy.

The offline solution is to implement an offset bracket which can hold a polar scope to one side of the mount.

[StevieDvd]

@JonHigh the Amazon M6 ratchet is this one  came as a 2pc set. 

@LondonNeil the above is the same as you linked to and it's the female type. I used an M8 20mm male for the dovetail clamp which came as a 4pc set, so I have enough clearance from the base of the Seestar S50.

I have not got the PA, and more importantly the calibration process, completely figured out yet.  

The PA is basically aligning the body of the Seestar to polaris (not the moving part with the lens). My starting point was just with it pointing north and approx. 52 degrees latitude. Others have added basic finder scopes to the side of the Seestar as @Elp mentioned. The trickier part is fooling it to calibrate, there are 2 ways I've seen:

1. Fooling the Seestar to align on a target you choose - see Cuiv first cheat

2. Setting your location to the North Pole - see Cuiv second cheat

My M13 was after a lot of trying and I'd find the exact process hard to replicate why it worked. Hence, I am planning on trying the second way in the Cuiv videos linked above.