EQ5 Mount Fault

[HW Brucey]

Hey guys. I'm relatively new to astronomy, having bought my first "large" telescope at the end of August, namely the Skywatcher Explorer 200p on the EQ5 mount. However the EQ5 seems to have developed a fault. Around 6 weeks after purchase i was bringing the scope and mount back indoors after a cold night under the stars, and i usually lower the latitude on the mount when it's back indoors due to paranoia about leaving it at around 56 degrees. Unfortunately the rear latitude adjustment screw was stuck fast in the back of the mount, which i'm fairly sure was a result of the end of the screw having been deformed in some way, perhaps by the sheer weight of the OTA! Anyway, it's away getting repaired right now and i was wondering where i went wrong with this? I would tend to mount the OTA on the EQ5 before adjusting latitude for polar alignment, which may have caused the problem. Also is it common to simply keep a telescope at the appropriate latitude all the time anyway?

Thanks for any light you guys can shed on the matter.

[andy jack]

When I purchased my 150P the guy in the shop made a real big deal about the latitude adjustment. He emphasised that you MUST make sure that the opposing adjustment screw is slackened off or you WILL bend one of the screws.

He even went to the trouble of giving me a demonstration on a display model and then insisted that I had a go, to demonstrate that I had understood what he had done. At the time I felt it was a bit OTT and patronising, but I now realise how easy it would be to damage one of the screws.

I am a newbie so my experience is fairly limited but it sounds like you could have fallen foul of this.

Personally I leave the latitude adjustment fixed in position and just remove the OTA if it is not going to be used for a few days.

[stev74]

This is a very common fault lots of people replace the 'soft' Skywatcher bolts with stronger stainless steal ones which solves the problem. If you read this - http://stargazerslounge.com/equipment-help/89882-latitude-bolts-eq5-mount.html there's a link to the company that makes the stronger bolts if your interested. As I'd read about the problems I tend to leave the latitude set and don't move it unless I really have to.

Cheers

[iamjulian]

I set mine when I first got it and haven't touched it since. I store it with the OTA removed and the counter weights removed. But then I only have the 150p so perhaps the weight difference helps?

[Beyond_Vision]

The replacement bolts mentioned above will also make it easier to adjust the angle as there is more grip. There is no need as other have said to change the angle for storage.

Regards

Kevin

[Astro_Baby]

I leave mine set up in the liunge at the right latitude and only slightly adjust it when out with the scope.

I saw this as a potential problem so replaced my supplied bolts with the astro-developments ones almost straight away.

You must remember to slacken the lock screw off before adjusting because the bolts can bend - and if you put tougher bolts in there is another potential hazard of stripping the threads in the mount (which is even more hassle).

Generally I align the mount without the tube or weights on to start with so the mount is never placed under lots of stress. Then I mount the weights and scope and do any fine adjustment. That way the mount is kept as stress free as is possible.

Ps if the scope is mounted up in storage for any length of time its wise to periodically move the mount about by hand in its RA and DEC axis to shift the weight around on the bearings.

[Alien]

I have the same setup and know that the latitude bolts can be fiddly but, assuming your viewing location never changes, should not need to be adjusted. The angle of celestial north pole above the horizon is precisely the same as your latitude position on the planet. Once set and tight, assuming it does not get bashed about, should be fine.

I adjust mine without the tube attached to reduce stress on the bolts. Slacken both off until it can be loosely adjusted. After every 2 or 3 full turns of the adjuster the lock bolt will have tightened up again. It is a process of slacken both - 2 turns of the adjust screw - slacken - adjust etc until your marker is in position on the latitude scale.

HTH

[Dave]

Ian King sells the replacement bolts.

Mounting accessories from Ian King Imaging

I replaced the ones on my EQ6 and they are much better and easier to adjust.

Dave

[HW Brucey]

Thanks for all your help with the matter guys, i'll know to be more careful in the future

[steppenwolf]

He even went to the trouble of giving me a demonstration on a display model and then insisted that I had a go, to demonstrate that I had understood what he had done.

I am impressed with your retailer!

As you already know, these bolts are soft and needed to be treated very carefully - Having heard of so may people having problems with EQ6 mount bolts, I decided to replace mine and the replacement ones were certainly very nice to use BUT, my original bolts (4 years old) turned out to be perfect when removed! However, my mount is permanently mounted on a pier so I conclude that the weight of the telescope gear on the mount is not an issue even long-term - it is the constant adjustment that is the issue especially at higher latitudes and it is vital to ensure that the opposing bolt does not impede movement.

[andy jack]

I am impressed with your retailer!

I am also very impressed with the help, advice and general service I received. I was expecting, and prepared to pay a little more for my telescope for the convenience of buying from a local shop. Not only did I want to see the telescope in the flesh, but ideally I like to deal with a shop direct in case of problems. Stockport Binocular and Telescope Centre are only a few miles away from me, so they were the obvious first port of call. Not only did I receive great service but quite unexpectedly they also price matched the best on-line price I had found. All in all, if my experience is typical then they are a very good company to deal with.

[Quatermass]

The bolts are way too soft get rid of them and replace them with stronger ones asap the latitude adjustment design on the mounts is very poor compared to the rest of the scopes good features this one gave me a lot of grief until I got rid of the bolts and replaced them.