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Post by Deleted on Jan 31, 2014 23:02:27 GMT
Can anyone who may have one tell me if they have managed to get this mount balanced in Alt Azmode and if so how they achieved it? I have tried everyway I can possibly think of to get this balanced but to me this seems impossible. If I get the OTA (C11) balanced while parallel to the ground and then tip it upor down it is off! If there is a trick to this or I'm naivelymissing something I'd really appreciate a steer inthe right direction. Recently I've noticed the mount ismaking a lot more noise whilst tracking but when I first boughtthe mount it made a lovely tweeting noise. Johnno has pointedout to me it could have something to do with poor balance so I'm desperate to improve this if it is possible.
Cheers
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 0:04:15 GMT
If your having problems balancing you might have to invest in one these, I'm thinking of asking one of the guys at the club to make me one, will make balancing dead easy.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 0:09:59 GMT
If your having problems balancing you might have to invest in one these, I'm thinking of asking one of the guys at the club to make me one, will make balancing dead easy.
Thanks John, what is it? I can't work it out.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 0:26:08 GMT
Here is a quick Vid but it does not pick up the sound very well so you may need to turn the sound up. It may be perfectly normal but seems odd to me!
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 0:35:21 GMT
My mount is a Ioptron MTP but the procedure should be more or less the same. Make sure your mount is level in all directions.
If your using 2 scopes on primary and secondary, I would just fit the C11 on first and disconnect the clutches, get that balanced near as dam it, so it stays put in any direction [ up or down movement] then fit your 80mm on and do the final adjustments with the 80mm scope so both scopes should now stay in any position you leave it at. Now put your scopes parallel and lock the Dec clutch.
Now is the azimuth balancing, make sure the AZ clutch is locked. I always set my mount with the legs extended about 6 inches [13cm] and what I do is to drop one leg right down so now the mount is at a angle. [make sure it doesn't fall over ] now disengage the AZ clutch and turn the mount head left or right and what you want is the same as above that it stays put in any direction, if it doesn't slacken off your secondary shaft and slide it in or out till its balanced. Once balanced lock up clutches and now extend the leg back up and level the mount with the in built bubble, make sure the bubble stays in the same position in the glass when you rotate your mount 360 deg.
Hope you can understand this.
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 0:39:58 GMT
Hmmm. that noise doesn't sound right, I wonder if there is some play in the gears? and that buzzing sounds bad, send the vid off to FLO and see what they think.
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 0:42:46 GMT
If your having problems balancing you might have to invest in one these, I'm thinking of asking one of the guys at the club to make me one, will make balancing dead easy.
Thanks John, what is it? I can't work it out. Its a counter weight, fitted to the dovetail bar, so instead of sliding the scope up and down the dovetail holder you slide that bar along the dovetail bar or move the weight up and down the shaft
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 0:49:03 GMT
I forgot to say when balancing, load the C11 up with everything on it, camera and whatever you normally use for your session also do the same with the 80mm
Here's a vid of it and mine is balanced like that, if I put my end dust cover on after I've balanced it, the scope will be nose heavy and drop down at the front.
IF your only using C11 the procedure is the same but with the counter balance weights
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 0:57:16 GMT
And another thing, I use tipp-ex and mark the dovetail bar on the scope so when I next use it I know where roughly to put the scope on the dovetail clamp.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 0:59:05 GMT
I forgot to say when balancing, load the C11 up with everything on it, camera and whatever you normally use for your session also do the same with the 80mm
Here's a vid of it and mine is balanced like that, if I put my end dust cover on after I've balanced it, the scope will be nose heavy and drop down at the front.
IF your only using C11 the procedure is the same but with the counter balance weights Now that is cool. I have done something similar before using the secondary saddle but now I use it for the Equinox. That said I never got balance this good! Is that something he made up himself?
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 1:08:13 GMT
I don't know if he made that, but I've seen other people on the net with similar designs .If you can get hold of the right materials you could make one, but if you do a search you might find a company that makes them,
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 1:09:38 GMT
Karl they counter weights look pretty monstrous! From your avatar pic you have just replaced them with the equinox. Wouldnt they be much heavier than the equinox nah?
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 1:12:31 GMT
Karl they counter weights look pretty monstrous! From your avatar pic you have just replaced them with the equinox. Wouldnt they be much heavier than the equinox nah? Good point Chris, you might have to add some weights on it with the 80mm
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 1:14:40 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 1:22:53 GMT
Karl they counter weights look pretty monstrous! From your avatar pic you have just replaced them with the equinox. Wouldnt they be much heavier than the equinox nah? Good point Chris, you might have to add some weights on it with the 80mm Yes they are but not sure if I need them in Alt AZ mode. Maybe I should balance in EQ mode first then switch to Alt Az and then fine tune with one of those weights. I have just watched a vid from Astronomy Shed which explains how I'm shifting the centre of gravity. He basically gets balance horizontally first and then balances again with the OTA vertical. However, he does do this by rotating the OTA which for me is not possible so I need to suss that one! I think this will be my mission while the monsoon's keep lashing down!
Cheers guys
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 1:25:32 GMT
Excellent John, this is good info and the counterweights look perfect! Thanks
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 1:26:11 GMT
By dropping one leg your balancing in EQ mode
I need a wedge to balance in EQ mode but by doing it this way its as close as I'm going to get
Don't forget if its not balance correctly it can put your tracking off and put a strain on your motors
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 1:32:21 GMT
My mount is a Ioptron MTP but the procedure should be more or less the same. Make sure your mount is level in all directions. If your using 2 scopes on primary and secondary, I would just fit the C11 on first and disconnect the clutches, get that balanced near as dam it, so it stays put in any direction [ up or down movement] then fit your 80mm on and do the final adjustments with the 80mm scope so both scopes should now stay in any position you leave it at. Now put your scopes parallel and lock the Dec clutch. Now is the azimuth balancing, make sure the AZ clutch is locked. I always set my mount with the legs extended about 6 inches [13cm] and what I do is to drop one leg right down so now the mount is at a angle. [make sure it doesn't fall over ] now disengage the AZ clutch and turn the mount head left or right and what you want is the same as above that it stays put in any direction, if it doesn't slacken off your secondary shaft and slide it in or out till its balanced. Once balanced lock up clutches and now extend the leg back up and level the mount with the in built bubble, make sure the bubble stays in the same position in the glass when you rotate your mount 360 deg. Hope you can understand this. Ooh this does sound technical but I'm sure I could give it a go. My only concern would be the weight which is incredible really. I'm not sure I could hold it all up while adjusting the leg. Now that said, could I do this by balancing first in EQ mode? As for my bubble, this was out completely from day one. Basically I level the tripod as near as dam it and then add the mount. The bubble level is not even close!!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 1:35:16 GMT
Hmmm. that noise doesn't sound right, I wonder if there is some play in the gears? and that buzzing sounds bad, send the vid off to FLO and see what they think. Yikes, okay I will that is a worry thanks!
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Post by johnno on Feb 1, 2014 1:35:56 GMT
Looking at your avatar Karl, you could get a small dovetail clamp [ to the orange bar] to go on it at the front, remove the thumb screw and fit a threaded rod in its place and fit a small counter weight on it with a nut either side of the weight
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