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Equipment Discussions >> Mounts

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JoeM101
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 04/09/12

Loc: 45.66086, -73.54702

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: Manny Myles]
#5359465 - 08/09/12 09:42 AM

Quote:

So far I have not had to do anything to the mounts I use the bracket on.
The mounts I use it on include the Porta and Voyager and all these come with clutches to dial up or down the tension should I need to.
When I got all 3 of these mounts I have never had to adjust the tension ever, factory set out of the box, some might need to.
Maybe some other owners could speak up.
m2

Manny, i was wondering if the center of gravity shift is noticeable, i imagine that using larger OTAs will cause the shift to be more pronounced as the CofG of the OTA will not be in line with rotational axis of the alt bearing if you have a fixed height on the bracket. if you leave the tension off and balance the scope in the horizontal, what happens if you move to say 45 degrees alt?

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beatlejuice
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 04/05/11

Loc: Hamilton, ON,Canada

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: JoeM101]
#5359942 - 08/09/12 01:45 PM

Quote:

if you leave the tension off and balance the scope in the horizontal, what happens if you move to say 45 degrees alt?

Joe, concerning the voyager, I have Manny's bracket and use an Omni 120 on it. If I balance in the horizontal I am good up to about 70 degrees. But I usually tighten up the alt a bit after that just to be safe. (It should be noted that I use a cg4 tripod with extension to add more overall stability)

Eric

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OldManInHawaii
member

Reged: 03/12/12

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: beatlejuice]
#5360012 - 08/09/12 02:19 PM

Sorry to digress from the subject of Manny's mod, but I just noticed that ES has a quick-start installation guide for the TWI mount: http://www.explorescientific.com/manuals/Twilight_I_Assembly_Drawing.pdf

One deviation I made from this guide is to install one of the flat washers at Point A instead of mounting all the washers at Point B.

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72king
newbie

Reged: 07/25/12

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: OldManInHawaii]
#5360372 - 08/09/12 05:45 PM

Is the only place to buy this mount on http://www.telescopes.com/? Going to order it tonight for
Skywatcher pro 100ed. Any thoughts on a red dot finder?

mking

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OldManInHawaii
member

Reged: 03/12/12

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: 72king]
#5360621 - 08/09/12 08:15 PM

The mount is in stock/available for $299 at the ES website: http://store.explorescientific.com/twilightiadjustableheadmountandtripod.aspx

Can't on the red dot finder for your scope, however.

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JoeM101
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 04/09/12

Loc: 45.66086, -73.54702

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: beatlejuice]
#5360839 - 08/09/12 10:51 PM

Quote:

Quote:

if you leave the tension off and balance the scope in the horizontal, what happens if you move to say 45 degrees alt?

Joe, concerning the voyager, I have Manny's bracket and use an Omni 120 on it. If I balance in the horizontal I am good up to about 70 degrees. But I usually tighten up the alt a bit after that just to be safe. (It should be noted that I use a cg4 tripod with extension to add more overall stability)

Eric

Eric, that's the thing, the bracket should take into account the OTA's diameter to attain proper balance, but i guess tensioning will do if it's close enough. I guess it's ok with scopes in the 3 to 6 inch diameter size. i'm curious though, why not mount it directly to the alt bearing? is it to allow accessories to be mounted on the rings? or is there another benefit? It seems that the mount will be laterally heavier, how does this affect stability... heftier tripod required?

Quote:

Is the only place to buy this mount on http://www.telescopes.com/? Going to order it tonight for
Skywatcher pro 100ed. Any thoughts on a red dot finder?

mking

I got the astro-tech red dot finder from astronomics.com, can't live without it now. great price and quality, as for the ES twilight, you can get it straight from explore scientific or the Orion versaGo III, same mount diff name from telescope.com

clear skies

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beatlejuice
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 04/05/11

Loc: Hamilton, ON,Canada

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: JoeM101]
#5360869 - 08/09/12 11:14 PM

Quote:

i'm curious though, why not mount it directly to the alt bearing? is it to allow accessories to be mounted on the rings? or is there another benefit?

Yes Joe that is the main reason as well as the panhandle that comes with the bracket. I have recently added JMI's TNT for voyager and therefore no longer need slowmo controls. I actually use a 4" riser most of the time on the Telrad and it is the most comfortable finding position that I have ever had. And yes, that is a heavier tripod underneath the mount extension(CG4) I swap mounts using the same tripod and extension depending on what I want to do. On occasion I use a 60mm with the same Telrad configuation which is a joy to use. The only overmounted situation I have.

Eric

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JoeM101
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 04/09/12

Loc: 45.66086, -73.54702

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: beatlejuice]
#5360910 - 08/09/12 11:48 PM

Eric, i figured as much, perhaps custom brackets would be a good idea for associated ring sizes, just a thought, may not be practical but i'm sure it would be welcome when balance becomes an issue at higher elevation. Don't get me wrong, i think it's a great idea as i'm actually designing a mount and had a similar config and almost scrapped it due to the CG concern... have you seen the Canadian Telescopes heavy duty duo, i was looking at a variation of this sort of design also but have to say, i really like the ESTWI very much as a GnG mount and Manny's bracket/pan-handle makes for a cool mod

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beatlejuice
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 04/05/11

Loc: Hamilton, ON,Canada

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: JoeM101]
#5360965 - 08/10/12 12:42 AM

Quote:

have you seen the Canadian Telescopes heavy duty duo

I have heard of it and I think there are a couple of threads on it somewhere. After closer inspection it seems like it would be a perfect fit on my mount extension. No,No I must not think like that

Eric

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Starman81
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 03/06/08

Loc: Metro Detroit, MI, USA

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: Starman81]
#5361919 - 08/10/12 03:05 PM

Quote:

Is there a compatible extension tube for this mount? Like this one here for the AT Voyager mount.

Does anyone know?

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72king
newbie

Reged: 07/25/12

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: Starman81]
#5362325 - 08/10/12 07:42 PM

Ordered scope (skywatcher pro 100ed) and mount. Should be here next week.

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OldManInHawaii
member

Reged: 03/12/12

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: Starman81]
#5362782 - 08/11/12 01:30 AM

Quote:

Quote:

Is there a compatible extension tube for this mount? Like this one here for the AT Voyager mount.

Does anyone know?

I suggest you phone ES & ask them if the pier extension for the Twilight II mount will work on the Twilight I. They told me that the Twilight I mount head will fit on the Twilight II tripod (they installed it while I waited on the phone).

Here's the link for the pier extension: http://store.explorescientific.com/explorescientificaccypierextfortwilightmount.aspx

Good luck.

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Shawn H
Postmaster

Reged: 05/16/07

Loc: Equatorial Guinea, West Africa

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: OldManInHawaii]
#5366402 - 08/13/12 12:47 PM

Anybody get an answer if the pier extension works on the Twilight 1

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Starman81
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 03/06/08

Loc: Metro Detroit, MI, USA

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: Shawn H]
#5366997 - 08/13/12 05:51 PM

Quote:

Anybody get an answer if the pier extension works on the Twilight 1

I called a couple times this afternoon but got voicemail both times... I didn't bother to leave one though.

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OldManInHawaii
member

Reged: 03/12/12

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: Starman81]
#5367493 - 08/13/12 10:41 PM

FWIW, here's a link to another thread that indicates the TW I head will fit on the CG5/CG4 tripods:

http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=lxd55&Number=5338638&Forum=,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,f41,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,&Words=ES%20Twiglight%20I&Searchpage=17&Limit=50&Main=5337061&Search=true&where=bodysub&Name=&daterange=1&newerval=1&newertype=y&olderval=1&oldertype=w&bodyprev=#Post5338638

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OldManInHawaii
member

Reged: 03/12/12

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: OldManInHawaii]
#5367499 - 08/13/12 10:47 PM

I'd like to clarify some small errors from my previous posts regarding the TWI:

-The weight of the raw mount/tripod is 15.3 lbs. (my previous post of 18 lbs. is wrong)

-The vertical shaft which screws into the bottom of the mount head has a metric 10mm (X1.50) thread (my previous post of 3/8" is wrong).

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EdTheEdge
Pooh-Bah

Reged: 04/10/09

Loc: Lomita, CA

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: Starman81]
#5369949 - 08/15/12 11:33 AM

Well 9 days later I got the rest of the parts for my mount. I cAn't believe that it took 9 days to get here from Arkansas.....

That aside, with the collar and the washers the mount is now pretty darned steady and is a perfect match for my 80mm. tonight I will try my 100ed on it. If that work I will be berry berry happy!

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Shawn H
Postmaster

Reged: 05/16/07

Loc: Equatorial Guinea, West Africa

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: EdTheEdge]
#5374210 - 08/18/12 05:41 AM

I just ordered one!

But couldn't find anything on an extension!

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OldManInHawaii
member

Reged: 03/12/12

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new

[Re: Shawn H]
#5374663 - 08/18/12 12:59 PM

Quote:

I just ordered one! But couldn't find anything on an extension!

The extension is for the Twilight II mount & there's a question as to whether it will fit OK on the Twilight I.

Here's a link: http://store.explorescientific.com/explorescientificaccypierextfortwilightmount.aspx

But $99 is a somewhat expensive price to pay for a few more inches of height & you might consider investigating a more robust tripod. Our local Home Depot hardware store sells a surveyors tripod for $80, and I'm investigating the possibility of adapting it to the Twilight I.

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Shawn H
Postmaster

Reged: 05/16/07

Loc: Equatorial Guinea, West Africa

Re: ES Twilight I alt az mount new